On today's episode I talk to Queens-based cartoonist and illustrator Mattie Lubchansky. Mattie is the Associate Editor of the Nib, a daily political comics site under the First Look Media umbrella, which also houses the brilliant left-wing news site The Intercept. Mattie's work has appeared in VICE, Eater, Mad Magazine, Gothamist, The Toast, The Hairpin, Brooklyn Magazine, as well as their long-running webcomic Please Listen to Me. Additionally, they are the co-author with their wife of the book Dad Magazine, which was published by Quirk last year. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to screenwriter and activist Jeremy Pikser. Originally on his way to be a teacher, Jeremy instead became a screenwriter after a series of events led him to be a "special consultant" and uncredited writer on the film Reds, which was nominated for an Academy Award for screenplay. He's written a number of other films as well, including The Lemon Sisters with Diane Keaton and Elliott Gould, War, Inc. with John Cusack and Bulworth with Warren Beatty. The screenplay for Bulworth was nominated for many awards including the Academy, Golden Globe, and WGA awards and was the winner of the LA Film Critics Best Screenplay award. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to policy analyst and data scientist Sam Sinyangwe. Sam grew up in Orlando, FL, and has been involved in organizing and advocacy since he was in high school. He's worked at PolicyLink helping to support a national network of 61 "Promise Neighborhoods" with the goal of building cradle-to-career systems of support for low-income families. He created the "Mapping Police Violence" project, which collects and uses data as a tool for fighting police violence. And most recently, he founded Campaign Zero with DeRay Mckesson and Brittany Packnett. Campaign Zero is a comprehensive organization dedicated to ending police violence by limiting police interventions, improving community interactions, and ensuring accountability. He's also the co-founder of two other activist organizations StayWoke and OurStates, the latter which is dedicated to connecting communities in order to combat the Trump/GOP agenda. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to award-winning playwright, author, and performer Isaac Oliver. His debut collection of essays, Intimacy Idiot, was named one of NPR's Best Books of 2015. His plays include Electra in a One-Piece, and the ten-minute plays "3, 2, 1," "Film Forum," and "Come Here", which won the New York Innovative Theatre Award for Outstanding Original Short Script. Additionally, he's written for The New York Times, W Magazine, Time Out New York, Out, and HBO's High Maintenance. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to Jade Payne and Mars Ganito of the indie rock band Aye Nako. Formed in 2010, Aye Nako is a New York-based queer punk band who make dissonant and melodic punk music. In 2013, they self-released their first album Unleash Yourself, and in 2015, Don Giovanni Records released their EP THe Blackest Eye. The album saw the band explore personal themes such as abuse and racism, and it garnered a great deal of critical acclaim, ending up on several "best of" lists including both the New York Times and NPR. They were even voted "Best Garage Band in New York" in the Village Voice that year. Their latest album Silver Haze was also released on Don Giovanni earlier this year. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

I'm moving to LA this week, so I wanted to take a break from producing an episode to settle into the new digs and recover from having to take two cats on a cross-country flight. And while I was getting ready for the move, I was cleaning up my hard drive and found some of the music from when Beginnings was a monthly live show at UCB East (every month we'd have a musical guest perform and then be interviewed). These performances are really fantastic, and I don't know how many people have heard them, so this week, I thought I'd put out a mixtape of Beginnings live show performances (and a couple of in-studio ones too). Enjoy!

On today's episode I talk to musician Jen Goma. Based in New York City, Jen writes and produces music, comedy and videos. She is a member of the bands A Sunny Day in Glasgow and Roman à Clef and has collaborated with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Jherek Bischoff. Her first solo album Smiley Face, recorded under the name Showtime Goma was just released, and it's great! This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to writer Joseph Kertes. Joe was born in Hungary but escaped with his family to Canada after the revolution of 1956. He studied English at York University and the University of Toronto and founded Humber College's distinguished creative writing and comedy programs. As an author, he's written a number of books including Winter Tulips and Boardwalk. His third book Gratitude won the Canadian National Jewish Book Award and the U.S. National Jewish Book Award for Fiction, and his latest book The Afterlife of Stars, based on his childhood in Hungary, is a New York Times Editor's Choice. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to novelist, columnist, and Emmy-nominated television writer Bill Scheft. Bill started his career as a sportswriter and as a stand-up. After twelve years touring, he was hired as a monologue writer for Late Night with David Letterman where he remained for 24 years until the show's conclusion in 2015. In addition to writing for Letterman, Bill also wrote for the Oscars, ESPYs and almost every other major awards show, and he also contributed a popular weekly humor column to Sports Illustrated for a number of years. Bill is also an author, having penned four books: The Ringer, the Thurber Prize for American Humor finalist Time Won't Let Me, Everything Hurts, and his most recent Shrink Thyself, which was published by Rare Bird Books a few years ago. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to writer and showrunner Stephen Falk. Born in Berkeley, CA, Stephen has been working in television for a number of years, starting off on the Showtime series Weeds. He then created the NBC show Next Caller, and went on to write for Orange is the New Black. In 2014, he created the wonderful FX series You're the Worst, whose 4th season will air sometime later this year. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.