Enjoy recent author events, interviews, and bookseller series. Visit our website to learn more: www.skylightbooks.com
Episodes
Tuesday Feb 06, 2024
SKYLIT: Will Harris, SURELY YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS
Tuesday Feb 06, 2024
Tuesday Feb 06, 2024
I am serious. And don't call me Shirley.
Resident film buff Tyler Austin sits down with Will Harris, pop culture journalist, to discuss the interviews that comprise Surely You Can't Be Serious: The True Story of Airplane! Together, they discuss some of Will's favorite interviews and some truly great behind-the-scenes scoops from one of the greatest comedies of all time.
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Produced by Tyler Austin and Mick Kowaleski.
Music by Duck, the Piano Wire.
Thursday Nov 23, 2023
SKYLIT: Charles Bramesco, COLORS OF FILM: THE STORY OF CINEMA IN 50 PALETTES
Thursday Nov 23, 2023
Thursday Nov 23, 2023
Hello listeners! On this episode Tyler talks to film and television critic Charles Bramesco about his book, "Colors of Film: The Story of Cinema in 50 Palettes"
Produced by Tyler Austin & Alena Saunders
Opening music: "Optimism (Instrumental)" by Duck the Piano Wire
Closing music: "Rule of 3s (Solemnity Child)" by Elastic No-No Band
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
It's spooky season, and our LITTLE GREY CELLS are HAUNTED! Former Skylight booksellers Natalie Freeman and Allison Miriam Smith return to the store to join Allan, Tyler, and Justin for the Better Than the Movie crew's most rambunctious (and, let's admit it, CHAOTIC) episode yet.
This fulsome fivesome discuss Kenneth Branagh's third movie outing as detective Hercule Poirot, A HAUNTING IN VENICE, and its credited source material, HALLOWE'EN PARTY by Agatha Christie, which is a completely different story. It's a SPOILERS-HEAVY discussion, full of digressions and talking over each other. Lots of laughter and fun.
Produced by Justin Remer and Mick Kowaleski.
Opening music: "Rumination: If I Should Die (Slowed / Instrumental)" by Duck the Piano Wire
Closing music: "Rule of 3s (Solemnity Child)" by Elastic No-No Band
Thursday Aug 24, 2023
Better Than the Movie, Ep. 6: MISERY w/ Mark Rennie
Thursday Aug 24, 2023
Thursday Aug 24, 2023
She's his number one fan. The hilarious and well-read Mark Rennie (TWO OLD QUEENS podcast) joins a reduced BTTM crew to discuss MISERY, the Stephen King novel and the Oscar-winning film from screenwriter William Goldman and director Rob Reiner. (And cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld!!) With a new documentary about King adaptations out in theaters, KING ON SCREEN, the fellas also discuss some other King faves on page and screen.
Produced by Justin Remer and Mick Kowaleski.
Opening music: "Optimism (Instrumental)" by Duck the Piano Wire
Closing music: "Rule of 3s (Solemnity Child)" by Elastic No-No Band
Thursday Jul 20, 2023
Better Than the Movie, Ep. 5: JAWS w/ Kristen Lopez
Thursday Jul 20, 2023
Thursday Jul 20, 2023
Just when you thought it was safe to download a podcast... The BTTM fellas are back to talk JAWS with film writer and podcaster Kristen Lopez (who discussed her book about 52 classic film adaptations BUT HAVE YOU READ THE BOOK? on a recent Skylit episode). Steven Spielberg's film has become an American classic, but what about Peter Benchley's original novel? It's got more sex, more mafia enforcers, and more small town economic hardship -- but is it better than the movie?
Produced by Justin Remer, Allan Traylor, and Mick Kowaleski
Opening music: "Optimism (Instrumental)" by Duck the Piano Wire
Closing music: "Rule of 3s (Solemnity Child)" by Elastic No-No Band
Thursday Jul 06, 2023
SKYLIT: Millie De Chirico & Quatoyiah Murray, TCM UNDERGROUND
Thursday Jul 06, 2023
Thursday Jul 06, 2023
Cinephiles, tune in! In this episode, Tyler Austin hosts Millie De Chirico and Quatoyiah Murray, co-writers of TCM Underground, a movie-lover's guide to 50 of the most campy, kitschy, shocking, and weirdly wonderful cult films you need to see.
Millie and Quatoyiah take the Ty-Guy through the cult classics of the Turner Classic Movie series, and discuss everything from writing with a partner to buying Salo DVDs from the Italian Dark Web.
Produced by Tyler Austin and Mick Kowaleski
Music by Duck the Piano Wire.
Thursday May 18, 2023
Better Than the Movie, Ep.4: ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET
Thursday May 18, 2023
Thursday May 18, 2023
It's Three Men and a Little Lady! Allan, Justin, and Tyler tackle the long-delayed feature film adaptation of the iconic "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret" by legendary children's author Judy Blume. The flick has got a great creative team, including director Kelly Fremon Craig ("The Edge of Seventeen") and Oscar-winning producer James L. Brooks ("Terms of Endearment"). The BTTM fellas talk coming-of-age stories, Rachel McAdams's Oscar chances, Benny Safdie's unexpected suavity, Kathy Bates's Jewish grandmother qualities, and much more. (BTW the movie Justin can't remember around the 10-minute mark is a French-Canadian film called "Slut in a Good Way." Check it out, it's fun!)
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Produced by Justin Remer and Mick Kowaleski
Opening music: "Optimism (Instrumental)" by Duck the Piano Wire
Closing music: "Rule of 3s (Solemnity Child)" by Elastic No-No Band
Thursday May 11, 2023
SKYLIT: Kristen Lopez, ”But Have You Read the Book?”
Thursday May 11, 2023
Thursday May 11, 2023
One-third of the Better Than the Movie gang, Tyler Austin, sits down with Kristen Lopez to talk about her book of 52 essential page-to-film adaptations. In But Have You Read the Book?, presented by Turner Classic Movies, Lopez explores just what makes these works classics of both the page and screen, and why each made for an exceptional adaptation—whether faithful to the book or exemplifying cinematic creative license.
Produced by Mick Kowaleski and Tyler Austin
Music by Duck the Piano Wire.
Thursday Apr 20, 2023
Better Than the Movie, Ep. 3: THE SISTERS BROTHERS w/ Alena Saunders
Thursday Apr 20, 2023
Thursday Apr 20, 2023
It's Guest O'Clock, pardners! Skylight's own Alena Saunders (of LIT ANGELES fame) drops in to the back room to talk about one of her favorite books, The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt, and its 2018 film adaptation directed by Jacques Audiard. The conversation gets heated in this one...Conflict between the BTTM Boys?? Say it ain't so!
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Produced by Mick Kowaleski and Justin Remer
Music by Duck the Piano Wire.
Thursday Mar 23, 2023
Better Than the Movie, Ep. 2: ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT
Thursday Mar 23, 2023
Thursday Mar 23, 2023
The boys are back! Justin, Allan, and Tyler return for the second episode of Better Than the Movie. This time, they're going over not one, but TWO adaptations of Erich Maria Remarque's war classic All Quiet on the Western Front: the 1930 Best Picture winner, directed by Lewis Milestone, and the 2022 German-language version directed by Edward Berger. What are the gang's takes on the war movie canon? Does either adaptation stack up to the original novel? What did you, the fans decide? The anticipation is killing me!
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Produced by Mick Kowaleski and Justin Remer
Music by Duck the Piano Wire
Thursday Mar 09, 2023
SKYLIT: Michael Schulman, ”OSCAR WARS” w/ Alex Ross
Thursday Mar 09, 2023
Thursday Mar 09, 2023
It's Oscar season! Join us for a deep dive into the Academy Awards as Michael Schulman discusses his new book, Oscar Wars, with fellow New Yorker writer Alex Ross. They discuss the Academy's dark history with union busting, its philosophical struggles in awarding spectacle vs. intimacy, and the lessons Michael learned while writing this book that he's excited to apply before this year's ceremony. This episode is well worth the listen before your Oscar party!
Produced by Mick Kowaleski
Order a signed copy of Oscar Wars here: https://www.skylightbooks.com/book/9780062859013
Thursday Feb 16, 2023
Better Than the Movie, Ep. 1: CABIN AT THE END OF THE WORLD/KNOCK AT THE CABIN
Thursday Feb 16, 2023
Thursday Feb 16, 2023
This episode contains spoilers of both Paul Tremblay's book The Cabin at the End of the World and its 2023 film adaptation, Knock at the Cabin. Proceed with caution!
Welcome to our first new Bookseller Special Series of 2023! Three of Skylight's biggest CinemaHeads, Justin, Tyler, and Allan, will get together once a month to discuss their favorite adaptations from page to screen. For the first episode, they're tackling Paul Tremblay's 2019 insta-classic horror novel Cabin at the End of the World, and M. Night Shyamalan's 2023 adaption, Knock at the Cabin.
In this episode, they talk about the substantial philosophical and narrative differences in the two projects, the difficulties of communicating interiority on film, and the faithful commitment of Rupert Grint's Boston accent.
Produced and edited by Mick Kowaleski
Music by Duck the Piano Wire
Thursday Feb 09, 2023
SKYLIT: Karen Han, ”Bong Joon Ho: Dissident Cinema”
Thursday Feb 09, 2023
Thursday Feb 09, 2023
Produced and edited by Mick Kowaleski.
Music by Duck the Piano Wire
Monday Oct 31, 2022
SKYLIT: ”IT CAME FROM THE CLOSET”
Monday Oct 31, 2022
Monday Oct 31, 2022
Produced by Nat Freeman & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Monday Sep 26, 2022
SKYLIT: Traci Thomas, ”THE STACKS”
Monday Sep 26, 2022
Monday Sep 26, 2022
Produced by Nat Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.