The Sport of Life: Chats w/ Comedians, Filmmakers, Sports Figures, Musicians, & Intellectuals

Renowned film critic and historian Leonard Maltin chats with Trey Elling about STARSTRUCK: MY UNLIKELY ROAD TO HOLLYWOOD. Topics include: What was the first film that made him fall in love with movies? (02:47) How did he start expressing his passion for tv and cinema through the media? (07:15) How did he land the Entertainment Tonight gig in the 1980s? (14:06) Why did Burt Reynolds threaten to punch him out at the Golden Boot Awards? (16:30) What is the film class he has taught at USC for more than two decades, and why does he love it? (21:53) What is Mel Brooks like to be around? (26:26)

Renowned psychiatrist and medical director of Stanford Addiction Medicine Dr. Anna Lembke chats with Trey Elling about DOPAMINE NATION: FINDING BALANCE IN THE AGE OF INDULGENCE. Questions include: What is dopamine, and what does popular culture get wrong about it? (01:27) How does the dopamine economy play into the compulsive abuse of substances and activities? (03:59) How has helicopter parenting contributed to the rise of compulsive behaviors? (05:42) Is mental illness that requires medication being overdiagnosed? (07:08) How do pleasure and pain work like a balance in our brains? (07:49) What effect does gambling have on dopamine release, and how might that help explain social media addiction? (10:53) How does learning increase dopamine firing? (14:48) What is dopamine fasting? (16:55) How does pain become pleasurable? (23:06) Why do people respond so positively to 'radical honesty'? (26:08) What is prosocial shame, and how can parents implement it with their children? (28:16) What is the proper point of moderation? (32:11)

Tony-winning actor of stage and screen, singer, activist, and writer Alan Cumming chats with Trey Elling about BAGGAGE: TALES FROM A FULLY PACKED LIFE. Questions include: Why was he in such a bad headspace at the age of 29, and what led him to changing his course? (04:46) Around this time, he and his brother confronted their dad about the abuse he subjected them to. How'd that go? (07:03) How big was it to land the role of Sandy Frink in ROMY AND MICHELLE'S HIGH SCHOOL REUNION? (09:55) What was his first impression of Stanley Kubrick on the set of EYES WIDE SHUT, and how'd that experience positively impact him? (15:10) Is there a profound aspect of starring in CABARET on Broadway that he doesn't get to speak about enough? (19:14) How'd it go when Alan and his castmates, clad in their superhero outfits, confronted Bryan Singer on the set of X2: X-MEN UNITED? (23:20) What does his husband Grant mean to him? (26:23) What did he learn about himself from researching the book? (27:26)

Cartoonist, illustrator, writer, and former circus clown Joe Lee chats with Trey Elling about the graphic novel he wrote and illustrated, titled FORGIVENESS: THE STORY OF EVA KOR, SURVIVOR OF THE AUSCHWITZ TWIN EXPERIMENTS. Joe shares the details of Eva's life, which proves inspirational as a result of unfathomable trauma and tragedy at the hands of the Nazis during World War II.

Zoologist and bestselling author Bill Schutt chats with Trey Elling about PUMP: A NATURAL HISTORY OF THE HEART. Their discussion starts the importance of the hearts and circulatory systems of blue whales, horseshoe crabs, squids and octopuses, giraffes, crocodiles, and bats. Plus the ins and outs of the human heart, including the evolution of our understanding of this crucial muscular organ.

Cannabis journalist Josiah Hesse chats with Trey Elling about RUNNERS HIGH: HOW A MOVEMENT OF CANNABIS-FUELED ATHLETES IS CHANGING THE SCIENCE OF SPORTS. The guys discuss the physiology behind "the runner's high", the comprehensive nature of our internal cannabinoid system, the demonization of cannabis in the early 1900s after it had been used as a plant medicine for thousands of years, research over the past 70 years that is correcting the 'lazy stoner' trope, the convoluted logic behind World Anti-Doping Agency labelling cannabis as a performance-enhancing drug, and more.

Dr. Cassandra Leah Quave, who serves as the herbarium curator and associate professor of dermatology and human health at Emory University, chats with Trey Elling about THE PLANT HUNTER: A SCIENTIST'S QUEST FOR NATURE'S NEXT MEDICINES. The book chronicles Dr. Quave's efforts to unite Eastern and Western medicines through an understanding of the medicinal powers of plants, a path inspired by her own experience in dealing with unique medical difficulties since birth.

Adventurer, mountaineer, writer, filmmaker, and environmentalist Rick Ridgeway chats with Trey Elling about LIFE LIVED WILD: ADVENTURES AT THE EDGE OF THE MAP. Rick tells Trey about numerous jaw-dropping experiences he's gone through in the mountains, oceans, and everywhere in between. Occasionally these expeditions would literally become life-and-death, with Rick surviving while his friends did not. How did he cope with such traumas, and what lessons did he learn along the way? Rick discusses these things and much more.

Intel, military, and law enforcement veteran and bestselling author Myke Cole chats with Trey Elling about THE BRONZE LIE: SHATTERING THE MYTH OF SPARTAN WARRIOR SUPREMACY. In both the book and this chat, Cole explains why much of what modern society believes about this seemingly-superhuman group of people in ancient times is greatly exaggerated.

Former FDA high-ranking official and expert on food safety and nutrition Richard A. Williams chats with Trey Elling about FIXING FOOD: AN FDA INSIDER UNRAVELS THE MYTHS AND THE SOLUTIONS. Williams provides a comprehensive look at the bureaucracy behind  decisions made at the agency responsible for food and drug safety in the US. The rationale and influence behind policies aren't always pure, which led to RIchard arguing from a statistical argument why something did (or didn't) make sense for the public.