Meet Garry Starr, the Naked Clown on a Mission to Save Literature

Hasan Minhaj is best known for his political comedy on ‘The Daily Show’ and ‘Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj,’ but his latest project hits closer to home. Minhaj sat down with Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott to discuss Netflix's ‘Best of the Best,’ which he produced, co-wrote and co-stars in. The film follows two Indian American best friends who compete in college Bollywood dance competitions, inspired by real circuits like Best of the Best, Legends and the Desi Dance Network. Directed by Lena Khan and starring Priyanka Kedia and Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, the movie centers on friendship and whether that bond can survive competition. "It's really, really about sisterhood and their friendship," Minhaj tells Newsweek. "And will that bond last." Minhaj also opens up about balancing this new creative direction with the political commentary he's known for, including his podcast ‘Hasan Minhaj Doesn't Know.’ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Andrew Garfield has never been afraid of a message movie. From The Social Network to Under the Banner of Heaven to his upcoming turn as Sam Altman in Artificial, the Oscar nominated actor keeps gravitating toward roles that carry something bigger. On this episode of the Parting Shot Podcast, Garfield joins me to talk about his latest, The Uprising. Directed by Paul Greengrass, the film sends Garfield back to 1381 England as a nameless ploughman crushed by King Richard II's taxes, whose fight against the crown becomes the true story behind the legend of Robin Hood. Garfield explains why the film's economic anger feels ripped from today's headlines, why he thinks real change starts with the individual rather than those in power and why he keeps being drawn to work that says something without setting out to. The Uprising is in theaters September 11. Watch our chat on YouTube: https://youtu.be/YNzB2AT_1zUFollow me at https://linktr.ee/halanscott.Subscribe to my channel and hit the bell for new episodes of the Parting Shot Podcast every week. More at https://www.newsweek.com/podcasts/the-parting-shot.Sign up for my For the Culture newsletter at https://for-the-culture.beehiiv.com.#AndrewGarfield #TheUprising #PartingShotPodcast #Newsweek #PaulGreengrassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Damien Warren-Smith performs every Penguin Classic novel in under an hour, mostly naked, as his alter ego Garry Starr. On this episode of the Parting Shot Podcast, Warren-Smith joins me to talk about Garry Starr: Classic Penguins, his new solo show making its Off Broadway premiere at Studio Seaview.Warren-Smith explains how a decade of theater acting led him to clown training in Paris with Philippe Gaulier, how a scrappy clown troupe called The Plague of iDiots gave Garry Starr his name and why performing naked has become the least complicated part of the job. We dig into what makes a great clown, how audiences react to the nudity once the show gets going and where Damien ends and Garry begins.Garry Starr: Classic Penguins plays Studio Seaview in New York City through October.Watch our chat on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Ztds_6SfEHYFollow me at https://linktr.ee/halanscott.Subscribe to my channel and hit the bell for new episodes of the Parting Shot Podcast every week. More at https://www.newsweek.com/podcasts/the-parting-shot.And sign up for my For the Culture newsletter at https://for-the-culture.beehiiv.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wynn Everett and Frankie A. Rodriguez join H. Alan Scott to talk about the second season of Hulu's "Chad Powers," where their characters give the rest of us a way into a football show. "We're both theater kids," Everett says, which explains a lot about how they approached it. They get into the straight-guy, gay-guy friendship at the center of the series and why it works without ever announcing itself, what Glen Powell is actually like as a number one on the call sheet, and how the show walks the line between camp and heartbreak. Plus, Rodriguez on why the locker room is really just backstage. Subscribe to my newsletter: https://for-the-culture.beehiiv.com Follow me: https://linktr.ee/halanscott See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Kristen Johnston has been stealing scenes for three decades. She joins H. Alan Scott to talk about playing Leanne Morgan's sister on the second season of Netflix's "Leanne," what auditioning opposite John Lithgow taught her about comedy and why her life splits neatly into before Lexi Featherston and after. Plus, what Michael Patrick King told her right before the biggest speech of her career. Subscribe to H. Alan Scott's newsletter: https://for-the-culture.beehiiv.com Follow me: https://linktr.ee/halanscott See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Leanne Morgan spent 27 years in stand-up before Netflix handed her a sitcom in her 60s. She joins H. Alan Scott to talk about season two of "Leanne," what Kristen Johnston taught her about working a multicam set and the wave of women over 60 currently running the format. "We must be the new it girls, I guess," Morgan says. Plus, what Netflix executives told her when she pitched the show, and why she is still surprised anyone let her in the room. Subscribe to H. Alan Scott's newsletter: https://for-the-culture.beehiiv.com Follow me: https://linktr.ee/halanscott See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Fifteen years of apologizing, fifteen years of not speaking and one dinner party. John Galliano pulls out of the 2027 Costume Institute exhibition that would have honored him, ending weeks of backlash over the antisemitic and racist remarks that got him fired from Dior in 2011. H. Alan Scott and Lauren Giella ask whether stepping away was the right call, whether the Met outsourced a decision it should have made itself and what enough would even look like. Then Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger, which documents Liam and Noel Gallagher's 2025 reunion tour and delivers their first joint interview since the split, in theaters September 11 before it streams on Hulu and Disney+. And Gwyneth Paltrow, whose leaked Hamptons invite honoring OpenAI CEO Sam Altman tests how far a wellness brand can stretch.Subscribe to H. Alan Scott's newsletter: https://for-the-culture.beehiiv.comFor more: https://linktr.ee/halanscottSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Microdramas are the vertical-video soap operas taking over your phone: one- or two-minute episodes stacked 60 deep, full of love triangles, betrayals and cliff-hangers. H. Alan Scott sits down with Newsweek's Lauren Giella and actor Jason Caceres, who has shot more than 100 microdramas since 2023 between roles on Hacks and Criminal Minds, to unpack how apps like ReelShort and DramaBox built an $11 billion industry projected to top $20 billion by 2030. They get into the pay, the six-day shoots and why Marc Jacobs just launched one starring Rowan Blanchard. Somewhere, a former Quibi executive is punching a wall. Subscribe to my newsletter: https://for-the-culture.beehiiv.com Follow me: https://linktr.ee/halanscott See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Dolly Parton has died at 80, and the loss is impossible to size. Newsweek's Lauren Giella joins H. Alan Scott to talk through a legacy that ran far past country music, from the "9 to 5" crossover to the movies to Dollywood to the Imagination Library to a business strategy that was, somehow, love. H. Alan also reflects on the hour he spent interviewing Dolly a few years back, what she was actually like in a room, and why the welcome she extended to every single person was always the real gift. There is never going to be another one.For more, visit: Dolly Parton's Real Gift Was Never the Voice. It Was the Open DoorSubscribe to my newsletter: Home | For The CultureFollow me: H. Alan Scott | LinktreeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Anthony Bourdain was never just a chef. Dominic Sessa joins Newsweek's H. Alan Scott to talk about ‘Tony,’ the new film that follows a 19-year-old Bourdain through a summer in Provincetown after a rejection from Vassar, drawn from his 2000 memoir ‘Kitchen Confidential.’ Sessa came to the role with almost no relationship to the man: "I wasn't working from a place of trying to meet this standard of who he was in my mind." What he played instead was a kid absorbing everything around him. "I'm a 19-year-old young guy who doesn't really know anything about the world but pretends they do." Subscribe to my newsletter: https://for-the-culture.beehiiv.com Follow me: https://linktr.ee/halanscottSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.