Listen Again: Julia Gets Wise with Isabella Rossellini

Summary

Wiser Than Me™ Episode Summary: Julia Gets Wise with Isabella Rossellini

Released on February 26, 2025, by Lemonada Media

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Introduction

In this captivating episode of Wiser Than Me™, Julia Louis-Dreyfus welcomes the legendary Isabella Rossellini for Season 3. Isabella, an iconic actress, model, and animal behavior specialist, shares her profound insights on life, aging, and the intricate dynamics of animal behavior. Their conversation traverses Isabella’s multifaceted career, her life at Mama Farm, and her personal experiences with family and aging, offering listeners a blend of humor, wisdom, and heartfelt moments.

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Isabella’s Journey: From Modeling to Animal Behavior

Isabella Rossellini opens up about her transition from a highly successful modeling career to pursuing her passion for animal behavior and conservation. Reflecting on her age, Isabella states:

“I never really think of age. I know a lot of people talk about my age. I lost my job for age, I got my job back for age. So my life is very based on age. But I never really think about it so much because I don't know what to do with it.” ([12:32])

She shares how her modeling career with Lancôme spanned 14 years, culminating in a pivotal moment when her contract was unexpectedly terminated due to ageism. However, almost a quarter-century later, Lancôme sought her back under new leadership committed to inclusivity:

“My intent is to be more inclusive, to define beauty not as a certain age, a certain race, a certain weight, but trying to really give instrument to everybody, to embellish, to play, to be creative.” ([50:36])

This reinvigoration not only rekindled her relationship with Lancôme but also reinforced her belief in embracing one’s true self beyond societal standards of beauty.

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Life at Mama Farm: Balancing Sustainability and Community

Isabella provides an intimate glimpse into her life at Mama Farm in Long Island, a sanctuary dedicated to sustainability, community, and art. Managing over 150 chickens, goats, ducks, turkeys, and rare sheep breeds named after female artists, Isabella emphasizes the importance of female-led animal husbandry:

“We don't kill any animals. Plus, there is no good slaughterhouse in Long Island. And the transportation is very stressful for the animals.” ([22:40])

She discusses the ethical considerations of animal management, opting for egg production over meat and maintaining a harmonious environment for her animals. Isabella’s dedication extends to beekeeping, where she meticulously cares for her hives:

“I give them two types of food in winter... and then I stop around March when I see them coming and bringing pollen.” ([16:55])

Her approach ensures the well-being of her bees while sustaining her farm operations.

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Animal Behavior Insights: Cryptic Female Choices

A highlight of the conversation delves into the fascinating concept of cryptic female choices in the animal kingdom. Isabella explains how female animals exert control over mating processes to ensure reproductive success:

“Cryptic female choices instead is what the female might do to keep control and not succumbing to a male.” ([71:39])

She illustrates this with examples from her farm:

• Chickens: Females can reject unwanted mating attempts by expelling sperm.
• Ducks: Female ducks possess labyrinthine vaginas with multiple canals, allowing them to selectively channel sperm to favor preferred mates.

Isabella’s insights shed light on the sophisticated and often overlooked strategies animals employ to maintain autonomy in reproduction.

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Family Life and Personal Reflections

Isabella candidly discusses her relationships, parenting, and the profound impact of losing her parents. Reflecting on her upbringing, she says:

“The ground shifted when I lost my parents. I felt very precarious, very untethered.” ([39:12])

She emphasizes the strength derived from community and laughter, vital components in navigating life's challenges. Her bond with her 96-year-old mother continues to inspire her daily interactions:

“When George lies down at Granny's feet, it just... it really makes me weep.” ([11:40] Approx.)

Isabella highlights the importance of nurturing relationships and finding joy in simple moments, reinforcing the podcast’s theme of drawing wisdom from older generations.

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Career Reinvention and Embracing Aging

Isabella shares her philosophy on aging, advocating for acceptance and self-love over societal pressures to appear youthful. She reflects on her personal growth:

“I don't like myself old, but I like myself ancient.” ([69:27])

Her role in the film Conclave exemplifies her commitment to portraying eternal youth and challenging conventional narratives surrounding aging. Isabella's makeup routine mirrors her approach to aging gracefully:

“I am putting a little orange under my eyebrows... it looks interesting. It looks a little bit punk, a little bit rebel.” ([54:54])

Her transformation from using makeup to mask aging signs to embracing it as a form of creative expression underscores her empowering perspective on growing older.

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Conclusion: Embracing Community and Joy

As the conversation draws to a close, Isabella and Julia emphasize the significance of community, laughter, and continuous learning in enriching one’s life. Isabella expresses her enthusiasm for future endeavors, including her upcoming course in ornithology, and reflects on the beauty of reinventing oneself:

“I should have cultivated that voice more. I should have been a film director earlier.” ([74:35])

Their heartfelt exchange culminates in a touching moment where Julia connects with her own 90-year-old mother, embodying the show’s spirit of intergenerational wisdom and connection.

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Notable Quotes

• On Aging and Serenity:

  “There is a certain amount of serenity, and with that, a kind of freedom...” ([13:46])

• On Community and Laughter:

  “Community and laughter is a very good combination.” ([77:36])

• On Reinvention:

  “Lipstick, Lipstick. I've always... choose a feature in your face that you like about yourself and make it bigger.” ([55:52])

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Final Thoughts

This episode of Wiser Than Me™ with Isabella Rossellini is a treasure trove of wisdom, offering deep reflections on life transitions, ethical animal care, and the transformative power of embracing one’s true self. Isabella’s eloquent narratives and profound insights provide listeners with valuable lessons on aging gracefully, fostering community, and continuously seeking personal growth.

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Listen to the full episode on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast platform to immerse yourself in this enriching conversation.

Transcript

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Hi, Wiser Than Me listeners. It's Julia. The recent fires in Los Angeles have devastated many of our city's communities, destroying homes and leaving so many without jobs or a safety net. The nonprofit agency One Voice has been serving families in crisis within the Los Angeles community for over 40 years. They have launched the Fire Relief Fund to help workers who have been displaced by the fire regain stability. The Fire Relief Fund provides targeted financial aid, aid for essentials like rent, utilities, and food, as well as connecting people affected by the fire with job opportunities. All of the funds go directly to people in need, ensuring fast and effective relief. Here's how you can help. You can donate to the Fire Relief Fund, start a personal FundRaiser under the One Voice Campaign, or submit job opportunities to help those impacted by the fire get back to work. Every contribution makes a difference. So visit one voice-la. To get involved. Thank you so much.

[Unknown]

Lemonade.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Hello there. I'm Oja Lopez, a producer on Wiser Than Me. The Oscars are coming up on Sunday, and as you may know, Isabella Rossellini is nominated for best supporting actress for her role as Sister Agnes in conclave. So we're celebrating by revisiting her incredible chat with Julia. They cover her life running a farm called Mama Farm, why she proudly calls herself ancient and are shifting perspectives on love in older age. Plus, they dive into the fascinating concept known as cryptic female choices. Enjoy.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I'm sure I've mentioned here on Wiser Than Me that I have a dog named George whom I love with all my heart. He is perfect. Well, he's got inflammatory bowel disease and he is allergic to everything. And he barks way too much when somebody comes to the door. He barks so much, actually, that it makes my apple watch give me a decibel alert thing. But still, he is perfect. And coming for me, that's saying something. Because you know what? I don't have an ideal history with dogs at all. First, our childhood dog, Pippi, a miniature dachshund. Pippi was run over by a Volkswagen Bug. And I know that's kind of funny now, but believe me, at the time, it was a complete horror show. And then there's Jack. So Jack was a rescue cavalier King Charles spaniel that my first husband brought home unannounced one day when I was eight months pregnant, juggling a four year old working a thousand hours a day on Seinfeld and let's say, unprepared for the rigors of dog ownership. Yeah, I mean, my first husband was a nice man, but he brought Jack home with no crate, no food, no dog dishes, and no plan. And the first thing that Jack did was escape from the house and run as fast as he fucking could east. Like perhaps towards Mecca or Jerusalem, I have no idea. But Lord almighty, did he take off. He was so fast that my husband got on his bike and I got in a car and frantically chased after him until we finally caught him in the middle of traffic on Sunset Boulevard. Okay, so at this point, you can imagine I wasn't exactly thrilled with this first husband of mine, who I should mention, is Brad hall, to whom I am surprisingly, still married. So the next day, Brad thought it would be a very good idea to drive Jack the dog an hour and a half up a super curvy road to a little beach house where we were staying. And poor little Jack got very car sick. And then when he arrived, he proceeded to have projectile diarrhea all over the place. And I screamed so loud that Brad, in a panic, picked the poor dog up underneath his belly and tried to run him outside. And as he ran, the diarrhea sprayed like machine gun fire across all the walls of the beach cottage. And I really actually mean all the walls. And if I recall correctly, they also had sisal carpeting. So I'm just put that in your mind, okay? Diarrhea, sisal carpeting. Yeah. It will not come as a surprise that Brad left within the hour to take the dog back to the shelter, where he waited until little Jack was happily readopted by a family that was much more prepared to care for this poor creature, who I fear that we had probably traumatized completely and thoroughly. So many years later, I was convinced to get another dog, a black labradoodle we adopted from Australia, since you couldn't get labradoodles in California yet. And Brad did his research and figured out how to bring the dog over, which was very good. And it was all very organized. And also, I should say, in my dad's family, there's this tradition of naming female dogs after flowers. And since our son Henry was a giant fan of the Powerpuff Girls, the perfect intersection, there was Buttercup, and that's what we named her. And this is a dog that transformed me. I mean, I was. I still am very much a cat person, but now I'm a dog person, too. Buttercup was utterly sublime. And for the next 15 years of her tender little doggy life, I learned through her what it is to be truly devoted to a dog. I mean, of course, there are lots of reasons to love them. The Unconditional love, the companionship, the connection. Plus, guess what? There's a science behind it. This is gonna sound bullshitty, folks, but it's true. When people spend time with dogs, and especially when we look into a dog's eyes, or cuddle with a dog or whatever, our oxytocin levels rise. We looked it up. And in humans, it plays a really important role in social bonding and in love and reproduction and childbirth and caring for children after you give birth to them. And here's the completely outrageous part of all of this. When we make eye contact with our dogs, their oxytocin levels go up too. Isn't that amazing? So this all leads me to my mother in law, who is 96 years old. Talk about wiser than me. My God, she is one of the dearest, most selfless people I've ever known. She is the most selfless person I've ever known. Actually, she suffers now from serious frontal lobe dementia. But her personality, by the grace of God, or whoever is in charge of the universe, is utterly unchanged. And if you met her, your oxytocin levels would skyrocket because she's just that kind of a person. So we often take our dog George over to her little cottage to visit, and she has no functional memory at all. So every time she meets our George, for her, it's like meeting a new dog. And each time we have to remind her that our dog George is named after her husband, whose name was George. And she laughs and she throws her head back. She thinks that is just so hilarious. And then she looks George straight in the eye and she ruffles his fur and she says in her inimitable way, she go, the only dogs. And then George. And here's the amazing thing, he only does this with her, okay? He curls up right at her feet and sometimes even on her feet. And he doesn't move until we have to go. He just becomes kindness. And how can it be that this little domesticated wolf creature can know exactly what he needs to do to bring a tiny bit of joy to his dearest granny? And isn't it so wonderful that there are sometimes unexpected places that love and warmth and joy can be found, even when times seem a little dark, you know, as for all of us these days, they often do. So when George lies down at Granny's feet, it just. It really makes me weep. And as Shakespeare said, this is such a great line. Shakespeare says, how much better is it to weep at joy than to joy at weeping? So that's what I'm Thinking about today. Sorry, I'm choked up. Animals, family, friends, warmth and joy. Let's focus on that. And that makes talking Today with the endlessly joyful Isabella Rossellini just about perfect. Hi, I'm Julia Louis Dreyfus, and this is Wiser Than Me, the podcast where I get schooled by women who are wiser than me. If legendary filmmaker Roberto Rossellini and iconic Oscar winning actress Ingrid Bergman had a child together, you might guess the kid would turn out to be either a brilliant director, a phenomenal actor, or strikingly beautiful. Well, you'd be spot on, because our guests today's all three of those things and more. The strikingly beautiful part. Her 14 year contract with Lancome made her the highest paid model of her time. The phenomenal actress part. She starred in classic cult films like David Lynch's Blue Velvet and Wild at Heart in Marcel the Shell and her latest conclave, in which she is just sensational. She also steers her own projects, like directing the incredible green porno series that became a viral hit. I love it. Diving into the love lives of the animal kingdom, only Isabella could make snail sex both educational and utterly charming. She's truly one of a kind, constantly experimenting and pushing boundaries, and always with a fearless authenticity that, even though she's been doing it for decades, is exciting and surprising and even shocking. And I just love this. In her 50s, as modeling work and acting roles disappeared, she went back to school to get her master's degree in animal behavior and conservation. At her graduation, she addressed her fellow students to say, I am here to tell you that if you ever encounter a dip in your life, pay no attention to the voice inside of you that judges you, that is negative, that fosters further anxiety. Just follow your curiosities. That's great for our show. And when Isabella Rossellini follows her curiosity, she goes big. Today she owns and operates Mama Farm in Long island with her two children. They have goats, ducks, turkeys, over 150 chickens, and a small flock of rare breeds of sheep named after iconic female artists like Garbo, Callow, and O'Keeffe. Who does that? The woman is living life entirely on her own terms. But the real legacy she's building is through her work in sustainability, community, and art. I am so happy to speak today with a twin sister, mother, grandmother, creative force, and chicken lover who is absolutely wiser than me. The marvelous Isabella Rossellini. Welcome, Isabella.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Wow, Julia. This introduction is so. I'm moved. I'm about to cry, cry, cry.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

We cry on this show. So go right ahead and weep away is what I have to say. So are you comfortable if I ask your real age?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yeah, 72. Not and a half, because when I was younger, I will say three and a half, four and a half. Now I took the half away, so it's 72. Not yet a half, but soon.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

And how old do you feel, Isabella?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Well, you know, it's funny, I never. I mean, inside, you don't change. I haven't changed since I was, like, maybe a teenage. I mean, teenager years are a little bit of torment. Yes. But once you hit 20s, doesn't change inside. The outside changes, but the inside stays the same.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

So what do you think? You think you feel like you're in your 20s, then?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes. I don't know. I never really think of age. I know a lot of people talk about my age. I lost my job for age, I got my job back for age. So my life is very based on age. But I never really think about it so much because I don't know what to do with it. I mean, it just happens.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah, exactly. Luckily, I mean, the alternative is not good.

[Isabella Rossellini]

The alternative is not so good.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

So what do you think is the best part about being your age? If you were to say, well, you.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Know, yesterday I was. I saw an interview with Jodie Foster and she answered for me. I wish I could memorize what she said so I can repeat it exactly.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Well, you can paraphrase. I'm curious.

[Isabella Rossellini]

But I think that what happens is when you're young, you have so many things to prove that you're financially independent. Maybe there is, you know, you have to prove that, professor, they gave you a bad notice, that you were intelligent, capable, then you have good mother, you raise your children good wife. And then as you become older, that preoccupation lifts and you just say, well, I am who I am with the limitation. I am that intelligent, this beautiful, this fat, this old, and you accept it. So there is a certain amount of serenity, and with that, a kind of a freedom, because you also say, wait a second, here's not much left. Let me do what I always wanted to do. And I didn't do it for whatever reason, like, for me, was going back to study, because first of all, there wasn't animal behavior, it was a new science. So the university didn't offer it when I was in my college.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Is it called ethology? Is that how you say it?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Ethology? Exactly. Yes. And it wasn't offered at the time because it's relatively. There was biology There was zoology, but not ethnic. So that was one reason. And then I start modeling. I was working, so I thought, everybody's saying ethology. What the hell is that? You're working with chimpanzee. There's no way you make a living, which is true. So, you know, modeling and all that seemed more concrete. But then when you're old, you just say, well, I have my pension. You know what? I'm going to study ethology. There is a freedom that comes with it.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah. Freedom and serenity. I love that. I love that.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

It's funny, it reminds me completely off topic, but kind of related. Back in the days when I was doing Seinfeld and there was something that Jerry Stiller, there was a line that he used to say. He used to scream. Used to scream serenity now. When he was looking to be calm, he would scream, serenity now. Which is not exactly, of course, what you're talking about, but it makes me laugh. Whenever I hear the word serenity, I think of it. So you have this farm, which is incredible, and you are a farmer, and as I mentioned, you have 150 chickens, thereabouts, and sheep and bees and the whole nine yards, kit and caboodle. What's your routine like on the farm? Can you describe it, Isabella?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Well, you know, also, I have employees because, of course, I somehow work as a model and as an actress came back. So I'm often traveling. I really more manage. You know, the only thing I do because everybody's afraid is the bees. And they don't need to be attended every day, but every week or every two weeks, which allows me to travel, be an actress, come home, attend the bees. But, you know, feeding the chickens, I mean, what I try to. So I manage it. And the principle is that I can do things that I can do.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Because if ever somebody's sick, I know how to feed them, how to clean the coop, how to water it, how to give a certain medicine, if it is not too sophisticated and we need to call the vet. So I developed the farm with things that I could do directly.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I see.

[Isabella Rossellini]

But you know what's happening? What? I'm getting old. And some of the things that I decided 10 years ago, I can't do anymore.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Like what? Like what?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Like cleaning the coop. Because there is a lot of shoveling and my back hurts.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, that's hard on your back. Right.

[Isabella Rossellini]

But at least I know how to do it and what it takes. And I think that makes you a good manager because you have a sense of what it takes. Cause, you know, farming was so far from the way I grew up, although it was not so far as it is in America. Because in Italy, where I grew up, farm is around. And the culinary tradition in Italy is so present that farmer's market. We only ate food from the farmer's market. We never went to the supermarket. We went to the supermarket. If there was, I don't know, a pandemic, a war. I mean, that was the emergency. You never buy frozen food. It was every day, fresh fruit from the market.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And so we had a relationship with farmers. We went to see their farms. So that was. It was a kind of different way of eating than here in America.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Wait, can you just back up for a second? Because I need to hear about bees. I'm so curious. I'm tempted to have bees.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Oh, I'm gonna tell you the craziest thing about bees.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

What?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Male bees. They have a grandfather, but not a father. How do you like that?

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I like it and I'm curious. Continue, please.

[Isabella Rossellini]

So their genetic is different than us. So in the bees, there is only one female, the queen that reproduces. So she's born, she flies off as a virgin in a nuptial flight. She gets mated with several male. She goes back and she starts a hive. And she has a spermatica, like we have a discotheca or a bilbiotheca, as we say in Italian, ateca. She has a spermatica. She collects the sperm. So she flies off in this nuptial flight for one day. She collects all the sperm that she will use throughout her life. Her life is generally about three years. And she would use the sperm to create daughters and no sperms to create her sons, the drones.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

But wait, explain to me grandfather and not.

[Isabella Rossellini]

So the drone has a grandfather because the queen has had a mother and a father. Yes, because you have a mother and a father to be a female.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

So the newly born son, called the drone, has a grandfather, but doesn't have a father.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, I understand.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Because the queen doesn't use sperm to create the males. It's not a clone because it's a different sex, so it's a different genetics. And to me, dealing with those bees is like going to Mars, to another planet. They're nuts.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Tell. So, like, when you go in there and you're doing your beekeeping work, what does that look like?

[Isabella Rossellini]

So it depends on the season. So you want to make sure that. First of all, you want to make sure that the queen is laying eggs, and the Queen lays about 1,000, 500 eggs per day.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Good God.

[Isabella Rossellini]

The hive is, you know, 40, 50, 60,000 bees. So you want to make sure that there is eggs and that the queen is alive and well. You also check for disease. Varroa is a mite that affects a lot of the bees. And so you have to put medicines and to try to treat them for it. There is beetles that might attack. Once I found a mouse inside the hive, they killed it. All the bees jumped on it and they stung it and it was dead, all swollen, dead from the sting. So they defend themselves, but you have to check, and then it depends on the season, you know, like now it's starting to be. There is not much food for them. They've made the honey that it is the food that they will eat during the winter. But I stole it, I took it. I just left some. But I have. I'm feeding them in the winter, throughout the winter, I give them two type of food. One is a liquid food when it's not too cold. And then I switch to solid food, a patty, kind of a sugary patty. And then I stop around March when I see them coming and bringing pollen, because I know that now, now they can feed. And then I don't feed them anymore because the honey wouldn't be very good if I give them this artificial, you know, this.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, I see.

[Isabella Rossellini]

You want the flowers. You want.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah. So you're supplementing their diet since you're taking away some of their own food source. I understand completely. Yeah. That's fascinating. That is absolutely fat. Have you been ever. Sorry to keep asking these questions, but I'm so interested.

[Isabella Rossellini]

I'm stung so many times. Once I had to do a mammogram and I attended my bees in the morning and they attacked my hand. And I had a hand that was enormous and I went for a mammogram. And the doctor kept saying, no, no, no. What's wrong with your hand? No, nothing, nothing. Dr. F. Bees. They just stung you. Don't worry, I'm here for a mammogram. My mom died of breast cancer. Please do with a mammogram. No, no, no. We have to do an X ray of your hand. No, doctor, please. It just.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, my God. So most of the animals on your farm are for the most part female, is that correct?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes, they're female. Well, naturally, 90% of the bee's population are female.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah, but what about the animals?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yeah, the chickens. So the chickens, they lay eggs. So I have a hard time killing animals. I'm not a vegetarian. I'M just a hypocrite because I just eat the food, but I cannot eat the animal that I've raised myself.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I see.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And I have a really hard time killing them. I tried to learn how to do it because I thought it was part of my duty, but it's just horrible. So another way of managing the farm is that we don't kill any animals. Plus, there is no good how you call it now. See, you speak languages and so sometimes word comes in a different language. Abattoir French, Matatorio, Italian. Slaughterhouse English. Finally it came. There is no good slaughterhouse in Long Island. And one of the stressiest moment for the animal is to be transported to the slaughterhouse. So the slaughterhouse can be humane or not. I mean, they say. I mean, I don't know, but I'm sure there is various degree. But the transportation, it's very stressful. So I decided not to have any meat. So we can have eggs. Therefore, I need only female, because the chicken, they lay eggs. They don't need a rooster. The eggs is like our menstruation, but only they do it every day. So they have an egg every day. You don't need a rooster for having eggs. I have sheep and goats. At the beginning I had only female males, sometimes fight. But now I have two males that are castrated and they are angels.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Did you have to have them castrated or they came that way?

[Isabella Rossellini]

They came that way.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I see. That's the way they got interested.

[Isabella Rossellini]

They're there. My neighbor had them and so I met them when they were little lambs just born. And she was gonna eat them. And I said, well, if you don't eat them, I like to have them because I just saw them and she castrated them for me.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

That is hilarious. You know, your son describes you as going from the big city life to a really different lifestyle at the farm. It's almost as if she becomes a different person. So I wanna know about that. I wanna know what's the difference between big city ISAB and farm? Isabella, how would you describe.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Well, you know, the way of dressing changes completely. You know, in the city, you have to dress up a bit, you have to be clean. In the country, you know, shoes are different, clothes are, you know, old. Sometimes I might have a beautiful designer jacket, but old so has been promoted to being a farm jacket.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

But I mean, is it a different mental state for you?

[Isabella Rossellini]

A little bit. A little bit. But I'm a lot in the country, so either work, I'm very seldom in the city. First of all, if you are from New York, you were born in New York.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I was born in New York, yeah.

[Isabella Rossellini]

It's difficult to leave New York because Nullov makes you believe that he's the center of the world. And if you leave it, you're going to become peripheral to culture or peripheral. So at the beginning I was going to the city much more often, going to see the shows. And little by little I'm doing this less. So I go to the city and now I become like a farmer. I say, so much traffic, it smells so bad, so much noise. I complain.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

You've become that person.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes, I became that person.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

But all of your family has moved, I believe. Yes. So you've got everybody. Your daughter, your son on the farm.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And my three grandchildren. I have three grandchildren.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Three grandchildren. How old are they?

[Isabella Rossellini]

The smallest one is seven months. And then there is a three year old and a seven year old.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, how divine. It seems very sort of matriarchal. Is.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Is matriarchal. It's funny because people. We have this bed and breakfast. I'm talking to you from this bed and breakfast.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And often when guests come, they say there is a very strong female energy. And strangely enough, you know, we're booked for conferences or semin. And often there are things related to women, whether it's menopause or lactation, birth. Somehow. That's how we got the name Mama Farm. From the beginning, this land had a female energy. Not only it was me starting. And my daughter is very involved in creating all these programs. So it was Mama Farm because it was Mama's farm.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

But also the chickens were all female because we don't need a rooster. We just selected for the eggs. So female bees. 90% of the bees female. And then so many mothers came with their children to show them, oh, this is the season of the carrots. This is the season of spinach. Look at the flowers. And so it became naturally Mama Farm. And still. And it has a very feminine energy. They call it Mother Nature.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

You say Mother Nature, I say feminine instinct.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yeah.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Feminine instinct.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Well, I think so. You know, I was wondering. I forgot if I read it somewhere. There's new anthropology book. Anthropology is the study of men.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

They're emphasizing the women role. For example, they say, you know, one. Our ancestor took the vertical position. Unfortunately, it became very, very painful to give birth because our hips had to be smaller. And the bir canal became more difficult. Narrow, narrow. So it was difficult to have a baby come out. And that's why it's so painful but this new women anthropologist said, yes, but that means that that could have evolved only if there was collaboration, altruism, teamwork, because a woman needs another woman to help her deliver the baby, pull it out of her, take care of the baby while she's recovering. There already an enormous mortality. And they would have all died if there wasn't collaboration and altruism.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, fascinating.

[Isabella Rossellini]

It's fascinating, isn't it?

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes, it's fascinating.

[Isabella Rossellini]

It's fascinating. And this is how the new study of women point of view, that they don't look at anthropology like competition and who is strongest. And maybe it was. Of course, our culture skews our studies, skews our questions. So now there are these women asking this question. One of the series that I've done as a director, you know, I make these short, funny films, which I love, by the way.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Love.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Thank you. So all my films are called Green Porno, but actually they are called Other Things. But the first title was Green Porno. It was so powerful that no matter what I do, they say she does green porno. So one of the Green Porno series was called Mamas, and it was about maternal instinct. And it was a series of fantastic ethologists, biologists, women that looked into maternal instinct. We all think we know what it is. But then when you really look into it, he's never been studied from a scientist point of view.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, my God. Right?

[Isabella Rossellini]

And so they've done all these studies to see, is it true that mothers are ready to die for their children? And the answer is more complicated. Some mothers eat the babies, some babies eat the mothers. Anything goes.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

That's so funny. That's an amazing thing to consider, studying maternal instinct. God, I have to think about that.

[Isabella Rossellini]

There is an incredible movement of women in science that are asking different questions that were never asked before. But I think this idea that women, mammals, not female, but because they are sometimes male, that take care, you know, the ostrich is the male that takes care of the baby. The seahorse is the. The father that become pregnant. Yes, But I think in mammals, because we have to breastfeed our babies, we also look at them. We have an opportunity to observe them closely than the father. And we also become evolved to be more attentive to little indication, to little things that are not verbal. And then I think we are very good at farming or animal behavioral studies.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

That makes so much sense. Don't go anywhere. My conversation with Isabella Rossellini continues after this quick break. Hotels are fine if you want the same beige walls and weird 90s generic art everywhere you go. But with Airbnb, no two stays are alike. It's not just a place to sleep, it's an experience that matches your vibe. Whether you want the rustic charm of a woodsy cabin or a fantasy filled Scottish castle, Airbnb is the place to find something special for your next trip. Also, that's something special. It might just be your own home, whether it's a spare room, a guest house or your entire space while you're away. Hosting on Airbnb is more flexible than you'd think. It's a simple way to make the most of your space even when you're not there, and you could earn some extra income while you're at it. Who knows, you could open up your place to people on their next great adventure. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how [e-mail] host Dell Technologies is celebrating with anniversary savings on their most popular tech. For a limited time only, save on select next gen PCs like the XPS 16, powered by Intel Core Ultra processors and more. Unleash more possibilities with cutting edge systems, Dell's most advanced features and great prices. Plus curate your dream setup with deals on select monitors, mice and more. Must have electronics and accessories. When you shop [e-mail] deals you'll have access to state of the art technology to match your forward thinking spirit and free shipping on everything. Anniversary savings await you for a limited time [e-mail] deals deals. That's Dell.com deals imagine opening doors to new cultures, career opportunities, or even just the joy of learning something new, all by speaking another language. Whether you want to get ready for a trip, level up at work, or want to challenge yourself, Rosetta Stone makes it easier and more immersive than ever to learn naturally and speak with confidence. No memorization, no stress, just real world skills you can use. And here's the thing. Rosetta Stone isn't just another app. It's been around for over 30 years, helping millions of people learn 25 different languages from Spanish and French to Japanese and Vietnamese. The secret is that it teaches you the way you learned your first language through context and conversation. First you start learning words, then phrases, and before you know it, entire sentences. Plus with True Accent, their speech recognition tech, you get real time feedback on your pronunciation so you sound more natural every time you speak. Speak. Maybe your goal is ordering a fancy coffee in Paris without stumbling or acing a job interview in Spanish. Whatever it is, Rosetta Stone can help. Don't wait. Unlock your Language learning potential. Now Wiser Than Me listeners can grab Rosetta Stone's lifetime membership for 50% off. That's unlimited access to 25 language courses for life. Visit Rosetta Stone.com wiser to get started and claim your 50% off today. Don't miss out. Go to Rosett and start learning today. I love the story from your memoir. You had a childhood game you used to play with your mom. You would ask each other which animal you would want to be. And your mother said she'd like to be a horse. And you said, I'm afraid I would just be a sheep. I belong so strongly to a herd. Would you still say that same answer, Isabella?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes, I do. I think so. You know, I think that I have a sense of community. I mean, my farm is very central to our community. My children and my grandchildren live around her. My daughter went to, she studied at the London School of Economics. So she went to London to visit some friends. And when she said, you know, my mom has dinner with us every night and she lives in a house next to us, they said, is it a problem? Because I think in the Anglo Saxon world, it's in its ethnic or something. But yes, I am a sheep.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

You're a sheep. Are you gonna. Do you see yourself aging in place on your farm and being here? How divine.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes. I speak to so many friends who, you know, I'm concerned about what am I going to do when I'm old? Who's going to take care of me? How am I going to make it? And yes, I have no problem. I mean, wheelchair. Just wheel me in front of a coupe and take me to the pasture of the sheep. I think it's going to be easy to take care of me when I'm gathered.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

That's very nice. You're very lucky. So you had a great dad, Roberto Rossellini. He was obviously a legendary film director, but you described him as being a seahorse. You said that if he could have given birth to you, he would have.

[Isabella Rossellini]

He would always say to me, I'm so jealous that women can get pregnant, I want to breastfeed you. Why can't I do it? I remember once he was doing an interview and he asked me to sit and wait until the interview was over in a hotel lobby. And the journalist asked him, what kind of a father are you? And he said, I'm a Jewish mother.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

That's adorable.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And he was a Jewish mother. The stereotype of a Jewish mother. Yes. He would have liked very much to be pregnant and give birth and Breastfeed us.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

And so was he like your primary source, do you think, of emotional support when you were young?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Both my father and my mother. My father, when I became a teenager, became a very Italian father. Very jealous, very worried, protected about my virginity and a boyfriend, you know. So when I was a teenager, I became closer to my mom. But when I was little, I think I hovered more around. My dad, who loved animals, was very adventurous. I think I continued to live my life very closely to how my father lived life.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

It sounds like even though he was protective of you and maybe defensive of you when you became a teenager, a young woman, it sounds like he was very supportive of you as a woman. Is that correct?

[Isabella Rossellini]

I think so. I think, you know, I don't know. I lost my dad when I was 25 years old, but I think he would love my gripo and my work at the farm, but he would be uncomfortable with me as an actress.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, really?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes. I think he was very worried that acting was. You have to be chosen. You always have to please. And therefore you are in a. Not. You can be easily put in a role that it is not acting, but reactive.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I see.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And I think that's what he feared.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Probably he envisioned you having more control over your life, perhaps.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Exactly, exactly.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And I did. I did have control over my life. But I think when I became an actress after he died, because I didn't want to be yelled at.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Well, it's funny you say that, because I see that you said that after the death of your dad. You said, if I were to divide my life into before Christ and after Christ, it would be Jesus. June 3, 1977, when he passed away. And I lost my dad. Yeah, I lost him eight years ago. It's interesting how the ground shifts, doesn't it, when you lose a parent?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Incredible, incredible.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Can you talk about that shift and how you recover?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Exactly. It's the ground shift or the ground collapsed. I felt that when I had my parents that there was an anchor, that there was a continuity in the past and I And just be in the future. And all of a sudden, when I didn't have them and they died four years apart, there was this void in my back. And I, you know, and I felt very precarious, very untethered, perhaps. Yes, yes, very. It was fright. I got scared to live life without them. I was living life. I mean, I was 25. My mother died when I was 30. But still, I think not having them left a very big void also. I mean, I wonder, you know, my father and Mother were exceptional people. So I'm sure that everybody misses their parents, but sometimes I wonder if I have missed them more also because they were exceptional human beings.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah. And also, people knew them. They're known. So it's a stra. That adds another layer to this that maybe is complicated or maybe it's comforting.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Maybe a layer to remember that. Cause I think of them every day, and I wonder if I think of them every day because of my love to my parents or because I'm reminded. Because, you know, when I give an interview, they ask me about my parents or I ran into people, so I don't know.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah. Speaking of fame, you said when you were little, you didn't really understand your mom's fame.

[Isabella Rossellini]

No.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

And that's such an interesting idea to consider, because when my kids were little and I was having some fame, I know they didn't understand it when people would come over and say they needed an autograph or something. It was off putting. It was an intrusion.

[Isabella Rossellini]

So I remember once my son. We were at the beach, and my son was running up and down the beach and would go up to people and said, isabella Rossellini is my mom. And, you know, at the time, I was a little. So I got so embarrassed, I called them aside, I said, roberto, why did you say that? He said, I don't know. They seem to like it. Smiled. Oh, really?

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

That's hilarious. When my son was really little, and at the time, I was. Because I was on Seinfeld, and we were on a lot of magazine covers, et cetera. So he was really sort of used to seeing me on the front page of something. And we were walking by. We were walking by a bookstore, and the front window of the bookstore had a bunch of books all about Margaret Thatcher. There was some book that had just come out about her life, biography of. And it was her face on the front. And he looked. And he goes, look, Mommy, that's you. Any woman on the COVID of anything.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Any woman was you. Because also you're an actress, so you can have a wig. You can change. My daughter, when she was also six or seven, maybe small, she went to. They were teaching her to remember her last name and her address just in case she got lost. She could tell a policeman, my name is Eletra Wiedem, and this is my address. And the policeman. So they were teaching all the children, remember your last name, remember your address. And then they were asked. They were interrogating the children to see if they understood it. So they went to my daughter, and they Said, okay, Eletra. Her name is Eletra. Eletra, you are lost at the airport. What do you do? And she said, well, I'll sit under my mom's poster. And she said, what would that do? She said, haven't you noticed in the streets, in the airport, photos of mama and daddies everywhere? So if someone get lost, you just sit there. She hadn't even understood what was my job. She thought it was photos of all the mommies and daddies so you can get lost. You go underneath that poster.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

That is so dear. That is so adorable. Your mom wrote a bunch of diaries, did she not?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Your mother, she wrote a diary? Yes, she wrote a diary when she was young. And then I think when she became very known in Hollywood, she stopped writing it because she was afraid that somebody might steal it and publish it. And so she stopped writing the diaries. But we do have her diaries from, you know, age 12, 14, when her father gave her a little book to keep a diary all the way until she was maybe 36 or 37.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, wow. And so did you learn a lot about your mother reading these diaries? Did you?

[Isabella Rossellini]

So I couldn't read them because she wrote them in Swedish and I couldn't read Swedish.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, hilarious.

[Isabella Rossellini]

But it was really interesting because the first diary opens by saying, my dad gave me this diary and I'm really happy to keep a record of when I'll be an actress and I will become very known. That's the first thing she wrote, really. So I was. I thought, this is extraordinary. Cause we gave all. My mom's archive is at the Wesleyan University that has an incredible film archive.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes, My son went there.

[Isabella Rossellini]

That's Janine Basinger. The great Janine Basinger.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Janine Basinger. It was his teacher.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Fantastic archivist and film preservation. Yeah.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

So it's there. And so Janine had the diary translated. So we read the most interesting passages. But this was opening. And then a friend of mine gave me the answer. He said, oh, I hope. I think a lot of diaries start like this. Just her mother. It happened. But a lot of people's diaries.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, I see.

[Isabella Rossellini]

I'm going to be famous. I'm going to make that made sense. I thought, oh, my mom, look at this.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, I see. But it just so happens she did.

[Isabella Rossellini]

She did, yeah.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes, of course. So I know that I wanted to talk about a time of your life, because I thought this would be interesting from sort of a. Well, from a life experience point of view. 1982-83, a lot happened for you If I'm getting this correctly, your mother passed away, you got divorced, you got your first Vogue cover, and you had a daughter.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes. Yeah, it's true. I've never thought about that. Yeah, that happened all in between 82 and 83 big changes.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

So wait a minute. How did you get through that period of time? Did you have someone? Who did you look to for guidance? Was it hard to have a baby? Not having your mother around?

[Isabella Rossellini]

It's so hard. Yes. No, I didn't have it, of course. Yes, it was hard. And that's why I tried to be not only very present. When my children had their baby in March, I was offered to do a series, but that's where my third grandson was born. And I said no. My accountant was berserk. She said, you're gonna make so much money. I said, yes, but more important, to be here for my son. But you can be a grandmother later. Said, no, the grandmother is here the first day the baby's born. The first child. The first child is the hardest. Wasn't it for you, too? It's such a surprise.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

It's such a shock. It's a shock to have a person who you're responsible for and who takes precedence over you.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Exactly.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

There's an ego shift that is, shall we say, disarming, which is an understatement.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And then that everything you do becomes so complicated. You know, say, oh, I forgot to buy the mill. Let me go out. No, you can't go out. The baby's sleeping. There's no babysitter. You cannot leave the baby alone at home. Everything becomes so difficult.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

So difficult. It's a new way to frame your entire life. It's funny that you said that about your accountant and getting a job, because I remember I was offered a job during the summer, and this is when I was gonna be taking. I only had one child at the time, but they had this thing when they would start nursery school. They called it separation. So you would bring your kid to nursery school, and then you would be there for the first two weeks. And so he becomes. Finds his way, and then you slowly move out of nursery school. But I knew that if I took this job, I would miss that. I wouldn't be able to do it. And. And so I didn't take the job. And I remember my agent said to me, this is the worst decision of your career.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes. Yeah. Well, I was told the same many times. But it is the best, you know, because there are other jobs that come, and there is nothing. There is a quality of Life. And the quality of life comes not only with the jobs, comes also with the family and the relationships.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah.

[Isabella Rossellini]

I also think. I don't know if you agree with me. I also think that all of women. I mean, I'm older than you, but. And I'm wiser. When you say wiser than me, I say, oh, my goodness. Now, how am I gonna say that?

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

He's wise now you own it. You own it, Isabella.

[Isabella Rossellini]

But I think that, you know, my generation, your generation, younger generation. We had career, we moved into, became producers, became director.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Feel that men dominated. But the job is still organized according to this division, where there is always a woman at home taking care of the family.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

That is the next step. I think that the feminine world has to enter into the world of jobs, films, everything. I mean, just look at the tax. I can take as a tax break. If I go to lunch with you to discuss this interview we can make, which we must.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I insist we do.

[Isabella Rossellini]

But it's a tax deduction. You can take it off your taxes. Yes, but if I have a babysitter, I can't take her off.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, fascinating.

[Isabella Rossellini]

It continues to be a problem that has to be resolved somehow.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Well, we need more women in government. Let's start with that.

[Isabella Rossellini]

You know, talking about women in government, I think that's how I got my job back at Lancome.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, yes. Talk about that. Please tell the story of the first stint at Lancome and then the second and that evolution, because it's an amazing story.

[Isabella Rossellini]

So I got this beautiful contract with this extraordinary cosmetic line. Lancome.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And I worked for it for 14 years as the only model and extremely successful. And in the midst of this enormous success, I got news that my contract was not going to be renewed. And I was very surprised.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

But now, wait a minute. How many years were you. You under contract for language at that time?

[Isabella Rossellini]

14 years. And then I turned 40, 41. And I will start rumors that I wouldn't, you know, should I should be. I will not renew my contract. So I asked to talk to the top guy at the time.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And he explained to me, gave me a rationale. He said, women dream to remain young. Advertisement is about to dream. You are going to be 42 soon. And at 42, you cannot represent that dream. That's why we have to find somebody younger. We're, you know, we're very grateful for your work. They were very gracious. But you're not going to work with us anymore. I asked. I mean, they had all the marketing Tools, you know? So when I asked my friends, you like to stay young? Nobody said, yes, nobody said, no. I want to be elegant. I want to be playful. I want to be sophisticated. I don't want to stay young. But some said, oh, yeah, it'd be nice to stay for 23 forever. But it was really a minority. But I didn't have the instrument they had. So 23 years go by, and I receive a call from a woman saying, I would like to hire you back. And I said, what about the dream of remaining young forever? Because I'm 23 years older. Can I come to Paris? Can you pay my airplane to come to Paris? Because I want to meet with you, because I don't understand. So I arrived. I was very anxious. I arrived at the restaurant before everybody else. And then I was waiting, and I see a motorcycle.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Wait, wait a minute. Wait a minute. Hold on a second. Why were you anxious? I'm curious.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Well, I was so lost, you know, 23 years of. And now they want me back. I didn't understand. I said, if you want somebody older because you want to fight ages, get Helen Mirren, get Meryl Streep. If you get me back, that story, that was controversial because when they let me go, that was controversy. Some women and got very offended. It's going to come back. I don't know how to protect you from this story. What am I going to say to your friends?

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes, yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

He said, no, we insist. It should be you. Okay. So I said, well, I want to come and really flush it out. Understand it. And when I arrive at the restaurant earlier, I was sitting there waiting, and I see a motorcycle and a woman dressed in black leather coming out of the motorcycle, taking the cask off, blonde hair flowing like Brigitte Bardot. She came and she said, hello, my name is Francoise Lima, and I'm the new CEO of Lancome. I said, said, no more. And now I understand you are a woman. And she said, yes. My intent is to be more inclusive, to define beauty not as a certain age, a certain race, a certain weight, but trying to really give instrument to everybody, to embellish, to play, to be creative. And that's how I define beauty. And so I got back.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Wow.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And I've been now with them for 10 years.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, my God.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Isn't that amazing?

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

It's an amazing story.

[Isabella Rossellini]

But I think that the sensibility that she had is that she understood that you can reach out to women that sometimes feel discarded, feel that I have no voice. Because we all want to be elegant. We all want to be creative. We all want. I'm changing my makeup based on that principle.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Okay, explain that.

[Isabella Rossellini]

You know what? I've noticed that I used my makeup as hiding my age. I would put things under my bags, under my eyes, and I'll put a little bit of rouge on my cheeks. And then I said, wait a second, I don't represent that. And I saw, incredibly enough, at Lancome, there is a lovely man who uses makeup, but he doesn't use it to look younger. He doesn't use it to look like a woman. He uses it as a decoration. He uses it a creative expression. And I said, I'm going to do your makeup. Tell me what you're using. And now I am putting a little orange under my eyebrows. I always used very little makeup all my life. I mean, sometimes I use a lot of makeup because I'm an actress or a model, but in my real life, I use little makeup, but now I'm using it as a touch of color, not as trying to be younger or trying to hide something that I think is wrong, like a pimple.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Okay, but wait a minute. Explain. So I just want to understand the. A little bit of orange sort of on your eyelid, underneath your eyebrow.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes, right under the eyebrow.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

But what does that orange do? I don't understand that because I'm gonna try this. As soon as this podcast is over, I'm going to the bathroom to do this.

[Isabella Rossellini]

So do you know that generally you put an eyeliner and then you put some color in your eyelid and then in the right underneath the bone, you put a little darker, so a little, you know, shade so your eyes seem more deep, like when you are young and you don't have the eyelid drooping. But if you do the makeup just a color underneath your eyebrow, it still looks like makeup and it looks interesting. It looks a little bit punk, a little bit rebel, and it is a little bit Rebel, but a 72 year old rebel, Nothing to be afraid of.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Grandma rebellion.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

And of course, lipstick. Right?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Lipstick, Lipstick. I've always. Because the makeup artists, all of them that worked with the best, they all gave me the same answer. They said, choose a feature in your face that you like about yourself and make it bigger. And everybody said that I had good lips, so I made just red lipstick.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Done, Done. Okay. I love it. So we're getting tidb. It's time for another break. There's much more wisdom from Isabella Rossellini when we return. Little luxuries in life are so necessary, but Finding a way to make them feel practical and intentional has made all the the difference. Quince is the perfect solution. It's where luxury meets smart spending, offering beautifully made essentials that combine quality, style and value. They have a gorgeous website with incredible lookbooks including a Valentine's Day shopping guide called Colors We Love. It's filled with chic brightly colored garments and feels like a color story Inspired shopping experience. How fun is that? It makes finding standout pieces like their 100% Mongolian cashmere sweaters or the silk maxi skirt in rose powder so much more exciting. What's amazing is how affordable everything is. Quince works directly with factories, so you're paying 50 to 80% less than you would for the same high end quality elsewhere. 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That's cozyearth.com and if you get a post purchase survey, tell them you heard about Cozy Earth right here. Sanctuary awaits at Cozy Earth. Wiser than Me Season 3 is available ad free when you subscribe to Lemonada Premium. You'll also get access to exclusive interview excerpts from each episode. Subscribe now. In the Apple Podcast app, were you aware of the power of your beauty when you were younger and then you were not?

[Isabella Rossellini]

No. First of All I was chubby. Then I had scoliosis, which is, you know, they took me to the hospital, there was deforming department. Oh, wow.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Wow.

[Isabella Rossellini]

It was clear what I had. Scoliosis is a very common deformity of the spine, only that mine was very severe. So in my life I had to have two major operations. I have 17 vertebras that are screwed together, basically.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Do you have pain in your back?

[Isabella Rossellini]

I do, I do have pain in the back. I mean, I have strategies, I swim, I do exercise, massages. I have to have a regime, yes, to keep me from pain.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

But, Isabella, once you got past that and you became a young woman and you were, of course, very beautiful, were you aware of the power of your beauty then? And then can you talk about how, if you were aware of that power, how that power has evolved as you've gotten older?

[Isabella Rossellini]

There was an element of great surprise. You know, I always felt that my forte as a model was that I was a very good complice with photographers and they understood what they wanted and it was almost like creating a character for films. In fact, I didn't want to act because my mom was so famous. Ingrid Bergman. And so I was intimidated. I said my father didn't want me to be an actress. So when I became a model, it was great because it was something that I was. I didn't realize that it was something that, that I grew up with. I thought it was a complete different job. And then until Richard Avedon one day said to me, isabella, the models are a little bit like silent movie star, because I'm not photographing a beautiful nose, a beautiful mouth. I photograph emotion. You have to show me emotion. And that's what I photograph.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I see.

[Isabella Rossellini]

And then that's why you should be an actress. He said, and you know, as a model, you're always worried. You always think the thing would last a couple of years and then what do you do next? And so I was thinking, what do I do next? And it was Avedon that encouraged me to be an actress and I tried. He said, you just have to add words. So I added words with an accent. Yes, there was a problem, but now it isn't a problem. I'm working with Pixar, I'm working with myself now. It's an accent.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

So, Isabella, moving on to another topic, there was this really incredible interview where you mentioned that there hasn't been a piece of art that accurately reflects your sexual life in your 60s. And I would love to talk about the relationship with your body as you Age, you know, your relationship to intimacy and sex.

[Isabella Rossellini]

So I don't have sexuality, you know, I haven't had a boyfriend in 25 years. But for a brief moment during COVID how lucky I was. I didn't have a boyfriend for years. And then just before COVID as we were on the lockdown, I met a man who I liked a lot, who then left after Covid. So the COVID lockdown for me was fantastic.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

It was a sexual dalliance of sorts.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Exactly. So how it happened, I had my children and I adopted my son as a single mom because I was getting older and I come from a family of a lot of brothers and sisters, so I wanted my daughter to have. And I was getting old. I didn't have a man then or a man with whom I wanted to have children. And so I adopted my son Roberto. And I still had boyfriend going out, but he was difficult, you know, and the day never ended. You know, it started at 5 in the morning to get the children ready to school, and then dinner and then, you know, bath and reading the story. And then the boyfriend was another dinner, another. Then he wanted. The day never ended. So I was going to the therapist and I said, how do I handle this? You know, I get up at five, it's still one o'clock, I'm still doing something for somebody. And she said, but have you ever tried not to have a boyfriend? And I had not. I always had somebody, you know, like, if it wasn't a boyfriend, still, somebody went out trying to figure out if he could become a boyfriend and all that. She said, try. And since, as you know, I am very adventurous, I said, that's right. I'm going to try to be single for six months.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I love that. That's an adventure. That's good.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yeah, it was. Let me try. I never tried. It was fantastic. So it was fantastic. It was so serene. There was no up and down. You know, I slept. It was. I could take care of my children without worrying that somebody else needed attention and somebody else needed attention or that there was tension among them, because when he's not the father, they don't like it so much, the boyfriend. So the six months became a year, two years, three years. And then I thought, well, you know, it'll happen. And I spoke to other friends. Oh, yes. I haven't been married in three years. Okay. So I never made the choice. But 25 years went by without a boyfriend. But for that very brief Covid parenthesis, luckily, otherwise I would have been locked up by myself.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

But here's the thing. Are you missing that now? Do you want to have another boyfriend or you're happy to be back to being single?

[Isabella Rossellini]

I think because I have a big community, I don't need a man. I mean, if I fall in love, yes, but otherwise a lot of friend of mine say, oh, you know, can come to dinner. I have somebody, you could be a companion. But I don't need a companion. I have plenty of friends, I have grandchildren, I have my community here. Living in the village, it does have to be single. It helps to live in a farm because you're part of a community. In the city would be harder because going to parties without a husband or a companion is the worst. I cannot enter a party by myself. I hate to go to a party.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

What do you do? Do you take a friend with you?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Well, but they don't want to come because most of the time is boring or too much chit chat or, you know, red carpet. So they are shoveled in the corner waiting for me and so they don't want to come. None of my family wants to come. And then sometimes other friends don't want to come and so I don't go to parties. But I never really like them, so I don't miss them. Sometimes I miss the companions, you know, like, oh, let's go see this movie together, you know, coming out and discussing it. But it's not something so big, the missing that it would. That would make me forced to get.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

That requires a change.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yeah.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

So let's talk about reinvention, actually, because, well, for example, your performance in Death becomes her, which was so wonderful, really so wonderful. And we're talking, of course about eternal youth in that movie. And in your memoir you wrote something so beautiful, which was, I may not like myself old, but I like myself ancient.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

And I think I know what that means to me. But what does that mean to you?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Well, you know, I can give an example, come to mind. I don't like, you know, that, you know, my neck, you know, I'm just looking at my dog's neck, how much I like it. And I look at my neck and I don't like it and I say, why don't I? Why do I like my dog's wrinkles? And I don't like my wrinkles, wrinkles. So getting old has this aspect, but I'm ancient and I love it. I had a wet nurse. I was born in Italy. After the war, there was no formula. My mom was 38, I think, when she had me and my twin Sister, so she didn't have enough milk for two. And I was raised by a wet nurse, so that's ancient. And I love things in me that are ancient, that I can connect to something that existed in the past but long time ago and they don't exist anymore.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Hey, let's talk about having a twin sister. I have sisters in law who are twins, although they're identical twins. And you are a fraternal twin. Do you. Do you feel like a psychic connection to your sister, to your twin?

[Isabella Rossellini]

No, we don't feel a psychic connection. But I'm definitely closer to her than my other seven brothers and sisters.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Seven? Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

We have big families. Some of them are half brothers and half sisters. Sure, but there is a bond. But I also fought with her the most too. So it's the most bonded, but also the most fights.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Do you get to see her a lot?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Oh, a lot, yes. Yes, we see each other a lot. We almost speak on the phone every day.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, gosh, that's so lovely to have that connection with someone. A sister, a sibling. Okay, Isabella, going back to animal behavior now, I can't remember exactly where I read this, but you were talking about something called cryptic female choice. And I am so dying to hear more about this. Can you tell us about that?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Right. Isn't that a fantastic name? Cryptic female choices again, is the point of view maybe of the masculine point of view that looked at courtship.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

But this is a scientific term.

[Isabella Rossellini]

It's a scientific term, yes. They looked at courtship as a way. For example, I don't know, birds dancing until the female is ready.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Succumbs.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Succumbs, exactly. Look at the word you've used. Succumbing. Because we are so used to thinking that he's the male that does something spectacular and the female gives into it.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Cryptic female choices instead is what the female might do to keep control and not succumbing to a male. For example, my chicken. You tell me. Five. This isn't fantastic. And I'm slightly envious of them. If a rooster jumps on them and they don't want to be mated, they can spit the sperms out like we would spit our saliva. Isn't that great?

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

It's phenomenal.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Phenomenal. Ducks. Ducks. They have a vagina like a labyrinth.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Crazy. This is already.

[Isabella Rossellini]

They have a vagina like a labyrinth that has many canals. One canal leads to the eggs, the others don't. So the penis penetrates the female duck. Cryptic female choices. She sends them to a dead end because she has several canal. So she doesn't care. She lets the duck. She wants to be the father of the baby in the right canal that leads her to the eggs. Cryptic female choices. You don't give up power.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I mean, it is too good.

[Isabella Rossellini]

It is too good. And those are all new studies that are coming to the surface. And a lot of them, a lot of the great questions are asked by female scientists.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Cryptic Female Choice might want to be the title of a book you write. I think there's something to it that is so spectacular. I mean, you could. Yeah, I mean, chapter one could be choosing to be single as a cryptic female choice.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Absolutely.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Okay, so couple of quick, short questions I ask at the end I'm going to throw at you. Isabella, is there something you're looking forward to?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes. I mean, life, you know, life is so interesting. It's full of interesting things. I just signed up for a course in ornithology to learn more about birds.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, fantastic. Is there something you would go back and tell yourself at 21?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes. Be a film director earlier.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, when did you first become a film director?

[Isabella Rossellini]

55, 60.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, I see.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yeah. I should have done it earlier. And my film about animals, you know. Yeah. I think they're good. They're fun. I should have done more of it. I should have cultivated that voice more. Well, I am now, but sometimes you need a lot of time to get.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

To a certain point.

[Isabella Rossellini]

To get to a certain point, yeah.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Is there something you wish you'd spent less time on as Isabella in your life?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yeah, that's a very good question. Well, maybe having boyfriends, frankly, maybe I should have been single more frequently. Here and there. Just be with the one I really loved.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Okay. Is there something that you would like me to know about aging?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Well, I'm not worried about. I have the feeling that I'm not worried about you. I say you laugh because laughter, I mean. I mean, laughter helps a lot, isn't it? I'm not worried. I think you would find it very wonderful. I found it very wonderful. People don't believe it, but it really is wonderful.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Well, I mean, you know, I'm aging, and I have found it to be wonderful thus far.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Me too. That far is really wonderful.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah.

[Isabella Rossellini]

The only thing that I'm a little worried is if I get sick with pain.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Isabella Rossellini]

I had pain with my back. Severe pain occasionally, and that's very hard.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

But that is hard.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Short of pain, everything else. Sometime I wondered if I could. I sometime lost the ability to walk twice in my life, and I had to relearn. And it Was scary, but, you know, it was also interesting, I have to say.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

What was interesting about it?

[Isabella Rossellini]

It was interesting. The contact with other people that live like that, Discovering the solution, discovering a whole community, I think, you know, I volunteer for the Guide Dog foundation, and mostly we raise dog for people that are. Can see. And people say, how do you separate from the dog after you raise them? Because you're part of a community. And. And that community is so clever and so full of life and so challenged and yet so capable, so strong. They are an inspiration. So my dog is my connection to them.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Oh, that's beautiful. I love that. Community, baby. It's community and laughter.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes. Community and laughter is a very good combination.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah, it really is. It really is. Well, thank you so much for taking time. What a delightful conversation.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes. Now, are you going to talk to your mom?

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah. What should I say to her?

[Isabella Rossellini]

Well, say hi. Ask her if community and laughter has been her secret.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Okay, I will. She's 90.

[Isabella Rossellini]

90. 90 for her.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah, I'm going to ask her. Yeah. I'm gonna hang up with you and I'm gonna call her on Zoom, and hopefully she'll be able to turn the Zoom on and we'll be good to go.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Oh, great. She has problem with Zoom. I have problem with.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah, who doesn't? I know who doesn't? But anyway, thank you so much. It's been an utter delight. I would like to come and stay at your bed and breakfast sometime.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Come anytime. Anytime.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Okay. I think I might. You can show me the bees and all of it.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yes, yes, absolutely. Come anytime.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Okay. Well, lots of love and many thanks. You're very generous.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Thank you so much.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Wow. Well, that was all just so mind blowing. I learned so much in this conversation with Isabella. I gotta get my mom on the Zoom right away to tell her all about it. Hi, Mommy.

[Unknown]

Oh, hi, love.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

So I just talked to Isabella Rossellini, and first of all, she knows the podcast, so she goes, are you gonna call your mom now? And I said, yes. And she goes, oh, well, tell her I said hi. Hi. Isn't that fun?

[Unknown]

People seem to love the little stuff. We say yes.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Gosh, you're gonna love listening to this episode. She's such a delightful human being and so giggly, and she's got a lot of joy in her life.

[Unknown]

We can't get too much of that.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

No, but she has a farm in Long Island. She has a bed and breakfast there. It would be fun to go. And she has a lot of animals. I mean, for real. That would be fun. To do. To spend a day, a night there and look around the farm and figure things out. Oh, dear. I think I'm concocting an adventure. Mommy, I may have to take you away to go there.

[Unknown]

I will do that. Oh, my God.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

And then maybe we could tour the farm. And she has a farmer who does incredible things there. And she's got the sheep and the chickens. Oh, wait. So this is what I'm gonna tell you. So there's a scientific term, and it's called cryptic female choices. And it has to do with animals in the animal kingdom who, when they are mated with, have the ability to control certain aspects of mating. For example, if a chicken is mated by a rooster and doesn't like the rooster, the chicken's vagina can spat out the sperm.

[Unknown]

Wow. But is that a conscious thing or is that something that our body. Body does? I sort of think with it's so easy to personify the animals that they like.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Unknown]

But there's a wonderful phrase in a Mary Oliver poem. You should love the soft animal of your body and whatever happens to open us up to be fertile, to be whatever. I just wonder whether or not that sort of happens with animals under certain circumstances. And they don't, like, think, oh, I like it. I don't like it. It's just something that happens to them, to their bodies, to permit the opening.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

It's funny you say that Mary Oliver quote, because she was talking about how she likes the soft wrinkles of her dog who's old, but she doesn't like her neck. And she aims to like her neck the way she likes her dog's wrinkles. It's sort of the same idea.

[Unknown]

Oh, how wonderful that she has found this.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

I know she's had such a varied, interesting wife. You know, so many things were, you.

[Unknown]

Know, that were open to her to do. And I'm sure that in some ways, you know, she had such a youth of so much attention for her looks and for being who she was. But the fact that she was able to take that when it was offered and be, I'm sure, so grateful for it, but then to find something that she could make be herself, something that she already loved, but that she could then create a body out of.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Mm, that's fantastic. And by the way, this is not the only thing she does. She's also a director. She continues to act. She's in this movie that's called Conclave. So she's doing a lot of things. But she wanted me to ask you if you agree with her. I Think. Which is the key, she thinks, to aging. I guess she might say happily or aging. Well, as simplistic as this sounds is laughter and communication, community. And I'm sure you agree with that.

[Unknown]

Absolutely.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Absolutely. And I think you've got both of those things going for you, Mommy, don't you?

[Unknown]

I do, but community is a. It comes and goes, you know? In other words, we all talk about community so that we have a group that we think about. But it has to be nurtured.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes, it has to be nurtured.

[Unknown]

And those laughter. But you also have to look for sometimes because it's not right at your doorstep every morning. Would that be nice if it were you? Just open the door and you go.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Ah, look at the morning.

[Unknown]

That's the funniest thing I've ever, ever seen.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Okay, okay, Mommy, I think. I think it's time for us to sign off.

[Unknown]

Okay, well, sign off and be well.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Love you, my mama.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Love you.

[Unknown]

Love you, love you.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Okay, so I realized right after I had hung up here on the Zoom with my mom that I had missed an opportunity. So I got her back on the Zoom. Hi, Mama.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Oh.

[Unknown]

Oh, hi, Love.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

The reason that I wanted to get you back on Zoom was because after we had our little conversation, I thought, oh, my God, I should have you read that Mary Oliver favorite poem. I think that would be so nice for everybody to hear. Can you read it?

[Unknown]

I'd be happy to read it. Yes. And especially a good poem for now.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah, it's especially a good poem for now. So why don't you go ahead and read it and we can all just relax and listen to that.

[Unknown]

Wild geese. You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles, miles through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves. Tell me about despair. Yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile, the world goes on. Meanwhile, the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscape. Landscapes over the prairies and the deep trees, the mountains and the rivers. Meanwhile, the wild geese, high in the clean blue air, are heading home again. Whoever you are, no matter how lonely the world offers itself to your imagination calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting, over and over, announcing your place in the family of things.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Wow. That's a beauty. Yeah, it makes me cry. Love it.

[Unknown]

I know. I love that poem, too.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Ah. Okay, mom, that was just a complete tonic to hear it read by you.

[Unknown]

The thing that just kills me is. Tell me about despair yours and mine.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

Yeah. It's a good poem. It's good.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

It's a good one. It's a good one.

[Unknown]

Okay, well, love to everybody and keep heart.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yes.

[Unknown]

And have a little fun if you can.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Yep.

[Unknown]

Love to you guys.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

Okay. Love you, mommy. Soft animal. Love my mommy.

[Isabella Rossellini]

Yeah, too. Oh. Oh my God. Yeah.

[Unknown]

Love you. Okay. Love you. Love you.

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus]

There's More Wiser Than Me With Lemonada Premium on Apple, you can listen to every episode of season three ad free. Subscribers also get access to exclusive bonus interview excerpts from each episode. Subscribe now by clicking on the Wiser Than Me podcast logo in the Apple Podcast app and then hitting the subscribe button. Make sure you're following Wiser Than Me on social media. We're on Instagram and TikTok at wiser than Me and we're on Facebook at Wiser Than Me podcast. Wiser Than Me is a production of Lemonada Media created and hosted by me, Julia Louis Dreyfus. This show is produced by Chrissy Peace, Jamila, Zarah Williams, Alex McGowan and Oha Lopez. Brad hall is a consulting producer, Rachel Neal is VP of New Content and our SVP of weekly content and production is Steve Nelson. Executive producers are Paula Kaplan, Stephanie Whittles, Wax, Jessica Cordova, Kramer and me. The show is mixed by Johnny Vince Evans with engineering engineering help from James Sparber and our music was written by Henry hall, who you can also find on Spotify or wherever you listen to your music. Special thanks to Will Schlegel and of course my mother, Judith Bowles. Follow Wiser Than Me wherever you get your podcasts and if there's a wise old lady in your life, listen up. This message is brought to you by Cologuard, a non invasive colon cancer screening test. It's time to talk about colon cancer screening for a second here and if that just gives you a sense of dread because you're instantly thinking about having to miss work, drink some liquid prep and go through an invasive procedure, check this out because there's another option to skip all that drama with the Cologuard test. It's a one of a kind way to feel more in control of your colon cancer screening through a prescription drug based test with none of the prep that's required of a colonoscopy. The Cologuard test is the only FDA approved non invasive option that looks for both altered DNA and blood in your stool which can indicate the presence of abnormal cells. This test offers convenience and ease of use because once delivered right to your door. It's easy to use, plus it's affordable. Most insured patients pay $0 and if you do need a colonoscopy as a follow up, most insurance plans will cover that. If the Cologuard test is a positive result. Remember that colon cancer screening is crucial because colon cancer can be survivable in 90% of people, but only if it's caught in time. So screening and early detection are crucial. So if you're 45 or older and at average risk, ask your healthcare provider about screening for colon cancer with the Cologuard test. You can also request a Cologuard prescription [e-mail] prescription podcast. The Cologuard test is intended to screen adults 45 and older at average risk for colorectal cancer. Do not use a Cologuard test if you have had adenomas, have inflammatory bowel disease and certain hereditary syndromes, or a personal or family history of colorectal cancer. The Cologuard test is not a replacement for colonoscopy in high risk patients. Cologuard test performance in adults ages 45 to 49 is estimated based on a large clinical study of patients. 50 false positives and false negatives can occur. Cologuard is available by prescription only. Hey Wiser than me Listeners, we want to hear from you. By just answering a few questions on our listener survey, you can share feedback about show content you'd like to see in the future and help us think about what brands would serve you best. And even better, once you've completed the survey, you can enter for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift gift card. The survey is short and sweet and will help us play ads you don't want to skip and keep bringing you content you love. Just go to lemonadomedia.com survey lemonadomedia.com survey.