Over Zoom, Lawrence Zarian interviews Ellen Burstyn ahead of their in-person meeting on The Kelly Clarkson Show, reflecting on divine timing and how his pandemic-born podcast explores how entertainers see the world differently.

Burstyn discusses promoting her poetry book and her discomfort with “commercializing” something sacred, emphasizing her goal of introducing poetry to people who don’t know it; Zarian shares how the book gave him language for grief, citing Maya Angelou and Rumi, and Burstyn recites Edna St. Vincent Millay’s “Love is not all.” Burstyn recalls a childhood split between being popular at school and hiding at home due to an abusive stepfather, and how poetry helped her envision a future.

They discuss forgiveness, therapy, sobriety, and generational trauma, then touch on colleagues and projects including Cloris Leachman, Jack Nicholson, Alan Alda, Linda Blair, and roles like Lois in The Last Picture Show, ending with Burstyn completing “I, Ellen Burstyn, am beautiful because…” with a memory of her mother.

Timestamp Menu:

01:51 Universe and Timing
03:04 Mirror Question
03:54 Poetry Book Doubts
09:01 Poetry Awakening
09:53 Two Lives Growing Up
15:42 Forgiving Mom
17:40 Trauma and Sobriety
24:47 Poems for Grief
29:33 Favorite Poem Recital
32:07 Poetry as Healing
33:21 Central Park Cherry Blossoms
35:32 Fashion and Self Love
37:39 Rapid Fire Film Memories
42:43 Internet Myths and Truth
44:24 Alan Alda and Friendship
48:07 Women and Equal Partnership
52:13 Revisiting Past Characters
54:03 Longing Poem and Farewell
55:55 I Am Beautiful Because