Dialogue host Marcia Franklin talks with historical novelist Lois Leveen about two of her works: The Secrets of Mary Bowser, about a former slave who was a spy in the Confederate White House, and Juliet's Nurse, which imagines the life of the nurse in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Franklin asks Leveen about how she researches her ideas and what she hopes readers will glean from her works.

Originally Aired: 02/13/15

Marcia Franklin continues her conversation with Ken and Betty Rodgers about their documentary, "Bravo! Common Men, Uncommon Valor," which chronicles the experiences of the member of Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Marines in the Siege of Khe Sanh in Vietnam. She focuses on how the couple produced the film. She also talks with Steve Wiese, a veteran of Khe Sanh who is in the documentary.

Originally aired: 11/08/2013

Marcia Franklin talks with Ken and Betty Rodgers, residents of Eagle, ID, who have produced a documentary called "Bravo! Common Men, Uncommon Valor," about the 1968 siege of Khe Sanh in Vietnam.

Ken Rodgers is a former Marine Lance Corporal and a veteran of Khe Sanh. He and his wife Betty are joined by Steve Wiese, a former Marine Corporal who is also a veteran of Khe Sanh and lives in California.

Both Rodgers and Wiese were members of Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Marine Regiment, which fought at Khe Sanh in what would become the longest siege of the Vietnam War, and which would end in a stalemate. In the film Bravo!, Rodgers, Wiese and 13 other former Marines describe their experiences in combat and how those experiences have continued to affect their lives.

Franklin asks the Rodgers' about why they wanted to produce the documentary and what they hope viewers will learn from it. Franklin also talks with Wiese about his experiences at Khe Sanh, and what has helped him overcome the traumas he experienced.

Originally aired: 11/08/2013

Marcia Franklin talks with historian Tiya Miles about her book, “All That She Carried,” which won the National Book Award. It tells the story of “Ashley’s sack,” a bag given to an enslaved girl by her mother in the 1850s. The two discuss how a material object can bring untold history alive, and also talk about Miles’ book, “Night Flyer,” which looks at the effect of the outdoors on Harriet Tubman.

Originally aired: 11/01/2024

The interview is part of Dialogue’s series “Conversations from the Sun Valley Writers' Conference” and was taped at the 2024 conference. Since 1995, the conference has been bringing together some of the world’s most well-known and illuminating authors to discuss literature and life.

Marcia Franklin talks with former Idaho Governor Phil Batt about his life and legacy.

Originally aired: 01/2027/2000

Tom Ikeda, who provided critical research for Daniel James Brown’s book “Facing the Mountain,” discusses his Seattle-based non-profit, Densho. It preserves the stories of Americans of Japanese descent during World War II. Ikeda’s parents and grandparents were imprisoned in the Minidoka camp in Idaho.

Don’t forget to subscribe, and visit the Dialogue website for more conversations that matter.

Originally Aired: 12/10/2021

The interview is part of Dialogue’s series “Conversations from the Sun Valley Writers' Conference” and was taped at the 2021 conference. Since 1995, the conference has been bringing together some of the world’s most well-known and illuminating authors to discuss literature and life.

Daniel James Brown, the best-selling author of “The Boys in the Boat,” talks about his newest book, “Facing the Mountain,” which honors the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, a segregated unit of Japanese-Americans who fought in World War II despite the fact that many of their families were incarcerated in the United States simply for being of Japanese descent. 

Don’t forget to subscribe, and visit the Dialogue website for more conversations that matter.

Originally Aired: 12/3/2021

The interview is part of Dialogue’s series “Conversations from the Sun Valley Writers' Conference” and was taped at the 2021 conference. Since 1995, the conference has been bringing together some of the world’s most well-known and illuminating authors to discuss literature and life.

In the lead-up to the November 2016 elections, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jon Meacham joined Dialogue host Marcia Franklin to talk about presidential character. Meacham talks with Franklin about the qualities he believes are essential to being a successful president, and the unique nature of the 2016 presidential race.

An executive editor at Random House, Meacham is well-known for his appearances on political discussion programs. He started his journalistic career at the Chattanooga Times and rose to become the editor of Newsweek. Meacham was the speaker at the Idaho Humanities Council’s 2016 Distinguished Humanities Lecture in Boise.

Meacham’s latest book is His Truth Is Marching On: John Lewis and the Power of Hope with an afterword by John Lewis. His 2015 book Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush was a #1 New York Times bestseller. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography in 2009 for his book American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House. He’s also the author of Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power, Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship, and American Gospel: God, the Founding Fathers and the Making of a Nation.

Originally Aired: 10/20/2016

Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast and visit the Dialogue website for more conversations that matter! 

Marcia Franklin talks with David Epstein, an award-winning sports journalist and author of the bestselling book The Sports Gene. It delves into the controversial research on what role genetics plays in the development of athletic talent. The book also takes on the so-called “10,000 Hour Rule,” which contends that 10,000 hours of practice can produce mastery in a field, including sports.

Don’t forget to subscribe, and visit the Dialogue website for more conversations that matter.

Originally Aired: 10/24/2014

The interview is part of Dialogue’s series “Conversations from the Sun Valley Writers' Conference” and was taped at the 2014 conference. Since 1995, the conference has been bringing together some of the world’s most well-known and illuminating authors to discuss literature and life.

For decades, Russian poets have preserved both the suffering and the joy of their people - but for their honesty, some writers paid with their lives. World-renowned Russian poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko talks with host Marcia Franklin about his life and work.

Originally aired: 05/27/1999