Episode 22 – How Many Threads Lead Us to Survival – Author Erika Hecht & Rory Vecsey

December 18, 2021UncategorizedAfghanistan, Artful Periscope, Austria, Catholics, conversion, Don't ask my name, Don't ask my name: A hidden Childs tale of survival, Erika Hecht, Holocaust, hopes and dreams, Hungary, Jewish, Jews, Larry Davidson, Larry Davidson productions, Larrydavidsonproductions.com, religion, Rory Vecsey, Rory's Island, Taliban, The Artful Periscope, UK, women of Afghanistan, World War IIartfulperiscope

How many threads lead us to survival? Larry is joined by Erika Hecht, author of the book Don’t Ask my Name: A Hidden Child’s Tale of Survival a story of her life surviving German occupation during World War II and in post war Europe as a Jewish person who converted to Catholicism. Erika discusses mixed traditions and how it saved her and her family’s life.

Joining the Podcast for the new feature Rory’s Island is Rory Vecsey. Rory explores the plight of women in Afghanistan after the Taliban regained control. She also discusses their hopes of a full life an education before the fall of the nation and the fear and courage that they muster in the shadow of Taliban rule.

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Episode 21 – How Many Brush Strokes or Guitar Strings are the Threads of Creativity – Jonathan Santlofer & Karen Bella

September 12, 2021UncategorizedGood Morning, Jack Honey, Jonathan Santlofer, Karen Bella, Karenbella.com, Larry Davidson, Larry Davidson productions, Larrydavidsonproductions.com, Last Mona Lisa, Needle in the Hay, Sachem Public Library, The Booth at The Sachem Public Library, The Studio at the Sachem Public Libraryartfulperiscope

How Many Brush Strokes or Guitar Strings are the Threads of Creativity? Larry is joined by two amazing artists in Jonathan Santlofer and Karen Bella.

Jonathan Santlofer is the author of the book The Last Mona Lisa, a story based on the true events surrounding the iconic painting’s theft in 1912. Jonathan shares his thoughts on the time period the book is set in, along with his life as an artist. He also talks about personal events that have effected his writing and artwork. Larry also shares how his book touched him personally and makes a connection to his own grandmother.

Karen Bella, a talented singer/songwriter joined Larry in studio. She spoke about her connection to her guitars, the differences between performing in a studio vs. a live crowd and where she draws inspiration for her songwriting. Larry explores the concept of the universality of music that transcends generations, from Larry’s love of Jackson Brown to Karen’s love of John Mayer. Karen performs the songs Landslide by Fleetwood Mac, Needle in the Hay, Good Morning and J ack Honey.

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Episode 20 – How Many Threads are Needed To Uncover the Truth – Reporter/Author Arthur Kent

August 7, 2021UncategorizedAdolf Dubs, Afghanistan, Art Kent, Arthur Kent, Cold War, Communism, Investigative reporting, Larry Davidson, Larry Davidson productions, Larrydavidsonproductions.com, Murder in Room 117, Putin, Russia, Sachem Public Library, Sachem Public Library's The Booth, Scud Stud, Soviet Union, Spike Dubsartfulperiscope

How many threads are needed to uncover the truth? Former NBC reporter and author Arthur Kent joins the podcast speaking about his new book Murder in Room 117: Solving the Cold Case that Led to America’s Longest War. Arthur tells the story of Spike Dubs, ambassador to Afghanistan in 1979 who was kidnapped and ultimately assassinated by the KGB. Arthur recounts the tale and his search for the truth behind the international incident that eventually led to the war in Afghanistan.

Arthur Kent is affectionally known by his colleagues as the “Scud Stud” for his coverage of the first Gulf War, Operation Desert Storm for NBC News. He is an internationally known and Emmy Award winning journalist who is well respected in the field. His work can now be seen at skyreporter.com.

Arthur can also be found on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram.

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Episode 19 – How Many Threads Connect us to a Series of Events – Author Amanda Fairbanks and Singer/Songwriter Stuart Markus

July 31, 2021UncategorizedAmanda Fairbanks, fishermen, Gloucester Ladies, Larry Davidson, Larry Davidson productions, Larrydavidsonproductions.com, Long Island, Sachem Library, Sachem Public Library's The Booth, South Fork, Stuart Markus, The Lost Boys of Montauk, The Studio at the Sachem Public Library, tilefish, View from the Side of the Roadartfulperiscope

How many threads connect unto a series of events. Joining the podcast is author Amanda Fairbanks, author of the book The Lost Boys of Montauk. Amanda speaks to Larry about the process of writing this story and how it was a labor of love, being a resident of the South Fork of Long Island. We learn about how the Montauk of1984 (a primarily fishing town) transitioned to a playground for the ultra wealthy along with the secrets that can haunt the families of the lost.

Also joining the podcast is singer/songwriter/seachanteyman Stuart Markus. Stuart joined Larry in studio to play some tunes both popular and original, including The View from the Side of the Road and Gloucester Ladies. Stuart spoke about growing up with music in Rochester, New York, his first experiences with music as a kid and what inspires him to write music and perform with his band Gathering Time. You can get more information about where to find Stuart here.

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Episode 18 – What is the Thread that Connects a Writer to a Reader – Authors Paul Vidich, Terry Simone Francis and a Commentary by Tom Clavin

July 10, 2021UncategorizedBlack Film Archive, Indiana University, Paul Vidich, Phil Keith, Soviet Union, Spies, Terry Simone Francis, The Mercenary, Tom Clavin, USSR, What you may not know about your fatherartfulperiscope

What is the thread that connects a writer to a reader?

Larry was joined by Paul Vidich, author of The Mercenary. Paul speaks about growing up during the Cold War with the USSR as the adversary to the United States along with the fall of the Soviet Union and the rise of modern day Russia. Paul also explains how writers have building blocks to engage the reader with detailed descriptions of weather architecture or other examples to set the stage. Larry also discusses the article “What You May Not Know About Your Father” including talk of what the business of spying is all about

Terry Simone Francis, Associate Professor and Director of the Black Film Archive at Indiana University has a lively discussion about her book The Audacious Josephine Baker: Josephine Baker’s Cinematic Prism and about writing. If writing is a dance, who leads? Terry talks about Josephine Baker, what made her a pioneer for African American women in the 1920’s and her migration to France. Larry also had a fun chat about Ethel Waters and how she is not known for being a Blues artist.

With Just a Thought, Tom Clavin rejoins the podcast to eulogize his friend and co-author Phil Keith. Phil and Tom were previous guests in Episode 8, and Tom tells the story of a quiet, complicated and talented veteran of the Vietnam Conflict turned writer.

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Episode 17 – What Are the Threads that Connect Us to a Series of Events: Heather Martin, Jennifer Murphy and Danny Caine

June 20, 2021Uncategorized9-11, Ambulance, and Love on New York City's Frontlines discussing how words move us in relationships, connections and institutions. Jennifer shares her early, Danny Caine, Death, FDNY, First Responder, First Responder: A Memoir of Life, Heather Martin, Jack Reacher, Jennifer Murphy, Lee Child, New York City, NYC EMS, Raven Books, September 11th, Some thoughts and observations, The Booth, The Great War, The Reacher Series, World War IIartfulperiscope

What are the threads that connects to a series of events?

Joining Larry for a chat is Heather Martin, author of The Reacher Guy: A Biography of Lee Child. Heather talks about meeting Lee Child and her inspiration for writing the book. We learn what roles the Great War and World War II had in forming Lee’s perceptions of the world and what fiction stories say about the locations in which they are set.

Jennifer Murphy, the author of First Responder: A Memoir of Life, Death, and Love on New York City’s Frontlines discussing how words move us in relationships, connections and institutions. Jennifer shares her early years, life as a first responder in Brooklyn, New York, a battle with malignant melanoma and dealing with the death of loved ones and colleagues in the wake of 9-11.

Finally, some thoughts an observations, an open letter to Jeff Bazos of Amazon by Danny Caine from Raven Books in Lawrence, Kansas.

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Episode 16 – What is the Thread that Connects Us to the Story Behind the Story: Craig Unger, Ray Rickman & Darin Strauss

April 11, 2021UncategorizedAmerican Kompromat, Darin Strauss, Donald Trump, James Meredith, Larry Davidson, Larry Davidson productions, Larrydavidsonproductions.com, Ray Rickman, Russia, Stages of Freedom, stagesoffreedom.org, Sunflower County Mississippi, The Black Church, Vladimir Putinartfulperiscope

What is the thread that connect us to the story behind the story? In this episode, Larry speaks with author Craig Unger who discusses his latest work American Kompromat, which touches on Opus Dei, how it has penetrated American government especially in the Trump presidency and how Russia has manipulated Trump since the 1980’s. There is also a lively discussion about Wiliam Barr’s controversial actions and departure as Trump’s former Attorney General.

Also joining the podcast is Author Ray Rickman who speaks about being co-founder and Executive Director of Stages of Freedom, the powerful PBS program The Black Church, his personal history marching for civil rights with James Meredith in Sunflower County Mississippi and his Adopt a Doctor Program. He and Larry also have a lively discussion about African American crime fiction writers.

With Just a Thought, Author and Professor Darin Strauss returns to the program with some observations about extremism in modern American politics, the fuel of social media and the product of the cancel culture.

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Episode 15 – What is the Thread that Connects Human Behavior to a Range of Pathologies – Abigail Esman, Tom Clavin and Commentary by Peter Blauner

March 6, 2021UncategorizedAbigail Esman, Larry Davidson, Larry Davidson productions, Larrydavidsonproductions.com, Patriarchy and the Culture of Terrorism. Tombstone, Peter Blauner, Rage: Narcissism, Sachem Library, Sachem Public Library's The Booth, The Artful Periscope, The Booth at The Sachem Public Library, Tom Clavinartfulperiscope

What is the Thread that Connects Human Behavior to a Range of Pathologies. Joining Larry on this episode is Authors Abigail Esman and Tom Clavin along with a commentary by Peter Blauner.

Abigail Esman is the author of Rage: Narcissism, Patriarchy and the Culture of Terrorism. Abigail kicks off the episode with a short passage from her book and then explains why she needed to pen this work. She has a lively conversation about how personal experiences & the experience of the events of 9/11 inspired her to write about pathological narcissism and its roots in shame-honor cultures—both familial and sociopolitical—through portraits of terrorists and batterers.

Guest and friend of the program Tom Clavin, New York Times Bestselling author, returns to the podcast to discuss his new book Tombstone: The Earp Brothers, Doc Holliday and the Vendetta Ride from Hell. Always a fun guest, Larry talks about his love for the old west stemming from the movies of his childhood. This passion for the old west and storytelling drove him to turn his book Dodge City, Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, and the Wickedest Town in the American West into the first in a Trilogy which also includes Wild Bill: The True Story of the American Frontiers First Gunfighter.

Peter Blauner, author, journalist and friend to the podcast joins with commentary on the year we lost writing giants Journalist Pete Hamill, his brother and writer in his own right John Hamill and Pulitzer Prize winning Journalist Jim Dwyer. Peter reflects on how 2020 took these important journalists how they shaped and influenced him and the profound effect of their loss is because their brand of writing will never be seen again.

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Episode 14 – Is There a Thread that Connects Us to Our Own Sense of Well-being – Author S. J. Rozan, Gayle Fisher Stewart, Judith Finlayson & Pete Mancini

March 5, 2021UncategorizedArt of Violence, Artful Periscope, Judith Finlayson, Larry Davidson, Larry Davidson productions, Larrydavidsonproductions.com, Millions More, Pete Mancini, Preaching Black Lives Matter The Queen of Tuesday, Reverend Gayle Fisher Stewart, S. J. Rozan, Sachem Library, Sachem Public Library's The Booth, SJ Rozan, The Artful Periscope, The Booth at The Sachem Public Library, You Are What Your Grandparents Ateartfulperiscope

Is there a thread that connects us to our own sense of well-being. Larry has a jam packed episode with author S. J. Rozan speaking about her new book The Art of Violence, her thought process in creating a character’s point of view, writer’s self doubt, the process of writing which is never smooth and a deep dive into the art and character development of The Art of Violence.

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Gayle Fisher Stewart author of Preaching Black Lives Matter re-joins the podcast with thoughts and observations about the January 6th insurrection along with her reflections and observations of the event. She voices her perspective about law enforcement’s treatment of the participants of that day and how the event could have played out differently if black and brown participants had attempted the same actions and how there needs to be a meaningful discussion about race, racism and systematic racism.

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Judith Finlayson, author of You are What you Grandparent’s Ate talks about lifecycle and links among all kinds of disease and what happens to you before you were born, epigenetic modifications, eating healthy and how climate change can effect your health along with how your genes effect the development of diseases.

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Pete Mancini plays out the podcast with his original song Millions More

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Episode 13 – Is There a Thread That Connects Us to an Unusual Path – Lee Matthew Goldberg & The Ancestor

January 13, 2021UncategorizedFringe Publishing, Larry Davidson, Larry Davidson productions, Larrydavidsonproductions.com, Lee Matthew Goldberg, The Ancestor, The Artful Periscopeartfulperiscope

Is There a Thread That Connects Us to an Unusual Path? Joining Larry is Lee Mathew Goldberg, author of Ancestor, and the Editor and co-founder of Fringe a company that publishes works that are “outside the box”. Lee speaks about his influences and inspirations, challenging yourself as an author and how to translate that challenge to the reader, writing as a novelist vs writing for screenplays or pilots.

Larry also shares some thoughts and observations on the zeitgeist of 2020 politics, what supporting a politician looks like in 2020, the rise and fall of both politicians and public figures and the power of Twitter.

You can find the Podcast on Twitter and you can follow Larry on as well

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