Rare Bird Radio

Janet O'Shea is Professor of World Arts and Cultures/Dance at UCLA. Author of 'RISK, FAILURE, PLAY', 'At Home in the World: Bharata Natyam on the Global Stage' and the co-editor of the 'Routledge Dance Studies Reader', 2nd edition, her research focuses on corporeality, interdisciplinary exchange, and the politics of everyday life. She is a practitioner of Filipino martial arts, jeet kune do, Brazilian jiu jitsu, kickboxing, and empowerment self-defense.

Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo is the daughter of Mexican immigrants and the author of 'Posada: Offerings of Witness and Refuge' (Sundress Publications 2016). A former Steinbeck Fellow, Poets & Writers California Writers Exchange winner, and Barbara Deming Memorial Fund grantee, she’s received residencies from Hedgebrook, Ragdale, National Parks Arts Foundation and Poetry Foundation and is a member of Macondo Writers’ Workshop. Her work is published in Acentos Review, CALYX, crazyhorse, and American Poetry Review among others. A dramatization of her poem "Our Lady of the Water Gallons," directed by Jesús Salvador Treviño, can be viewed at latinopia.com. She hosts the quarterly reading series HITCHED and is a cofounder of Women Who Submit.

Devin Galaudet is the editor and publisher of the well-established 'In The Know Traveler' series of web sites, which celebrated thirteen years in August. He also publishes several other travel-inspired web sites including 'In The Know Hotels' and 'The Forever Bride', which chronicles he and his wife’s goal of getting married in 100 countries around the world. He has written for the Huffington Post, Technorati, The Citron Review, TravelAge West, and Turkish Airlines’ Sky Life Magazine. Devin holds an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from Antioch University at Los Angeles where he was the commencement speaker representing his class. He has been interviewed at the California Writers Coalition, JohnnyJet.com, Thinking Aloud, the Jewish Journal, among others and performed at Antioch’s Literary Uprising. He lives in Los Angeles, California.

Heidi Barnes ran her family’s inn on the coast of Maine for years, which inspired The Bellman Series―"The Bellman" and "The Bellman’s Secret". She is a Realtor and property manager based in Los Angeles, California. Heidi has lived around the world―including Singapore, New Zealand, Australia, Dubai, and Canada. She enjoys outdoor activities, loves animals, and is a devoted mother of three. "The Bellman’s Secret" is her second novel.

Los Angeles Times Bestselling Author Stephen Jay Schwartz spent a number of years as the Director of Development for film director Wolfgang Petersen (whose credits include Das Boot, In the Line of Fire, Air Force One, The Perfect Storm, Troy) where he worked with writers, producers and studio executives to develop screenplays for production. Among the film projects he helped developed are Air Force One, Outbreak, Red Corner, Bicentennial Man and Mighty Joe Young. Stephen's own film work has exhibited at the AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival, the Directors Guild of America, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California. He also worked as a screenwriter and freelance "script doctor," developing concepts, treatments and feature films for independent film producers. His writing credits include Inside the Space Station, narrated by Liam Neeson and produced as a "Watch with the World" special for The Discovery Channel.

Rex Weiner’s screenwriting credits include The Adventures of Ford Fairlane, based on his original stories, directed by Renny Harlin and starring Andrew Dice Clay for 20th Century Fox. As one of the first writers brought on board to launch the TV series Miami Vice, Weiner wrote the now classic 9th episode, “Glades.” As a journalist, Weiner’s articles have appeared in Vanity Fair, The Paris Review, The New Yorker, LA Weekly, L’Officiel Hommes, and Rolling Stone Italia. “Lost & Found,” his column about Hollywood entertainment history, appeared weekly in Variety where was a staff reporter. He is one of the founding editors of High Times Magazine and former editor of Swank (“The Magazine For Men”). He is also the co-author of The Woodstock Census (Viking), one of the key texts analyzing the impact of the Sixties Generation on American society. A native New Yorker, Mr. Weiner lives in Los Angeles and in Baja California Sur, Mexico, where he is co-owner of Casa Dracula, a 160-year old hacienda in the historic pueblo magico of Todos Santos.

Devin Galaudet is the editor and publisher of the well-established In The Know Traveler series of web sites, which celebrated thirteen years in August. He also publishes several other travel-inspired web sites including In The Know Hotels and The Forever Bride, which chronicles he and his wife’s goal of getting married in 100 countries around the world. He has written for the Huffington Post, Technorati, The Citron Review, TravelAge West, and Turkish Airlines’ Sky Life Magazine. Devin holds an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from Antioch University at Los Angeles where he was the commencement speaker representing his class. He has been interviewed at the California Writers Coalition, JohnnyJet.com, Thinking Aloud, the Jewish Journal, among others and performed at Antioch’s Literary Uprising. He lives in Los Angeles, California.

Raised in L.A by his grandfather who instilled in him his Jewish faith, Riley was a multi sport athlete who gravitated to boxing. His passion for the sport took him from the comfort of his Hancock Park neighborhood to train at gyms around L.A, eventually settling at Broadway Gym in South Central where he trained under Bill Slayton. The combination of being a straight A student and the first rate education on the L.A streets caught the attention of Robert "Puggy" Zeichick, one half of a Jewish-Italian bookmaking team. Riley started doing pick-ups and quickly graduated to felonious capers. After a stint in juvenile reform school, Riley resumed his gambling association, which had grown to working for Matthew "Matty the Horse" Ianniello. He balanced his bookmaking business with his travels as an employee for TWA. Briefly, Riley settled on University studies in Germany, but returned to LA full time after capitalizing on the tech boom of the 90s in part by day trading stocks and then creating software that he licensed to Washington Mutual Bank, a company he worked for, which allowed him a solid foundational understanding of banking regulations, that he took with him into his online gaming ventures.

Janet O'Shea is Professor of World Arts and Cultures/Dance at UCLA. Author of 'RISK, FAILURE, PLAY', 'At Home in the World: Bharata Natyam on the Global Stage' and the co-editor of the 'Routledge Dance Studies Reader', 2nd edition, her research focuses on corporeality, interdisciplinary exchange, and the politics of everyday life. She is a practitioner of Filipino martial arts, jeet kune do, Brazilian jiu jitsu, kickboxing, and empowerment self-defense.

Los Angeles Times Bestselling Author Stephen Jay Schwartz spent a number of years as the Director of Development for film director Wolfgang Petersen (whose credits include Das Boot, In the Line of Fire, Air Force One, The Perfect Storm, Troy) where he worked with writers, producers and studio executives to develop screenplays for production. Among the film projects he helped developed are Air Force One, Outbreak, Red Corner, Bicentennial Man and Mighty Joe Young.

Peter Leonard, the son of legendary crime novelist, Elmore Leonard, continues the life of his fathers character Raylan Givens in 'Raylan Goes to Detroit'. Peter is also a national bestselling author of seven thrillers, including 'Quiver', 'Trust Me', 'All He Saw was the Girl', 'Voices of the Dead', 'Back from the Dead', 'Eyes Closed Tight', and 'Unknown Remains'.

Devin Galaudet, author of "10,000 Miles with my Dead Father's Ashes", is known as the editor and publisher of the well-established "In The Know Traveler" series of web sites, which celebrated thirteen years in August. He also publishes several other travel-inspired web sites including "In The Know Hotels" and "The Forever Bride", which chronicles he and his wife’s goal of getting married in 100 countries around the world. He has written for the 'Huffington Post', 'Technorati', 'The Citron Review', 'TravelAge West', and Turkish Airlines’ 'Sky Life' Magazine. Devin holds an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from Antioch University at Los Angeles where he was the commencement speaker representing his class.

Peter Leonard, author of "Raylan Goes to Detroit", the son of legendary crime novelist, Elmore Leonard, is a national bestselling author of seven thrillers, including Quiver, Trust Me, All He Saw was the Girl, Voices of the Dead, Back from the Dead, Eyes Closed Tight, and Unknown Remains.

Martin Jay Weiss is an award-winning filmmaker who has written, directed and produced a vast anthology of commercials, films, and television projects. He has a BS in Journalism from the University of Illinois and an MFA in Film from New York University. Born and raised in Chicago, he now lives in California with his wife and two children. His first novel 'The Second Son' was released in August 2018. His next novel 'Flamingo Coast' will be release in January 2019.

Los Angeles Times Bestselling Author Stephen Jay Schwartz spent a number of years as the Director of Development for film director Wolfgang Petersen (whose credits include Das Boot, In the Line of Fire, Air Force One, The Perfect Storm, Troy) where he worked with writers, producers and studio executives to develop screenplays for production. Among the film projects he helped developed are Air Force One, Outbreak, Red Corner, Bicentennial Man and Mighty Joe Young.

Janet O'Shea is Professor of World Arts and Cultures/Dance at UCLA. Author of 'RISK, FAILURE, PLAY', 'At Home in the World: Bharata Natyam on the Global Stage' and the co-editor of the 'Routledge Dance Studies Reader', 2nd edition, her research focuses on corporeality, interdisciplinary exchange, and the politics of everyday life. She is a practitioner of Filipino martial arts, jeet kune do, Brazilian jiu jitsu, kickboxing, and empowerment self-defense.

Stephanie Phillips is a PhD candidate in rhetoric and composition at the University of South Florida. Her research interests include technical communication, sports rhetoric, and new media studies. Stephanie is also a technical writing lecturer at the University of Buffalo, a Muay Thai fighter, and a comics writer.

Allan MacDonell is the author of the novel 'Now That I Am Gone'. His other works include; 'Punk Elegies: True Tales of Death Trip Kids, Wrongful Sex and Trial by Angel Dust', 'Prisoner of X: 20 Years in the Hole at Hustler Magazine' and was a defining voice of the groundbreaking punk periodical "Slash" magazine. While writing for Slash, he also co-invented slam-dancing.

Performing as Louisahhh, New York-born Louisa Pillot is one of the rare women thriving within the male-dominated international EDM (electronic dance music) elite. Producer, DJ, recording artist, Louisahhh is in demand at clubs and festivals from Barcelona to Miami, to Amsterdam, Istanbul, Glasgow and on and on, even L.A. She lists influences as Herzog, unicorns and Sacred Mundane. Listen to how those influence weave into Pillot’s music on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/louisahhh She lives in Paris.