When Academy Award-winning writer Aaron Sorkin began to craft the characters in his rendition of Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” for the Broadway stage, he honed in on the town’s unemployed villain, Bob Ewell, and gave him real anxieties inspired by today’s right-wing politics. “I'll tell you where I went to find Bob Ewell, Breitbart,” Sorkin tells Salon. “A lot of Bob Ewell's dialogue was written by commenters at Breitbart. I'm not joking.” Ewell is the victim of poverty, Sorkin explained, and he is able to articulate an anger to Atticus Finch that the other Bob Ewells in the book and movie versions of “To Kill a Mockingbird” didn’t touch on. According to Sorkin, Ewell’s thing is, "You think you're better than me? You look down on me. You think you're better than me?" Sorkin also opens up about the long, difficult, and very engaging process of adapting “To Kill a Mockingbird” for the stage, currently on Broadway until September, and how America’s deeply divided politics—including Trump’s presidency, his supporters and liberals, too—all informed and continue to bring new meaning to his version.  --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

Salon Talks

45: Aaron Sorkin reads Brietbart for inspiration

In her new Netflix comedy show, “Mr. Iglesias,” Emmy Award winner Sherri Shepherd plays a high school principal whose efficient, professional life runs at odds with her chaotic personal one. “It’s like they took a page from my book,” Shepherd shared. “She’s been married twice, she’s been divorced twice, and she’s looking for love.”  The brainchild of comedian Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias, “Mr. Iglesias” is simultaneously an old school throwback to the classroom comedies of the “Welcome Back, Kotter” era, a socially conscious satire of modern education and a loving tribute to the teacher who changed Iglesias’s life. It’s a goal that resonates for Shepherd, both as a parent and a woman whose own life was changed by her second grade teacher back in Chicago.  Shepherd also reflects on “The View,” the show she co-hosted from 2007 to 2014, and says it has forever changed talk show TV for women.  --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

44: "The View" alum Sherri Shepherd is done with the drama

Comedian Louie Anderson says his Emmy Award-winning turn as Christine Baskets on the FX series “Baskets” is the role he was born to play. Basing on her on his own mother, Anderson opened up to SalonTV’s Mary Elizabeth Williams on “Salon Talks” about his deeply personal connection to Christine and her evolution over the show’s four seasons. “It was very emotional to shoot this character this year,” he said. “I had a lot of gut punches emotionally. A lot of tough things, where I had to ask myself, ‘Was my mom ever this happy?’” --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

43: The role of Louie Anderson’s lifetime

Author Jennifer Weiner has built a built a career writing the kind of female-friendly, relationship-oriented fiction that typically gets dismissed as "chick lit," with bestsellers like "Good In Bed," "In Her Shoes" and "Little Earthquakes."  She's also spent nearly a decade challenging the elitism and sexism of book publishing and criticism. Her new novel, "Mrs. Everybody" is a culmination of Weiner's work as both a storyteller and a truth-teller, a sweeping multigenerational family saga against a backdrop of 70 years of women's history.  On "Salon Talks," Weiner discusses family, Franzenfreude, and why guys should read "women's" literature. --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

42: Jennifer Weiner was right about sexism and women writers

With his new Netflix film “Always Be My Maybe,” Randall Park has become a full-fledged rom-com leading man. But when he was starting out, the industry didn’t see him that way.  “I came from an Asian-American studies background. I wanted to be an actor because of that,” he recalled to SalonTV’s Mary Elizabeth Williams on “Salon Talks.” “I wanted to go out there and represent. I didn’t realize how little power I’d have in that at the beginning.” Five years later, Park says, he’s at a place where he can tell the stories he wants to tell in his own voice, including a longtime passion project he wrote with and co-stars in with Ali Wong, “Always Be My Maybe,” now on Netflix. --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

41: Randall Park’s Keanu Reeves fantasy comes true

Actor and former “SNL” writer Paula Pell opens up about acting with her hall of fame-worthy, real-life besties, Amy Poehler, Tina Fey, Rachel Dratch and Maya Rudolph in Netflix’s "Wine Country.” The women escape to Napa for a milestone 50th birthday and Pell's character, Val, a wisecracking vintage shop owner, gets in touch with her vulnerable side when she strikes up a flirtation with a younger waitress.  "It's so nice in this movie, because so much of any writing with gay characters usually was — and sometimes is still is — 'Here's the gay character! Here's the other! We'll tell their story about  gay love or gay divorce!' No, it's a woman who was with the same person many years and is now looking to the future,” Pell said. --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

40: How “SNL” comedian Paula Pell got her mojo back

CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta investigates the epidemic level that constant stress is having on Americans’ health today in his latest project, the HBO documentary “One Nation Under Stress,” available now. On “Salon Talks,” he shares his personal tips for controlling stress and regaining control amidst life’s unpredictable stressors. The film goes deep on why Americans are experiencing decreased life expectancy today, and how the root causes are all stress-related, self-inflicted conditions, including opioid overdose, alcohol-related liver cirrhosis, obesity and suicide. “You have plenty of examples around the world of truly capitalistic societies that do not suffer the way the United States is suffering right now,” Dr. Gupta shared. “They continue to have increasing life expectancy, they continue to have decreasing mortality and decreasing levels of stress. The United States is unique in this regard and that's the part that fascinated me the most.” --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, Facebook and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

39: Stress is killing us: Dr. Sanjay Gupta diagnoses the cause—and cures

Emilio Estevez set his latest film “The Public” in a library “to remind people just how vital and important libraries are,” he shared on “Salon Talks.” Estevez wrote, directed and stars in the film, a David and Goliath story about mental illness, homelessness and democracy. “The Public,” was shot in and around Cincinnati on a tight 22-day schedule, with its public library as the centerpiece of the film. Supported by talents like Alec Baldwin, Jena Malone, Christian Slater, Gabrielle Union, and Jeffrey Wright, the film took seven years to make, and began after Estevez read an LA Times article by a former librarian about how the public library system had become a de facto sanctuary for many homeless people, and librarians the de facto social workers.  Estevez also opened up growing up with a dad Martin Sheen, who took pride in demonstrating for causes, often getting arrested because of it. “When my dad would get arrested, I didn’t really understand it. I understood it fundamentally, but I didn’t always agree with it. I thought, ‘what if you took that same energy and made a movie about what you believed in, couldn’t you reach a broader audience?’” --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, Facebook and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

38: Emilio Estevez wants to save libraries

Number one NYT bestselling author Harlan Coben has sold millions of books, been translated into 43 languages, and had his works adapted into film and television shows around the world. Yet the New Jersey native, whose newest novel is the twisty thriller "Run Away," never takes success as a sure thing, he shared on “Salon Talks.” "I still get paralyzed every day when I write," he told SalonTV’s Mary Elizabeth Williams. "I've written 31 novels; you'd think I'd be past that. I get mad at myself. I'll be writing and think, 'This book stinks.' Five minutes later, I'll think, 'This book is genius.' There's a lot of self-flagellation. That goes on every day." His advice for aspiring authors is to remember, "We all get paralyzed. You have to fight through that paralysis. Turn that voice off. Don't worry about good or bad it is yet. Anything that makes you write those pages, do it. It may be an art, but you have to treat it like a job. The plumber can't say, 'Today I'm too important to do pipes.'"  About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

37: After 30 bestsellers, Harlan Coben is still insecure

Chelsea Handler credits President Donald Trump with triggering her “big catharsis” this past year, she explains to Salon’s D. Watkins on “Salon Talks.” Handler’s new memoir “Life Will Be the Death of Me,” her sixth book, offers both hilarious and vulnerable reflections on her Trump-activated midlife crisis. Following Trump’s inauguration, the comedian embarked on a year-old commitment to therapy. She asked herself, “What am I doing? I'm in my 40s. What is my identity? How tied to fame am I? Is this the most important thing? Is this the only thing I'm gonna be known for is having a television show?” Handler details how a year of tuning in awoke the underlying traumas in her life, including losing her older brother Chet tragically during childhood. “I don't want everybody to go through life the way that I did from nine to 40, completely blocking out any sort of trauma,” Handler said. “I didn't wanna address it, I didn't wanna talk about it. That's not the way you should go through life, so I think I finally had something that I could share that I thought would be important.” --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and YouTube and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, Facebook and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

36: Chelsea Handler’s midlife crisis

Emmy Award winner Jeff Daniels shares the story of how Aaron Sorkin first approached him about starring as Atticus Finch in his Broadway version of "To Kill a Mockingbird.” Daniels, along with his Broadway co-star Celia Keenan-Bolger, who plays Scout, discuss on “Salon Talks” how they prepared for their roles.  Daniels also opens up about craving roles that test him emotionally. "After 'Newsroom,' I'm of the age where, if I'm not challenged, I just lose interest,” he said. “I was not going to be that actor standing next to some 28 year old making ten million who barely knows his lines and I'm playing his father. All of a sudden, here's Atticus Finch, and you're going up against Gregory Peck on Broadway in this whole new adaption? Let's rise to that."  Daniels and Keenan-Bolger are both nominated for Tony Awards this year. About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, Facebook and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

35: Why this iconic role called Jeff Daniels to Broadway

After more than four decades in the fashion industry, Diane von Furstenberg understands what she's famous for — her iconic wrap dress. "People say I made the dress," she tells Salon. "The dress really made me. It paid my bills, it took me everywhere. I learned about life and I learned about women."  The legendary designer is also an author, a business leader, the official godmother of the Statue of Liberty (thanks to her work launching a new museum in her honor) and a tireless champion of other women. Nearly 10 years after von Furstenberg helped launch the DVF Awards to honor "the women who have had the courage to fight, the strength to survive, and the leadership to inspire," she opens up to Salon about this year’s recipients, which include lifetime leadership award winner, Anita Hill.  --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

34: Designer Diane von Furstenberg on honoring women who “all remind me of my mother"

Jesse Eisenberg talks to Salon about "The Hummingbird Project,” OCD, "Zombieland, and why he’s very aware that he is a Jesse Eisenberg type. The 35-year-old Oscar-nominated actor has built a career as a nervous guy with a mile-a-minute mind, whether that guy is Mark Zuckerberg or Lex Luthor. And while he tells Salon, "I think of myself as a basic, unremarkable person,” the writer and director gets deep about what he looks for a role and what he hopes his characters teach viewers about humanity.  --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

33: Jesse Eisenberg has a type: Liars, Wall Street jerks and "Jesse Eisenberg types"

In a wide-ranging interview with Salon's D. Watkins, John Turturro talks aging, dancing, acting, basketball and working with Spike Lee. Turturro admits that he’s grown tremendously as an actor over the course of his prolific career, including in his most-recent role where he plays a 50-something divorce looking for love in “Gloria Bell." When asked about his character’s ability to grow, Turturro made real-life comparisons. “People don't change, but they can grow, you can grow,” he explained. For Turturro, it’s more than just a character arc. “You're not a different person. You're born a certain way and then you grow and can make changes within your life.” --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

32: How John Turturro got his moves, from "Do the Right Thing" to "Gloria Bell"

“I'm hoping that people's popcorn gets jolted out of their hands and gets thrown in their chest.” This is director Steve McQueen’s vision for audiences of his new heist-thriller “Widows,” starring Viola Davis. The Academy Award winner appeared on “Salon Talks” to discuss his first feature film since winning the best picture Oscar for “12 Years A Slave.” McQueen, who co-wrote “Widows” with Gillian Flynn and produced on the project, calls it a “rollercoaster ride” that most audiences will need to watch a second time to fully grasp every visual moment. “You're propelled into the movie from the get-go,” McQueen told Salon. “That's what I wanted. I want to bring people immediately into the narrative. It's sort of a visualist experience.” --- About “Salon Talks” Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com. Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube. Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

31: Steve McQueen on casting Viola Davis in "Widows": “There's depth, there's weakness, there's vulnerability”

Through insightful interviews and conversations with entertainment leaders, elected officials, and experts we dive into realms of politics, culture and science.

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Salon Talks

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