The removal of four dams from the Klamath River in Northern California is rapidly becoming one of the great recent success stories in conservation and restoration.  The riverbank habitat is returning to its former condition and salmon have been spotted swimming upriver past the sites where the dams once blocked their passage.  Along with this comes the restoration of the indigenous peoples’ way of life, heavily dependent on those fish.  Join Host Ronnie for an update on the Klamath in a conversation with Amy Bowers Cordalis, who has just published The Water Remembers—My Indigenous Family’s Fight to Save a River and a Way of Life.  She is a mother, fisherwoman, attorney, executive director of Ridges to Riffles, and member of the Yurok Nation and its former general counsel.

(Photo by Brontë Wittpenn, San Francisco Chronicle)

Everybody Wants to Rule the World rolls over the closing credits of Marty Supreme—a haunting, hopeful choice for Josh Safdie’s new sports comedy‑drama, co‑written with Ronald Bronstein.

Timothée Chalamet—who’s recently played Willy Wonka, Bob Dylan, and now Marty Mauser—may finally get his long‑overdue recognition at this year’s Academy Awards. As Mauser, he’s a scrappy 23‑year‑old hustler trying to carve out a life in the rougher corners of 1950s New York. His childhood friend and sometime sweetheart, Evelyn “Evie” Russo, is played by Odessa A’zion, who brings both emotional depth and sharp comedic timing. She matches Chalamet beat for beat.

Mauser’s dream is simple, and wildly ambitious: he wants to make table tennis in America as big as it is in Japan. To get there, he trains incessantly and scrapes money together for tournaments around the world. And when he’s broke, he performs ping‑pong tricks during halftime shows—humiliating, yes, but also oddly charming.

Along the way, he crosses paths with a lively cast of characters, including the buddies who help him hustle wise guys in scenes that feel like classic pool‑hall capers. These moments are fast, funny, and easy to root for.

Mauser eventually qualifies for a major tournament in England, where he meets Kay Stone, played by Gwyneth Paltrow. She’s a washed‑up actress clawing her way back into the theater world while stuck in a miserable marriage to Milton Rockwell, an Ink Pen Titan played by Kevin O’Leary. Both actors lean into the satire, slipping in clever references for sharp‑eyed viewers. And keep your eyes open—there are plenty of “familiar” faces sprinkled throughout.

But England is also where Mauser meets his match: Japanese champion Kayo Endo, played by Koto Kawaguchi. Endo becomes a national hero. Mauser comes home empty‑handed—to a bleak neighborhood, a furious uncle, a worried mother played by Fran Drescher, and a chorus of nosy neighbors. He is also reunited with Evie after 8 months.

Still, he refuses to quit. Determined to get a rematch in Tokyo, he hustles—sometimes desperately—to raise, or steal, enough money for the trip. He begs Kay and Milton for help in scenes that are uncomfortable, honest, and painfully relatable. They capture just how much humiliation a person will endure to chase a dream.

Yes, there’s ping‑pong in Forrest Gump, but Marty Supreme is playing a very different game. Chalamet gives us an athlete in training, a hustler, a lover, a friend, and a deeply sensitive young man trying to survive.

The film runs two hours and forty minutes, and I didn’t check my watch once. It stirred up every memory of feeling like an underdog—and every reason to get back up again.

For KSQD’s Film Gang: Susan Lovegren.

Visit KSQD’s Film Gang page for all our archived reviews and bios about our team of reviewers.

Don’t stress about your tech, call the Computer Man on KSQD between 6-7pm PT each Tuesday: 831-900-5773

Write to [email protected]

Scams of the week!

Topics covered: How to check AmazonPrime for unwanted subscriptions, Apple Lawsuits, Intel moving to GPUs, Discord facing ID backlash, Hear from our callers, Email questions and more!

How do businesses become inclusive and welcoming? What does an inclusive and welcoming business look like?   There are many examples of inclusivity in our businesses across Santa Cruz County. Hear from people who have real world ideas about how to make businesses more inclusive and about the upcoming Elevate Inclusivity in Business event that will take place on Feb. 26. Guests include Kristen Brown who is the Executive Director for the Santa Cruz Area Chamber of Commerce and Sharon Papo, the CEO of LGBTQ eLearning. More info on our website here: ksqd.org/prideperspectives. 

The Last American President: A Broken Man, A Corrupt Party, and a World on the Brink

 “Be Bold America!”

 February 6, 2026 at 5:00pm (PT)

It began with something far more insidious. It began with a smile. ~ Thom Hartmann

Democracy is dying. And we handed the killer the weapon.

The countdown has begun. As fascism spreads globally and climate catastrophe accelerates, Thom Hartmann exposes the terrifying endgame: a second Trump presidency that doesn’t just end American democracy – it triggers humanity’s extinction. “The Last American President“, through meticulous research and unflinching analysis, reveals how political cowardice and corporate greed created the perfect storm, threatening our species survival and our country.

Donald Trump didn’t break America – he’s the inevitable product of a system designed to create him. This explosive investigation reveals the chilling truth: from his brutal childhood to Roy Cohen’s mentorship and shamelessness, from a corrupted Republican Party to billionaire puppet masters, Trump was manufactured by the very institutions meant to protect us. 

This is our final warning.

Interview Guest:

Thom Hartmann is a progressive national and internationally syndicated talk show host whose shows are available in over a half-billion homes worldwide. He’s the New York Times bestselling, 4-times Project Censored Award-winning author of over 24 books, in print in 17 languages, on five continents. Thom Hartmann’s daily articles may be found at his Substack page titled: The Hartmann Report. Talkers Magazine named Thom Hartmann as the 10th most important talk show host in America in 2019 and has been in the top ten for over a decade and is the #1 most important progressive host, in their “Heavy Hundred” ranking.

The Thom Hartmann Program is heard on KSQD every weekday at 4:00pm.

Karen Ehrlich finds meaning in her next Libra birthday.

Don’t stress about your tech, call the Computer Man on KSQD between 6-7pm PT each Tuesday: 831-900-5773

Write to [email protected]

Scams of the week!

Topics covered: Bots make up over 50% global internet traffic, Ransomware on Big Companies, Call of Duty and Micro-transactions, Hear from a caller, Email questions and more!

Song Sung Blue, written and directed by Craig Brewer is based on the 2008 documentary of the same name by Greg Kohs, follows the lives of Lightning and Thunder—Mike and Claire Sardina—a couple from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as they pursue their dream of bringing happiness and joy to others through music in the mid-1990s.

It has been quite a while since I’ve seen a movie that made me want to see it again in theaters—and that movie for me is Song Sung Blue. I was initially skeptical. How good could a film really be about a Neil Diamond tribute band? But this film far exceeded my expectations.

The film opens with Mike Sardina, known as Lightning, trying to break through as a local musician while working as a mechanic. He is also a recovering alcoholic, proudly maintaining 20 years of sobriety. When he’s asked to perform as a Don Ho impersonator to sing Tiny Bubbles at a local fair, Mike balks. It’s there that he meets Claire Stengl, a Patsy Cline impersonator with a brunette wig and undeniable talent. Claire, a hairdresser, shares Mike’s dream. Together, they form Lightning and Thunder—a Neil Diamond tribute band, or as Mike calls it, an “experience.”

Mike and Claire fall in love quickly and marry. Their lives grow more complicated as they blend families with children from previous marriages while trying to build momentum with their performances. As they get closer to success, life continues to test them.

Hugh Jackman gives a strong, energetic performance as Mike. He captures the weight of being the one holding everything together, especially in a touching scene where he breaks down in Claire’s arms. His singing is dynamic, and at times he truly channels Neil Diamond.

Kate Hudson is fantastically impressive as Claire. She more than holds her own vocally and delivers a grounded, believable performance as a working-class woman facing real struggles. Her intensity feels genuine and never overplayed.

Jim Belushi is a delight as the often-befuddled manager of Lightning and Thunder, playing against type. The young actors portraying the children also shine, capturing the role reversal of kids managing parents who sometimes need guidance themselves.

The music is fantastic, highlighting the depth of Neil Diamond’s catalog beyond Sweet Caroline. At its heart, Song Sung Blue is a film about chasing your dreams and not giving up, even in despair. Song Sung Blue is so good—so good, so good.

Song Sung Blue Film Gang Review

We all have to eat, and we all love to eat good food, so KSQD is thrilled to bring you our first foodie program featuring the brilliance and deep epicureal knowledge of our region from the creators of Edible Monterey Bay magazine. We’ll be sitting down to discuss great restaurants, great recipes, and the amazing people and places that make it all happen with the help Managing Editor Mark C. Anderson and your KSQD hostess Christine Barrington.

On Friday, January 30 at 5pm, slide up to the table and tuck in for our  tasty first episode of Edible On The Air!  Featuring a stroll through the best of 2025, an interview with Stuart Thornton, travel writer and contributing author to Edible Monterey Bay,  and a look forward to coming attractions for 2026!

Mentioned in this show (in case you are itching try some these tasty tips!):

Food Lab + The Landing;   Oystertown, The Caledonian at the New Kimpton Hotel in Pacific Grove (opened January 27th 2026!)

FOOD TRUCK ALLEY mentioned in the show is in Marina NOT THE WATSONVILLE AIRPORT. Here’s the article. Read all about it!

Small Wonder Amador City, Stuart Thornton also mentioned: Shelter Cove in Mendocino

Coming in 2026

Breakfast Club at Midtown, Manresa Bread Westside, Crema Lovers Point / Lovers Point Events, Woody’s at the Watsonville Airport

**Most important story of the year: Farmworker justice, from Pajaro Valley to national policy to your plate.

Coming out to one’s family can be a challenging time for people of any age, but in particular for people who are in middle school or high school. Bryce Grossman organized the “We Will Not Be Erased” march and rally in May 2025 as an eighth grade student at Mission Hill Middle School. Bryce’s dad is Kevin Grossman who happens to be the President of the Santa Cruz City Schools School Board. Hear their conversation about coming out and what it means to be a supportive parent when a child comes out. Rachel Morales Warne works in San Lorenzo Valley and has been honored at the Queer Youth Leadership Awards for being the founder of LGBTQ+ Graduation Celebrations. Her child is now a senior in college and came out several times prior to high school.  Hear advice from parents and for parents about how to respond when a child comes out.