Podcast
My Sam Johnson
Hosted by Wayne Jones · AF
– Wayne talks about his biography of 18th-century English writer Samuel Johnson –
– My Sam Johnson: A Biography for General Readers (William & Park, 2023) –
– MySamJohnson.com –
– © 2026 by Wayne Jones | All rights reserved –
10episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Sam's Wife Tetty, Boswell, and Goldsmith on Sam's Writing
Jul 23, 202300:07:00Tap to summarizeThis is the revived podcast (and blog), which have been hiatus while I actually finished writing the biography of Sam. That's now done, and in this episode I provide an update on progress, as well as two anecdotes from Sam's life: his wife's reaction to his Rambler essays, and Sam's reaction to two of his friends haranguing him about doing more writing.
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Sam and Wayne, Friends and Followers
Oct 24, 202100:06:34Tap to summarizeWayne talks about some of Sam's friendships, and also announces that this will be the last podcast episode (and blog posting) of My Sam Johnson. If you've been a follower of the podcast, and you'd like a free signed copy of the book when it's published in 2022, listen in for Wayne's email and text number (613-884-8953), so that he can contact you.
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Sam Prays
Oct 22, 202100:19:56Tap to summarizeWayne discusses God and Sam's prayers to that God, as well as the fact that in the prayers that Sam composed, using time well and getting things done are major focuses. Bonus: there's also some talk about sex and sensuality.
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Details from Sam's Biographers: Who Thinks What Is Important
Oct 16, 202100:19:20Tap to summarizeWayne talks about the process of writing a biography, where often you have to gather all the information you can find about the person, but then cannot use all that information because it wouldn't make for a readable biography.
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Sam's Signature
Oct 7, 202100:29:50Tap to summarizeWayne talks about Sam's signature on letters, and then goes on to discuss letter-writing in the 18th and 21st centuries.
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Sam Takes a Long Trip to Scotland
Sep 30, 202100:23:22Tap to summarizeWayne talks mostly about three road trips to the US he's taken with his friend Oscar, as well as a bit about plans for the book.
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What Was Sam Up to as a Gen Z?
Sep 24, 202100:27:01Tap to summarizeWayne talks about what he—Wayne—was up to in his early 20's.
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Sam's Selfies
Sep 17, 202100:18:16Tap to summarizeWayne talks about the various portraits of Sam Johnson, but the discussion somehow also morphs into selfies of avocado toast and Kim Kardashian's ass, but Wayne recovers and ends up talking about the demise of literary writing. (Is that a recovery?) He ends by talking about the biography of Sam that he is writing and the website that will complement it.
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Sam and Universities
Sep 9, 202100:21:44Tap to summarizeWayne talks about freedom of expression at universities, pivoting from the recent resignation of assistant professor of philosophy Peter Boghossian from Portland State University. Also: the study of Sam in English departments.
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Sam Johnson, Blockhead
Sep 2, 202100:25:04Tap to summarizeWayne talks about Sam's attitude toward writing, and then goes on to discuss why any writer writes and what are the most important things in writing generally.
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