The Bat Segundo Show was a long-running cultural radio program devoted to quirky and very thorough long-form interviews with contemporary authors, idiosyncratic thinkers, and other assorted artists. Guests included David Lynch, Octavia Butler, John Waters, John Updike, Stephen Fry, Marilynne Robinson, Karen Russell, Weird Al Yankovic, Robert A. Caro, and more than 500 others. There was also a program called Follow Your Ears, which was a thematic investigative counterpart, in which I pursued a specific subject through several angles. The entire archive of what I did from 2005 to 2014 is included here.
Stewart O’Nan is the author of Last Night at the Lobster. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Permitting authors to depict his sad quotidian life. Author: Stewart O’Nan Subjects Discussed: The anonymous perception of the service sector, avoiding legal clearances from the Red Lobster, personal loyalty and honor vs. corporations, High Noon, the advantages of a setting […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 38:01 — 34.8MB)
MoreWill Self is the author of Psychogeography and The Book of Dave. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Frightened by walking and crosswalk signals. Author: Will Self Subjects Discussed: The overlapping relationship between The Book of Dave and Psychogeography, topographical narrative, Nicholson Baker, Nabokov’s rule about topographical necessity and novels, John Updike’s Brazil, the Post-It notes in […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 42:33 — 39.0MB)
MoreGarth Risk Hallberg is the author of A Field Guide to the North American Family. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Considering alternatives to artsy-fartsy books. Author: Garth Risk Hallberg Subjects Discussed: Authoring a conceptual book with veto power over the designer, family detachment, cross-references, Bay Area literary magazines, the McSweeney’s influence, Em Magazine, book art practitioners, […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 49:45 — 45.5MB)
MoreYannick Murphy is most recently the author of Signed, Mata Hari. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Abdicating any and all Mata Hari dreams for a far more noble ideal. Author: Yannick Murphy Subjects Discussed: The juxtaposition of first person, second person, and third person within Signed, Mata Hari, the loss of Mata Hari’s voice within the […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 34:16 — 31.4MB)
MoreRoy Kesey is most recently the author of All Over and Nothing in the World. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Wondering if Roy Kesey is a “real” Roy. Author: Roy Kesey and Dan Wickett Subjects Discussed: Writing stories in Beijing, exotic stories, conversational vs. descriptive stories, Carlo Ginzburg, working from pre-existing conversations, text that kick-starts a […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 39:17 — 36.0MB)
MoreAndrea Barret is most recently the author of The Air We Breathe. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Praising the smell of authors. Author: Andrea Barrett Subjects Discussed: The similarities between pre-World War I and contemporary environments, stumbling upon 1916, sanatoriums, The Magic Mountain, ethnic backgrounds, dwelling upon immigrants and working class backgrounds, blowhard intellectuals, cure cottages, […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 37:57 — 34.7MB)
MoreTom McCarthy is most recently the author of Remainder. (This is the second part of a two-part interview with Tom McCarthy. To listen to Part One, go here.) Condition of Mr. Segundo: Baffled by French artistic references. Author: Tom McCarthy Subjects Discussed: Guns and weapons, the smell of cordite, authenticity, Remainder‘s protagonist as revolutionary, the […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 35:31 — 32.5MB)
MoreTom McCarthy is most recently the author of Remainder. (This is the first of a two-part interview with Tom McCarthy. To listen to Part Two, go here.) Condition of Mr. Segundo: Pondering whether he may be a reenactment. Author: Tom McCarthy Subjects Discussed: Really good rhubarb tarts, cappuccinos and loyalty cards, the relationship between caffeine […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 37:36 — 34.4MB)
MoreUrsula Hegi is most recently the author of The Worst Thing I’ve Done. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Contemplating the worst thing he’s ever done. Author: Ursula Hegi Subjects Discussed: Collage artist protagonists and collage-inspired novels, stream of consciousness and italics, using specific fonts, Mason’s voice as a pulse, how Hegi communicated with typographers, the problems […]
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MoreRichard Russo is most recently the author of Bridge of Sighs. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Spending the days sighing. Author: Richard Russo Subjects Discussed: The origins of Bridge of Sighs‘s dual narrative, writing a long novel without an end in sight, Byron, characters who approach Lucy’s elbows, a protagonist’s blind spots, Marconi — the character […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 40:20 — 36.9MB)
MoreOliver Sacks is most recently the author of Musicophilia. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Dwelling upon the rotten fruit that comes from musical relationships. Author: Oliver Sacks Subjects Discussed: Musicophilia, emotional responses in patients with dementia and Tourette’s, an amazing musical rendition from Alzheimer’s patient Woody Geist played by Dr. Sacks on his CD player, the […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 34:18 — 31.4MB)
MoreJames Lipton is most recently the author of Inside Inside. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Stepping away to preserve his dubious legacy. Author: James Lipton Subjects Discussed: Lipton’s balance between writing about Inside the Actors Studio and writing about himself, throwing actors out of the Actors Studio, whether or not Lipton is still perfecting aspects about […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 53:53 — 49.3MB)
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