June Squibb Joins the Show!

Summary

All Of It: June Squibb Joins the Show! – Detailed Episode Summary

Release Date: December 26, 2024

In this engaging episode of All Of It, hosted by Alison Stewart from WNYC, the spotlight shines on acclaimed actress June Squibb as she discusses her latest project, the independent film "Thelma." The conversation delves deep into Squibb's portrayal of a resilient nonagenarian, the film's underlying themes, and her experiences both on and off the screen.

---

Exploring "Thelma" and June Squibb’s Character

Alison Stewart introduces "Thelma," a film that narrates the story of a 90-year-old woman scammed out of $10,000. Determined to reclaim her money, Thelma embarks on a mission assisted by her sidekick, Ben. June Squibb’s compelling performance as Thelma has garnered critical acclaim, earning her a nod for the Independent Spirit Award.

June Squibb describes her character with passion:

“[00:01:09] June Squibb: Oh, I think she's a wonderful 90 year old with great grit and determination. And she obviously is someone that will let anything go by her if they steal her money. She's determined to go and get it back.”

Family Dynamics and Thelma’s Determination

The conversation shifts to Thelma’s relationship with her grandson, portrayed by Fred Heckinger, a long-time collaborator and friend of the show. Squibb elaborates on the depth of their on-screen chemistry:

“[00:02:03] June Squibb: I think she sees a wonderful young man who's just ready to blossom and is probably, I feel that she thinks he's holding himself back and if she can just help him let loose, then he will just blossom into whatever it is he wants to be.”

Critics have praised the authentic bond between June Squibb and Fred Heckinger, highlighting their genuine chemistry that breathes life into the film's narrative.

Real-Life Inspirations Behind "Thelma"

Alison Stewart shares a poignant moment from the film, revealing that the story mirrors real events experienced by writer and director Josh Margolin's mother. Squibb reflects on the emotional depth this connection brings to the film:

“[00:07:09] June Squibb: Well, I think that people are very eager to help their loved ones. And I think when you're threatened, someone calling you and saying that, you know, your grandson is in jail and He needs $10,000, I think it's natural that you don't question it that much. You think, oh, my God, I can get it together. I'll do that and do whatever they ask just to help him on this.”

Behind the Scenes: Acting and Collaboration

June Squibb opens up about her collaborative relationship with Fred Heckinger, emphasizing honesty and mutual respect as the foundation of their partnership:

“[00:02:15] June Squibb: Oh, he's so dear. He's so loving and he's so honest. I mean, he's honest as a person and he's honest as an actor and I like that. I need that when I'm working. I need someone who is as honest as I hope that I am. So it was a no brainer.”

She also shares heartfelt memories of working with Richard Roundtree, who played Ben, highlighting his kindness and professionalism:

“[00:08:55] June Squibb: It was wonderful. He's such a good actor and such a lovely, delightful guy... He was just the best. We were all really so devastated and hurt, you know, by his going. It was so sad to all of us.”

Embracing Physicality: June Squibb’s Commitment to Stunts

A standout aspect of "Thelma" is Squibb’s dedication to performing her own stunts, which adds authenticity to her character's adventurous spirit. Alison Stewart inquires about this bold choice:

“[00:11:07] June Squibb: Mine completely. Because when I first read that script, I thought, oh, that scooter sounds great. I can't wait to get on that... I really wanted to try things. And they let me try, much to their dismay sometimes. And I didn't kill myself. I was fine. I didn't hurt myself. And so little by little, they let me do more.”

Squibb’s commitment extends beyond stunts; she shares insights into her approach to action scenes and the nuances of portraying a high-energy character at her age:

“[00:12:02] June Squibb: I think the most important thing is to have a big fire behind you as you're walking off. I love that every time I see the film. I get tickled when I see that.”

Portrayal of Aging and Realism in Film

The episode delves into "Thelma"'s unflinching portrayal of aging, a topic Squibb passionately defends:

“[00:13:30] June Squibb: I think we have to. Theater, film, whatever for me is reality. The closer we get to reality, the better it is. And certainly I don't think age should be sugarcoated... It's not like a huge revelation. When you get a certain age, all these things happen.”

This realistic depiction resonates with audiences, offering a refreshing take on elder characters in cinema.

Future Projects and Continued Creativity

Looking ahead, June Squibb shares her excitement about upcoming projects, including an adult cartoon that has piqued her interest:

“[00:15:57] June Squibb: I just committed to an adult cartoon that tickled me. I thought it was pretty funny, a great idea. And I think we're starting that. They think after the first of the year. I have a few other things that I'm sort of deciding on right now.”

She also touches upon her memorable voice role as Nostalgia in the beloved animated film "Inside Out," expressing hope for potential future appearances:

“[00:15:17] June Squibb: I rather doubt it. I think if they do, you know, Inside out three, God knows how long it'll take them to do it. But that would be fun, you know, to go in and do nostalgia again.”

---

Conclusion

This episode of All Of It offers a comprehensive look into June Squibb's latest venture with "Thelma," highlighting her artistic dedication, the film's meaningful narrative, and Squibb's perspectives on aging and authenticity in storytelling. For listeners who seek an in-depth understanding of the cultural and personal elements that shape such compelling cinema, this episode is a treasure trove of insights and heartfelt discussions.

---

Notable Quotes:

• “[00:01:09] June Squibb: ... she's a wonderful 90 year old with great grit and determination.”
• “[00:02:03] June Squibb: ... she thinks he's holding himself back and if she can just help him let loose...”
• “[00:07:09] June Squibb: ... you think, oh, my God, I can get it together. I'll do that and do whatever they ask just to help him on this.”
• “[00:12:02] June Squibb: ... have a big fire behind you as you're walking off.”
• “[00:13:30] June Squibb: ... I don't think age should be sugarcoated...”

---

This summary encapsulates the essence of the episode, providing listeners with a clear and detailed overview of the discussions and themes explored during June Squibb’s appearance on All Of It.

Transcript

[WNYC Studios]

Listener support, WNYC Studios.

[Alison Stewart]

This is all of it. I'm Alison Stewart. Welcome back. We're spotlighting some of the most noteworthy independent films on today's show. So let's get back into it with a film about a nonagenarian who gets scammed online. The film is called Thelma. It stars actor June Squibb who plays the scorn 90 year old titular character who gets robbed of $10,000 from a few bad guys. Police don't have any leads and her family is wondering if this is the first sign of Thelma's decline. But Thelma wants her money back. She takes matters into her own hands. Armed with a mobility scooter and a trusty sidekick named Ben. Thelma is available to stream now on Hulu. Actor June Squibb joined me not too long ago to talk about her performance which earned her an Independent Spirit Award nod. I started off asking her to describe her character. Let's take a listen to that conversation.

[June Squibb]

Oh, I think she's a wonderful 90 year old with great grit and determination. And she obviously is someone that will let anything go buy her if they steal her money. She's determined to go and get it back.

[Alison Stewart]

The person who understands Thelma well is her grandson, a nice guy who can't seem to figure himself out, played by friend of our show, Fred Heckinger. We love Fred.

[June Squibb]

Oh, Fred's heaven.

[Alison Stewart]

We've known Fred for a long time. What does she see in her grandson that others don't?

[June Squibb]

Oh, I think she sees a wonderful young man who's just ready to blossom and is probably, I feel that she thinks he's holding himself back and if she can just help him let loose, then he will just blossom into whatever it is he wants to be.

[Alison Stewart]

Your relationship with Fred has been noted by many reviewers as you two have real chemistry together. You know, he's at the start of his career, he's in his early 20s. What made him a good partner for you in this film?

[June Squibb]

Oh, he's so dear. He's so loving and he's so honest. I mean, he's honest as a person and he's honest as an actor and I like that. I need that when I'm working. I need someone who is as honest as I hope that I am. So it was a no brainer. Josh brought him over to meet me at my apartment and we just immediately kind of fell in love with each other.

[Alison Stewart]

When you say you need someone that you can be honest with, what do.

[Unknown Interviewer]

You mean by that?

[June Squibb]

In acting, you know, you're really at your best, you're giving an awful lot of yourself. And I feel that the only way to do that is to do it honestly. I mean, I don't pretend so I'm really giving a lot of myself. And Fred is the same way. He just has a real honesty about him, a very realness about him when he's working.

[Unknown Interviewer]

When you see Danny and Thelma together, what do Danny and Thelma share in terms about. In terms of how the rest of the world sees them?

[June Squibb]

Well, I think they both feel the world doesn't see them in their completeness. I think they. I don't think they're naive in terms of who they are or what they are. But I think that there are things to both of them that they both feel the world doesn't see. I think Danny's problems with his girlfriend, his problems with his mother and father and Thelma's problems with her daughter and son in law and even Ben, I mean, they want to have the world look at them in their fullness. And I think they both feel that they are not looked at in that way.

[Unknown Interviewer]

In the film, Parker Posey plays your sort of overly worried daughter and her by the book husband is played by Clark Gregg. How do Thelma's children. How do Thelma's adult children, I should say, how did they describe her?

[June Squibb]

Describe Thelma?

[Unknown Interviewer]

Yeah.

[June Squibb]

Oh, I think they feel she's losing it. I think they feel. And I don't know if it's because of what she's doing or just her age. You know, we expect it to happen at certain ages. When you get to certain ages, you're going to slow down, that your mind is going to play tricks on itself. And so I think that they see her as stereotype and she's not. I guess that that is one of the big problems with the people around you and even the people you love. Because I think that Thelma loves her daughter and son in law and I think that Danny loves his mother and dad. But they realize that these people will never really understand them.

[Alison Stewart]

My guest is June Squibb. She's starring in Thelma. It's in theaters now. Let's listen to a scene from Thelma. It's sort of the motivating action. Thelma gets scammed. She puts a lot of money in the mail. This is the scene what happens when she goes to the police. She explains what's gone wrong. The police officer speaks first. This is from Thelma.

[Police Officer]

We could report a tracking number if it's with Western Union, FedEx, UPS, with the latter, our only real option is to contact the postal service. And with these types of things, the odds are slim. Especially without the address.

[June Squibb]

I think I have it here. Such a mean thing to do. It's just anything that can be done. A database of some kind. We have no moral centers in society. This is a systemic issue. I don't have it.

[Police Officer]

If it's any comfort, these kinds of scams are increasingly common.

[June Squibb]

Well, how do they know who I am?

[Police Officer]

They contact people at random using telephone listings and social networking sites.

[June Squibb]

Like Facebook?

[Police Officer]

Sure.

[Alison Stewart]

Why Facebook?

[June Squibb]

Well, how can Zuckerborg let this happen? Sorry, Shouldn't Zuckerborg be able to fix this?

[Police Officer]

Are you on Facebook?

[June Squibb]

Am I?

[WNYC Studios]

No, you're not.

[Police Officer]

She's not. This was a tangent. I would suggest canceling your cards and freezing your accounts until you're sure you didn't provide any information. That can leave the door open to more fraud. Beyond that, there's not much we can do at this point. Sorry.

[Unknown Interviewer]

That's from Thelma. So this scene in the movie actually happened to the real Thelma, the mother of writer and director Josh Margolin. How did he explain what happened to you?

[June Squibb]

Well, I think that people are very eager to help their loved ones. And I think when you're threatened, someone calling you and saying that, you know, your grandson is in jail and He's. He needs $10,000, I think it's natural that you don't question it that much. You think, oh, my God, I can get it together. I'll do that and do whatever they ask just to help him on this.

[Alison Stewart]

Trip to get the money back. I'm curious. Do you think she just really wants to get the money back, or does she want to prove she can get the money back?

[June Squibb]

I think it's probably a combination of things. I think that it hurt her tremendously to know that she was duped, that she fell for this. And I think it made her feel dumb. And I think that that's natural. I think we do feel dumb when things happen to us, that it's our fault, we've done it, but it was a mistake. And so I think she just wants to prove that she's not dumb. And I think she also wants her money back. I think when she says, I want to say where this money goes, you know, I don't want it just to go off to you willy nilly.

[Unknown Interviewer]

To make her grand plan work, she needs help.

[Alison Stewart]

A mobility scooter.

[Unknown Interviewer]

Both come from Ben, the husband of a friend of hers who's passed away, Richard Rountree. Is your co pilot, your partner in crime.

[Alison Stewart]

What was it like to work with.

[Unknown Interviewer]

Richard Rountree on what would have been his last role?

[June Squibb]

It was wonderful. He's such a good actor and such a lovely, delightful guy. And everybody loved him. He. He was just the best. It was my birthday during the shooting, and he wasn't called that day, but he came driving up with two dozen red roses for me. And my assistant had gotten a lot of white wigs so that whenever I looked around that day, I just saw someone wearing a white wig that looked like myself. And he had a white wig on. So, I mean, he was just the best. He really was. We were all really so devastated and hurt, you know, by his going. It was so sad to all of us.

[Unknown Interviewer]

You'll have that great memory of the birthday.

[June Squibb]

Oh, yeah, we have a picture, actually, of it so we could really remember that one.

[Unknown Interviewer]

The two characters have different. Different feelings about aging. He's okay with living in an assisted situation. She likes it at home. What do you think Ben and Thelma teach each other.

[June Squibb]

The things that are important to them? I think they are able to give the other one glimpses of that. Whether it will make a huge difference, I don't know, because I think they're both pretty set in their ways. I don't think Thelma will go into retirement home graciously or in the near future. And I don't think he will be out adventuring that much without her. If she shows up again and says, let's do this or let's do that, he might do it. But I think that they were able to prove to the other one that there is life and there are choices and that they have more choices than they originally thought they had.

[Alison Stewart]

My guest is June Squibb. We're talking about her film Thelma. All right, so June Squibb, action star, you do your own stunts. Whose idea was that?

[June Squibb]

Mine completely. Because when I first read that script, I thought, oh, that scooter sounds great. I can't wait to get on that. But everybody assumed that it would be the stunt person doing all the scooter riding and doing all of the stunts. You know, everything physical. But I sort of. I really wanted to try things. And they. They let me try, much to their dismay sometimes. And I didn't kill myself. I was fine. I didn't hurt myself. And so little by little, they let me do more.

[Alison Stewart]

Had you ever shot a gun before?

[June Squibb]

I have on stage. I've never shot a gun on film, but I have shot a gun on stage.

[Alison Stewart]

What did you learn about action movies that you didn't understand before?

[June Squibb]

I think the most important thing is to have a big fire behind you as you're walking off. I love that every time I see the film. I get tickled when I see that.

[Alison Stewart]

Well, I wonder what advice Richard Roundtree, the original Shaft, gave you on playing a gun toting action hero.

[June Squibb]

Well, we never really talked about Shaft that much. I keep saying that. I was always aware that was Shaft on the motor scooter behind me, though, all the time. But we really didn't talk that kind of, you know, we talked about our families a lot and we did talk about some. About what we wanted to do and vacations and, you know, just the general things we talked about.

[Unknown Interviewer]

Tom Cruise gives Thelma the idea she's watching Mission Impossible. She's read articles that he's still an action star in movies that he can jump to new heights. First of all, do you know if Tom Cruise has seen the film?

[June Squibb]

I don't know. I do know he has a link or whatever they sent him so he could see it. We don't know if he's seen it yet or not.

[Unknown Interviewer]

All right, well, we'll wait to hear about that.

[June Squibb]

Yeah.

[Unknown Interviewer]

Thelma has a fall in the film. She has a moment when she realizes her friends have died. What do you like about a script that doesn't sugarcoat aging?

[June Squibb]

I think we have to. Theater, film, whatever for me is reality. The closer we get to reality, the better it is. And certainly I don't think age should be sugarcoated. It doesn't need to be sugarcoated. I mean, at any age you have negative things happen to you. So, you know, it's not like a huge revelation. When you get a certain age, all these things happen. And I think that the more we know about age, people are getting more and more fascinated about age. You just read more and more about it and more articles being written about it. Our whole population is aging and I think everybody wants to know what's happening to us.

[Unknown Interviewer]

There's a lot of really great needle pointing going on in this film.

[June Squibb]

Oh, yes.

[Unknown Interviewer]

I love to needlepoint myself. Was that you do? I do love to needlepoint. Was that you? Did they have a needlepointing expert?

[June Squibb]

No, Thelma herself is a needlepoint expert. So she. I don't think she did them. I think they had somebody else do them. I sort of went in and piddle, paddled around with it, but I didn't do too much work. I think they had to take out everything I did every day and start over again. But I was doing it all right.

[Unknown Interviewer]

You know, you have a bit part in a beloved, beloved series, Inside out, too, playing the voice of Nostalgia. She comes in. It's short. Everybody loves it. Is there another film in the work featuring perhaps Nostalgia? A bit more?

[June Squibb]

I have no idea. They were laughing about that when we were doing the audio on Nostalgia. They said we ought to do a cartoon about nostalgia. And I said a short one maybe, I hope, but we were all joking around, so I don't know that there's plans for it. I rather doubt it. I think if they do, you know, Inside out three, God knows how long it'll take them to do it. But that would be fun, you know, to go in and do nostalgia again.

[Unknown Interviewer]

June, what are you working on now?

[June Squibb]

I just committed to an adult cartoon that tickled me. I thought it was pretty funny, a great idea. And I think we're starting that. They think after the first of the year. I have a few other things that I'm sort of deciding on right now.

[Alison Stewart]

The film is called Thelma, and that was my conversation with actor June Squibb.

[Unknown Interviewer]

Saturday Night live is turning 50 years old. A film depicts the chaotic feel of its opening night. I spoke with Saturday Night writer, director.

[Alison Stewart]

Jason Reitman and star Gabriel Lebel.

[Unknown Interviewer]

That's after the break.

[WNYC Studios]

No matter what happens to your phone this holiday, whether it crashes down the chimney or gets broken like a New Year's resolution, Verizon's got you. Now's your last chance to trade in any phone, any condition from one of our top brands and get a wonderful new iPhone 16 Pro with Apple Intelligence on Unlimited ultimate and iPad and Apple Watch Series 10. That's up to $2,000 in value. So you'll save big on three amazing Apple gifts only at Verizon. Service Plan required for iPad and Apple Watch. Up to $2,000 value based on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch trade in additional terms apply. See verizon.com for details. Apple Intelligence available now.

[Ira Plato]

I'm Ira Plato, host of Science Friday. For over 30 years, our team has been reporting high quality news about science, technology and medicine. News you won't get anywhere else. And now that political news is 24 7, our audience is turning to us to know about the really important stuff in their lives. Cancer, climate change, genetic engineering, childhood diseases. Our sponsors know the value of science and health news. For more sponsorship information, visit sponsorship.wnyc.org.