Podcast
Hot Takes & Deep Dives
Hosted by Jess Rothschild · EN
Podcast serving quick hits & deep cuts on LGBT pop iconography & NYC culture. Recent guests include Rosie O'Donnell, Sandra Bernhard, Fortune Feimster, Roxane Gay, Fran Drescher, Isaac Mizrahi, Lea DeLaria, Melissa Etheridge, Rachel Dratch, Gina Gershon, Margaret Cho, L Word creator Ilene Chaiken, Jenifer Lewis, Judy Gold, Mario Cantone, Michael Musto & more!
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Episodes
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BIG NEWS! Finding Fire Island Returns June 11!🌲🍒
Yesterday00:04:13Tap to summarizeANNOUNCEMENT! 🌲🍒Finding Fire Island returns for Season 2 on June 11, with two episodes premiering on launch day.This season features interviews with Billy Porter, John Waters, Julio Torres, DJ Lina Bradford, Broadway Bares creator Jerry Mitchell, Fire Island icon Bob "Rose" Levine, and dozens of longtime Pines residents whose stories bring Fire Island's hidden history to life. Through 8 brand new episodes, we uncover the historic rivalry between Cherry Grove and The Pines, trace the evolution of Tea Dance and the art of cruising before apps, explore how DJs shaped NYC and Pines nightlife, and meet the Pantry Girls and queer firefighters who keep the island running. ⭐ Subscribe to Finding Fire Island wherever you podcast! ⭐ Watch all episodes on YouTube ⭐ findingfireisland.com ⭐ @jessxnyc
Transcribe →Charles Busch on Liza & Judy, Rosie O'Donnell, Joan Rivers & more
3w ago00:58:03Tap to summarizeJess is joined by playwright and "male actress" CHARLES BUSCH! Topics include: ROSIE O'DONNELL producing the disastrous Boy George musical 'Taboo,' performing at The Duplex in the late 70s, becoming close with JOAN RIVERS, the chaos of interviewing LIZA, working with NATASHA LYONNE, and how 'Vampire Lesbians of Sodom' became one of the longest-running Off-Broadway plays of all time. ⭐ Night of 1000 Judys: June 1 @Joe's Pub * all donations benefit The Ali Forney Center * ⭐ IG: @jessxnyc ⭐ Jess' docu-series on the history, mystique & lore of Fire Island — Finding Fire Island
Transcribe →Is West Wilson The Talented Mr. Ripley of Summer House? (w/ Jamie Stein)
4w ago01:15:58Tap to summarizeJess is joined by empath & intuitive JAMIE STEIN (@jamiestein) for a SUMMER HOUSE psychological deep dive. We unpack the subconscious dynamics behind West Wilson, Amanda Batula, Ciara Miller, Kyle Cooke, Lindsay Hubbard and Carl Radke. Topics— Kyle & Amanda's codependency, West's "Talented Mr. Ripley" / "Catch Me If You Can" shape-shifting energy, Carl & Lindsay, the spinoff "In The City," Tom Sandoval vs. West as the better villain, and more! ⭐ IG: @jessxnyc | @jamiestein ⭐ Jess' docu-series on the history, mystique & lore of Fire Island — Finding Fire Island ⭐ Jess' docu-series on the rise & fall of SoulCycle — Cult of Body & Soul
Transcribe →Rachel Dratch on SNL, 30 Rock & Countess Luann Cabaret
May 400:52:30Tap to summarizeJess is joined by RACHEL DRATCH — beloved for her seven-season run on Saturday Night Live. Topics: Rachel's decades-long friendship with TINA FEY, her SNL casting story, being replaced by JANE KRAKOWSKI on 30 ROCK, and the surprise of discovering she was pregnant at 43. Plus: WINE COUNTRY, inspired by her real-life 50th birthday trip, and performing in COUNTESS LUANN's cabaret debut at 54 Below. ⭐ IG: @jessxnyc | @raedratch ⭐ Jess' docu-series on the history, mystique & lore of Fire Island — Finding Fire Island
Transcribe →Ballroom Culture, POSE & How a Ryan Murphy Show Gets Made (w/ POSE's Steven Canals)
Apr 600:49:54Tap to summarizeJess is joined by the co-creator / writer / director of the FX series POSE — STEVEN CANALS! Canals discusses the series' inspiration via the landmark documentary PARIS IS BURNING and getting the script into RYAN MURPHY's hands. We discuss ballroom culture, Houses, "Vogue," and the series' music placements. We also discuss the casting of MJ Rodriguez (Blanca), Indya Moore (Angel) and Sandra Bernhard. ⭐ IG: @jessxnyc ⭐ Jess' docu-series on the history, mystique & lore of Fire Island — Finding Fire Island
Transcribe →Amber Martin on Bette Midler at The Baths, Touring w/ Scissor Sisters & more
Mar 3000:51:26Tap to summarizeJess is joined by performance artist and rocker AMBER MARTIN (@msambermartin)! Topics — the origins of her Bette Midler at the Continental Baths show "Bette, Bathhouse & Beyond," winning the NYC artist housing lottery at Manhattan Plaza, touring with the Scissor Sisters, the Allways Cabaret in New Orleans, working as a flight attendant, radical faeries and more! ⭐ IG: @jessxnyc | @msambermartin ⭐ Jess' docu-series on the history, mystique & lore of Fire Island — Finding Fire Island
Transcribe →Hedda Lettuce on Madonna, Kim Cattrall & Surviving Drag
Mar 900:54:37Tap to summarizeJess welcomes beloved NYC drag legend HEDDA LETTUCE, boots on the ground in Puerto Vallarta after the recent cartel attack. Topics — Playing Kim Cattrall's ex-boyfriend on Sex and the City on stage with Madonna at the 1999 MTV VMAs, neighbors with Quentin Crisp, and cult movies at Chelsea Clearview Cinema. Plus — Shirley Q. Liquor, Heather Locklear at Cherry's on the Bay, and Hedda's journey from rock bottom in Provincetown to reigning on Fire Island—and now wintering in Puerto Vallarta. ⭐ IG: @jessxnyc | @heddalettuceofficial ⭐ Jess' docu-series on the history, mystique & lore of Fire Island — Finding Fire Island
Transcribe →Jonah Wheeler on Quitting Broadway to Become a S*x Work Sensation
Feb 2300:50:25Tap to summarizeJess is joined by Broadway composer / orchestrator / adult star JONAH WEELER! (@showoffjonah). Topics — blind items about this worst Broadway experiences, music directing Sweeney Todd Off Broadway and the final straw that pushed him toward a full-on career pivot to OnlyFans. Plus: beating Instagram censorship, creating a new cabaret about that pivot with partner John Coons, the origin story of his p*rn name "Jonah Weeler" (he is the artist formerly known as Matt Aument) and more! ⭐ IG: @jessxnyc ⭐ Jonah Weeler & John Coons in NYC - Mar 22 ⭐ Jess' docu-series on the history, mystique & lore of Fire Island — Finding Fire Island
Transcribe →Culture Catch-Up: Jill Zarin, Twinless, Pillion & Heated Rivalry vs. Queer as Folk
Feb 1601:03:59Tap to summarizeJess is joined by DAMIAN BELLINO & ANNE RODEMAN (co-hosts of "You Might Know Her From") for a wintertime culture catch-up! Topics — Jill Zarin fired (again), Sandra Bernhard cast in The White Lotus S4, The L Word corner, and why is Heated Rivalry accepted by gay men while Queer as Folk was not? Plus — we review the films Twinless, Pillion & Plainclothes. ⭐ IG: @jessxnyc | @damianbellino | @rodemanne ⭐ Tix for "You Might Know Her From" live Feb 28 in NYC!
Transcribe →Daniel Nardicio Returns! Sandra Bernhard, John Waters, Zipolite & Patti LuPone's Rider
Jan 2601:01:25Tap to summarizeJess welcomes back nightlife impresario DANIEL NARDICIO to talk about his latest venture in Zipolite, Mexico and the runaway success of running The Ice Palace in Cherry Grove. Topics — legalities of throwing s*x parties, surviving Patti LuPone's rider and stories from working with Sandra Bernhard, John Waters, Jennifer Holliday and more! ⭐ IG: @jessxnyc | @the_danielnardicio ⭐ Jess' docu-series on the history, mystique & lore of Fire Island — Finding Fire Island ⭐ Jess' docu-series on the rise & fall of SoulCycle — Cult of Body & Soul
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