Storybeat With Steve Cuden

David Stenn was hired by the TV series Hill Street Blues immediately after graduating from Yale, becoming the show’s youngest writer ever. David then wrote She Was Marked For Murder, an NBC movie that earned an Edgar nomination from the Mystery Writers Guild of America.David returned to television as Producer of 21 Jump Street, then Supervising Producer of Beverly Hills, 90210. David's first biography, Clara Bow: Runnin' Wild, which was published by Doubleday and edited by no less than Jacqueline Onassis, became a national bestseller. Variety raved, "Only rarely will you find a book that is as total a winner on every level as Clara Bow: Runnin' Wild." His second biography, “Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, again, edited by Jacqueline Onassis, was cited by the New York Times as one of the year's notable books.“It Happened One Night…At M-G-M,” David’s discovery for Vanity Fair of Hollywood’s best-suppressed scandal, brought vindication to rape survivor Patricia Douglas

The phenomenal screenwriter and novelist, Joey Hartstone, had his first two feature films directed by no less than Rob Reiner. The first film, LBJ, which was named to Hollywood’s highly respected Black List in 2014, starred Woody Harrelson as LBJ.  Joey’s second feature, “Shock and Awe,” featured Woody Harrelson, James Marsden, Tommy Lee Jones, Jessica Biel, and Milla Jovovich. He was a member of the writing staff for the first two seasons of “The Good Fight.”  He is currently the showrunner and an executive producer of Showtime’s “Your Honor,” starring a favorite StoryBeat guest, Bryan Cranston. Joey’s debut novel, “The Local,” a legal thriller about an East Texas patent attorney’s first murder case, was published in the spring of 2022 by Doubleday, and is being developed as a series with CBS Studios and King Size Productions. I’ve read “The Local” and can tell you it’s a brilliant, fast-paced, thoroughly entertaining legal murder mystery very much in the vein of John Grisham and Scott Turow. I highly recomm

The author, ghostwriter, copywriter, and freelance editor, Megan Woodward recently published her beautifully written and illustrated debut picture book, This Book is Definitely Not Cursed, which is published by Simon and Schuster. She’s also the author of the forthcoming book, Jake Maddox Dance, Gymnastics, and Cheerleading Jokes. Megan specializes in all things humorous and finds no greater joy than making kids laugh. She’s also a produced comedy screenwriter and the scriptwriter for the Chicago Thanksgiving Parade. Megan holds an MFA in screenwriting from UCLA, where, for the record, Megan she I met while in school together. When she’s not writing, or procrastinating from writing, you can find her cooking, hiking, singing, laughing or working part time at a children’s bookstore called Green Bean Books. For all those reasons and many more, I’m so very happy to welcome to StoryBeat today my friend, the very funny writer, Megan Woodward. Megan, welcome to the show… Twitter and Instagram @womeganwowww.meganwood

Madolyn Smith Osborne had the kind of fairy tale show business beginning that most can only fantasize about. While still in school at The University of Southern California, she won her first paycheck with a serendipitous audition before famed choreographer, Gower Champion, when a lead dancer and understudy had to be replaced in the Broadway-bound production of Pal Joey starring Lena Horne.  Madolyn’s passion for musical theater as well as her training with beloved choreographers Bill and Jacqui Landrum, prepared her well for the opportunity. A year later, on the eve of graduating from USC’s School of Dramatic Arts., her mentor, the late, iconic theatre and film producer and Academy Award-winning actor, John Houseman, launched a swan song of sorts for her with a production of Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well, in which Madolyn starred in the role of Helena. Mr. Houseman had invited various industry professionals to see the show in the 99-seat Stop Gap Theater on campus, including his former protege, film

The great director, Rob Marshall, has made numerous films that have been honored with a total of 30 Academy Award nominations — winning 9 in all, including Best Picture for “Chicago,” which alone won a total of 6 of those Oscars. Also, for “Chicago,” Rob received the Directors Guild Award, and nominations for Best Director for the Oscar, Golden Globe and BAFTA awards. Additionally, he won Best Directorial Debut from the National Board of Review and the New York Film Critics Online, as well as the American Choreography Award.  Most recently, Rob directed and produced the live-action feature, “The Little Mermaid” for Disney, starring Halle Bailey, Melissa McCarthy and Javier Bardem. Rob’s other directorial achievements include multiple nominations for award-winning features like: “Memoirs of a Geisha,” “Nine,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,” which went on to gross over 1 billion dollars worldwide, “Into the Woods,” and “Mary Poppins Returns.”Rob executive produced, directed, and choreographed the

Stephen Cole is back on StoryBeat for the second time. An award-winning writer of musical theatre, non-fiction books, short stories, and novels, Stephen’s work has been recorded, published, and produced worldwide, from New York City to London to the Middle East and Australia. With Matthew Ward he wrote the musicals After The Fair, Merlin’s Apprentice, Rock Odyssey, and Casper (which originally starred Chita Rivera), The Night of the Hunter and Saturday Night at Grossinger’s (with music by Claibe Richardson), and Dodsworth and Time After Time (with music by Jeff Saver), which has recently been revived at the Children's Theatre of Cincinnati.  In 2005 Stephen and composer David Krane were commissioned to write the first American musical to premiere in the Middle East. The result was Aspire, which was produced in Qatar. Their hilarious cross-cultural experiences resulted in another show titled The Road To Qatar! which has been produced in Dallas, New York and the Edinburgh International Festival (where it w

Maria Baltazzi is a Happiness Explorer. And an extraordinarily fascinating one at that. Her experiences as an Emmy-winning producer of hit TV shows, a wellbeing teacher, world traveler, and luxury travel designer specializing in transformative adventures, has given her a unique lens into conscious living. Maria was one of the original supervising producers of the mega TV hit, Survivor. She’s a member of both the Producers and Directors Guilds of America, a Fellow National Member of The Explorers Club, and an Advisor for the Transformational Travel Council.  Maria holds an MFA in film from Art Center College of Design and a PhD in Conscious-Centered Living from the University of Sedona. Additional studies include training in Mindfulness Meditation, Primordial Sound Meditation, Happiness Studies, Positive Neuroplasticity, Spiritual Psychology, Positive Psychology, the Science of Happiness, and an Inner MBA from Mindful NYU.Maria recently published the book, Take a Shot at Happiness, in which she shares her insi

Author Scott M. Hoffman was a witness to historical events concerning major mob families. His book, Inside, tells the eye-opening tale of the son of a mobster growing up learning the harrowing life within a ruthless crime family. Scott absorbed the inner workings of the mob from his dad, who loyally served The Chicago Outfit for over 55 years –never spending a day in prison. Now 74, Scott is a graduate of Long Island University-Brooklyn with a B.A. in Journalism. For 35 years he worked for the City of Chicago in the Departments of Purchasing and Finance.I’ve read Inside and can tell you, it’s a beautifully written, fascinating, and sometimes disturbing insider’s look at what it’s like to grow up as a mobster’s son.

Richard Skipper is an entertainer, singer and host known for his award-winning tribute to Carol Channing, which was endorsed by Carol herself. He can be seen in the film, Carol Channing: Larger Than Life. Richard’s appeared in legendary venues from Atlantic City’s Taj Mahal and Hilton to Carnegie Hall. And he’s shared stages with some of the biggest names in show business including Carol Channing and Lesley Ann Warren. And he’s appeared on the Windstar Cruise ship, Las Vegas to Windsor Ontario and all points in between. Because of Covid he created his popular virtual series, Richard Skipper Celebrates...with over 900 episodes under his belt.In New York, his live events include: Richard Skipper Celebrates, featuring the biggest names in cabaret and theater. Prior to Covid, Richard performed his highly acclaimed live talk/variety show at the Laurie Beechman Theatre. Directed originally by the late great Jay Rogers, Richard starred in The Magic of Believing (which was originally called From Conway to Broadway),

Dr. ‘Niyi Coker, Jr., is a Professor and the Director of the School of Theatre, Television, and Film (TTF) at San Diego State University in California, which is ranked by the Hollywood Reporter as a top 10 Film production program.  ‘Niyi has served as Visiting Artistic Director to several theatre companies including: K3 at Malmo Hogskola in Sweden, the National Theatre of Nigeria and The Black Box Theatre in Bermuda.   He’s also the founding Artistic Director of the African Arts Ensemble in New York City.   ‘Niyi’s plays include: Ouray, written in collaboration with the Southern Ute Tribal Council. Commissioned and sponsored by the British Council, it toured England. And also Preemptive, a drama about Islamophobia, initially developed at the Indiana University Playwrights lab and staged at London’s West End Shaw Theatre. ‘Niyi’s Off-Broadway writing and directing credits, include, Booth!  a musical on the reflections of Edwin Booth after the assassination of Lincoln (written in collaboration with Barbara Harb

What a wonderful fun and funny interview with a fellow who’s toiled at the highest peak of Hollywood as a screenwriter. TV and film writer, Steven Kunes, has worked on numerous sitcoms and movies.  At the age of 26, legendary TV producer, Norman Lear, hired Steven to write and develop half-hour comedies for his company, Embassy Television. This led to assignments in one-hour TV shows and eventually led him to motion pictures, where Steven became one of Hollywood's most successful script doctors. He's worked on TV shows like South Park, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, Out of This World, Cheers, and on movies such as Catch Me If You Can, Legally Blonde, Cast Away, The Pelican Brief, Groundhog Day and more.  In 2015, he created the hit comedy series Over My Dead Body, which streams on Amazon Prime. About Over My Dead Body Norman Lear said, "This is the best idea for a TV series that I can remember. It's absolutely hilarious." In 2021, Steven delivered a TEDx talk in Philadelphia ent

Danielle Sunberg, a multi-award winning author and TEDx speaker, coaches high performers and advises social-impact organizations on authentic leadership. Specializing in conscious self-development, she guides individuals and groups to cultivate personal mastery as the key to experiencing our full potential. A former commercial litigator at a Washington D.C. law firm, Danielle's journey took a pivotal turn after successfully defending a client against a $6 billion judgment. Extreme burnout, stress, and overwhelm led to a diagnosis of depression, causing Danielle to leave her firm and travel six continents exploring how to create authentic well-being. Her exploration led to authoring her book, Atlas of Being, and founding a wellness CPG company that was publicly acquired in 2023, and her current work guiding high performers.

Noted author and teacher Andrew Erish’s first book, Col. William N. Selig, the Man Who Invented Hollywood, was hailed by the L.A. Public Library as “One of the best books of 2012.” And The Huffington Post declared, “…it may well be the film book of the year.” Andrew’s most recent book, Vitagraph, America’s First Great Motion Picture Studio, received the Peter C. Rollins Award for the best book of 2022 by the Southwest Popular/American Culture Association. I’ve read both of Andrew’s fascinating and entertaining books, and can tell you that, despite my having been a student of films and Hollywood for more years than I care to admit, I learned a great deal about the beginnings of the movies that I had no clue about. If you like knowing all about Hollywood, I highly recommend both books to you. Andrew also contributed five essays to American Cool, published in conjunction with an exhibit at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery. And he’s written for various publications, including the Los Angeles Times and

Rosanna Staffa is an Italian-born playwright and author.  Her debut novel, The War Ends At Four, is a beautifully rendered tale about an Italian acupuncturist in Minneapolis who returns home to Milan and rediscovers all that she left behind, who she is, and what her life is really about. I’ve read The War Ends at Four and found it to be a moving and poignant personal story about a woman trying to find herself.  I highly recommend it to you. Rosanna’s work has been featured in Gargoyle Magazine, the Brevity Nonfiction Blog, The Sun Magazine, The Examined Life Journal, and JuxtaProse. Her essay, Holy, is a prize winner in the TSR Review and nominated for the 2022 Notable in Best American Essays. Other writing can be found in the Best Small Fictions Anthology 2021. She received an Honorable Mention for The Tiferet Journal’s 2019 Writing Contest. She’s also a Short Story Finalist for The Masters Review Anthology, the 47th New Millennium Writing Awards, and a Pushcart Prize nominee. Rosanna’s plays, which have bee

This is Charles Rosenay’s second time on StoryBeat. He’s been in the entertainment business for over four decades as an actor, promoter, music aficionado, entertainer, MC, DJ, humorist, and author.Recently, he released his latest book, The Book of Top 10 Beatles Lists, which contains dozens of top ten lists from pop-culture notables, like Pete Best, Dick Cavett, Tommy Chong, Melanie, and even Dave Winfield, all laying out their favorite songs by the Beatles, who are, for me, the greatest rock band of all time. Among all of his other accomplishments, Charles has produced Beatles Conventions and Festivals since 1978, and he’s been the organizer and host of the “Magical History Tour” since 1983, bringing Beatles fans to Liverpool and London. Charles published and edited the magazine, “Good Day Sunshine, one of the world’s most famous Beatles/Sixties magazines. He has also promoted Monkees conventions since the early ‘80s. As an MC, Charles has shared the stage with countless entertainment figures, including Char

         Terry Press recently joined Amblin Partners in the newly created role of President of Strategy and Communications. Terry oversees the execution of all elements of marketing, publicity, consumer products, and communication for the film and television divisions of Amblin Partners and Steven Spielberg, who said of Terry, “Since the earliest days of DreamWorks, Terry has been a vital part of our DNA, championing our films with her marketing expertise and passion for film. Her reputation in the industry for excellence is well known and we have a long-shared history of great experiences together.”           Terry also continues in her role as a consultant at Turner Classic Movies, where Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and Paul Thomas Anderson advise the channel. Recent movies that Terry has worked on with Mr. Spielberg include: The Fabelmans, West Side Story, Lincoln, The Post, and Amblin/Universal’s award-winning 1917.            Previously, Terry was President of CBS Films, where she oversaw the produc

Jimmy Roberts is the composer of the second longest-running Off-Broadway musical in New York theater history, I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change, which ran for over 5000 performances. It’s been produced around the world in languages as diverse as French, Spanish, German, Finnish, Mandarin and Cantonese.  Jimmy's second Off-Broadway show The Thing About Men, won the New York Outer Critics Circle award for Best Musical.  His latest show, Welcome to the Big Dipper, co-written with John Daggett and one of my favorite StoryBeat guests, Cat Filloux, is set to open at the York Theatre in Manhattan in November 2024. Jimmy’s also a sought-after performer, presenting entertaining programs that combine classical and popular music. Recent engagements include: Merkin Concert Hall, the 92nd Street Y, Steinway Hall, and the National Arts Club.  The New York Times called Jimmy’s performances, “Brilliant.” He’s a graduate of the Manhattan School of Music, where he studied with noted pianist, Constance Keene. He’

Branden Cobb is a 15-year Marketing executive at the forefront of industry evolution. In a time of heightened concern regarding Artificial Intelligence, content generation, and responsible Marketing, Branden stands out for merging innovation with market insights, by insisting that successful Marketing is a dynamic fusion of both art and science. As a pioneer in crafting courageous strategies, Branden aims to not only grab customers’ attention but also launch them into a robust, memorable journey. His passion lies in helping companies add real value to the world while aligning corporate interests with consumer needs. Branden has great insights into utilizing AI within the creative process.Branden’s also worked in the motion picture and television industry in various capacities, including in the development and producing movies and TV shows.   https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandencobb1/

Actor-director Michelle Danner is also an acting coach at the Los Angeles Acting School who specializes in the Meisner, Strasberg, Adler, Hagen, Chekhov and Stanislavsky techniques. Alongside Larry Moss, she’s also the founding and Artistic Director of the Edgemar Center for the Arts.In 2006, Michelle made her feature film directing debut with, How to Go Out on a Date in Queens, winning the L.A. Film Awards' Best Acting and Best Movie awards. Her 2013 film, HelloHerman, catalogs the effect that peer abuse, parental neglect and the general coarsening of society has on a typical high school student.  Michelle has acted in and directed over thirty plays in Los Angeles and New York, with her favorite acting credit cited as the Dramalogue award-winning Tennessee Williams' The Rose Tattoo. Among her other award-winning stage work, she produced The Night of the Black Cat at Edgemar, she directed the world premiere of Mental the Musical, and she wrote and directed You're on the Air, an improvisation-ba

What a great deal of fun it is to chat with the dynamic John Vorhaus, who is making his second StoryBeat appearance because you never know which direction he's going to take in any answer.  John is best known for his classic comedy writing textbook, The Comic Toolbox: How to be Funny Even if You’re Not. Now available in five languages, John’s “bible of comedy writing” continues to be a definitive source of information and inspiration for TV, film and fiction writers. John’s been a meaningful change-agent for tens of thousands of writers around the world.  An international consultant in television and film script development, John has worked for TV networks, film schools, production companies and film funding bodies in 37 countries on five continents. He created his own situation comedy in Romania, ran the writing staff of the Russian version of Married… with Children, and co-created two social action TV dramas in Nicaragua. John’s scriptwriting credits run from sit-coms to episodic drama, and from web-ba