This episode was originally released on January 6, 2015. Listen to help prep for the next episode of our new season, The Old Man is Still Alive.This is the story of how Bette Davis evolved from a wannabe starlet who was constantly told she was too ugly for movies, to the most powerful woman in Hollywood, by playing heroines that had never been seen on screen ... Show More
Mar 2025
William Wyler 1965-1971 (The Old Man is Still Alive, Part 10)
For over 40 years, William Wyler was one of Hollywood’s most dependable classicists, culminating in 1968 with the ultimate New Hollywood-era throwback to Old Hollywood, Funny Girl. Then, for his final film in 1970, Wyler uncharacteristically directed a searing indictment of conte ... Show More
1h 3m
Mar 2025
Henry Hathaway (The Old Man is Still Alive, Part 11)
Henry Hathaway started directing in the early 1930s and though he made movies of all genres, he was particularly associated with Westerns. This allowed him to ride out the 1960s making pretty much the same kinds of movies with the same stars (Gregory Peck, Robert Mitchum) that he ... Show More
1h 12m
Mar 2025
Flashback: Marilyn Monroe – The End
This episode was originally released on March 21, 2017. Listen to help prep for the next episode of our new season, The Old Man is Still Alive.How did a star whose persona seemed to be all about childlike joy and eternally vibrant sexuality die, single and childless, at the age o ... Show More
48m 13s
Aug 2018
Episode 167: Riverdon't
In this episode Ru and Michelle discuss losing friends on the journey, riding the train, lessons from motown stars, the pressures facing children of famous folk, Whitney Houston, and Walton Goggins.This episode is sponsored by Squarespace, Greats, and Warby Parker.
1h 10m
Jul 2019
Summer of ‘69: Judy Garland, Death of a Starlet
This episode is brought to you by The Dark Side Of, a Parcast Original. For more episodes like this one, subscribe to The Dark Side Of on Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
In 1939, 16-year-old Judy Garland began filming the Wizard of Oz. While the film would become a b ... Show More
47m 30s
Sep 2022
Barbie Block and Sally Stiner Meet World
<p>Barbie Block and Sally Stiner were the storied casting directors for Boy Meets World and now they’re revealing how the Matthews family, and so many more of their classic TV shows, came together! </p> <p>They’ll talk auditions, missed opportunities and even their side of the in ... Show More
1h 10m
Dec 2023
The Story of Elvis Presley's Christmas Recordings By a Man Who Was There
On this episode of Our American Stories, Greg McDonald got his start in show business as a teenager after meeting Elvis Presley and his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, shortly after Parker began managing Elvis in the ‘50s. Here’s Greg with a Colonel and Elvis Christmas story. Suppor ... Show More
7m 59s