Press Play with Madeleine Brand

Plus, filmmaker John Wilson's new documentary about the history of concrete has a lot under its surface. And KCRW’s LeRoy Downs stops by to discuss jazz saxophonist John Coltrane, who was born 100 years ago this month.

Plus, an LA artist receives the MacArthur Foundation’s “genius grant,” and Angelenos screen their home videotapes on VHS for the first time with the help of T.A.P.E. Collective.

Plus, Trump’s new TV ad was funded by taxpayers, how cuts to Medicaid are impacting some California hospitals, and Chuck Klosterman’s alternative history of alternative rock.

Plus, the EPA permanently restores grants to UC researchers whose funding it stripped, our weekend film reviews, and we sent lifelong Angeleno Evan Kleiman to find the best Texas-style food in L.A.

Plus, Latino voters may be swinging back to Democrats, Emily St. John Mandel’s new book is set in dystopian Los Angeles in the not-too-distant future, and the case for starting holiday prep in September.

Plus, ICE stopped disclosing where it's holding thousands of undocumented immigrants, a new documentary features the oldest people in the world, and coyote sightings light up an Encino group chat.

Plus, news outlets banned from the White House sue on First Amendment grounds, Gov. Newsom declares a state of emergency due to El Niño, and a scathing review of a mostly-AI hip-hop album.

Plus, a conservative judge who advised Mike Pence after the 2020 election warns Republicans may try to keep Democrats from taking their seats in Congress after the midterms. And our weekly film reviews.

Plus, twin crashes in Chatsworth involving a bus, an SUV, and then a helicopter. LA County moves to tax private jets, and Evan Kleiman is here with her favorite cheese.

Plus, President Trump lost at the Supreme Court, but he has other plans to limit mail-in voting. The Los Angeles Times opposes the billionaire’s tax, and Jarvis Cocker on the band Pulp’s comeback.

Plus, AI leaders say we need to pump the brakes, President Trump wants to make it harder for immigrants to access government benefits, and why the Emmys’ comedy category is filled with dramas.

Plus, is the U.S. better prepared for a 9/11-style attack today? Our weekend film reviews include a sequel to 1998’s Practical Magic, and Evan Kleiman has dessert ideas for the Jewish High Holidays.

Plus, Congresswoman Laura Friedman wants federal tax incentives to keep film production in the U.S., and how conspiracies that flourished after 9/11 had roots in government actions before then.

Plus, the health effects from 9/11 25 years after the attacks in New York, President Trump asks the Supreme Court to allow restrictions on mail-in voting for the midterms, and AI is making music.

On this Labor Day, it's a special "Producer's Cut" edition of Press Play. Extended versions of some of our favorite interviews that we've never broadcast before. Like our conversation with resterauteur Dan Tana's daughters. And Ariana Morgenstern, who helped shape KCRW's signature sound.

Kimberlé Crenshaw on what her friend meant to her, and the feminist movement. Plus, a scandal involving the Los Angeles Clippers, weekend film reviews, and Evan Kleiman’s party ideas for Labor Day.

Plus, ebola is still spreading fast in Central Africa, how the arrest of “El Chapo” created a Sinaloa Cartel power vacuum, and an idea to move homes slated for demolition to Altadena’s burnt-out lots.

Plus, California lawmakers pass a bill that would let you put solar panels on your balcony, the Defense Department in disarray under Secretary Pete Hegseth, and why tennis is “the cruelest game.”

Plus, LA leaders are getting nervous about the Olympics’ price tag, why Southern California is wetter and hotter than it’s ever been, and a pair of court cases challenges the Pentagon on First Amendment claims.

Plus, why it’s so hard to get rid of LA’s oil wells, our critics review Wile E. Coyote’s fight against the all-powerful Acme Corporation, and Evan Kleiman on the disappointment of nonstick pans.

Plus, how Dolly Parton’s role in 9 to 5 became iconic, Meta’s $18 billion settlement and child safety online, and new tests can reveal if you have an increased risk of getting Alzheimer’s.

Plus, a new study finds that at least 25 percent of NFL players could have the brain disease CTE. And artist Charles Ross’ 50-year endeavor to build an observatory in the New Mexico desert.

Plus, is the electric grid up for LA’s hottest week of the year? California’s Supreme Court hears arguments over Chad Bianco’s ballot seizure, and how President Trump’s loyal aide became a major news story.

Plus, their plans for homelessness and housing; a young woman diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis finds relief in weightlifting, our weekend film reviews, and Evan Kleiman’s heaven on Earth.

Plus, why polling missed the mark this primary season. A promising potential skin cancer vaccine. And a new biography of Howard Zinn looks at how A People’s History of the United States became a bestseller.