When she was 25, writer Laura Carney lost her beloved father, Mick, when he was killed instantly in a car accident caused by a distracted teenage driver .Thirteen years later, Laura's brother found a handwritten 60-item list among some old papers of Mick's entitled "Things I Would Like to Do in My Lifetime!" that Mick had written at age 29. Before his death, Mick had checked off 5 of them, and tried and failed at one, so Laura vowed to finish the remaining 54. Tasks include everything from "Correspond with the Pope" to "Sell Millions of Dollars Worth of Merchandise." As of this episode, she's already completed 39, and is giving herself another year for the remaining 15. Laura speaks with Erin about the exquisite pain of a daughter's loss while just on the cusp of her own adult accomplishments, the lasting impact of divorce on a child, and some of the more surprising lessons she's learned as Mick lives on through his daughter in the dreams they now share.

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This week’s episode of Daddy Issues! features special guest star, comedy writer Carey O’Donnell. His TV credits include Billy Eichner’s Billy on the Street and Heathers, he's a former editor at Paper magazine, a contributor to New York Magazine and the co-host of Real Housewives podcast "Sexy Unique Podcast." He's also here to dissect the current events with us from a dad lens. Smash play to hear us pay homage to Orlando Bloom’s un-concerning lack of self-awareness, the wind as the most underrated force of nature, and the Russian dentist with soulful eyes who smokes in a Hollywood Starbucks parking lot. We also have words for Jay Leno, Kody Brown from Sister Wives and, as usual, the Royal Family.

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A.J. Daulerio is a writer and creator of the weekly recovery newsletter, The Small Bow. He is the former editor in chief of Gawker.com and its sister sports site Deadspin during the mid-2000s, At Gawker, he famously published an excerpt of Hulk Hogan’s sex tape, which led to his losing a 9-figure lawsuit backed by maniacal billionaire Peter Theil, and the bankruptcy and sale of Gawker Media. A massive blow to the First Amendment. A.J. found himself personally on the hook for $115 million, his professional reputation in the toilet, his sobriety hanging by a thread, facing buried memories of child sexual abuse, and with a father unable or unwilling to protect his son or help him heal. On this episode, we'll hear the story behind the story, and how becoming a father himself has changed AJ's relationship with his own dad, and the ways in which he's trying to do things differently.

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It’s been a week since Oprah’s interview with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry— whose dads each deserve their own wings in the Disappointing Fathers Hall of Fame—and there’s still much to discuss. This week’s episode of Daddy Issues is dedicated to examining the interview and its noble aftershocks and wider cultural implications. We discuss the rib-crushing patriarchal corset still tightly laced around members of the Royal Family, Meghan and Harry’s sensible request that their family not allow their murders, Thomas Markle’s iconic “Images of Britain” staged photoshoot, and Prince Charles’ Tampax fantasies. We will not be silent or silenced!

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Entrepreneur Eric Solomon talks to Matt about the loving relationship he had with his father Bob, who was mysteriously murdered in 2016. A man of many wives, children, and business ventures, Bob was a great father to Eric, who discusses how his father’s shocking death caused him to upend his entire life and accept that he’ll probably never find out who did it.

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It’s the latest installment of our current events show Tell Me About Your Father: Daddy Issues! Oh lord, this episode has much to digest: God, Texas, a very old woman eating gin-soaked raisins, Texas Senator Ted Cruz, the horror of spring, chandeliers, FKA Twigs, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Note, this episode was recorded on 2/26, before a second former aide of Cuomo's came forward to say he'd sexually harassed her as well.

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Erin and Elizabeth talk to Natalie Cash Petersson, a New York City-based film producer, about the incredible success stories of her maternal grandfather, Dr. David Griffin, and his brother, her great uncle, Dr. Joseph Howard Griffin. Joseph Howard, who went by JH, and David were sons of an enslaved father who became trailblazing physicians in South Georgia, both prosperous and celebrated members of their communities during the sustained racial terror of Jim Crow. Petersson reflects on their legacy and her pride for the work they did, particularly for women.

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This week's Daddy Issues episode is centered around the recent New York Times documentary "Framing Britney Spears" and all of the heroes and zeros of the story, including her father Jamie Spears, Justin Timberlake, Diane Sawyer and 2000s media misogyny, and more.

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In May of last year, the artist Chris Santa Maria's uncle, Randall Jacobs, known to him as Uncle Bunky, finally lay down for what he referred to as the "dirt nap". The obit Chris wrote about his colorful uncle, who he described as a "living, breathing 'hang loose' sign," unexpectedly went viral on Twitter and Reddit, charming and resonating with readers who had, or wanted, an Uncle Bunky of their own. On this episode, Chris talks to Erin and Elizabeth about Bunky's enduring legacy, substance abuse that runs in the family, and our cultural tendency to celebrate the qualities of a person that ultimately led to their premature death.

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Listen as we discuss the dadness of a recent lurid pink offering from Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, Kellyanne Conway’s horrific parenting, poet Amanda Gorman’s balletic hands, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s bravery in the face of a tyrannical, murderous Vladimir Putin, and the W.A.P. power of Senator Jon Ossoff’s Senate-floor wink.

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