On today's episode I talk to comics writer and artist Sina Grace. Based in Los Angeles, Sina is the author and illustrator of a number of books for Image Comics including Self-Obsessed, Not My Bag, and Nothing Lasts Forever. He acts as the artist for Shaun Steven Struble's cult hit, The Li'l Depressed Boy, and handles art chores along with co-writing the Image Comics hit series, Burn the Orphanage. Sina has also done illustrations for all-ages readers, including Among the Ghosts, written by Amber Benson, and Penny Dora & the Wishing Box, written by Michael Stock. His previous works include the slice-of-life Books with Pictures, and the neo-noir urban fantasy, Cedric Hollows in Dial M for Magic. For a time, he acted as Editorial Director for Robert Kirkman's Skybound imprint at Image Comics. And most recently, Sina has been writing Iceman for Marvel Comics, and it is easily the best X-comic currently being published. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to writer and painter Steve Dildarian. Originally from New Jersey, Steve spent many years as an advertising executive and created a number of well-known campaigns including the "Budweiser Lizards". In 2006, Steve created an animated short film called Angry Unpaid Hooker, which won the best animated short at the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival, which led to his show on HBO. The Life & Times of Tim ran for three seasons from 2008 to 2012 and is wonderful. Tim is also a painter and you can purchase his artwork online, and most recently, he created a pilot for Amazon called The New V.I.P.'s. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to actor and voiceover artist Carlos Alazraqui. Carlos is probably most often recognized as Deputy James Garcia from Comedy Central’s hit show Reno 911! A standup comic for over 25 years, he is also one of LA’s top voiceover actors with hundreds of credits to his name, including The Taco Bell Chihuahua, Mr. Weed on FOX’s Family Guy, Lazlo on Cartoon Network’s Camp Lazlo, Bane in Justice League: Doom, and Mr. Crocker on Nickelodeon’s long running series Fairly OddParents. Currently he is rebooting his role of Rocko in the New Rocko's Modern Life for Nickelodeon, due out next year. Carlos also recently won the prestigious Annie Award for "Outstanding Achievement in Voice Acting in an Animated TV/Broadcast Production" for his role of Ponce de León in The Mr. Peabody and Sherman Show. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to writer and showrunner Javier Grillo-Marxuach. Originally from Puerto Rico, Javi earned his MFA in screenwriting from USC in the early 1990s, and soon after started his television career. He's written for a number of rad shows across many different genres including Charmed, Boomtown, Medium, Lost, Helix and The 100, and he created and showran the fantastic show The Middleman, which was based on his own comics. Javi's also the co-host with Jose Molina of the Children of Tendu podcast, which is an educational series that aims to teach newcomers how to navigate the entertainment industry with decency and integrity (and as far as I'm concerned is a must-listen for anyone that wants to work in this industry). Currently, Javi co-executive produces the Jim Henson Company's upcoming ten-hour prequel to their classic film The Dark Crystal for Netflix. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to TV writer and performer Eliot Glazer. Originally from Long Island, Eliot is now based in LA and has written for or contributed to shows like Billy on the Street, Difficult People, Best Week Ever, Younger, Broad City, New Girl, and currently Teachers. He also recently developed a show for Comedy Central produced by Will Arnett. As a performer, you've seen him on plenty of shows, such as playing Ilana's brother on Broad City, or at his wonderful live show Haunting Renditions, where Eliot takes some of pop music's most infamous songs and turns them into highbrow, sweeping ballads. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to musician Angelo de Augustine. Angelo writes and records music in Thousand Oaks, California -- a suburb north of Los Angeles, where he grew up.  His self-released debut album, Spirals of Silence, and 3-song EP follow-up, How Past Begins, earned praise from The FADER, Stereogum, Vogue, My Old Kentucky Blog, and more, and his music has been compared to Nick Drake, Elliott Smith, Vashti Bunyan and Judee Sill. His latest album, Swim Inside the Moon, was released by Asthmatic Kitty in August. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to musician Inara George. The daughter of Lowell George, who was a member of Frank Zappa's band and the founder of rock group Little Feat, Inara grew up in Topanga Canyon, in the outskirts of Los Angeles. Since the 1990s, she has been a member of a number of bands herself including Lode, Merrick, and starting in the early 2000s, the indie pop duo The Bird and The Bee with Greg Kurstin. The duo have released a number of amazing albums and EPs, including an self-titled record, Ray Guns Are Not Just the Future, and their latest, Recreational Love, which was released in 2015. Inara has also recorded a number of albums under her own name: All Rise in 2005, An Invitation in 2008, which she recorded with Brian Wilson collaborator Van Dyke Parks, Accidental Experimental in 2009, and her latest Dearest Everybody, which will come out early next year. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to TV writer Annie Mebane. Originally from Florida, Annie came up in comedy at iOWest and UCBLA, performing on house improv teams at both theaters. As a writer, she's worked on a number of awesome shows including Happy Endings, Breaking In, Community, The Michael J. Fox Show, The Goldbergs, and currently the new Heathers series. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to TV writer Cord Jefferson. Originally from Tucson, Cord began his career as a print journalist, first as senior editor at GOOD magazine and then as the west coast editor at Gawker. His reporting and writing have appeared in numerous places including National Geographic, The New York Times Magazine,  The Root, TheNation.com, Jezebel, The American Prospect, and many others. As a TV writer, he started off on The Nightly Show, moved to Master of None, and currently writes on the wonderful NBC show The Good Place.  This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.