Bill Simmons talks to Grantland film critic Wesley Morris about the upcoming Jackie Robinson biopic 42 and discusses why some movie biographies work and why others don't.
Listen to the podcast here: ESPN.com Podcenter.
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Luke Perry joins Bill Simmons to discuss his time on Beverly Hills, 90210, his love for professional wrestling, and his dedication to the Cleveland Browns.
Chris Connelly calls in to the podcast to discuss his experience at the Oscars, Seth MacFarlane's hosting, and whether films should have to wait five years before being eligible for the awards.
Bill Simmons catches up with SNL's Seth Meyers to talk about the rotating cast of the show, what music they're listening to, and the misery that is the 2012 Red Sox season.
It's the final day of Grantland's B.S. Report takeover, and today we bring you the nascent Reality TV Friday podcast. First we check in with our Real World–ers, who get off their island and hit St. Thomas's clubs; then we check in on the logo-centric drama of the Real Housewives of New York; and we can never go long without talking about the debaucherous Bachelor Pad. Plus, we're already beginning to feel some Olympics nostalgia as we wax about the wonder of Team USA's Instagram accounts and Kobe Bryant's Facebook page.
With Bill in London covering the Olympics, the B.S. Report will be guest-hosted by various Grantlanders in his absence. We start this experiment with Kevin Wildes and his half-baked ideas. For those unfamiliar with Mr. Wildes, he's been a recurring guest on the B.S. Report for years, pitching his sometimes brilliant, sometimes less than brilliant ideas to Bill. This week, Grantland editor David Jacoby joined Kevin to pitch a few ideas of his own, and since everything he and Kevin do turns into a competition, they had mutual friend David Chamberlin award gold, silver, and bronze medals to the best of the bunch. Some were better than others, but all led to some learning and some laughs. The following are some of the topics discussed:
Bill talks to ESPYs host Rob Riggle about his comedy and military careers, then chats with ESPN Executive Editor John A. Walsh about the company's past and future.
Previously on the B.S. Report:
Kevin Millar, Sean Casey, George Brett, and Matt Kemp
Reality TV and Game of Thrones
Jay Bilas
Louis C.K.
JackO and Rich Levine
Cousin Sal and JackO
Dan Le Batard and John Hollinger
Greg Wyshynski and Cousin Sal
Subscribe to the B.S. Report and the Grantland Network on iTunes.
Bill Simmons, Reality Tsar David Jacoby, and Joe House discuss the new Real World cast, MTV's Teen Mom, Game of Thrones, and more.
Previously on the B.S. Report:
Jay Bilas
Louis C.K.
JackO and Rich Levine
Cousin Sal and JackO
Dan Le Batard and John Hollinger
Greg Wyshynski and Cousin Sal
Subscribe to the B.S. Report and the Grantland Network on iTunes.
[NOTE: This podcast contains mature language.]
A little more than six months ago, you might remember, Louis C.K. came on the B.S. Report to promote his new comedy special and discuss Season 2 of Louie. Well, we got the band back together — this time around, we discussed Season 3 of Louie (premiering Thursday on FX at 10:30 p.m.), his ambitious strategy to bypass all the ticketing agencies for his 2012 comedy tour (check out www.louisck.com for details), the year of the Backlash to the Backlash to the Backlash, why he loves hate-watching Aaron Sorkin shows, why he was fine with Bradley stealing the last Pacquiao fight (and why it made him like Manny more), what lessons he's applied from boxing to help his own career, and a few other curve balls you might not expect.
We had such a great guest this week — filmmaker and creator of HBO's Girls Lena Dunham — that we fired up the Grantland Studio on a Sunday. Lena was surprisingly candid about how she got the pilot together, the loud and occasionally hostile initial response to the show, and which aspects of the show are based on her real life. Check out one of the best and most interesting young voices in TV.
You can listen to this podcast on iTunes or on the ESPN.com Podcenter.
With Saturday Night Live on vacation this week, we ruined Bill Hader's Los Angeles trip by forcing him to stop by the B.S. Report studios and tape a 70-minute podcast that covered life at SNL, Stefon's evolution into a breakout character, his recent collaborations with the South Park guys, the Apatow comedy factory, creepy Internet stalkers, Jame Gumb, Jaws, ghosts, the NBA playoffs and even Hader's desire to become Oklahoma City's most famous courtside fan (a la Jack Nicholson). I'm almost positive the position is open.
You can listen to this podcast on iTunes or on the ESPN.com Podcenter.
It's nearly impossible to conduct a heated argument around the Grantland office without it resulting in a column idea, weeklong single-elimination tournament, or impromptu podcast. And so an increasingly contentious discussion of the sorry state of American Idol between Bill Simmons, Reality Czar David Jacoby, and in-house experts Jay Caspian Kang and Mark Lisanti quickly escalated into talk of a complete overhaul of the judging panel in an attempt to save the franchise, then spontaneously mutated into a six-round fantasy draft conducted live in the Grantland studio, with each participant selecting a fresh slate of judges, coaches, and newly created "wild-card" positions. Any of the resulting talent rosters (except for Jacoby's — you know that guy who comes into your draft, grabs a closer in the first round, then takes a victory lap around the room? Yeah … ) would result in an instant 300 percent increase in the ratings. And 3,000 percent surge in payroll, but whatever, it's not our money. Hit up our Facebook page and vote on the final teams.
Less than 24 hours after The Suspiciously Real Fake Bachelor Wedding that rocked the TV world, Bill Simmons and Reality Czar David Jacoby discuss the inevitability of Fantasy Suite relations, whether a winery or a sports bar is a better status symbol for a bachelor-on-the-make, and when is the optimal time for a bachelorette to reveal her baggage. Also discussed: Survivor, The Challenge and Jacoby's secret stash of reality TV shame-porn. (Yes, the Kardashians are involved.)
You can listen to this podcast on the ESPN.com Podcenter or on iTunes.
Previously on the B.S. Report:
Mike Breen and JackO
Chuck Klosterman
Bob Ryan
Marc Stein
Mike Lombardi, J-Bug
