The Back Room with Andy Ostroy

Pete Souza was the Chief Official White House Photographer for the entire tenure of the presidency of Barack Obama. He is the author of several books, including the #1 New York Times bestsellers Obama: An Intimate Portrait and Shade: A Tale of Two Presidents. A photojournalist since the late 1970s, Souza was also an official White House photographer during the Reagan administration, a freelance photographer for Life and National Geographic, and the Washington-based natural national photographer for the Chicago Tribune.

A documentary about his work at the White House, The Way I See It, was nominated for an Emmy, and its Premier was the highest rated non-news, non-live program in MSNBC history. He is a professor emeritus at Ohio University’s School of Visual Communication. In 2021, Souza was inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame.

As Obama‘s photographer, Pete had one of the coolest jobs on the planet. And when he left the White House, he for years threw shade on Donald Trump through his humorous and sarcastic Twitter posts. Join us for this captivating look back on Pete's illustrious life and career. He also has some interesting insights into how the Biden Administration could be handling the "age" issue more effectively through its photos. It's a truly don't-miss conversation!

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Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud

Jane Lynch is a five-time Emmy winner and is known for her portrayal of Sue Sylvester on Glee. She currently hosts NBC’s revival of Weakest Link and appears in Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building. Additional television credits include The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, The Good Fight, Criminal Minds, Two and a Half Men and hosted Hollywood Game Night. Lynch’s film credits include Wreck It Ralph I and II, The Three Stooges, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Talladega Nights, Role Models, Julie & Julia, A Mighty Wind and Best In Show.

Join us for this truly fun chat as Jane takes us on an insightful ride through her illustrious career in theater, television, film and commercials.

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Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud

Barbara A. Res is an attorney, author, engineer and 40+ year veteran of the Construction and Real Estate Development industries. Res was an executive vice president in charge of construction at the Trump Organization and has spoken out publicly against her former boss, Donald Trump, particularly about his treatment of women. In October 2020, Res released her memoir, Tower of Lies: What My Eighteen Years of Working With Donald Trump Reveals About Him about her experiences at the Trump Organization.

Barbara shares some pretty fascinating, highly-revealing insights into Donald Trump, his family, his administration, his company and his massive legal troubles. Come for the Trump insanity, stay for her singing "All of Me"!

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Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud

Thom Zimny is an Emmy and Grammy award-winning filmmaker, renowned for directing, producing, and editing critically acclaimed documentaries about some of the greatest artists of our time. Recently, he’s co-directed "WILLIE NELSON & FAMILY”, which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and is now streaming on Paramount +. He also directed the HBO documentary, "ELVIS PRESLEY: THE SEARCHER,”, Netflix’s doc "SLY," which explores Sylvester Stallone's 50-year legacy in Hollywood, and he co-directed "The Beach Boys," which will premier later this year. Thom’s also collaborated with Bruce Springsteen for 25 years, which includes winning an Emmy for outstanding director for 2018’s "SPRINGSTEEN ON BROADWAY.” And he’s directed music videos for Bob Dylan and John Cougar Mellencamp.

Thom takes us back to childhood, his early inspirations, and shares his thoughts on his iconic film subjects and the business of making docs today.

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Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud

Over the course of his 60-year career Danny Bonaduce’s been an actor, reality tv star, radio host, author, and professional wrestler. He’s most famous for his role as the wisecracking red-headed bass-playing middle son Danny Partridge on the iconic 70’s sitcom THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY. He’s starred in or appeared in several TV series and films, including Corvette Summer starring Mark Hamill, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, The Drew Carey Show and the VH1 reality show Breaking Bonaduce. He also co-hosted the daytime talk show The Other Half and has hosted radio shows in LA, Philly, and Seattle. He retired from show biz late last year.

This just might be the most fun we've EVER had in The Back Room! Danny is not only funny AF, he's also brutally honest about his experiences with child abuse, addiction, crime, unemployment, homelessness, three marriages and more.

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Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud

Elie Honig is an attorney and CNN senior legal analyst and the bestselling author of Hatchet Man and last year's Untouchable: How Powerful People Get Away With It. He’s a former assistant United States attorney for the Southern District of New York. He also hosts podcasts and writes for CAFE and Vox Media.

Once again, Elie's in The Back Room helping us unpack Donald Trump's myriad court cases, especially the controversial decision by the Supreme Court this week to decide Trump's criminal immunity claim.

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Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud

Alan Zweibel was an original Saturday Night Live writer who’s won numerous Emmy and Writers Guild of America awards for his work in television which includes It's Garry Shandling's Show (which he co-created and produced), The Late Show with David Letterman, and Curb Your Enthusiasm. In the theater, he collaborated with Billy Crystal on the Tony Award winning play "700 Sundays”, Martin Short's "Fame Becomes Me”, and the off-Broadway hit "Bunny Bunny: Gilda Radner - Sort of a Romantic Comedy" which he adapted from his bestselling book. In total, Alan has written 11 books including his Thurber Prize-winning novel "The Other Shulman" and, most recently, a cultural memoir titled "Laugh Lines - My Life helping Funny People Be Funnier." Because of his diverse body of work, the Writers Guild of America, East has honored Alan with a Lifetime Achievement Award".

What a truly fun chat listening to Alan's riveting memories of childhood; the early days of SNL; his cherished relationship with Gilda Radner; his various television and theater collaborations with the most legendary comedians; his books; comedy's new boundaries; and more.

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Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud

Kara Swisher is the host of the podcast “On with Kara Swisher” and the co-host of the “Pivot” podcast with Scott Galloway, both distributed by New York magazine. She’s also a regular panelist on CNN’s “The Chris Wallace Show.” She was the co-founder and editor-at-large of Recode, host of the “Recode Decode” podcast, and co-executive producer of the Code conference. She was a former contributing opinion writer for The New York Times and host of its “Sway” podcast and has also worked for The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post. Her new memoir BURN BOOK is out tomorrow, Tuesday February 27th.

With her inimitable wit and wisdom, Kara's back in THE BACK ROOM discussing the new book...talkin' tech, tech-bros, Trump, and her personal journey from the loss of her father at five to becoming Silicon Valley's top journalist and a hugely successful podcaster.

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Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud

Adrienne Elrod is a political strategist, government affairs expert and communicator with over 25 years of experience working on Capitol Hill, the executive branch and advising corporate and political organizations. A native of Arkansas, she began her political career in President Bill Clinton’s Administration, serving in both the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. On Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign, Adrienne served as Regional Press Secretary, Texas Communications Director, and Deputy Director of the Congressional Delegate Selection office. On the 2016 presidential campaign, she served as Hillary for America’s Director of Strategic Communications.

Most recently she served in the Biden Administration as Director of External and Government Affairs for CHIPS for America at the Department of Commerce. She also served as Biden for President’s Director of Surrogate Strategy and Operations during the 2020 campaign. She’s also a frequent contributor to NBC and MSNBC News.

Adrienne and I talk Bill and Hillary Clinton, President Joe Biden and the success of Bidenomics, Donald Trump, the 'almost dead' GOP, and the November election. She also takes us back to childhood, her early political years, and reveals her Top 5 musical artists of all-time!

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Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud

Daniel-Ryan Spaulding is a stand-up comedian, writer, and influencer who's performed in over 50 countries worldwide. He is Canadian, but lived in Europe for 12 years with his comedy career mainly overseas. He moved to New York City last year, where he’s performed his popular one-man Off-Broadway show Power Gay. He has been an advocate against Antisemitism, against Hamas, and against extremism on the left and right. He believes in a Pro-Israel, Pro-Palestinian, Pro-Peace agenda!

Join us for this fun, revealing and inspiring chat about using humor to navigate through and overcome life's personal challenges while trying to understand and reconcile the complicated geopolitical landscape

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Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud