Here's The Thing with Alec Baldwin

Butch Walker is one of rock and roll's biggest talents, and on May 8th, he'll be releasing his new album -- a rock opera called American Love Story. You can preview one of the songs on today's episode of Here's the Thing, taped live last month (just before coronavirus made such gatherings impossible) at the Catalina Jazz Club in Hollywood. In the 1990s, Walker got major-label contracts and radio-play as the guitarist for the "hair band" SouthGang, and later as front-man of the edgy, grunge-tinged Marvelous 3. But Walker's career has evolved. Not only is he making beautiful solo work, but he's also become one of LA's most sought-after partners in music-making, having produced or written songs for artists ranging from P!nk to Green Day to Panic! at the Disco. It's been a long road from his life as an 8-year-old Kiss fan in rural Georgia, and Walker has accumulated great stories along the way, including what it was like to be the first American rock band to tour (and get kicked out of) China.

Thanks to Zach McNees for mixing the music in this episode.

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Actor Kristen Bell (The Good Place, Frozen, Veronica Mars) has a happy marriage that requires a lot of work, and she’s good with that. She considered a life in the theater as a student at NYU, even making it to Broadway before graduation. However, on a whim, she moved to Los Angeles and has been starring in movies and TV ever since. Like her most memorable characters, Bell is plucky, relatable, and very funny. That’s her lane and she’s good with that, too. She tells Alec, at 40, she’s more comfortable than ever in her skin, more aware of her voice and what she needs to be happy, lessons she strives to model every day for her daughters, and her legions of devoted fans.

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Alec and Stanley Tucci have only been on set together a couple of times, but they established a rapport deep enough to carry over into a Zoom interview more than a decade later. The two share stories from their families, discuss what they love about working with certain fellow actors, and the difference between working in Hollywood and the UK. Tucci also talks about how he gets into character for his most recent role, an 80-year-old woman in Apple TV's wonderful new animated series, Central Park.

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In this episode, recorded several months into the pandemic, NYC-based psychiatrist Julie Holland assures Alec it’s not just him, we’re all having a hard-time. Dr. Holland says our brains are wired for connection and isolation is causing many of us to go into “fight or flight” mode where it’s harder to feel safe and loved. But there’s hope. Put down the phone, go outside, call a friend. Connect. And, for some, drugs might help, too. Holland has been deeply curious about the brain since high school and she’s a leading researcher in using psychedelics and cannabis to treat PTSD. In controlled settings, these drugs can restore a sense of being connected with others and the larger world. Holland is the author of several books including Good Chemistry, Moody Bitches, and a memoir, Weekends at Bellevue.

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Art Fraud is investigative journey through one of the biggest cases of art fraud in US history done by The Knoedler Gallery written by VANITY REPORTER Michael Shnayerson and hosted by Alec Baldwin. On this episode two drawings on paper allegedly by the artist Richard Diebenkorn become the first of dozens of problematic works sold by the Knoedler Gallery. Also, a mysterious “Mr. X” enters the picture on this episode. Listen to Art Fraud on the iHeartRadio App or wherever you get your podcasts.

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