Ted and Woody are back together to bring you a brand new podcast from Team Coco! It’s called “Where Everybody Knows Your Name with Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson (Sometimes)" and it’s out right now! They’re talking to guests like Conan O’Brien, Will Arnett, Jane Fonda, Billy Eichner, Kristen Bell, and so many more. Head over to “Where Everybody Knows Your Name with Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson (Sometimes)" to subscribe and listen now!

Are we, in fact, living in a time of revolution? What it means and what you can do about it, according to one of MIT’s greatest thinkers. Power and Progress: Our 1,000-Year Struggle Over Technology & Prosperity

A man who looms as large as Karl Marx needed multiple Significant Others (although when it came to wives, he only had one). Starring Ted Danson as Karl Marx, Maddie Ogden as Jenny von Westphalen, and Patton Oswalt as Friedrich Engels.Also featuring Katie Sharer and Matt O’Brien. Source List:Love and Captial: Karl and Jenny Marx and the Birth of a Revolution by Mary Gabriel, ©2011, Hachette Book GroupEngels by Terrell Carver, ©2011, Oxford University PressRevolutions Podcast, Season 10Reason.org, Don’t Blame Karl Marx for ‘Cultural Marxism’The Washington Post, “Love and Capital: Karl and Jenny Marx and the Birth of a Revolution,” by Mary GabrielNational Library of Medicine, Friedrich Engels: Businessman and RevolutionaryBritannica, Young HegeliansCCSNA.org, Duke of ArgyllMarxist.org, Yearning: A Romance, The Holy Family or Critique of Critical Criticism, The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte. Karl Marx 1852History.com, Paris Commune of 1871

What is a fan to do with unsavory intel on their idol? Is it possible to separate the art from the artist? Should we even try?Claire’s book, Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma is out now.

Lover and muse to multiple artists, Gala notoriously spit on people she didn’t like—or worse. Her marriage to the renowned artist Salvador Dalí was as surreal as his paintings, which he signed with both of their names even though she never held a brush.Starring Laura Ramoso as Gala Dalí and José  Arroyo as Salvador DalíAlso featuring Stephen K. Amos, Nigel Daly, Neve O’Brien, and Tavis Doucette Source List:MUSE: Uncovering the Hidden Figures Behind Art History’s Masterpieces by Ruth Millington, ©2022, Pegasus Books, Ltd.The Lives of the Muses: Nine Women & the Artists They Inspired by Francine Prose, ©2002, Harper Collins E-booksThe Secret Life of Salvador Dali by Salvador Dali, Trans. By Haakom M. Chevalier, ©1993, Dover PublicationsBiography.com, The Surreal Romance of Salvador and Gala DalíThe Paris Review, When Your Muse is Also a Demonic DominatrixThe Art Story, Gala Dalí: Russian-Spanish Art Patron and MuseWikipedia, Gala DalíFahrenheit Magazine, Anna María and Salvador Dalí, Different Paths for the Same BloodThe Dalí Org, Gala DalíPoetry Foundation, Paul ÉluardThe Art Story, Salvador DalíBriannica, Salvador DalíEl País, Dalí and Lorca’s Games of SeductionGazette du Bon Ton, The Surreal Life of Salvador DalíArt Hive, Love Story in Pictures: Salvador Dalí and GalaTime, Salvador Dalí The New York Times, Gala Dalí’s Life Wasn’t Quite Surreal, but It Was Pretty StrangeYang Gallery, Dalí & Gala: The Love Story

Sandra Newman was given one assignment by the Orwell Estate: Re-write 1984 from the point of view of the character Julia.Julia: A Retelling of George Orwell’s 1984

George Orwell has never been accused of being a feminist. And yet his wife Eileen left her mark on his most important works.Starring Sally Drexler as Eileen Blair and Nigel Daly as George OrwellAlso featuring: Ben Partridge, Luke Millington-Drake, Thom Wickes, Amelia Chappelow, and Colin Anderson. Source List:Eileen: The Making of George Orwell by Sylvia Topp, © 2020 Wifedom: Mrs. Orwell’s Invisible Life by Anna Funder, © 2023Orwell: The Life by D.J. Taylor, © 2003, Published 2015 by Open Road Integrated MediaOrwell: The New Life by D.J. Taylor, © 2023, Published by Pegasus Books, Ltd1984 & Coming Up For Air by George Orwell, © 2021 by True Sign1984 & Animal Farm by George Orwell, © 2022, Sanage PublishingThe Guardian, Looking for Eileen: how George Orwell wrote his wife out of his storyThe New York Times, One Biography Questions Orwell’s Image, and Another Brings His First Wife Into FocusNew Humanist, Eric, Eileen and NorahThe American Scholar, Down and OutThe Guardian, Orwell by DJ Taylor Review - A Very English SocialistThe Orwell Foundation, Remembering Eileen: An Interview with George Orwell’s Son, Richard BlairThe New York Times, How ‘Orwellian’ Became an All-Purpose InsultOnline Etymology Dictionary, OrwellianThe Sydney Morning Herald, The Mysterious Absence of George Orwell’s First WifeThe Guardian, Another Piece of the PuzzleThe Orwell Society, Eileen - and Orwell’s Shifting Attitudes on Gender IssuesThe New Yorker, Honest, Decent, WrongThe Article, In Defense of George Orwell

The one who does the work is not always the one who gets the glory. Also… what is an orchestrator, anyway? Find Fernando’s work on his Instagram here

Did Duke Ellington really used to say: “He does all the work and I take all the bows?” One thing’s for sure—neither man would have had the career he did without the other.Starring Fat Tony as Billy Strayhorn and Open Mike Eagle as Duke EllingtonAlso featuring: Sasheer Zamata, Sam Sanders, JaRon Ferguson, Miles Gross, Chris Hayes, and Tavis Doucette Source List:Lush Life by David Hajdu, ©1996, North Point Press, 18 West 18 Street, NY NY 10011Something to Live For: The Music of Billy Strayhorn, by Walter van de Leur, ©2002, Oxford University PressBeyond Category; The Life and Genius of Duke Ellington by John Edward Hasse, ©1993, Da Capo PressMusic is my Mistress by Duke Ellington, ©1973, Da Capo PressJUST JAZZ No. 3, Ed. Sinclair Traill and The Hon. Gerald Lascelles, ©1959, Four Square Books, Landsborough Publications Ltd, 173 New Bond Street, London, W.1JUST JAZZ No. 4, Ed. Sinclair Traill and The Hon. Gerald Lascelles, ©1960, Pub. Souvenir Press Ltd, London, WC1 and Canada, The Ryerson Press, Toronto, Printed GB by Clarke, Doble & Brendon, Ltd, Oakfield PressJazzProfiles, Billy Strayhorn - The Bill Coss InterviewNational Jazz Archive, Duke EllingtonCBC News, Billy Strayhorn, Duke Ellington’s ‘right arm’, to be paid tribute to at Capilano University concert The New Yorker, The Hot Bach - IThe New Yorker, The Hot Bach IIYouTube, Duke Ellington Interview by Jack Cullen 1962Colburn, Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington’s Collaboration

Creator and host of the podcast Philosophize This!, Stephen West, on how long-dead philosophers can still offer guidance in a modern world.

Friedrich Nietzsche spent the final years of his life incapacitated by illness while his sister bent his works to her use as a social-climbing fascist.Starring Laura Ramoso as Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche and Flula Borg as Friedrich Nietzsche.Also featuring Matt Gourley, Jessica Chaffin, and Anja Albertson. Source List:Nietzsche’s Sister and the Will to Power by Carol Diethe, First Illinois Paperback, ©2007, ©2003 by the Board of Trustees of the University of IllinoisI Am Dynamite!, by Sue Prideaux, ©2018, Tim Duggan Books, an imprint of The Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New YorkIn Emergency, Break Glass: What Nietzsche Can Teach Us About Joyful Living in a Tech-Saturated World, ©2022 by Nate Anderson, WW Norton & CoThe Making of Frederich Nietzsche: The Quest For Identity 1844-1869By Daniel Blue , ©2016, University Printing House, Cambridge CB2, 8BS United KingdomThe Anti-Christ, Ecce Homo, Twilight of the Idols And Other Writingsby Frederich Nietzsche, Edited by Aaron Ridley and Judith NormanCambridge University Press, ©2005Haaretz, Was Nietzsche Hitler’s Spiritual Godfather?Big Think, How the Nazis Hijacked Nietzsche, and How it Can Happen to AnybodyThe Guardian, Far Right, Misogynist, Humorless? Why Nietzsche is MisunderstoodThe Nietzsche Channel, Nietzsche’s Writings as a StudentStanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Friedrich NietzscheThe New York Times, Rocken Journal, No Superman, Perhaps, but the Titan of his Townhttps://www.philosophizethis.org/Cambridge University Press, Friedrich NietzschePhilosophize This!London Review of Books, It Wasn’t Him, It Was HerBritannica, Return from Exile of Richard Wagner

Amelia Earhart’s husband George Putnam didn’t invent ghostwriting, but he relied on it heavily to produce his best-sellers. What kind of job is ghostwriting today?

The man who made Amelia Earhart famous may also have gotten her killed. But their marriage was completely on her terms.Starring John C. McGinley as George Palmer Putnam and Christa Miller as Amelia Earhart.Also featuring Conan O’Brien, Neve O’Brien, Tavis Doucette, Maddie Ogden, and Miles Grose. Source ListAmelia Earhart, A Biography by Doris L. Rich, ©1989, 2010 by the Smithsonian InstitutionThe Sound of Wings by Mary S. Lovell, St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, NY, NY, 10010 ©1989 Letters From Amelia by Jean L. Backus, Beacon Press, ©1982 Soaring Wings by George Palmer Putnam, Manor Books Inc., ©1939, ©1967 by Margaret H. Lewis, Published by arrangement with Harocourt, Brace, Jovanovich, Inc. Wide Margins, a publisher’s autobiography by George Palmer Putnam, ©1942, Harcourt, Brace and Company, NYEAST TO THE DAWN,The Life of Amelia Earhart by Susan Butler, Da Capo Press, ©1997 Whistled Like A Bird by Sally Putnam Chapman, Warner Books, Inc., Hachette Book GroupProject Muse, “The Earhart Phenomenon and the “Accident of Sex” PBS, “American Experience: Amelia Earhart”“Amelia Earhart’s Last Flight” by Judith Thurman, The New Yorker, Sept. 7, 2009National Air and Space Museum, Earhart and George Palmer PutnamNew England Historical Society, Amelia Earhart, Reluctant BridePurdue University, Putnam, George Palmer, 1887-1950CT Insider, Amelia Earhart’s ‘Secret’ Connecticut Wedding: From the ArchivesUPI, Husband of Missing Flier Earhart Secluded After Long VigilThe New York Times, 1932: I’m Not ‘Mrs. Putnam,’ I’m Amelia EarhartPBS American Experience, Amelia Earhart Program TranscriptPalmer, Amy Phipps Guest PortraitHistory.com, Charles Lindbergh Completes the First Solo, Nonstop Transatlantic FlightCharles Lindbergh House and Museum, New York-to-Paris FlightBritannica, Charles Lindbergh, American AviatorNASA.gov, Realizing the Dream of FlightMedium, Ghostwriters in 2020: The Current Trends and BeyondThe New York Times Archive, Tuesday, June 19th, 1928. Wednesday, June 20th, 1928.Flight Paths: Purdue University’s Aerospace Pioneers, The Earhart Brand: Amelia Earhart’s Impact on Celebrity CulturePBS, Navigating the Truth Behind Amelia Earhart and Fred NoonanGhost Writing and History by Ernest R. May,  ©1953, The American Scholar, Published By: The Phi Beta Kappa Society

Founder and host of the podcast Making Gay History, Eric Marcus, on Rustin’s heir and the stewardship of his legacy.

The architect of the March on Washington and co-author of Dr. King’s memoir was a mentor to the great civil rights martyr. But he was nearly hidden from history—largely by choice.Starring: J. Holtham as Bayard Rustin and Anthony Obi as Martin Luther King, Jr. Also featuring: Miles Grose, Matt Gourley, and Jesse Thorn. Source List:The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, Bayard Rustin, To Bayard Rustin, Glenn E. Smiley, From Bayard Rustin, Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., Address at NAACP Mass Rally for Civil RightsFacing History & Ourselves, Brother Outsider: Remembering Gay Civil Rights Leader Bayard RustinLambda Legal, 67 Years Later, Bayard Rustin’s California Arrest and Jail Time Have Been PardonedJewish News Syndicate, Bayard Rustin (1912-1987)Bill of Rights Institute, Bayard Rustin, Nonviolence vs. Jim Crow, 1942PBS.org., Who Designed the March on Washington?The Weekly Challenger, The FBI Plot to Bring Down the Gay Man Behind the March on WashingtonMaking Gay History, Bayard RustinWashington Blade, Looking Back: 50 Years of the BladeThe Washington Post, Bayard Rustin, Organizer of the March on Washington, Was Crucial to the Movement, In ‘I Must Resist,’ Bayard Rustin Lived a Life with No Apologies Montgomery Advertiser, 21, 22, 23, & 24 February 1956Cross Country Solidarity, The Montgomery Bus Boycott: The Full StoryLA Times, Glenn Smiley; Advised King on NonviolenceThe Guardian, When Martin Luther King Gave Up His GunsWhy a Gay, Black Civil Rights Hero Opposed Affirmative ActionMalcolm X and Bayard Rustin Debate on WBAICivilRights.org, Bayard Rustin and the Presidential Medal of Freedom: A Perfect FitYale Law School, Bayard Rustin CentennialResearchgate.net, Arrest Record for Bayard RustinAdam Clayton Powell Jr.Beacon Broadside, Roy Wilkins’s Reluctant Tribute to W.E.B. Du BoisLegal Defense Fund, Brown v. Board of EducationGreensboro.com, Thurmond, FBI Had Close Ties, Records ShowThe New York Times, Negro Rally Aide Rebuts SenatorI Must Resist, Bayard Rustin’s Life In Letters, Ed. Michael Long, City Lights Books, ©2012Lost Prophet: The Life and Times of Bayard Rustin by John D’Emilio, Free Press/Simon & Schuster, ©2003ALABAMA V. KING, By Dan Abrams and Fred Grey with David Fisher, Harlequin Enterprises, Ltd., ©2022 Martin Luther King, Jr., Homosexuality, and the Early Gay Rights Movement By Michael Long, First published by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN, a division of St. Martin’s Press, ©2012Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference by David J Garrow, ©1986, Edition published 2015 by Open Road Media 

Author Sarah Vowell on the particular struggles women faced in revolutionary America and how Peggy Shippen’s environment influenced her decisions.Sarah’s books can be found here.

Benedict Arnold is famous for betraying his country–but it was his wife who made the treason possible.Starring: Susan Yeagley as Peggy Shippen and Andy Richter as Benedict Arnold. Also featuring: Luke Millington-Drake, Jim O’Heir, Matt Gourley, and Roman Mars. Show notes:John Andre sketch of Peggy ShippenSource List:American Battlefield Trust, Peggy Shippen, 10 Facts: Benedict Arnold and Peggy Shippen, Benedict ArnoldHistory.com, Benedict ArnoldNew York Historical Society, Life Story: Margaret “Peggy” Shippen ArnoldNational Endowment for the Humanities, Love and the RevolutionMassachusetts Historical Society, Letters from John Adams to Abigail AdamsNPS.gov, Benedict ArnoldHistory.com, Why Benedict Arnold Tried to Capture QuebecThe George Washington Presidential Library, Joseph ReedMedium.com, The Highest-paid Spy in the American RevolutionBrobeck, Stephen. “Revolutionary Change in Colonial Philadelphia: The Brief Life of the Proprietary Gentry.” The William and Mary Quarterly, vol. 33, no. 3, 1976, pp. 410–34. JSTORBenedict Arnold, Patriot and Traitor by Willard Sterne Randall, ©1990 by Willard Sterne Randall, 2001 Dorset PressDefiant Brides: The Untold Story of Two Revolutionary-Era Women and the Radical Men They Married, Nancy Rubin Stuart, ©2013 by Nancy Rubin Stuart, Beacon Press

Significant Others is back for season 2! Starting February 14th, join Liza Powel O’Brien as she explores more stories of the little-known individuals just beyond the spotlight of history. Would Benedict Arnold have betrayed his country were it not for his wife, Peggy? Who is really to blame for Friedrich Nietzche’s connection to Nazism? Find out when Significant Others returns, February 14th with new episodes every Wednesday and follow-up episodes on Thursdays.

In our final bonus episode before the new season, Liza is joined by psychoanalyst and couples therapist Dr. Susan Flinn to explore the significant others within ourselves and how they impact our relationships. They also discuss this idea of our ideal self, our ideal mate, and how these can set us up for disappointment. Season 2 premieres on February 14th! Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

In this month’s bonus episode, Liza is joined by Liza Mundy, journalist and author of the book, The Sisterhood: The Secret History of Women at the CIA, to discuss the profound influence women have had at the CIA from it’s creation in 1947 to present day in the post-9/11 world. Liza Mundy shares how women fought to become operatives, facilitated their husband’s spy careers, and tracked down Osama Bin Laden. We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

In this month’s bonus episode, Liza is joined by Dr. Emily Wilson, the first woman to translate Homer’s The Odyssey into English. Liza and Dr. Wilson explore the vital but often underrecognized role of a literary translator, why she set out to translate The Odyssey and The Iliad, and the attention she pays to characters who historically have been dismissed in these works.We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

In this bonus episode, Liza is joined by Academy Award-winning screenwriter Eric Roth to discuss the often invisible craft of screenwriting. Eric shares his process of adapting a book to film, the relationship between screenwriter and director, and what it was like working with Martin Scorsese on Killers of the Flower Moon.We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

In this month’s bonus episode, Liza is joined by Benjamin Binstock, art historian and author of Vermeer’s Family Secrets: Genius, Discovery, and the Unknown Apprentice, to discuss the historical examination of Vermeer’s works and the possibility that perhaps there was another hand at play. We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

Bonus Episode: Laurie Sandell on Ruth MadoffIn this month’s bonus episode, Liza is joined by Laurie Sandell, author of Truth and Consequences: Life Inside the Madoff Family, to discuss Ruth Madoff and her role in the Madoff scandal. Laurie and Liza dive into who Ruth Madoff was as a person, her relationship with Bernie, and if she has any regrets.We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

On this month’s bonus episode, Liza is joined by Dr. Mali Heled Kinberg, UCLA faculty lecturer and holder of a doctorate in English Literature from Cambridge University, to discuss the fascinating and unique relationship between literary giant James Joyce and his partner, Nora Barnacle. Liza and Mali explore Nora’s profound influence on her husband and the scandalous letters the two exchanged throughout their relationship.We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

In this month’s bonus episode, Liza is joined by Marc Grossman who was speechwriter, press secretary, and personal aide to Cesar Chavez for 24 years. Marc shares his unique insight into the marriage of Cesar and Helen Chavez, and how Helen was a powerful force in her own right and became the mother of the United Farm Workers’ movement. We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

In this month’s bonus episode, we celebrate Mother’s Day! Liza is joined by bestselling author Anna Malaika Tubbs to discuss her book, The Three Mothers: How the Mothers of Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and James Baldwin Shaped a Nation. Anna and Liza dive into the lives of these incredible mothers who have historically been ignored, and they acknowledge their roles in raising and shaping sons who forever changed the course of our nation.  We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!  The Three Mothers: How the Mothers of Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and James Baldwin Shaped a Nation by Anna Malaika TubbsThe Life of Louise Norton Little by Deborah JonesThe Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson 

In this month’s bonus episode, Liza is joined by Elizabeth Winkler, author of the new book Shakespeare Was a Woman and Other Heresies to discuss this question of Shakespeare’s authorship. Elizabeth and Liza dive into the compelling evidence that Shakespeare could have in fact been a woman and explore why even the thought of questioning his authorship is so taboo.Elizabeth's original article for The Atlantic can be found here.We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

Significant Others is bringing you another bonus episode! This time Liza is joined by Mo Rocca, the host of the popular podcast Mobituaries, to discuss how people are remembered through their obituaries. Mo and Liza dive into memorable obituaries, what makes a powerful obit, and who maybe didn’t get their proper due. We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts, and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

Significant Others is back with another bonus episode! Liza is joined by historian Heather Cox Richardson, host of the podcast Now & Then, and author of one of the most successful Substacks of all time, Letters From An American. Heather and Liza dive into presidential marriages and ask, who was the best love match? Which overlooked first ladies deserve some more credit? And which presidential relationships were doomed from the start?We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then, we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

CNN anchor Jake Tapper joins Liza in another special bonus episode to discuss how a 2-party system can look a little bit like a long-term marriage… that neither partner actually signed up for. How has this relationship evolved over the years and in what ways do the parties rely on each other? Liza and Jake discuss all this and more. We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then, we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

Significant Others is back with another bonus episode! Liza is joined by Dana Schwartz, host of the popular podcast Noble Blood, which explores the stories of the world’s most fascinating nobles. Today, Dana takes us on a crash course through the complicated dynamics of royal marriages and answers our burning questions! What set Catherine the Great apart? Did Anne Boleyn play her cards right? And who was the first appointed royal spouse that was male? Turns out that relationships aren't so easy when your nation depends on their success. Who knew?We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then, we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way at [email protected]!

Significant Others is back with a bonus episode! Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Stacy Schiff returns to discuss her new book The Revolutionary: Samuel Adams, which examines the essential (and somewhat forgotten) role of Samuel Adams during the Revolutionary War. Liza and Stacy explore why he has become more known as “the beer guy” than for his contributions to the cause, and ask - was Samuel Adams the Significant Other of the American Revolution? We’re working hard on Season 2! Until then, we will be releasing special bonus episodes from time to time. Want to support the show? Rate and review wherever you listen to your podcasts and keep sending suggestions of Significant Others you’d like to hear about our way!

Best-selling author and journalist Malcolm Gladwell joins Liza to discuss the concept of “celebrity doctors” and the destructive dynamic between the famous Dr. Spock and his complicated wife Jane.

The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care altered parenting forever and made Dr. Benjamin Spock a household name. But his wife Jane, who not only helped him get the book down on paper but introduced him to the very concepts that were so revolutionary in his work, was ruined by his success. Source List:Dr. Spock, An American Life, by Thomas Maier​​Doctor Spock: Biography of a Conservative Radical, by Lynn Z. Bloom“Public vs. Private: Dr. Spock, Mr. Hyde,” by Mary Jo Kochakian“Parents and Dr. Spock”, American Archive of Public Broadcasting“The Man Who Raised America,” by Susan Bolotin“The Spocks: Bittersweet. Recognition in a Revised Classic,” by Judy Klemesrud“Jane C. Spock, 82, Worked on Baby Book,” The New York TimesChristian Nurture, by Horace BushnellHorace Bushnell, Britannica “The Personal Spock: The Controversial Doctor Recalls His Childhood, Which Was Influenced by a Domineering Mother,” by Elizabeth Mehren 

Parenting expert Julie Lythcott-Haims sits down with Liza to explore what parents should and shouldn’t want for their children; and whether or not Sir Leslie Stephen may have gotten some things right.

Virginia Woolf’s father, Sir Leslie Stephen, wanted nothing more than to be a genius—but he created one instead.Starring: Jameela Jamil as Virginia Woolf and Luke Millington-Drake as Sir Leslie Stephen. Source List:“Virginia Woolf and Leslie Stephen: History and Literary Revolution,” by Katherine C. HillTo The Lighthouse, by Virginia WoolfA Room of One’s Own, by Virginia WoolfA Writer’s Diary, by Virginia WoolfVirginia Woolf, by Hermione LeeThe Common Reader, by Virginia WoolfVirginia Woolf, Quentin Bell“A House of One’s Own,” by Janet Malcolm“A Beautiful Mind - Laura Makepeace Stephen and the Earlswood Asylum Medical Archives,” by Dr. Madeleine OakleyBloomsbury Group“Virginia Woolf and Leslie Stephen,” by Louise A. DeSalvoRob Roy, by Sir Walter Scott

Journalist and biographer Mark Harris joins Liza to discuss the legacy of Elia Kazan and whether or not there is such a thing as a happy ending in Hollywood.

Legendary filmmaker Elia Kazan gave us such cinematic classics as On the Waterfront and A Streetcar Named Desire, but he made himself a pariah when he named names to the government. Without his wife, Molly Day Thacher, he might never have made his controversial decision–nor even had a career to begin with.Starring: Lisa Kudrow as Molly Day Thacher and Paul F. Tompkins as Elia Kazan. Also featuring: Jack McBrayer, Jim Rash, Adam O’Byrne and Larry Powell. Source List:A Life, by Elia KazanElia Kazan, by Richard SchickelTennessee Williams & Elia Kazan: A Collaboration in the Theatre, by Brenda MurphyTennessee Williams, Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh, by John Lahr“A Statement”, by Elia Kazan“You Must Remember This” Podcast

Author and comedian W. Kamau Bell joins Liza to discuss the legacies of Maya Angelou and James Baldwin, and the importance of affinity groups.   

Without the profound connection between these two artists, would the world ever have gotten I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings? Starring: Christina Elmore as Maya Angelou and Larry Powell as James Baldwin. Also starring Angelica Chéri as Lorraine Hansberry. Source List:James Baldwin: A Biography, By David Adams LeemingThe Three Mothers, by Anna Malaika TubbsNotes of a Native Son, by James BaldwinAt 80, Maya Angelou Reflects on a ‘Glorious’ Life, NPR, 2008The Collected Autobiographies of Maya Angelou, Compilation copyright 2004 by Random House, Inc.Conversations With a Native SonJames Baldwin Biographical Timeline, American Masters, PBSMaya Angelou, World History ProjectJames Baldwin’s Sexuality: Complex and Influential, NBC News“James Baldwin on Langston Hughes”,  The Langston Hughes Review, James Baldwin and Clayton Riley “Talking Back to Maya Angelou”, by Hilton Als, The New Yorker“Songbird”, by Hilton Als, The New Yorker“A Brother’s Love”, by Maya Angelou“James Baldwin Denounced Richard Wright’s ‘Native Son’ as a ‘Protest Novel,’ Was he Right?” by Ayana Mathis and Pankaj Mishra, The New York Times“After a 30 Year Absence, the Controversial ‘Porgy and Bess’ is Returning to the Met Opera”, by Brigit Katz, Smithsonian Magazine“Published More Than 50 Years Ago, ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’ Launched a Revolution”, by Veronica Chambers, Smithsonian Magazine“On the Horizon: On Catfish Row”, by James Baldwin“James Baldwin: Great Writers of the 20th Century” “An Introduction to James Baldwin”, National Museum of African American History & Culture“‘The Blacks,’ Landmark Off-Broadway Show, Gets 42nd Anniversary Staging, Jan 31”, by Robert Simonson, Playbill “Do the White Thing”, by Brian Logan“James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket”, American Masters, PBS“James Baldwin, The Art of Fiction”, by Jordan Elgrably“The American Dream and the American Negro”, by James Baldwin“The History That James Baldwin Wanted America to See”, by Eddie S. Glaude, Jr.“Lost and ... Found?: James Baldwin’s Script and Spike Lee’s ‘Malcolm X.’” by D. Quentin Miller, African American Review

Biographer Stacy Schiff joins Liza to discuss the lengths she went to in researching her Pulitzer Prize-winning biography, Véra. A full list of Stacy Schiff’s books can be found here:https://www.stacyschiff.com/books-and-essays-by-stacy-schiff.html

Vladimir Nabokov is best known for writing the highly controversial yet critically revered novel, Lolita. But the book might never have made it onto the shelves were it not for the other Nabokov—Vladimir's enigmatic and elusive wife, Véra.Starring: D’Arcy Carden as Véra Nabokov and Dan Bucatinsky as Vladimir Nabokov Source list:Véra by Stacy SchiffLetters to Véra by Vladimir Nabokov, Ed: Olga Voronina and Brian BoydVladimir Nabokov, The Russian Years by Brian BoydVladimir Nabokov, The American Years by Brian BoydLolita by Vladimir NabokovLectures on Literature by Vladimir Nabokov, Ed: Fredson Bowers 

Liza is joined by her significant other, self-proclaimed Lincoln super-fan Conan O’Brien, to discuss how crucial Mary Lincoln was to her husband's political career.

Mary Lincoln is the First Lady everyone loves to hate. But without her, would Abe Lincoln even have been president in the first place? Theirs is a love story that contains many tragedies—and a key to how America became the country it is today. Starring: Rita Wilson as Mary Lincoln and Timothy Olyphant as Abraham Lincoln. Also featuring Matt Gourley and Mike Sweeney. Source List:Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, by Doris Kearns GoodwinMiller Center, The University of Virginia, www.millercenter.orgThe Lincolns: Portrait of a Marriage, by Daniel Mark EpsteinMary Todd Lincoln: A Biography, by Jean H. Baker“Lincoln’s Looks Never Hindered His Approach to Life or Politics,” by Susan Bell, USC News“Mary Todd Lincoln, Patient at Bellevue Place, Batavia.” by Rodney A. Ross., Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society“Acts of Remembrance: Mary Todd Lincoln and Her Husband’s Memory.” by Jennifer L. Bach, Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association“New Mary Lincoln Letter Discovered.” by Jason Emerson, Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society

Playwright Dipika Guha joins Liza to give insight into the complicated relationship between her home country of India and Gandhi's legacy in this time of call-out culture.

Mohandas Gandhi helped India win independence from Britain through nonviolent resistance but little know that he credits the inspiration for his tactics to his wife, Kasturba. So, who was the wife of this renowned saint?Starring Dipika Guha as Kasturba Gandhi and Samrat Chakrabarti as Mohandas Gandhi. Source List:The Woman Beside Gandhi: A Biography of Kasturba, Wife of the Mahatma, by Sita KapadiaGandhi on Women, by Madhu Kishwar, Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 20, no. 41Why Mahatma Gandhi Said Kasturba Stood Above Him, Prabhash K Dutta, New Delhi, October 2, 2018The Truth About Gandhi, The Harvard CrimsonPetty, Bad-Tempered Kasturba - What Gandhi Said While Courting Sarladevi and Esther Faerling, B.M. Bhalla, March 19, 2020The Story of My Experiments With Truth, by Mohandas Karamchad GandhiMAHATMA, In Eight Volumes, by D.G. TendulkarKasturba: A Biography, By B.M. BhallaGandhi Was a Racist Who Forced Young Girls to Sleep in Bed With Him, by Mayukh Sen, December 3, 2015, ViceKasturba Gandhi, The Feisty Woman Whose Patience Inspired Gandhi's Call For Satyagraha, by Simrin Sirur, April 11, 2019, The Print  

World-renowned psychotherapist Esther Perel joins Liza to discuss the dynamic between Leo and Sophia Tolstoy and whether the issues Sophia faced were a product of the times she lived in.This bonus episode is a discussion of Episode 1 of Significant Others, "Countess Sophia Tolstoy." Listen to it here.  

Leo Tolstoy is widely regarded as one of the greatest authors of all time. Yet, without his wife, Sophia Tolstoy, would the world have been gifted with such literary classics as War and Peace and Anna Karenina? Starring Megan Mullally as Countess Sophia Tolstoy and Nick Offerman as Leo Tolstoy.Source List:Tolstoy, A Biography by A.N. Wilson, 1988 WW Norton & CoSong Without Words: The Photographs & Diaries of Countess Sophia Tolstoy by Leah Bendavid-Val, National Geographic SocietyLeo Tolstoy, Diaries, Faber, Ed. R.F. ChristianTolstoy, Woman and Death by David Holbrook, Farleigh Dickinson University PressThe Diaries of Sophia Tolstoy, Cathy Porter, Harper Collins

Did you know that the novel "Lolita" would not exist if Vladimir Nabokov’s wife hadn’t stopped her husband from burning the manuscript? Or that Gandhi learned his legendary method of passive resistance from his wife? Alongside any famous name, there is often another story to tell—of an intimate relationship that made all the difference. Starting July 20th, join Liza Powel O’Brien as she explores the stories of the little-known individuals just beyond the spotlight of history. Because no one lives in a vacuum—not even geniuses.