The Colin McEnroe Show

Did you get enough sleep last night? If you're like most Americans, probably not. You might feel pretty good after six hours of sleep and a strong cup of coffee, but the physical and mental toll of sleep deprivation is high. We become more impulsive and less mentally agile, and we make more mistakes. Long term, lack of sleep (six hours or less per night) can mess with mood, hormones, and immune systems, and it can increase our risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease. There are lots of things we can't control that keep us up too late, such as crying babies and shift work. But there are lots of things we can control, like how much caffeine we consume and whether we take our phone to bed. But somewhere along the way, our culture made less sleep a matter of personal virtue and moral judgement. Even naps are frowned upon for all but the youngest and the oldest among us. GUESTS: Maria Konnikova - A journalist, professional poker player, and the author of The Confidence Game and Mastermind: How To Think Like Sherlock Holmes Dan McNally - A doctor with the Sleep Disorders Center at UConn Health Todd Pitock - Journalist Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe, Cat Pastor, and Catie Talarski contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Reality TV shows like the Discovery Channel's Doomsday Bunkers and National Geographic Channel's Doomsday Preppers perpetuate a stereotype of "preppers" that omits the wide swath of people who engage in preparedness in a less extreme and more varied way. Talk of nuclear war, climate apocalypse, pandemic, economic instability, and the decline of democracy has led more people to think about how to survive a catastrophic -- if not apocalyptic -- event. Do you buy organic food? Will you drink only bottled water? Do you avoid antibiotics? You may not have an underground bunker but you might have a generator, short wave radio, extra batteries and a supply of canned foods. This hour, we dive into the real world of "preppers." GUESTS: Tea Krulos - A freelance journalist and the author of Apocalypse Any Day Now: Deep Underground with America’s Doomsday Preppers Mike Davidson - A metal fabricator and member of Zombie Squad Jon Stokes - Founder of Ars Technica and the deputy editor of The Prepared Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, which originally aired May 8, 2019.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

America got (more) serious last week about COVID-19. Schools and colleges closed, workers went remote, professional sports teams canceled their seasons, theaters and restaurants closed their doors, and Americans hunkered down at home to reckon with the fragility of life as we know it. We want to hear from you. Colin and an epidemiologist answer your questions. Also this hour: Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden debated one-on-one Sunday in Phoenix before Tuesday's primaries in Arizona, Florida, Illinois, and Ohio. Did they forget the last three weeks happened? GUESTS: Joseph Vinetz - Professor of infectious diseases at Yale University Edward-Isaac Dovere - Host of the The Ticket podcast; he's writing a book, You Are Right to Be Concerned: Democrats in Crisis in the Trump Years Daniel Pollack-Pelzner - The Ronni Lacroute Chair in Shakespeare studies at Linfield College Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

John McPhee is a writer's writer. He's thought of as one of the progenitors of the New Journalism, of creative nonfiction or narrative nonfiction, along with people like Gay Talese and Tom Wolfe and Hunter S. Thompson. But his style is... quiter than those folks'. His writing is transparent. He tends to keep himself out of the narrative. He doesn't even, in fact, have an author photo. McPhee has written for The New Yorker since 1963, and he's taught writing at Princeton University since 1975. He is the author of 32 books, including Coming Into the Country, A Sense of Where You Are, Oranges, and Annals of the Former World, which won the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction. GUEST: John McPhee - Staff writer at The New Yorker and the author of 33 books; his latest are Draft No. 4: On the Writing Process and The Patch Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe contributed to this show, which originally aired September 28, 2017.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When you think of taxidermy, you may imagine a trophy room in which mostly male hunters have mounted the heads of 12-point stags along wood-paneled walls. If so, your image would be incomplete. Taxidermy has gone through many iterations since gentleman scientists turned to taxidermy to understand anatomy during the Enlightenment. Victorians added a touch of whimsy, decorating their homes with birds under glass and falling in love with Walter Potter's anthropomorphized cats. Later still, Norman Bates shifted the cultural understanding of taxidermy from art to something more macabre after he (spoiler alert) taxidermied his mother in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. Today, animal-loving millennial women are taking taxidermy to new levels of artistry and craftsmanship, from rogue taxidermists who mix and match animal parts to the mallard wing bridal veil of a couture taxidermist. In the end, isn't taxidermy about immortality and how we choose to remember? GUESTS: Kristen Arnett - The author of Mostly Dead Things Beth Beverly - A couture taxidermist and the owner of Diamond Tooth Taxidermy John Whitenight - The author of Under Glass: A Victorian Obsession Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter Colin McEnroe, Jonathan McNicol, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, which originally aired December 5, 2019.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is it safe to say that we're not yet ready to kiss and make up with the banks whose reckless behavior led to the 2008 financial crisis? A little contrition would go a long way to helping us forgive and forget. That's not happening, at least not with Deutsche Bank, the preferred bank of Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein. Deutsche Bank lent money to rogue states that funded terrorist activities that hurt U.S. soldiers. They laundered money for Russian oligarchs, sold securities they knew were bad, gave out multimillion-dollar bonuses, and fired whistleblowers who tried to tell. They lent money to Donald Trump, despite his repeated defaults on his loans, and Jeffrey Epstein long after he was shunned for molesting young girls. You may wonder how this could happen. Basically, a massive lack of accountability on behalf of the Central Bank, the Federal Reserve, shareholders, board members, and the federal government. That's a lot of people. No wonder Elizabeth Warren threatened to take on the big banks. GUESTS: David Enrich - Business investigations editor at The New York Times and the author of Dark Towers: Deutsche Bank, Donald Trump, and An Epic Trail of Destruction Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Take a few seconds to reminisce about your childhood "best friend." Maybe it was a boy, a girl, an imaginary friend, or perhaps a stuffed toy. This stuffed toy was your childhood confidant that you dragged everywhere, from the local supermarket to the preschool sandbox, a transitional object that temporarily stood between you and your relationship with your parents. If you still have your stuffed toy, has it managed to maintain its shape, color, and lovable button eyes, despite numerous indignities? Or has it endured frequent trips to the stuffed animal hospital, otherwise known as the washroom and the sewing machine? Why do you still hold onto this friend from your childhood? Our relationship with stuffed toys is a subject of curiosity. While they make act as a child's first companion by contributing to life's teachings, is there an age that children need to let go of their stuffed friends? Some adults continue to hold onto their stuffed animals, either for comfort or retention of their childhood memories, but is there an attached stigma with these comfort objects? This hour, we focus on the allure of these transitional objects, why we continue to hold onto them, and how they are helpful in overcoming trauma. We also speak with a "travel agent" who journeys around Japan to provide stuffed animals with a truly cultural experience. GUESTS: Mark Nixon - Author and photographer of Much Loved Catherine Pisacane - Founder and executive director of Project Smile Sonoe Azuma - Founder and CEO of Unagi Travel Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Katherine Peikes produced this show, and Colin McEnroe, Greg Hill, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, which originally aired July 24, 2014.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Italians fled northern Italy Sunday after Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte imposed a lockdown to slow the spread of coronavirus Covid-19, which has killed 366 residents to date. The government banned all public gatherings including concerts, sporting events, religious services, and weddings until April 3. Scientists say one of their biggest concerns is preventing the virus from spreading faster than our health systems are prepared to handle. Dr. Anthony Fauci said regional lockdowns similar to the one in Italy could become necessary in America as the virus infects more people.  Are we prepared?  The Grand Princess cruise ship that has been sitting off the coast of California is scheduled to dock in Oakland, CA on Monday. There are at least twenty-one passengers and crew members infected with Covid-19 among the more than 3,500 passengers. The Trump Administration still doesn't have a plan on how to test and treat those on board. Some say the President's mismanagement is making things worse.  Also this hour: panic shopping.  GUESTS: Carolyn Canuscio is Associate Professor of Family Medicine and Community Health, Section on Public Health, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania (@carolyncannu) Dan Diamond reports on health care politics and policy for Politico and is the author of Politico Pulse (@ddiamond) Helen Rosner is a food correspondent for The New Yorker (@hels) Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Katy Perry dropped a new single and video (which we apparently call a "visual" now) on Wednesday night. The video ends with what's being called "a stunning reveal." And: A pair of new comedy specials caught the Nose's eye. Pete Davidson's Alive in New York on Netflix and Whitmer Thomas's The Golden One on HBO are both kind of... sad-funny? Funny-sad? And maybe in a particularly millennial way. Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: Public Enemy Fire Flavor Flav After Bernie Sanders Rally Spat"Public Enemy and Public Enemy Radio will be moving forward without Flavor Flav," group says. "We thank him for his years of service and wish him well" James Lipton, Creator and Host of 'Inside the Actors Studio,' Dies at 93 Long-rumored Woody Allen memoir is coming in April, despite #MeToo Knicks, Spike Lee in war of words following incident with Madison Square Garden security A Genesis Reunion Is in the Air Tonight Jeopardy! Host Alex Trebek Shares One-Year Update on His Pancreatic Cancer Diagnosis William Shatner gets horse semen in divorce settlement The Kids in the Hall to Return to Amazon With New Episodes Will Studios Delay Films Like 'F9', 'Wonder Woman 1984', and 'Black Widow' Due to the Coronavirus? Here Are Their Current Plans Pain Check: Ben Affleck’s Press Tour for 'The Way Back' Is an Exercise in BleaknessThe movie, which stars Affleck as a recovering alcoholic in a failing marriage, apparently hits a little too close to him BTS Is Peaking. What Comes Next?"Map of the Soul: 7" demonstrates how the superstar K-pop group has grown into a musical monolith -- and what it might have to leave behind. The Fashion World, Upended by CoronavirusThe growing coronavirus threat chased the luxury fashion world from Milan to Paris. A real crisis looms for designers, retailers and shoppers. 'Light Is My New Drug'The actually convincing science of light therapy. 'Candyman' Trailer: Say Farewell to the Flesh All Over Again GUESTS: Lucy Gellman - Editor of The Arts Paper and host of WNHH radio's Kitchen Sync Mark Oppenheimer - Editor-at-large for Tablet Magazine and host of the podcast Unorthodox, among a bunch of other stuff Mercy Quaye - Founder and principal consultant for The Narrative Project and a columnist with Hearst Connecticut Media Group Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The movie musical died a long, slow death a long time ago. Right? Well, except that there's La La Land. And Moana. And The Greatest Showman and A Star Is Born and Mary Poppins Returns. Oh, and Bohemian Rhapsody and Rocketman. And Frozen II and The Lion King and Aladdin. Those are just from the last five years. And I could keep going, but then I might forget to mention that Steven Spielberg's version of West Side Story comes out this year or that the Hamilton movie comes out next year. This hour, a long look at the long-dead movie musical. Long live the movie musical. (Oh! And In the Heights comes out this summer too. There are just a lot of musicals still right now at this point. Is what I'm saying. Ya know?) GUESTS: Jeanine Basinger - Founder of the Department of Film Studies at Wesleyan University and the author of twelve books on film; her latest is The Movie Musical! Steve Metcalf - Director of the University of Hartford's Presidents' College Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.