Episode 353
with Glynn Washington, Ariel Levy, Baratunde Thurston, Elna Baker, and John Craigie
In this special “Leftovers” edition of Live Wire, host Luke Burbank offers up a smorgasbord of cutting room floor delights. Snap Judgment host Glynn Washington crafts cocktail-related stories, a hypnotist helps Elna Baker discover she has 11 fingers, futurist comedian Baratunde Thurston stands his intellectual ground, Ariel Levy evaluates the credibility of some celebrity factoids using only her journalistic instinct, and folk troubadour John Craigie performs the tune, “I Am California.”
Glynn Washington
Host
Before creating the Snap Judgment radio show, Glynn Washington worked as an educator, diplomat, community activist, actor, political strategist, fist-shaker, mountain-hollerer, and foot stomper. Glynn composed music for the Kunst Stoff dance performances in San Francisco, rocked live spoken word poetry in Detroit, joined a band in Indonesia, wrote several screenplays, painted a daring series of self portraits, released a blues album, and thinks his stories are best served with cocktails. Website • Twitter
Elna Baker
Writer
Elna Baker is a writer and comedic storyteller. She’s a regular contributor on This American Life and has appeared on The Moth Radio Hour, Prairie Home Companion, BBC Radio 4, All Things Considered, WTF with Marc Maron, Studio 360, The Joy Behar Show and in the book The Moth: 50 true stories. She’s written for ELLE, Glamour, Men’s Journal, O Magazine, Rookie, Refinery29, More Magazine and xoJane.com. Her memoir The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance was published by Penguin, earning four stars in People Magazine and the 2010 AML award for best humor writing. She currently scouts stories for This American Life and performs throughout NYC. Website • Twitter
Baratunde Thurston
Comedian
Baratunde Thurston holds space for hard and complex conversations with his blend of humor, wisdom, and compassion. Baratunde is an Emmy-nominated host who has worked for The Onion, produced for The Daily Show, advised the Obama White House, and wrote the New York Times bestseller How To Be Black. He’s the executive producer and host of How To Citizen with Baratunde which Apple named one of its favorite podcasts of 2020. Baratunde also received the Social Impact Award at the 2021 iHeartRadio Podcast Awards on behalf of How to Citizen with Baratunde. In 2019, he delivered what MSNBC’s Brian Williams called “one of the greatest TED talks of all time.” Baratunde is unique in his ability to integrate and synthesize themes of race, culture, politics, and technology to explain where our nation is and where we can take it. Website • Twitter
Ariel Levy
Writer
Ariel Levy joined The New Yorker as a staff writer in 2008. Her subjects for the magazine have included the South African runner Caster Semenya, the artist Catherine Opie, the swimmer Diana Nyad, and Edith Windsor, the plaintiff in the Supreme Court case that brought down the Defense of Marriage Act. Levy won a 2014 National Magazine Award for essays and criticism for her essay “Thanksgiving in Mongolia,” and guest-edited “The Best American Essays 2015.” She is the author of the New York Times best-seller “The Rules Do Not Apply,” and her first book was “Female Chauvinist Pigs.” Before joining The New Yorker, she was a contributing editor at New York for twelve years.
John Craigie
Folk Artist
John Craigie will take you on an unexpected journey. Known for his Americana style and clever observations, Craigie carries on the legacy of classic singer-songwriters – with his own twist. A Portland local who The Stranger called “the lovechild of John Prine and Mitch Hedberg,” he’s toured with Jack Johnson and received fan mail from Chuck Norris. His fifth full-length album, No Rain, No Rose boasted two collaborations with Gregory Alan Isakov, namely “Highway Blood” and “I Am California.” Both quickly cracked One Million Spotify streams and counting as his knack for a captivating narrative and rustic aural palettes powered the 13-track offering together. So hop on board – we’re going wherever he takes us. Listen • Insta
