Audio Excerpt: "The Case of the Missing Chacmools"
Alta Podcast
Alta Journal contributor Geoffrey Gray investigates Carlos Castaneda's bizarre cult and finds himself entangled in a web of murky financial dealings, sex, and possible foul play. In this 4-minute audio clip, Gray reads from "The Case of the Missing Chacmools." To read the entire article, visit altaonline.com
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826 Valencia Voices
Alta Podcast
This very special Alta podcast welcomes young authors and poets from 826 Valencia, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting under-resourced students with their writing skills. Today, we’re meeting at 826’s Tenderloin location with four students whose work has appeared on the 826 Valencia podcast, “Message in a Bottle." Our guests include Sara, age 10, Dax, age 12, Emily, age 13, and Julissa, who’s 18.
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Safe Space for the Mobile Homeless
Alta Podcast
Everyone likes a good news — and we're delighted to include some today. Our guest is Bonnie Tsui, a journalist, author and Alta contributor. In our Winter 2020 Issue, Bonnie reports on a program in the Monterey peninsula that offers safe parking lots to homeless people living in their cars. She’s here today to discuss that program—and to provide an update on one of the people profiled in her article.
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The Tomb of the Unknown "Wetback"
Alta Podcast
How does the death of an immigrant killed in the 1950's by Anaheim police and a 2019 family funeral converge into one incredible moment for Gustavo Arellano? He joins the Alta podcast to explain.
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Recorded Live: Jazz Singer Paula West Gets Personal
Alta Podcast
You've never heard Paula West like this before. In this episode, recorded on November 13, 2019 at Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley California, West discusses her process—and her politics— in this intimate evening of conversation and music. West, who was backed by a jazz trio as she performed a number of songs, was also interviewed by journalist Marcus Crowder in front of a packed house of Alta members. This event was inspired by Crowder’s profile of West in Alta’s Fall 2019 issue.
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Hummingbirds Are Fascinating. Really.
Alta Podcast
Today's guest is Jason G. Goldman, a science journalist, author, and expedition leader based in Los Angeles. He is one of the authors of the newly released "Wild L.A.: Explore the Amazing Nature In and Around Los Angeles. Jason has written a number of stories for Alta, including two cover stories. His latest for us focuses on UC Riverside researcher Chris Clark, whose research on hummingbirds is changing the way we understand the species.
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Can Cancer Be Funny?
Alta Podcast
Can cancer be funny? Author Mary Ladd and illustrator Don Asmussen certainly think so. The pair, both of whom have fought (and are fighting) cancer diagnoses, join the Alta podcast to laugh in the face of deadly disease and discuss their book, “The Wig Diaries.”
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Nick Neely Follows the Footsteps of Portolá
Alta Podcast
Burger King, loneliness, binoculars, and camp coffee; it was all part of Nick Neely's quest to better understand California. Neely is a California-based author whose book, Alta California, chronicles his 12-week hike from San Diego to the San Francisco Bay. Neely followed the (nearly) exact footsteps of Gaspar de Portola and his 1769 overland expedition of soldiers and priests intent on claiming California for Spain and establishing the West's Catholic mission system.
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Mr. Peace on Modern Resistance
Alta Podcast
David Harris is former contributing editor to the New York Times and to Rolling Stone, and he is the author of nearly a dozen books—but Harris is most famous for leading the draft resistance during the Vietnam War. He was imprisoned for 20 months for refusing to report for military service, and is credited by many with helping to end the war. We joined Harris to discuss his work, his thoughts on the state of union, and how a terminal illness hasn’t dimmed his hope for the future.
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Renaissance of the Written Word
Alta Podcast
The Fall, 2019 issue of Alta features the magazine’s first standalone section on books and literature spearheaded by our books editor, David Ulin. In this podcast, we’ll explore how Alta’s Book Guide came to fruition with Ulin, as well as hear from included authors Carolina De Robertis, Matthew Zapruder. According to Ulin, now is absolutely the right time for Alta to invest our ink in covering literature.
info_outlineThink you know Jack (London)? Think again. Writer Joy Lanzendorfer joins us to discuss the tragedy that broke the famed author's heart, his complexities, passions, and untimely death. In our Summer 2019 issue, Joy details author Jack London’s rise from abject poverty to become the highest paid author of his day. With his success, London saw his dreams come true, and then watched one of them — the dream for his own beautiful mansion — burn to the ground before he ever got a chance to live in it. Joy is an award-winning writer and novelist, with bylines in The New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Review of Books and now, Alta.