A Conversation with Kenneth Cole
Now What? With Carole Zimmer
Footwear runs in the family. Kenneth Cole’s father had a shoe manufacturing company in Brooklyn. Cole’s brand is also known for the social issues he embraces, from combating HIV/AIDS to calling attention to the stigma of mental illness. The new documentary A Man with Sole looks at how Cole’s company took off after he parked a trailer in front of the Hilton Hotel, installed a red carpet and sold 40,000 pairs of shoes in three days. Cole also figured out how to revive his company when the going got tough. I spoke to Kenneth Cole in his Manhattan headquarters about the rewards of being...
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A Conversation With Laurie Woolever
Now What? With Carole Zimmer
Laurie Woolever was chef Mario Batali’s assistant at a time when his hit restaurant Babbo was attracting celebrity diners vying for reservations. Then she spent almost a decade working for Anthony Bourdain. Woolever made haircut appointments for the TV host in New York and she found places in Singapore or Mumbai where Bourdain could practice Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu when he was on the road filming his long-running TV show Parts Unknown. After the shocking phone call in 2018 letting her know that her boss had taken his own life, Woolever felt lost. In Woolever’s memoir Care and...
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A Conversation with Maira Kalman (Re-Release)
Now What? With Carole Zimmer
Maira Kalman is one of those multi-talented people. She writes children’s stories and books for adults. She’s also a contributor to the New York Times, creates covers for the New Yorker and sets for operas. Her latest book, Still Life with Remorse, includes family stories, paintings and vignettes about historical figures like Leo Tolstoy and Franz Kafka. She also likes to dress up like like those characters and make funny films about them. We spoke in Kalman's Greenwich village studio and laughed a lot about life's craziest moments.“Now What?” is produced with the...
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A Conversation With James Carville
Now What? With Carole Zimmer
James Carville’s nickname is The Ragin’ Cajun. He became famous when Bill Clinton hired him as his lead political strategist in 1992 and Carville helped the guy from Hope beat George H.W. Bush to become the 42nd U.S. president. Carville’s aggressive tactics are highlighted in the documentary “The War Room.” He’s also famous for being part of a couple who are on opposite sides of the political spectrum, former Republican strategist Mary Matalin. Carville now co-hosts the podcast “Politics War Room.” He also spends a lot of time trying to figure out how to help the...
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A Conversation With Larry Charles
Now What? With Carole Zimmer
Larry Charles is a true character. He liked to wear his pajamas to work. He was one of the original writers of Seinfeld. He also wrote and directed Curb Your Enthusiasm episodes. In between, Charles made a movie with Bob Dylan called Masked and Anonymous that was never released. He also directed Sacha Baron Cohen in Borat and Bruno where Cohen ran down the street in an orthodox Jerusalem neighborhood wearing pink hot pants. Larry Charles wrote a memoir called Comedy Samurai. The book is very funny. This conversation is hilarious. “Now What?” is...
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A conversation With Paul Hawken
Now What? With Carole Zimmer
Paul Hawken has racked up several notable accomplishments in his life. As a teenager, in the mid-60s, Hawken headed south to join the civil rights movement. He’s always had a strong sense of social justice and he started several companies that emphasized operating in a socially responsible way including The Erewhon Trading Company, a natural foods wholesaler, and the garden supply company Smith and Hawken. And through it all Paul Hawken Has thought a lot about our environment, the climate and how people relate to one another in their lives. He’s also written more than 10 books. His latest...
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A Conversation With Penn Jillette
Now What? With Carole Zimmer
Penn Jillette and his partner Teller have created one of the most successful and lucrative careers in show business by using mind bending effects and revealing the secrets behind their magic tricks. Teller is the short one with sleight of hand who doesn’t speak. Penn is 6 feet 6 inches tall. He’s the juggler who talks and plays the double bass. They’re the longest-running headliners in the history of Las Vegas and they have a TV show called Penn and Teller: Fool Us. In his spare time, Penn Jillette writes books. His latest is a novel called Felony Juggler. We talk about...
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A Conversation With Alison Bechdel
Now What? With Carole Zimmer
Alison Bechdel is a cartoonist and graphic novelist. She first started getting attention for her comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For and later wrote a graphic memoir called Fun Home which is about her father’s troubled life and her own experience of coming out as a lesbian. In 2015, Fun Home was produced as a Broadway musical and won 5 Tony Awards. Her new graphic novel Spent is about an artist trying to come to terms with her past success. And here’s a spoiler. She includes this in her story but Alison Bechdel doesn’t really run a sanctuary...
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A Conversation with Sophie Gilbert
Now What? With Carole Zimmer
Writer Sophie Gilbert has a theory about the early 2000s. In her new book Girl on Girl, she’s written about some disturbing trends in popular culture focusing on the way that girls were portrayed in magazines and TV shows. Britney Spears, the "Princess of Pop,” appeared on 8 Rolling Stone covers dressed in scanty outfits and striking provocative poses. Lindsay Lohan became a pop idol at the age of 17. Keeping Up with the Kardashians followed Khloe, Kylie, Kris, Kourtney, Kim and Kendall. The reality show glorified celebrity and set what some consider to be unrealistic...
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A Conversation with Amy Irving
Now What? With Carole Zimmer
Amy Irving’s film career soared in the 1980s. She was featured in the film Yentl, a role that earned her an Academy Award nomination. In the movie Crossing Delancey, Irving plays a single woman who falls in love with a pickle merchant. In real life, Irving married Steven Spielberg, a relationship that ended in divorce. She co-starred with Willie Nelson in the film Honeysuckle Rose and that was the beginning of a life-long friendship with Nelson. Irving’s career has shifted away from acting and towards music. She’s got a new album which features Willie Nelson...
info_outlineWe're speeding towards the end of the year, a time for remembering and reflecting. When I think of "Now What?" I think of the extraordinary people I was privileged to speak with this year and that’s why this episode is a Best Of. Jane Fonda, who just celebrated her 87th birthday, shared a lifetime of experiences including information about her sex life. And when you talk about inspiring, there’s no one who shines like Suleika Jaouad. The best-selling writer and painter talks about how an illness she’s been dealing with since she was in her early 20s, has taught her to live in the present. Actor, writer, producer Griffin Dunne tells his story about the triumphs and tragedies of growing up in a celebrity family. “Now What?” is produced with help from Steve Zimmer, Lucy little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.