Booth One - Celebrating Culture And Conversation

Happy Anniversary to us as we celebrate our 25th Episode of Booth One! Sing along with the Flintstones as we toast a milestone in our podcast history. Sing Along Here As a token of this momentous occasion, Gary presents Roscoe with a "silver" quarter from the state commemorative collection, worth at most .25 cents.  Don't spend it all in one place, Roscoe. It's a Gallimaufry show today (gal·li·mau·fry ɡaləˈmôfrē/noun: plural noun: gallimaufries 1. a jumble or medley of things. 2. a dish made of diced from minced meat, especially a hash or ragout), as Gary and Roscoe explore a variety of topical subjects and current trends. First, a thank you to Episode 24 guest Melanie Neilan read bio for being so gracious and entertaining. This is proving to be one of our most listened-to episodes. We're certain that this young actress has an amazing career ahead. And a touch back to the famous Fairy Castle of silent screen star         Colleen Moore. Roscoe and Gary pledge to make a field trip to the Museum of Science a

Booth One comes to you Live! from Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago.  Read all about this Tony Award-winning Chicago theatre company and its wonderful ensemble and staff here. We invited actress Melanie Neilan, currently appearing in the hit Bruce Norris play Domesticated, to join us for the podcast. See a montage of images from the show or click here to read more about Domesticated's great cast and crew. Melanie has immense talent and gifts - fluent in seven languages, a purple belt in karate, an accomplished ballerina, singer, pianist, stage and film performer - all at the tender age of 19! And she is a lot of fun! Check out her bio here: Melanie Neilan Melanie shares stories of her stage and film acting career, and Gary and Roscoe engage her in some Booth One highjinx. Is it possible to "catch" another person's phobia? That's Melanie's challenge as Gary recounts the discovery of a new shark species that glows in the dark!  read more. Great, now the sharks have learned to be stealthier!         We

Happy New Year, Podcast listeners! Welcome to 2016 and a special episode of BOOTH ONE. Frequent listeners of our show will be familiar with Writers Theatre of Glencoe, IL [check out the Writers website], where Gary and Roscoe have seen some marvelous productions of dramatic and musical literature over the years. We recently had the great good fortune to sit down with Writers founder and Artistic Director, Michael Halberstam to discuss a wide range of topics, including the new multi-theatre complex scheduled to open in March 2016. Learn more. Michael talks about Writers' history and future, the relationship between audience and actor, what makes great theatre, scale and intimacy, his strongest influences and the crucial role of art and artists in the 21st Century. We discuss Michael's recent collaboration with Tyrone Phillips and the wonderful new Definition Theatre Company read more here, and why mentoring and giving back to new generations of theatre artists is so vital to the culture. We hope you enj

A hearty Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to our fans and listeners! Gary and Roscoe celebrate their first holiday podcast with Seasons Greetings!  Need an Elf name? The official Santa's Elf Name Generator (Like this  Or this) helps Gary and Roscoe find just the right moniker for their North Pole residency. Frank Capra figures prominently in today's episode, so we're introducing a new segment inspired by the wonderful 1941 film Meet John Doe. More about the film It's the character of "Sourpuss Smithers" read more, and it gives Gary and Roscoe a chance to air their pet peeves of the week. Roscoe's is all about the misuse of language, while Gary can't bear waiting in line. Tune in for more of what makes us sourpusses in future episodes. Happy Birthday, Frank Sinatra!  He'd be 100 today. It was a very good century... Broadway openings this week include Al Pacino in China Doll Variety review, and Jennifer Hudson in The Color Purple NY Times review.   Plus School of Rock, the Andrew Lloyd Webber  mu

It's the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas and Gary and Roscoe are in festive moods. They relate their favorite decorations and where you can see the best of the holiday season in Chicago. Roscoe visited the 40th Annual Lillstreet Holiday Show & Sale and he has a particular take on the goings on. read more here It's time to call a spade a spade and stop pussyfooting around with sharks! Sydney Morning News writer Frank Robson makes his case for ending the "encounters" terminology and just calling an attack an atack. "If we consistently offer ourselves up for a mugging in their shadowy world, chances are that one of them will eventually oblige." Full story Who needs long-running shows? Chicago does! Gary and Roscoe discuss the closing of Million Dollar Quartet after 8 years, and whatever happened to sit-down companies, both Broadway-style and off-Loop. City Center Encores! will present a series of talk shows about musical theatre entitled "Unscripted", streamed live on line from NYC and later availab

Gary and Roscoe are joined once again by old friend George from Midlothian as we discuss a wide range of topics on this, our 20th Episode! Thank you loyal listeners and fans for getting us this far. We plan to be around for many more. Gary gets Roscoe's and George's take on the three-ring circus clown car that is the GOP Presidential Debate scene. Get a Republican POV Gary's Keys to the Carly this week is that she looked more "human" than in the last debate. Not saying much considering her dismal 7% poll rating among GOP debate viewers.  Read a fascinating account of Presidential debates throughout history written by dear friend of the show, Newt Minow here. The boys talk about the shocking and unbelievable developments in the case of Fox Lake police officer Joe Gliniewicz... ...and this week's revelations that has the entire community stunned and feeling betrayed. Full story Need some help with your turkey? The friendly folks at Butterball's Turkey Talk-Line will give you advice and assistance with your

Gary and Roscoe are in full Halloween mode as they pay tribute to the holiday with some last-minute costume ideas. Check out Sam Apple's hilarious suggestions for ways to be the talk of the party here. We begin with a heartwarming (yes!) story about a shark in Florida who may have saved Eugene Finney's life. Finally, a friendly shark tale! full story Gary talks about Carly Fiorina's declining poll numbers and wonders how much longer she will remain relevant enough to keep the "Keys to the Carly" segment topical. Roscoe thinks "not much longer." Unless she starts spending her money on something other than very questionable hair styling. see up to date polling numbers here Further developments in the case against former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert and the money laundering case against him. Could it be that his recent guilty plea will provide the means to cover up his alleged child sexual abuse crimes?  Sounds like a betrayal of the public trust to us. Ross reminds us that his sister, who lives near Y

We are beyond thrilled to feature an interview with hero to the show, Margalit Fox! Brought to you from the newsroom of the New York Times. Margalit is the author of most of the obituaries Gary chooses to read during "Kiss of Death," the concluding segment of each show episode. He selects them based on his fascination with the lives they depict and how beautifully they are written. Having the chance to talk with her at the Times was, as he says on the show, "one of the great Booth One experiences of my life!" Before we get to that interview, Gary and Roscoe continue to describe experiences from their recent visits to New York City. Roscoe recounts seeing Therese Raquin, starring Keira Knightly; Drop Deap Perfect by the Peccadillo Theatre Company; and The Humans by Stephen Karam. About the playwright  He has great anecdotes about one-on-one encounters with Karam before and after the show.     Gary shares his thrilling experience at the Cafe Carlyle seeing Kurt Elling and his band in an intimate settin

Gary and Roscoe "start spreadin' the news" of their separate New York excursions to see what's happening on Broadway and around the Big Apple. First, Gary updates us on what's new with fact-challenged Carly Fiorina in this week's "Keys to the Carly."  Allergic to saying things that are true? Carly's Pack of Lies And beware those freshwater swimming excursions - conclusive evidence of Gary's contention that sharks are everywhere! read more at your peril     Gary and Roscoe recount their Booth One experiences at a number of theatrical events and discuss the many plays and musicals they saw in New York.       The Fantasticks, The King and I, Fool for Love, Fun Home, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Something Rotten, Brian d'Arcy James read more, The Gin Game, King Charles III         Gary and Brian d'Arcy James visiting in Brian's dressing room after Something Rotten. They last worked together on an Irving Berlin review at CSO.                A shout out to Ali McGr

We're re-branding!  TalkSports is now BOOTH ONE!  Named in honor of the famous "Booth One" at the Pump Room in the former Ambassador East hotel in Chicago's trendy River North.  It was for decades the most sought-after seat in the house, as those celebrities seated there could be seen from the lobby, the bar and the rest of the room. [Booth One]  We strive to bring you the finest Booth One experiences as we explore the worlds of Culture and the Arts.  See our ABOUT page for more... In this week's Keys to the Car-ly segment, we review Ms. Fiorina's performance on the recent GOP debate and the many "mic drop" moments she claims to have scored during the proceedings.  Did her campaign staff get it right?  What is a mic drop moment? Roscoe falls on his sword while issuing some corrections to misinformation about Cinecon given in Episode 15.  Despite the errors, we are still in awe of his silent film knowledge and he continues to amaze with his Gary and Roscoe preview the upcoming Broadway and Chicago theatre se

Grammy-winning jazz vocalist Kurt Elling  sits down with Gary to discuss a broad range of topics.  With Roscoe at Cinecon, Gary flies solo in this one-on-one interview session. Learn more about Kurt in this bio from a recent concert and at KurtElling.com Gary gives a little background on his friendship with Kurt. One highlight was when Kurt sang the first dance at Gary and Betsy's wedding reception almost 10 years ago. Gary requested the classic 1952 song, That's All,  written  by Allen Brandt & Bob Haymes. First sung by Nat King Cole in 1957, it has been covered by an amazing group of artists such as Frank Sinatra, Mel Torme and Judy Garland. See list. Here is Kurt singing with his then 3-week old daughter Luiza, accompanied by the magnificent Becky Menzie. (Beckie and Tom Michael also sang many favorites at our very musical reception.) Thanks to our friend and audio engineer extraordinaire, John, we are lucky enough to have a recording from that day. Gary asked Kurt if we could share it on the show and

Roscoe talks about his impending annual trip to the Cinecon Film Festival. Very exciting. We introduce a new segment called Keys to the Car-ly highlighting the "questionably brilliant" things Carly Fiorina, GOP Prez candidate, has to say about leadership, women and world affairs.  Warning:  this could be frightening to young children and rational adults! The winner of the Gift Card to restaurant Acanto is friend of the show.................................Dan Michel!  Congratulations, Dan, and enjoy your meal!  Acanto Home Roscoe and Gary recount their experience at the recent Kurt Elling concert with the Grant Park Orchestra and Gary announces that Kurt will be our special guest on the next podcast!  It should be a cool one!  Kurt Elling's website Roscoe expounds on his upcoming trip to L.A. for the annual Cinecon Film Festival. Highlights include restored silent pictures, recently found footage, stars Lee Tracy filmography, Jack Mulhall Full profile, Oscar-winner Jane Darwell Full profile, Jack Dem

As promised in our first episode, George Schlichter joins us today! Friends since college - Gary, Roscoe and George share memories and a few laughs in this lucky Episode 13. They went to Illinois Wesleyan, Gary and Roscoe majoring in theatre and George in English. George talks about his college stage debut in Waiting for Godot. They have all been roommates at various times and have tales to tell. George and Roscoe were sharing an apartment in Chicago in 1993 when Roscoe made a brief but successful return to the stage. A highlight was his role in Bailiwick Repertory's Don Juan on Halsted. Tony Adler's review suggested that Roscoe's character "deserved a sequel all to herself." (read more here) Roscoe describes having found the unexpected ability to move like Margot Fonteyn in 5-inch heels. His rave reviews for this and other roles during his comeback were very exciting. He remembers George calling him, "the toast of two continents." Roscoe gives an update on his circus training. We got the Actor's Gymnasium'

Our very special guest, Sylvia Hernandez-DiStasi, Co-Artistic Director & Co-Founder of the Actors Gymnasium and choreographer of the Lookingglass Theatre production of Moby Dick, stops by for an in-depth interview about circus, performance, training and flying! We are so excited to have Sylvia as our guest on the show today. Gary and Roscoe have just seen the sensational Moby Dick, adapted and directed by David Catlin. Read one of the "through the roof" reviews here. Hedy Weiss. Here are a couple of quotes from that review we couldn't agree with more: "Lookingglass Theatre’s world premiere production of Moby Dick is a triumph of grand theatrical imagination, deep thought, superb acting and eye-popping, ingeniously deployed physical daring." AND "As a co-production with the Actors Gymnasium, it also is shot through with astonishingly original aerial choreography by Sylvia Hernandez-DiStasi, and its fearless, acrobatic cast brilliantly captures the grueling and perilous labor of life aboard a whaling ship."

"Battling Bogarts" Gary and Roscoe discuss their recent thrilling Booth One experience with Stephen Sondheim. Huge thanks to Ed Uhlir for making that possible! They talk about the Grant Park Music Festival's concerts on July 10 & 11,  A Sondheim Celebration, directed and conducted by long-time Sondheim collaborator and musical director, Paul Gemignani. Paul included some gorgeous musical suites to highlight the artistry of the orchestrators and arrangers who collaborate with Sondheim. The show's orchestrators included Jonathan Tunick, Don Sebesky and Michael Serabin. Tunick is one of 12 people to have won all four major show business awards. His list of stage credits is staggering. Speaking of great Broadway credits, read about Don Sebesky's.  We also had the pleasure of hearing the work of Michael Starobin, who did the orchestration for Sunday in the Park with George. Read his bio. These concerts were made possible by Perry & Marty Granoff and the Ted & Mary Jo Shen Gift Fund. Read about their "Musical Th

Gary and Roscoe welcome special guest Alpana Singh, owner/proprietor of The Boarding House and 7 Lions restaurants and master sommelier. Learn More They discuss her restaurants, local food trends, wine, the James Beard Awards, Chicago tourism and running marathons. Alpana talks about going out to eat with her mother and how from that experience, she fell in love with restaurants. Gary plays “Stump the Sommelier” with Alpana, asking her to pair unusual foods available at Taste with the appropriate wine choice. She does a wonderful job!  Food Vendors Kiss of Death Omar Sharif, iconic leading man and film legend, passes into history.  Actor, raconteur, womanizer and bridge champion, Sharif lived life to the fullest. Full Story

Live from the 2015 Taste of Chicago’s Food for Thought Podcast Tent, with special guest Larry Neumann, Jr. Gary and Roscoe talk about the history of Taste and 35 years of food, fun and entertainment. History We review the various food and vendor stands at this year’s Taste and discuss our favorites. 5-day restaurants, Pop-Up Restaurants, Food Trucks   Read some fascinating SPAM history here. Cultural Update: Roscoe’s NY trip; Sondheim at the Grant Park Music Festival; “Frank” Lloyd Webber; Larry Neumann Jr. discusses what’s not to be missed in summer theatre in Chicago including  Moby Dick and All Our Tragic. Larry tells us how his scene in a Ron Howard movie wound up on the editing room floor: The Dilemma; and how Meg Tilly tried to kill him in another: Ball in the House. Kiss of Death Don Featherstone, inventor of the Pink Flamingo lawn ornament, dies at 79; altered the landscape of mid-century America. Read Margalit Fox’s celebration of his life: Full Story

Gary and Roscoe announce their upcoming appearances at the 35th Annual Taste Of Chicago on July 8 & 10. See the complete Taste Daily Schedule here. Iconic silent screen child star Baby Peggy is profiled with a very personal viewpoint and in-depth analysis from Roscoe. Read full article The Northwest Chicago Film Society has a new home and announces their 2015 line-up of films, from Technicolor to 80’s realism. Read more The Tony Awards are over and we recap the 69th annual awards show. The Tonys In our Cultural Update segment, Gary and Roscoe review the Theo Ubique production of A Marvin Hamlish Songbook .  And take a trip to Chicago Shakespeare Theatre to hear about their new original musical Sense and Sensibility. Read more Kiss of Death A moment of silence for screen legend Christopher Lee and actor Ron Moody, the definitive Fagin in Oliver! on stage and film.  James Last – A titanic, Teutonic Mantovani! The Guardian Vincent Musetto – NY Post Editor who wrote the most anatomically evocative headl

Gary and Roscoe discuss Amish Acres in Nappanee, Indiana. All inclusive packages of 2 days, 1 night for $99 and a boatload of special features. Plus a live stage show at the Round Barn Theater. We’re going! Visit Amish Acres The strange and enigmatic case of Dennis Hastert. read more here We actually talk some sports!: Go Chicago Blackhawks! Can people be bribed into quitting smoking? Read more about this study Sheldon Harnick and Harold Prince reminisce about Fiddler on the Roof as a prelude to the new Broadway revival Read the full interview Roscoe makes his predictions for the Belmont Stakes and the Tony Awards Kiss of Death: Oldest Person in the World dies...again!  Too soon, too soon. Jim Bailey, female impersonator of Las Vegas and television fame. Read obit.   Margalit Fox profiles the life of legendary folk singer Jean Ritchie

Gary recounts the story of Grayson Shepard, who when fishing in the Gulf of Mexico for invasive lion fish, was surprised by a Great White Shark. He somehow wasn't injured, but got some great video of the encounter. check it out on YouTube Roscoe's cultural update: They went to see a semi-staged performance of Mack & Mabel at Porchlight, featuring some gorgeous Jerry Herman songs, such as I Won't Send Roses. read more here FX is developing a 10-episode series called American Crime Story: The People vs. OJ Simpson. It's going to have an amazing cast, with Cuba Gooding, Jr. as Simpson, Sarah Paulson as Marcia Clark, and David Schwimmer as Robert Kardashian. cast list Our very first guest is renowned Chicago actor, Larry Neumann, Jr. He has appeared in over 75 professional productions, and in just about every theater in Chicago. Here is an amazing "representative" list. He was also part of the cast of the Goodman Production of The Iceman Cometh that traveled to B.A.M. earlier this year. Larry went to college