So Important!

Hello friends! Let's get ready for Baseball 2023 - it's going to be different! A pitch clock, limits on defensive tactics, more stolen bases - baseball might just be fun again! My guest is Adam Pohl - a veteran of the podcast who joined me waaay back in episode four, and talked about his role as the broadcaster for the Bowie Baysox, the Double A minor league affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. Adam still broadcasts games for the Baysox, but has also taken on an expanded role for the team, and has emerged as a regular broadcaster here in DC. As an observer of "thousands" of minor league games, including the last few years were many of these rules have been long instituted, there's no one better with whom to tackle this subject! Baseball will never be the same - and if you want to know what to expect this year, you've come to the right place! Thank you Adam and PLEASE subscribe to the show on our website, and leave a review on Apple - it matters! See you soon!

Greetings and welcome to episode 58! I had the great honor to talk with Esther Starobin, who shared her compelling story of surviving the Holocaust through a short-lived, British supported program called the Kindertransport  ("children's transport") that helped to evacuate Jewish children from Nazi Germany.  Only about 10,000 children were fortunate enough to participate in the program; Esther was one of them. Esther shares her amazing story, and also reflects on some lessons from her experience that are applicable today. The picture that accompanies this episode, by the way, shows a young Esther with the family that so generously opened their doors to her upon her arrival in Britain. Esther has told her story in the Holocaust Museum's First Person series of conversations with Holocaust survivors if you'd like to hear more; and you can learn about Esther here. And if you are interested in learning more about the Kinder Transport, here's a Wikipedia link. I have known Esther for many years and I know what a re

Umm..coffee...am I the only one that goes to bed thinking about how I'm just that much closer to having my first cup of coffee when I get up? Just me? No? Didn't think so! Almost EVERYONE loves coffee! But...how does that little coffee bean become that cup you may be enjoying right now? How did coffee become a global phenomenon? What's the history - including the dark side of the story, and what's coming? My great guest, Professor Jonathan Morris of the University of Hertfordshire just outside of London (full bio here), discussed all of these topics with me on this episode. Dr. Morris has written two books on the topic including Coffee: A Global History; co-hosts A History of Coffee, a fascinating (and widely available) podcast looking at coffee's evolution, and has important thoughts on how we can help improve conditions for all of the farmers and individuals that help get us our morning cup.  Great thanks to Dr. Morris, and thanks to everyone who listens - and while you're at it, go ahead and give the show

Hello my friends! Had a great discussion with Dr. Alex Grand about how the comic book industry continues to evolve to meet changing consumer expectations, focused on the idea of comic book realism. Dr. Grand has authored Understanding Superhero Comic Books: A History of Key Elements, Creators, Events, and Controversies -  a  ground breaking book on how comic books have evolved, and continue to do. Absolutely fascinating conversation - with all my most geeky instincts coming to play!  Dr. Grand looks at how over time, comic books injected greater levels of realism into the story lines - in part thanks to Stan Lee, but actually reflecting a trend begun well before Spidey, the Fantastic Four, and the other seminal Marvel characters. This helped tell a good story, but was also essential to keeping the industry viable as readers' expectations evolved. We also talk about the industry today, where comic book characters are developed as intellectual property that must translate across an array of media, including mov

Greetings! I had the great privilege to speak with Dr. Francesca Royster, professor of English at DePaul University, on her essential new book, Black Country Music: Listening for Revolutions. Dr. Royster masterfully weaves the story of the relationship between blacks and country music, including the whitewashing of black artists for many years; the resurgence of black artists now making country music; and her personal journey as a fan of the genre, from the perspective of "queer theory and black feminism." Dr. Royster weaves it all together in a compelling narrative that is at once sobering, yet also very joyous in her appreciation of this wonderful music.  A number of songs are interwoven in the narrative; all come from the playlist, CURATED BY DR. ROYSTER HERSELF, that accompanies this episode. That can be found here:  https://open.spotify.com/playlist/18DVB3Y2KwI5rryJAMpt3a?si=8b3e321235c1417d I'm very appreciative that Dr. Royster not only spent time with me, but curated the playlist. Take some time to en

Greetings everyone! Do you have 20 minutes to enjoy a GREAT story? This is how Sarah Bonner, her husband Tommy Bowes, and their partner, Allan Kresse, revitalized a cultural landmark right here in Maryland - and made it better than ever! Hank Dietle's Tavern was a much loved establishment with a loyal clientele - until it shockingly burned down in 2018. Sarah and her partners took over, reconstituted Hank's and turned it into a premier music venue at the heart of the local music scene. On any given night, you can go to Hank's and hear the best local - and increasingly national - music acts this town has to offer. And yeah, you sure as hell can dance there! It's an incredible transformation, and this is the story of how it happened! I love this story, and I love Hank's - it's a really fun and always lively place to go with great people, great music, and a great environment. What Sarah and her team did was truly remarkable, and I'm thrilled to share their story with all of you. And be sure to drop in when you'r

Along with two colleagues, MIT Professor of Economics Joshua Angrist won the Nobel Prize in 2021 for their methodological contributions to the analysis of causal relationships - or put another way, using natural experimental methods to measure trends and seeking to understand outcomes than traditional, more familiar research methods. Dr. Angrist and I had a great talk about his important work, as well as the experience of winning the Nobel Prize itself! And I should add, we've known each other since High School - which made the conversation all the more engaging and entertaining. Yeah, we weren't the best students back then...but Josh's story is an inspirational one - from mediocre high school student to Nobel Prize recipient. So we talked about his journey, we reminisced a bit about the old times...but perhaps most important, Josh did an exemplary job breaking down his work into terms even I could understand. So enjoy our conversation, and I'll see you soon with a new episode of So Important: The Interview P

Greetings friends! I had a great conversation with graphic design artist Michael Kronenberg on the various ways that Batman has been portrayed over the years. It's really interesting to track Batman's evolution, particularly in light of how his persona  evolved not only in comic books, but also in movies and other media throughout the years. This is a classic "I feel like I've only skimmed the surface" episode, but we had fun talking and I'm grateful that Michael spent some time with me.  Michael Kronenberg is the right guy to talk to. He co-authored and designed The Batcave Companion (co-authored with Michael Eury), is a seminal collection of essays on the Caped Crusader. He is an award winning artist/graphic designer for the Film Noir Foundation and TwoMorrows Publishing, and he is the creator/designer of the boxing magazine RINGSIDE SEAT. Michael has designed magazines, books, and DVD/Blu-Ray movie releases for publishers worldwide.  Just as an additional note, I interviewed Michael for my blog many years

Greetings friends. Today we're talking with Randy Schmidt, who wrote the definitive biography of Karen Carpenter who, along with her brother Richard, was one half of the immensely popular 1970s musical ensemble, The Carpenters. Everyone knows the Carpenters. For me, they were just that "pop act" that I didn't pay much attention to, and didn't really have any thoughts about one way or the other. Then I saw a video of Karen drumming...then I started listening to some of the music and realized what a golden voice she had...and I started thinking about her sad and untimely death in 1983 due to complications from Anorexia Nervosa. By this time, I had Karen Carpenter on my mind, and I wanted to know more about this truly amazing singer.  I turned to Randy Schmidt, who has written the definitive biography of Karen, entitled Little Girl Blue: The Life of Karen Carpenter. Randy has written on a number of performers, but it's his work on Karen Carpenter that has struck a chord with so many, and I'm so pleased he came

It's episode 50 folks! And to help celebrate this milestone, I'm joined by four alumni of the So Important Podcast: Mike Edison (episode 28), Gary Graff (episode 5), Jim Wilson (episode 7), and Chris McKittrick (episode 23) - four great guests convening to discuss a topic near and dear to all of our hearts: the late, great drummer of the Rolling Stones, Mr. Charlie Watts, who passed away last August. It's rare for me to have more than one guest, but the conversation was well worth it. Jim Wilson is a professional musician whose solo work reflects his deep love of the band. Chris has written a book on the Stones' early days, detailing their love of New York City. Mike Edison wrote the book on Charlie - quite literally. And Gary Graff is a widely published, internationally acclaimed music critic out of Detroit. What a crowd! We had a great time talking about a man who was one of the world's greatest drummers - celebrating his life, his music and his enduring legacy. It doesn't get better than this! Enjoy this

Greetings friends! Appropriate for the upcoming Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, I spoke with retired Brigadier General Ty Seidule about his remarkable book, Robert E. Lee and Me:  A Southerner's Reckoning with the Myth of the Lost Cause, which was just published in paperback and which is currently Amazon's number one release in American Civil War Biographies. The book is an important history, but it's also a highly personal memoir of how one man, raised in and respectful of the deep traditions of the South, came to view the Civil War as about slavery only, and to see Robert E. in a very different light than he did as a young man.  Ty brings a historian's perspective on what we as a nation must do to overcome racial bias in this country. And the book is all the more remarkable in light of Ty Seidule's own backstory. He is a retired United States Army brigadier general, the former head of the history department at the United States Military Academy, the first professor emeritus of history at West Point, and t

Greetings friends and fans of the So Important podcast! It's the holiday season, and I thought a story of inspiration was in order. And our guest on this episode is very inspiring, to say the least. Spend a little time with Amy Edelstein, who discusses her lifelong personal journey to attain a higher level of spirituality and one-ness with the world - but also to translate her life's lessons into helping others deal with life's stresses and traumas. She has run programs for inner city youth in Philadelphia, written numerous books, and hosts her own podcast. Amy is an award-winning author, and her most recent book, Adventures in Zanskar: A Young Woman's Solitary Journey to Reach Physical and Metaphysical Heights, chronicles her solitary, 500 kilometer trek in the early 1980s, when she undertook a months-long trip through the remote, westernmost corner of the Tibetan plateau that had just been opened to travelers. It's hard to envisage taking a journey like Amy describes; the fact that she did it in her early

I had the great pleasure of speaking with Suzanne Romero, the Founder and President of the George A Romero Foundation in Pittsburgh, PA.  Suzanne established the Foundation to secure George's great legacy, and as its comprehensive website makes clear, the Foundation is accomplishing this in any number of exciting ang meaningful ways. We talked about how the Foundation is supporting independent filmmakers, its relationship with the University of Pittsburgh, where all of Romero's films are archived as part of the University's Horror Studies Collection, George's special relationship with another Pittsburgh horror icon, the great Bill Cardille - and of course, the films themselves, and their place in the cultural zeitgeist. Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead - these are all classic films appreciated by anyone who likes a good scare. But dig deeper, and you'll appreciate the cultural and social commentary within these films, reflecting George's deeper vision and compassion for humankind.

Daniel Webster is one of the country's leading experts on addressing the threat of gun violence in this country. As the Director of the Center for Gun Violence Prevention and Policy at Johns Hopkins University, Dr. Webster focuses on the public health aspect of addressing this epidemic.  I  am grateful that Dr. Webster joined me to talk about this important topic. Dr. Webster's biography is impressive, and I've shared it below for your perusal.  This was an illuminating, important conversation, and I am pleased to have the opportunity to share it with you. I admit, the public health aspect of controling gun violence is not one I had thought much about; it's clearly time to think about it a whole lot more.  Thanks to Dr. Webster, and I hope you enjoy our conversation. See you soon!   Daniel Webster, ScD, MPH is Bloomberg Professor of American Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health where he directs the Center for Gun Violence Prevention and Policy. Dr. Webster is one of the nation’s l

Hello friends! I contacted Dr. Raymond Doswell to talk about the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri. Dr. Doswell is the museum's Vice President and Curator and brings a wealth of knowledge and perspective to the topic. We talked about the museum for quite a while - but what makes the conversation especially meaningful is that Dr. Doswell spent some time at the start of our conversation discussing the Negro Legues themselves - how they contributed to American culture, the opportunities they provided to black ball players who were shut out of the major leagues, and their enduring importance in American societal development. It was a great conversation, and I'm so pleased to have the chance to share our talk with all of you. And our conversation provided a meaningful context when we turned to discuss the Museum itself.  Here's a link to the museum - it's a great site and worth checking out. I've gotta get to that place - it sounds fantastic! And be sure to check out the podcast, widely avai

Hey gang! Had a very fun conversation with Richard Adler, who knew - and played with members of - the seminal punk band The Ramones. We talked about the early days, as the band was just getting started - and Richard has great stories to tell. He also brings a great perspective to the table. A long-time veteran of the music business, Richard tells some great stories of the early days, in particular with his good friend and original Ramones drummer Tommy Erdelyi - aka Tommy Ramone - and the Ramones guitarist, Johnny Ramone. But of course, Johnny was just John Cummings back then!  I'm very grateful for Richard for spending some time with me; we could have talked for hours. I'm sure you'll enjoy hearing about the early days of one of the most important, and musically enduring bands, in history.  See you soon with a new episode!   Monte

What's it like to be a first round pick in baseball's annual draft? What's it like to be facing incredibly lofty expectations - including from a coach who says you "walk on water" - when you're just a teenager? And what do you do with yourself when the pressure is just too much, and things just dont work out?  Well, here's what my guest today, Mr. Chad Hermansen did: he took his experiences and developed a program to help young athletes deal wtih the mental pressures of athletics. Chad could have walked away from sports altogether, but instead he dedicated himself to helping young athletes overcome performance anxiety and handle the mental side of the game. It's an extraordinary story, and Chad was kind enough to share his story with us on this episode. His insights into how he took his personal experience and turned it into something good for so many young athletes is compelling, and frankly inspiring.  I'm grateful that Chad spent some time with me. If you're interested in learing more about Chad's progra

Greetings friends! We're rolling along...presenting our second episode since returning from a shot break. And what a show it is! David Wilson is an IT consultant with the United States Agency for International Development, in Washington DC. But he is also a dedicated Revolutionary War reenactor, and that's what we talk about today. David gives us a presentation on revolutionary war reenactment, and in his presentation and our subsequent conversation, he shares his thoughts on the importance of this activity in helping us learn from, and appreciate the lessons of, this important part of history. David is a member of the First Virginia Regiment of the Continental Line. He has thought deeply about revolutionary war reenactment as an integral method for helping us learn from history in an engaging and at the same time, entertaining way. It's a great listen, and I appreciate David spending some time with me. See you soon with a new episode of So Important: The Interview Podcast. In the meantime, I sure would app

Greetings Friends! Returning from hiaitus with a terrific conversation with Dr. J. Brian O'Roark on Superhero Economics! Dr. O'Roark developed an approach to teaching economics to his students at Robert Morris University - just outside of my hometown of Pittsburgh - by relying on popular culture, and in particular superheroes, to convey complex economic ideas in ways that students and others can relate to and understand, and indeed apply in their everyday lives. Dr. O'Roark is a pioneer in this field; he has written numerous articles on the topic, including this terrific overview, edited a definitive book on the topic that is available at Amazon and I'm sure wherever economic and other academic books are sold; and is the author of Why Superman Doesn't Take Over The World: What Superheroes Can Tell Us About Economics. Dr. O'Roark has won numberous awards for his teaching, and is truly an innovater in the field of education.  I know you will enjoy our conversation - and if you do, don't be shy about going to A

So pleased to chat with Bruce Pegg, who wrote the definitive biography of Chuck Berry back in 2002. The title says it all: Brown Eyed Handsome Man: The Life and Hard Times of Chuck Berry. It's available on Amazon, and wherever great books are sold.  Chuck made some of the most important and enduring music in American  history. Yet he never seemed to recognize the extent of his own contributions; he usually toured with a pickup band hired by the club or outlet; and he just couldn't stay clear of the law. Racial incidents that he experienced in his youth seemed to scar him significantly, and while he played right up to his 88th birthday in 2014 - just three years before his death, Chuck lived in relative obscurity and  carried a huge chip on his shoulder - right to the end.  We barely skimmed the surface here, but it was a real pleasure for me to talk with Bruce and I think you'll enjoy learning about this enigmatic, but extremely important, figure.  Bruce's web site is worth reading; lots of great insights