Us Modernist Radio - Architecture You Love

Since launching the podcast ten years ago in 2015, hosts George Smart and Tom Guild have had fascinating conversations with over 700 guests, including architects, owners, media, critics, authors, actors, and jazz performers.  USModernist Radio is one of America’s top-rated architecture and jazz podcasts, ranked in the past as #1 by Atomic Ranch and #2 by Dwell.  The 400th episode features interviews with actress and Modernist preservationist Kelly Lynch and architecture critic Kate Wagner; the return of comedian Frank King; and special musical guest, Heather Rigdon. It will also include highlights from past episodes, including interviews with Bjarke Ingels; the last living Frank Lloyd Wright client, Roland Reisley; Moshe Safdie, Eric Lloyd Wright, Suzanne Somers, Youtube star Stewart Hicks, Hugh Kaptur; author Chris Rawlins; Daniel Libeskind; Harriet Pattison on Lou Kahn; Harry Bates; Myron Goldfinger; Raleigh’s Brian Shawcroft and Lewis Clarke; Mary Schindler; and Modernism opponents David Brussat, Professor

From poolside at the swanky USModernist compound in Palm Springs, three stars of the Modernist movement, Alan Hess + Janice Lyle + Sidney Williams, discussing what’s become known as the Palm Springs School of Modernism and an accompanying new book.  From the studio, Russell Brown and Tom Lazarus on their recent stage play called LISTING, plus returning musical guest Colleen Duffy of Devil Doll. 

Modernist architecture makes special use of light and color, and with us today, architect Wid Chapman, color expert Sara McLean, and musical guest and expert skater, Laura Pursell. 

Today from Palm Springs during Modernism Week we explore architect Richard Neutra with guests Raymond Neutra of the Neutra Institute and Catherine Meyler, owner of a celebrated Neutra house. Back in the studio, we’ll hear about Neutra’s VDL house in Los Angeles from Executive Director Noam Saragosti; Neutra’s sadly destroyed Maslon House from filmmaker Scott Goldstein; and special musical guests Louis Prima Jr. and the Witnesses. 

You’ll hear from the principal architects of Architecture Research Office (ARO), Adam Yarinsky, Stephen Cassell, and Kim Yao. We’ll explore a 12,000 sf Modernist house in Dallas with architect Kevin Alter, and wrapping up, musical guest Carrie Marshall.

With so many good architecture books coming out, we can barely keep up.  Today we’ll explore Architectural Pottery with Dan Chavkin, Jeffrey Head, and Jo Lauria;  sustainable houses with Penny Craswell, and the Queen of architecture interviews, journalist and historian Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel, who has a new book out on New York.

We visit with Ward Miller of Preservation Chicago; design critic and New York Magazine writer Justin Davidson; and musical guest Eddie Mugavero of the beloved Nashville swing band Bada Bing Bada Boom.   

Following up on last week, three more authors with exciting books on architecture and design.  DJ Waldie is the bard of Lakewood California with a new book, Becoming Los Angeles. Past podcast guest, the prolific Dominic Bradbury, has a new Atlas of modernist icons.  And returning podcast guest Pierluigi Serraino shares in the new book Modern Garden how often-underappreciated landscape design was the secret sauce for midcentury modern.  

With so many good architecture books coming out, we can barely keep up scheduling interviews, but we are gonna try.  Joining the show are authors Aaron Betsky and Sam Lubell, architecture photographer Darren Bradley, and Danish Modern furniture savant, Carl D’Silva.  More books and authors next week!

It’s architecture movie day, and with us is Valentina Ganeva, the producer/director of the latest doc on Rudolph Schindler, Schindler Space Architect.  Actor Ken Ogborn shares his role in a short film on photography and brutalism in the UK. Then it’s the actress and singer we’ve loved for decades in just about everything, like Monk and Friends and The Office, Melora Hardin.  

It’s another exciting edition of our Children of Genius show, with guests Jim Venturi, son of Denise Scott Brown and Robert Venturi; Peter Nowicki, son of Matthew and Siasia Nowicki; and Sue Ann Kahn, daughter of Lou Kahn. 

Today’s new mega-transportation centers are sweeping complexes for airports and subways to move millions of people.  They are huge canvasses for architects like today’s guest, Scottish architect John McAslan, who’s working on the hot mess that is Penn Station.  Later we’ll explore the Toast of Illinois, Champaign, with Phillip Kalantzis-Cope, author of Mid-Continent Modern and one of Champaign's architects, Jeffrey Poss.  Then it’s off to New York for a fine dining breakfast in New York with returning podcast guest Monika Ryan. 

Charles Moore, the architect of California’s famous Sea Ranch, was one of the chief proponents of postmodernism. His work brought a return to more ornamental detail, steep roofs, and shingles, among other classical features, and we’ll learn more from Kevin Keim, Director of the Charles Moore Foundation.  Next, you’ve heard for a year about the destruction of Craig Ellwood’s Zimmerman house in Los Angeles, now you’ll hear attorney Evan Dyer’s plans to bring it back.  Then we talk with Lou Grotta on preserving a Richard Meier-designed house for the future.

Paul Rudolph's buildings, built and unbuilt, continue to inspire clients, annoy critics, and gain fame, even though he died in the mid-90’s.  These days, though, it’s almost all smiles and admiration, and there’s an important exhibition of Rudolph’s work at the Metropolitan Museum in New York through March.  Year round on certain days, however, you can visit Rudolph’s former office in New York, the Paul Rudolph Institute for Modern Architecture, or PRIMA.  And while you’re there, you can also see the late architect Myron Goldfinger’s traveling exhibition, Circle Square Triangle.  Today we’ll talk with the curator of that Met exhibition, Abraham thomas, the Executive Director of PRIMA, Kelvin Dickinson, and the curator of Goldfinger’s exhibition, his partner and wife June Goldfinger.  Later on, come out swinging with musical guests Chelsee Hicks and the Wholly Cats.

The Bjarke Ingels Group completed the Spiral, a tower in Hudson Yards with tree-lined terraces going around the building, all the way up.  Today we’ll talk with project architect, Dominyka Voelkle.  Later, you’ll discover architect Carter Sparks through his number one fan and archivist, Justin Wood.  Then it’s returning musical guest, jazz superstar and high school teacher, the delightful Canadian Diana Panton.

For decades, we’ve been reading about Lindal Cedar Homes in design magazines.  Now, under the leadership of third-generation President Christina Lindal they’ve branched out into compelling designs inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright.  And inside great houses like this, you’re probably going to need good decorating advice, so we go to Montauk New York to talk with author and interior designer Lauren Rottet.  Wrapping up, musical guests Marco Palos and American Idol’s Blake Lewis of Phat Cat Swinger.   

It's our annual Christmas show, and In the studio we have a partner in one of North Carolina’s hottest firms, architect Adam Sebastian. We talk with Quinn Garvey, our special agent inside the amazing Craig Ellwood house that Chris Pratt tore down in early 2024, and later, jazz with Angela Bingham.

Celebrities aren’t typically huge fans of Modernist architecture. Most prefer a 1930’s mansion or an Italianate villa. But there are a few, like Jennifer Aniston, Holland Taylor, Scott Caan, Kelly Lynch, Leonardo DiCaprio, and others who keep Modernist houses in the spotlight.  Today we’ll talk with Alison Martino, producer, historian, and preservationist, the Godmother of Old Hollywood and Los Angeles.  Next up, Frank Sinatra expert Bill Boggs, and later, we’ll learn about the Modernist town of Columbus Indiana from author Matt Shaw, with a new book. 

The town of Lancaster OH is famous as the birthplace of David Graf, best known as Sgt. Eugene Tackleberry in the Police Academy series.  Lancaster is also famous for … glassware, and their best-known creative rebel was Fran Taylor.  From 1939 to 1962, Taylor ran GayFad Studios, and 60+ years after her business closed, partners Jason and David Annecy have revived the brand, opened a store, and held Bottoms Up, a wildly successful midcentury barware show this past summer.  USModernist was there, interviewing the Annecys, artist Josh Agle aka Shag, and  the barware lady Amy Chastek.

We can't believe it, but USModernist Radio will be ten years old soon.  We'll have a special show number 400 featuring past guests and - you!  Are you a fan of the show?  Learned something useful?  Got a funny story?  Please contact George Smart george@usmodernist.org or 919.740.8407