PODCAST · history
¡Ay, Jorge!
by Jorge Navarro
Cuban Cowboys' founder and frontman drinks strong coffee and talks to his 90 year-old Cuban mom about family, politics, U.S.-Cuba idiocy, kids, education, and oh so many personal (mis)adventures.
Episodes
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¡Feliz Año Huevo!
Happy New Year! Superfan Ed C. from Florida wrote in a few days ago to see if his list of Cuban New Year’s Eve traditions matched up with Rita’s. Black-eyed peas? Resolutions? Gunfire? Not for our favorite 92 year old Cuban mom! Find out what Rita did or does to celebrate New Year’s Eve in this...
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Wrong DeSantis
It's gotten to the point where Florida's Governor deserves nothing more than to return to governing his state back in to the ground or toward new heights of Christian (in name only) Glory (depending on your political or personal persuasion. Funders backing out, PAC CEO's backing down (i.e....
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Nikki Haley: Trick, Pick or Dick?
You decide. Nikki Haley's recent surge in the polls leading up to the first round of primaries has been impressive enough to (further) derail DeSantis while also revealing her to be notably deft in regards to finding ways to strike a balanced, nuanced tone on hot-button topics such as abortion…
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But Those Pecs! RFK Jr. Quixotic Erotic
Conspiracy theorist? Anti-Vaxxer? Crackpot? Embarrassment? Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been called all that and more - by the mainstream media and members of his family. He's also been called a supremely gifted litigator, environmental lawyer and defender of our nation's...
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Vivek Ramaswamy, Meet My Mami!
BioTech Billionaire. Entrepreneur. Trump cheerleader-apologist and smooth-talking GOP Presidential candidate who's star has begun shining more brightly along the winding road to the primaries. Whatever else, you have to admire his speaking abilities and, dare we say, verve. Rita says he is to be...
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The 2024 Presidential Erection
Given the growing number of octogenarian politicians in the U.S., the two frontrunners in the 2024 Presidential election being foremost, we're not sure what kind of erection can be achieved, so we're likely better off settling for an election. Season 3 starts off with Rita surveying the current...
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Season 2 Finale: Quinceañeras, Indictments and Bladders.
Her granddaughter's 15th birthday sends Rita ready down memory lane, recounting her first quinceañera back in Cuba, and lamenting (just a bit) the production the coming-of-age tradition has become for Miami latinos. Of course, what would an ¡Ay, Jorge! grand finale episode be without discussions…
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Should I Stay or Should I Go? Tío Junior Escapes Cuba...Twice!
I recently read a book review in The Atlantic entitled “What It Feels Like When Fascism Start.” The book was written in the late 1930’s by Lion Feuchtwanger, one of Germany’s best-known historical fiction writers. The book recounts a family’s time during the Nazi’s ascent just before World War…
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Ron DeSanctimonious' Special Midterm Elections Episode
With the midterm elections upon us -- and Democrat control of the House and Senate imperiled -- we thought it'd be a good idea to check in on our favorite 90 year-old registered Republican living in Florida. Rita weighs in on Cuban history, term limits, Trump, DeSantis, AND reproductive rights in...
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The Irish Aunts
Rita had five Irish aunts. Her father’s sisters, like her father, Thomas Honan Jr., grew up under the watchful eye of the OG Irishman who’d stayed in Cuba after fighting alongside Teddy Roosevelt as a member of his vaunted Rough Riders. Four out of five of the Irish aunts made it out of Cuba.…
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Nobody Told Her (or Maggie Chapman) - Two Cuban Girls' Arrival in the U.S.
My mother got off the plane from Cuba in 1959, landing at LaGuardia with her best friend and one small suitcase. That suitcase contained all she was allowed to take with her out of Cuba. Except for a pillbox hat - which happened to be in fashion those days (thanks to then soon-to-be-First Lady...
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Forget Cuba. But Don't Forget Bebita and Marrero!
Have you ever weedled your parents or one of your parents or grandparents in an attempt to get the real stories behind family lore? Well, if you’ve listened to any ¡Ay, Jorge! episodes, then you know that Jorge is exceptionally gifted in regards to getting his mother, Rita, to say and recall…
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El Dichoso Navarrito
Jorge's grandfather, Jose "Pepe" Navarro, aka El Dichoso, worked for 9 Cuban presidential administrations. He was all of 16 years in 1921, when a man who'd just been appointed as President Alfredo Zayas' Secretario de la Presidencia hired the teenager as a stenographer (ostensibly ... in…
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Special Russian Invasion Episode: A Threesome for Peace
After receiving no less than 62 emails demanding a revisiting of Season 1's 'Baby-Making' segment, Rita's hard choices return with a vengeance! Your favorite 90 year-old Cuban mom* once again drops considerable knowledge on us via her take on Russia and China through the lens of Fidel's Cuban...
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Doubting Thomas Honan
Thomas Honan was born in Havana, Cuba, in 1900. He was the son of my Cuban family's patriarch, the 'OG Irishman' Thomas Patrick Honan (my maternal, great grandfather ... the one who'd emigrated from Ireland in the mid-1800's, became a cop in Chicago, and ended up in Cuba after fighting alongside...
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Liberace Afternoon: The Life and Times of Irene Zón
I remember watching the Liberace show with my grandmother and great grandmother when I was a little kid. I loved his flamboyance while my grandmother always remarked on his piano playing. In a sort of exchange, I would translate for them in real-time (neither understood much English). My...
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El Capitán
The ¡Ay, Jorge! podcast returns for another season of Jorge interviews with Rita, his 90 year-old Cuban mom. This season takes a deeper dive into their family's exile and subsequent life in the United States. Rita looks back on Cuban history, key relationships, and the lessons of a life…
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Season 1 Finale - An (Un)Holy Communion
The ¡Ay, Jorge! Cuban Cowboys' podcast wraps up its first season with the long-awaited 'Who Would You Make a Baby With?' championship round, pitting the #MeToo addled Plácido Domingo against former U.S. President/actor Ronald Reagan AND Bonzo, his TV chimp and co-star. Rita follows up her…
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Baby-Making Playoff Semifinal: Pope-A-Dope
"The Who Would You Make a Baby With?" segment has officially run amok. It's bad enough that my 89-year-old mom, in the previous episode's quarterfinal, AGAIN chose Ronald Reagan -- with his pet chimp Bonzo no less! -- over the likes of a young Che Guevara, and Mark Harmon; but to have her…
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Baby-Making Playoff Quarterfinal: Presidents, Chimps & NCIS
What do Che Guevara, Ronald Reagan, John F. Kennedy and Mark Harmon have in common? I'll tell you! At one point during this podcast's first season, my 89-year-old mom chose each of these men as sexual partners during the "Who Would you Make a Baby With?" segment of our show. Che beat out Nikita...
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¡Comunismo! ¡Socialismo! Oh my!
At long last: The "Communism" episode! Rita goes off on her progressive, possibly socialist son (um, that's me, your host), providing an in-depth origin story of communism in Cuba. While there's no Marvel Universe Thanos, there are quite a few interesting characters and moments discussed. From...
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How Soon Is Now? The Future May Kill Us
Try as he might (and he does!), Jorge is unable to engage Rita in anything regarding homosexuality (as listeners' requests for a so-called "Gay Episode" have doubled in recent weeks ... re: LGBTQ+ equity, inclusion, and Rita's perspectives therein). The conversation then turns toward the future,...
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What Happens When You Die?
Mortality can be weird, as an actuality, topic and otherwise. My mom took a spill on the first night of her visit, here in San Francisco. We recorded this episode in my kitchen, mere steps away from where she'd fallen earlier in the week. The episode (heh) inspired the topic -- as we discuss...
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Immigrant Song
This episode features Rita recounting her own Cuban exile experience against the larger backdrop of the United States' twisted, contradictory, arbitrary and oft-cruel immigration policy. Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song never rang so true. Neither has Cypress Hill's Insane in the Membrane for that...
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Eartha Kitt and The Shah of Iran
OK. So this episode has only a little to do with either. But, hey, that is Eartha Kitt and my mom in the pic, so there's that. And more (including what Eartha said to Rita about the necklace in the pic, re: The Shah of Iran). File this episode under "Stuff You Never Knew Your Mom Did When You…
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Cuban By Accident
By the end of January, 1959, Fidel Castro's revolutionary forces had taken over most of Havana's businesses, nationalizing private companies, stores, banks, etc., in the name of the revolution, on behalf of the Cuban people. My mom was working at a bank as the Director's executive assistant. When...
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Go Down to Miami
My mom moved to Miami in 1962. She had landed at NYC's LaGuardia Airport 3 years prior and lived in NYC and then Naples, FL, before settling and living in Miami for the next 34 years. Who knew how much would or could change in that time; how many waves of immigrants -- Cuban, Nicaraguan…
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Banana Republic
An insurrection? An act of sedition? An overdue call-to-arms? Whatever else, the events of January 6, 2021 will cast a long shadow for quite a long time. For my mom, watching Trump supporters rush the capitol building reminded her of what she saw and experienced in Cuba. Repeatedly. Growing up in...
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My Cuban Mom Voted for Biden
My Cuban mom voted for Biden. Given how the rest of the Cuban-American vote went and generally goes, her vote was no small matter. Listen as she talks about her decision, growing up in Cuba, and living in Miami for 37 years. Toward the end of the episode, I ask her "Who would you make a baby...
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¡Ay, Jorge! Season 3
Jorge announces Season 3’s focus: the 2024 Presidential election.
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Cuban Cowboys' founder and frontman drinks strong coffee and talks to his 90 year-old Cuban mom about family, politics, U.S.-Cuba idiocy, kids, education, and oh so many personal (mis)adventures.
HOSTED BY
Jorge Navarro
CATEGORIES
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does ¡Ay, Jorge! have?
¡Ay, Jorge! currently has 30 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is ¡Ay, Jorge! about?
Cuban Cowboys' founder and frontman drinks strong coffee and talks to his 90 year-old Cuban mom about family, politics, U.S.-Cuba idiocy, kids, education, and oh so many personal (mis)adventures.
How often does ¡Ay, Jorge! release new episodes?
¡Ay, Jorge! has 30 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to ¡Ay, Jorge!?
You can listen to ¡Ay, Jorge! on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts ¡Ay, Jorge!?
¡Ay, Jorge! is created and hosted by Jorge Navarro.
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