PODCAST · society
So Important: The Interview Podcast!
by Monte Mallin
On this podcast, people have the chance to talk about something that is really important to them!
Episodes
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Adam Pohl on BASEBALL 2023: NEW RULES, BIG IMPACTS!
Hello friends! Let's get ready for Baseball 2023 - it's going to be different! A pitch clock, limits on defensive tactics, more stolen bases - baseball might just be fun again! My guest is Adam Pohl - a veteran of the podcast who joined me waaay back in episode four, and talked about his role as...
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Esther Starobin on SURVIVING THE HOLOCAUST: THE KINDERTRANSPORT
Greetings and welcome to episode 58! I had the great honor to talk with Esther Starobin, who shared her compelling story of surviving the Holocaust through a short-lived, British supported program called the Kindertransport ("children's transport") that helped to evacuate Jewish children from…
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Professor Jonathan Morris on COFFEE, COFFEE COFFEE, COFFEE COFFEE!
Umm..coffee...am I the only one that goes to bed thinking about how I'm just that much closer to having my first cup of coffee when I get up? Just me? No? Didn't think so! Almost EVERYONE loves coffee! But...how does that little coffee bean become that cup you may be enjoying right now? How did...
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Alex Grand on COMIC BOOKS - AND REALISM!
Hello my friends! Had a great discussion with Dr. Alex Grand about how the comic book industry continues to evolve to meet changing consumer expectations, focused on the idea of comic book realism. Dr. Grand has authored Understanding Superhero Comic Books: A History of Key Elements, Creators,...
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Dr. Francesca Royster on BLACK COUNTRY MUSIC: LISTENING FOR REVOLUTIONS!
Greetings! I had the great privilege to speak with Dr. Francesca Royster, professor of English at DePaul University, on her essential new book, Black Country Music: Listening for Revolutions. Dr. Royster masterfully weaves the story of the relationship between blacks and country music, including...
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Sarah Bonner on RESTORING A CULTURAL ICON - AND MAKING IT BETTER THAN EVER!
Greetings everyone! Do you have 20 minutes to enjoy a GREAT story? This is how Sarah Bonner, her husband Tommy Bowes, and their partner, Allan Kresse, revitalized a cultural landmark right here in Maryland - and made it better than ever! Hank Dietle's Tavern was a much loved establishment with a...
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Dr. Josh Angrist on WINNING THE NOBEL PRIZE - AND THE IMPORTANT WORK THAT LED TO IT!
Along with two colleagues, MIT Professor of Economics Joshua Angrist won the Nobel Prize in 2021 for their methodological contributions to the analysis of causal relationships - or put another way, using natural experimental methods to measure trends and seeking to understand outcomes than...
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Michael Kronenberg on THE CHANGING PERSONAS OF...THE BATMAN!
Greetings friends! I had a great conversation with graphic design artist Michael Kronenberg on the various ways that Batman has been portrayed over the years. It's really interesting to track Batman's evolution, particularly in light of how his persona evolved not only in comic books, but also in...
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Randy Schmidt on THE LIFE, MUSIC, AND TRAGIC DEMISE OF KAREN CARPENTER.
Greetings friends. Today we're talking with Randy Schmidt, who wrote the definitive biography of Karen Carpenter who, along with her brother Richard, was one half of the immensely popular 1970s musical ensemble, The Carpenters. Everyone knows the Carpenters. For me, they were just that "pop act"...
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Mike Edison, Gary Graff, Chris McKittrick, and Jim Wilson on CELEBRATING CHARLIE WATTS!
It's episode 50 folks! And to help celebrate this milestone, I'm joined by four alumni of the So Important Podcast: Mike Edison (episode 28), Gary Graff (episode 5), Jim Wilson (episode 7), and Chris McKittrick (episode 23) - four great guests convening to discuss a topic near and dear to all of...
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BG (Ret) Ty Seidule on ROBERT E. LEE AND ME: UNDERSTANDING OUR PAST - TO DEFEAT RACISM TODAY!
Greetings friends! Appropriate for the upcoming Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, I spoke with retired Brigadier General Ty Seidule about his remarkable book, Robert E. Lee and Me: A Southerner's Reckoning with the Myth of the Lost Cause, which was just published in paperback and which is currently...
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Amy Edelstein on TRANSFORMING OURSELVES AND THE CULTURE WE LIVE IN!
Greetings friends and fans of the So Important podcast! It's the holiday season, and I thought a story of inspiration was in order. And our guest on this episode is very inspiring, to say the least. Spend a little time with Amy Edelstein, who discusses her lifelong personal journey to attain a...
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Suzanne Romero on THE GEORGE A ROMERO FOUNDATION - AND GEORGE ROMERO‘S LEGACY!
I had the great pleasure of speaking with Suzanne Romero, the Founder and President of the George A Romero Foundation in Pittsburgh, PA. Suzanne established the Foundation to secure George's great legacy, and as its comprehensive website makes clear, the Foundation is accomplishing this in any...
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Daniel Webster on ADDRESSING GUN VIOLENCE AS A PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE
Daniel Webster is one of the country's leading experts on addressing the threat of gun violence in this country. As the Director of the Center for Gun Violence Prevention and Policy at Johns Hopkins University, Dr. Webster focuses on the public health aspect of addressing this epidemic. I am...
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Raymond Doswell on THE NEGRO LEAGUES - AND THE NEGRO LEAGUES BASEBALL MUSEUM!
Hello friends! I contacted Dr. Raymond Doswell to talk about the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri. Dr. Doswell is the museum's Vice President and Curator and brings a wealth of knowledge and perspective to the topic. We talked about the museum for quite a while - but what...
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Richard Adler on THE RAMONES BEFORE THEY WERE THE RAMONES!
Hey gang! Had a very fun conversation with Richard Adler, who knew - and played with members of - the seminal punk band The Ramones. We talked about the early days, as the band was just getting started - and Richard has great stories to tell. He also brings a great perspective to the table. A...
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Chad Hermansen on THE MENTAL EDGE!
What's it like to be a first round pick in baseball's annual draft? What's it like to be facing incredibly lofty expectations - including from a coach who says you "walk on water" - when you're just a teenager? And what do you do with yourself when the pressure is just too much, and things just...
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David Wilson on REENACTING THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR!
Greetings friends! We're rolling along...presenting our second episode since returning from a short break. And what a show it is! David Wilson is an IT consultant with the United States Agency for International Development, in Washington DC. But he is also a dedicated Revolutionary War reenactor,...
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Dr. Brian O'Roark on SUPERHERO ECONOMICS!
Greetings Friends! Returning from hiaitus with a terrific conversation with Dr. J. Brian O'Roark on Superhero Economics! Dr. O'Roark developed an approach to teaching economics to his students at Robert Morris University - just outside of my hometown of Pittsburgh - by relying on popular culture,...
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Bruce Pegg on CHUCK BERRY: THE MUSIC - AND THE MAN!
So pleased to chat with Bruce Pegg, who wrote the definitive biography of Chuck Berry back in 2002. The title says it all: Brown Eyed Handsome Man: The Life and Hard Times of Chuck Berry. It's available on Amazon, and wherever great books are sold. Chuck made some of the most important and…
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Michelle Dresbold on ADVENTURES IN HANDWRITING ANALYSIS!
Hello friends! It's been a busy time so I apologize in the lag since our last episode...but here we are, back and fresh as ever, with my GREAT conversation with Michelle Dresbold, who is one of the world's preeminent handwriting analysts. We talk about her important work supporting law…
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Esman Kurum on THE AESTHETICS OF FILM NOIR!
Hello friends, and welcome to this episode of So Important: The Interview Podcast! We're talking today with Esman Kurum, an authority on the cinematography of film noir - the seedy and fatalistic movies that, during the 1940s and 1950s, were often exceptionally beautiful and expressive, with…
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Dr. Yolanda Willis (and Marty Willis) on SURVIVING THE HOLOCAUST IN GREECE
Hello everyone and welcome to a very special - and very personally meaningful - episode of So Important: The Interview Podcast. This is the compelling, and in the end uplifting, story of Dr. Yolanda Avram Willis, who survived the Holocaust during World War II, in Greece. The story of the…
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Steve Hackett on HIS NEW AUTOBIOGRAPHY!
Hello friends! We're back with the great Steve Hackett, member of Genesis during that band's classic era in the 1970s, creator of well over 25 solo albums, and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, to discuss A Genesis In My Bed, his long-anticipated autobiography that was almost a decade in...
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Dr. Gayle Wald on SISTER ROSETTA THARPE!
Sister Rosetta Tharpe. A trailblazer; an exuberant and charismatic performer from the 1930s all the way to the 1970s; and a wicked electric guitar player. This amazing woman was raised in, and remained loyal to, her gospel roots throughout her entire life and career; yet she took the secular…
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David Montgomery on SPACE FORCE!
Hello friends! In December, 2019, David Montgomery, Staff Writer for the Washington Post Magazine, wrote an in-depth article on President Trump's proposal for a new branch of the military, to be called the Space Force. In preparing the article,, which can be accessed here, Montgomery evolved from…
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Mitchell Nathanson on JIM BOUTON: THE LIFE OF A BASEBALL ORIGINAL!
Hello friends! Who's up for a second episode in a row...about Baseball?? I talked with Mitchell Nathanson, Professor of Law at Villanova University and the author of numerous books and articles on the subject of baseball, about his new book on the one and only Jim Bouton, whose 1970 book, Ball...
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Jeremy Newberger on HEADING HOME: THE TALE OF TEAM ISRAEL!
Hello friends, Well, we should be deep into the baseball season by now...but life had other ideas, and here we are approaching May with no start of the season in sight. Not to worry...I've been talking with some TOP NOTCH guests to help fill the void, beginning with one Jeremy Newberger, the CEO…
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Benny Becker on HIS INVESTIGATIVE WORK IN APPALACHIA!
Hello friends and welcome to a new episode of So Important! My guest is Mr. Benny Becker, an investigative reporter focused on issues in the Appalachian region of the United States. Benny is compassionate, thorough, and incisive - as his many stories on the challenges faced by the towns and…
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Steve Hackett on GENESIS, HIS SOLO WORK, AND HIS AMAZING TOUR!
Well my friends, I notice that I tend to describe every episode as "very special," but this one is for sure. I talked with legendary Guitarist Steve Hackett, who was the guitar player in Genesis from 1971 to 1977, when they were at the height of their progressive rock powers. There is nothing…
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Dina Gold on ATTAINING RESTITUTION!
In 1937, the Nazi regime in Germany foreclosed upon a building in the heart of Berlin that was owned by Dina Gold's family. They received significantly less than market value in return. This is Dina's amazing and inspirational story of all that she did to see that justice for her family was…
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Mike Edison on WHY CHARLIE WATTS MATTERS!
Hello friends! Today we're talking with Mike Edison on his new book, Sympathy For The Drummer: Why Charlie Watts Matters. Mike and I share a deep and abiding love for Mr. Watts, the drummer of the Rolling Stones. There are few like him in the rock and roll world, and as Mike and I agree, the…
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Steve Pindar on ROBERTO'S KIDS!
All - had a wonderful conversation with Steve Pindar, the Founder of Roberto's Kids, a charitable organization dedicated to building social and community responsibility - through baseball! The organization is named, as you may have guessed, after the great Pittsburgh Pirate, Roberto Clemente....
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Monte Mallin on THE BIRTH OF THE BACKBEAT!
Hello friends, and welcome to a special thanksgiving-day episode! Little surprise here for ya - decided to talk about something interesting and important to me - the birth of rock and roll drumming! Have some fun listening to how the backbeat - the basis of rock and roll drumming - came about.…
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Moshe Engelberg on THE AMARE WAVE - A NEW BUSINESS PARADIGM!
Welcome friends! We're back from a short hiatus and talking with Moshe Engelberg - our first repeat guest - about his recent book, The Amare Wave: Uplifting Business by Putting Love to Work! Moshe talks about an alternative business model to what we're used to - and has the numbers to back up his...
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Dr. Gerson Sher on U.S. - SOVIET SCIENTIFIC COOPERATION AND LESSONS FOR TODAY!
In the midst of the Cold War, when the United States and the Former Soviet Union had - literally - tens of thousands of nuclear weapons pointed at each other, there were nonetheless efforts to find areas of cooperation. One such area was Scientific Cooperation, where many of the scientists,...
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Christopher McKittrick on THE STONES IN NEW YORK!
Hello friends! Had a great conversation with Christopher McKittrick on his new book about the Rolling Stones and their career-long relationship with New York City! I thoroughly enjoyed the book and could have chatted with Christopher for hours - like me, he's a dyed-in-the-wool Rolling Stones…
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Dr. Ben Canha on HOW HUMOR CAN HELP TREAT THE OPIOID CRISIS
Greetings friends, I'd like you to meet Dr. Ben Canha, who has written a PhD dissertation on a critically important, and absolutely fascinating, topic: how humor can play a role in helping to treat the opioid crisis in America. Dr. Canha teaches nursing at the University of Maryland. He also…
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Cesar Brioso on THE END OF PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL IN CUBA!
Well, it's Memorial Day Weekend, and that means baseball! Join me in talking with Cesar Brioso about his recent book, Last Seasons In Havana: The Castro Revolution and the End of Professional Baseball in Cuba." Cesar is a digital producer for USA Today Sports, where he served as baseball editor...
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Tom Mirenda on PRESERVING ORCHIDS!
Tom Mirenda knows orchids. He is the Chairman of the American Orchid Society's Preservation Committee and he has traveled the world investigating, and talking about, the many species of orchids that inhabit our planet. Currently living in Hawaii - a great launching point for investigating the...
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Sweet Lizzie Project on THEIR MUSIC - AND THEIR AMAZING HISTORY!
Hello and Welcome! My guests today are Lisset Diaz and Miguel Comas, two members of the terrific young band, the Sweet Lizzie Project. These guys have a story to tell! Some time ago, PBS went to Cuba to learn more about the music scene there. That led to the migration of Lisset, Miguel, and the...
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Dennis and PJ Aubrey on PHOTOGRAPHING THE GREAT ROMANESQUE AND GOTHIC CHURCHES!
I had the great pleasure of speaking with Dennis and PJ Aubrey about their wonderfully unique life's work - visiting the great Romanesque and Gothic churches of Europe, and brilliantly photographing and writing about - and now also podcasting about - their efforts. What started out as a hobby has...
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Kat Murti on LIBERTARIAN FEMINISM!
Kat Murti is the founder and CIO of Feminists for Liberty, a nonprofit organization dedicated to spreading the ideals of libertarian feminism. The organization's motto is "anti-sexism and anti-statism, pro-markets and pro-choice." Kat and I talked about the organization, its objectives, and about...
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Rabbi Chuck Diamond on THE TREE OF LIFE ATTACK - AND WHERE WE GO FROM HERE
Rabbi Chuck Diamond is the former Rabbi at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, where on October 27, 2018 a lone gunman massacred eleven congregants. His only rationale was that he "wanted to kill Jews." Rabbi Chuck joined me to share his story. He knew the slain personally, he is a native…
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Stacy Godfrey on THE GREATNESS OF THE BAND GENESIS!
Hello everyone, I had so much fun putting this episode together! I chatted with Stacy Godfrey, a long-time fellow fan of the band Genesis, and a co-host of the terrific podcast, Tabletop Genesis. Listening to her podcast, it became obvious to me that she would be fun to chat with. Why? Well, we...
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Karen Struble Myers on THE FRED ROGERS CENTER - AND FRED'S LEGACY!
Hello friends! A new year is upon us...and as the holiday season proceeds, it's hard not be a bit reflective. Is there more we can be doing to help bring folks together, to encourage tolerance and patience, and respect for each other's feelings? I think there is, and for this special episode, I...
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Monte A Melnick on THE LEGACY OF THE RAMONES!
I had the great pleasure of speaking with Monte A. Melnick, the former tour manager of the legendary rock band, The Ramones. For over 20 years the Ramones toured the world playing to adoring and loyal audiences; but it is only now, over 20 years after their retirement, that their contributions to...
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Tosh Berman on GROWING UP IN WALLACE BERMAN'S WORLD!
Hello everyone! I talked with Tosh Berman, an influential and beloved member of the Los Angeles literary scene, on his new book entitled, Tosh: Growing Up in Wallace Berman's World. This book is a masterful story of growing up as the son of the well-known artist Wallace Berman, who is often...
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Jonna Murphy on Mental Health Awareness.
Hello all, As I mention in the introduction to this episode, this podcast is a little bit different than the norm, in that we don't just focus on one topic, but we focus on people. My goal is to give all kinds of people the opportunity to talk about something interesting, or important, to them....
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Barrence Whitfield on HIS MUSIC!
So, this one is special to me. I first saw Barrence Whitfield and the Savages perform in the 1980s and I have loved Barrence and his music ever since. Led by Barrence and long-time guitarist Peter Greenberg, the Savages put on a full-assault rock and roll attack every time. Describing their sound...
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does So Important: The Interview Podcast! have?
So Important: The Interview Podcast! currently has 59 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is So Important: The Interview Podcast! about?
On this podcast, people have the chance to talk about something that is really important to them!
How often does So Important: The Interview Podcast! release new episodes?
So Important: The Interview Podcast! has 59 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to So Important: The Interview Podcast!?
You can listen to So Important: The Interview Podcast! 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 So Important: The Interview Podcast!?
So Important: The Interview Podcast! is created and hosted by Monte Mallin.
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