Dick Cavett (Courtesy of Daphne Productions)

Emmy Award-winning television personality and talk show host Dick Cavett speaks with WNET Up Next host Elisa Lichtenbaum about Groucho & Cavett, an American Masters documentary exploring his profound and enduring friendship with iconic comedian Groucho Marx. The film, written, produced, and directed by Robert S. Bader (Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes), premieres Tuesday, December 27 at 8 p.m ET on PBS. (Check local listings.) It will also stream on the American Masters website (pbs.org/americanmasters) and the PBS App.

DYNAMIC DUO: Groucho Marx and Dick Cavett on The Dick Cavett Show, June 1969. (Photo by Ron Baldwin)

Cavett shares colorful stories of his adventures in show business: the serendipitous first time he met Groucho Marx (at playwright George S. Kaufman’s funeral in 1961); landing his first big break as a writer for Jack Paar on The Tonight Show; interviewing Bette Davis, Katharine Hepburn, and other Hollywood greats on The Dick Cavett Show; and much more.

WNET Up Next takes listeners behind the scenes of favorite public media programs, featuring conversations with the people who make them. Browse and enjoy past episodes at Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and wnet.org/podcast.

WNET Up Next is a presentation of the Design, On-Air Promotion, Fundraising, and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

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Recorded: November 16, 2022

Audio Engineer: Josh Broome

Producer/Host: Elisa Lichtenbaum

Executive Producer: Daena McBride

Editor: Terence Taylor

Production Coordinator: Rita Graffeo

Special Thanks to Dick Cavett, Martha Rogers, Robert Bader, and David Clarke.

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

The post Dick Cavett On His Friendship With Groucho Marx appeared first on The WNET Group.

Julia Kots filming “Inez & Doug & Kira” in New York City.

Filmmaker and co-producer Julia Kots speaks with WNET Up Next host Elisa Lichtenbaum about the making of Inez & Doug & Kira, her independent film about a bipolar woman who commits suicide and the impact of her death on her sister and her sister’s fiancé. The film, written, directed, edited, and co-produced by Kots and starring Tawny Cypress (Yellowjackets) as Inez, Michael Chernus (Severance) as Doug, and Talia Thiesfield (FBI) as Kira, premieres on Reel 13 Double Feature – THIRTEEN/WNET’s Saturday night film series – on Saturday, September 10 at 12:25 a.m.

Tawny Cypress as Inez and Talia Thiesfield as Kira in “Inez & Doug & Kira” by Julia Kots.

Kots talks about the challenges of shooting the dramatic feature with a micro budget and tight schedule, its complex narrative structure, and its exploration of mental illness, suicide, and addiction. She also shares insights on the casting and audition process, and explains how her experience as professional TV and film editor – her credits include the public media series Great Performances, Reel 13, NYC-ARTS, Treasures of New York, and Treasures of New Jersey – informed how she directed the film.

Tawny Cypress as Inez in “Inez & Doug & Kira” by Julia Kots. Michael Chernus as Doug in “Inez & Doug & Kira” by Julia Kots.

WNET Up Next takes listeners behind the scenes of favorite public media programs, featuring conversations with the people who make them. Browse and enjoy past episodes at Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and wnet.org/podcast.

WNET Up Next is a presentation of the Design, On-Air Promotion, Fundraising, and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

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Recorded: August 16, 2022

Audio Engineer: Josh Broome

Producer/Host: Elisa Lichtenbaum

Executive Producer/Editor: Daena McBride

Production Coordinator: Rita Graffeo

Special Thanks to Julia Kots.

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

The post WNET Up Next Welcomes “Inez & Doug & Kira” Filmmaker and Co-Producer Julia Kots appeared first on The WNET Group.

Oren Jacoby

Oscar-nominated director Oren Jacoby speaks with WNET Up Next host Elisa Lichtenbaum about the making of On Broadway, his documentary that looks at the incredible way Broadway bounced back from the brink of bankruptcy and other challenges from the 1960s to the present. The film premieres on THIRTEEN — your New York City PBS station — on Tuesday, August 16 at 8 p.m., with encores on Sunday, August 21 at 2 and 7 p.m. (See THIRTEEN schedule). Check local PBS listings to find out when it’s airing on the PBS station near you.

Jacoby shares stories of interviewing Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen, Christine Baranski, and other Broadway legends, working with Athol Fugard and August Wilson during his early days in the theater, and discusses other theater documentaries he created for PBS, including Great Performances: Sam Shepard: Stalking Himself, Stage on Screen: The Topdog Diaries (about playwright Susan-Lori Parks’ Tony-nominated play Topdog/Underdog), and The Shakespeare Sessions.

Ian McKellen discusses the magic of theater in Oren Jacoby’s documentary “On Broadway.” (Courtesy of Kino Lorber, Inc.)

WNET Up Next takes listeners behind the scenes of favorite public media programs, featuring conversations with the people who make them. Browse and enjoy past episodes at Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and wnet.org/podcast.

WNET Up Next is a presentation of the Design, On-Air Promotion, Fundraising, and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

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Recorded: July 19, 2022

Audio Engineer: Josh Broome

Producer/Host: Elisa Lichtenbaum

Executive Producer/Editor: Daena McBride

Production Coordinator: Rita Graffeo

Special Thanks to Cara White, CaraMar Publicity.

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

The post WNET Up Next Welcomes “On Broadway” Director Oren Jacoby appeared first on The WNET Group.

WNET Digital Innovators meeting.

In observation of National Teacher Appreciation Week, WNET UP NEXT celebrates our local teachers with an in-depth look the WNET PBS Digital Innovators Program, which for the past two years has provided a unique online gathering place for 14 outstanding teachers from the tri-state New York City metropolitan region. These teachers have shared with each other fresh ideas that open new worlds for their students, a bold approach to their teaching, and a commitment to social justice to advance a more equitable and diverse outlook for K-12 education.

Hannah Dawe and Kristina Kirtley of The WNET Group’s Kids & Media Education Department relate the story of how the local chapter of the PBS Digital Innovators came to be.  We then hear from four teachers and their experiences with the program:  Jean Kim, an English Language Arts teacher at a New York City Gifted and Talented school in Queens;  Clemencia Acevedo,  a Special Education teacher in West Harlem;  Kimberly Dickstein Hughes, New Jersey’s 2020 Teacher of the Year, who teaches English Language Arts at Haddonfield Memorial High in New Jersey;  Jamie Cacciola-Price, who heads the Drama and Musical Theatre program at the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts High School in Astoria, Queens.

Known as “DIs”, each of the teachers shares with host Tom Stewart their personal stories as educators and the many challenges they face, particularly those brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic. They all feel that the DI program has been an invaluable addition to their professional lives; in addition to providing classroom materials from PBS Learning Media and other sources, the program also acted as a place where they could offer each other encouragement and support in a time of great stress.

Fun fact: In the United States, Teacher Appreciation Day was put forth by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt in 1944 as the first Tuesday in May; it has now evolved into Teacher Appreciation Week.  Worldwide, nations honor their teachers on many different dates and times of year.

For more information, visit WNET.org/Education

Recorded: April 13, 14, and 19, 2022

Audio Engineering – Josh Broome

Host/Producer – Tom Stewart

Executive Producer/Editor – Daena McBride

Special thanks to Christina Knight

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

The post WNET Up Next Celebrates National Teacher Appreciation Week appeared first on The WNET Group.

How do we maintain a sense of possibility and moral purpose in age of unbearable loss? What lessons of history or visions of tomorrow can help us today in contending with hate and injustice, the Covid-19 pandemic, the climate crisis, the attacks on democracy, and the lethal march of war?  When facing personal or professional troubles, where do we turn for balance and resolve?……Brian Tate

Grace Under Pressure, An Examination of Mental Health in America, is the umbrella title of a series of  virtual town halls, public conversations and digital content to be presented by The WNET Group on five consecutive Thursday evenings from April 28 through May 26, 2022.

Each livestream event will focus on a group of essential workers: healthcare workers, K-12 teachers, mental health providers, activists and journalists. The livestream events run 6-7:30 p.m. EDT. The project will serve as The WNET Group’s lead in the observance of National Mental Health Awareness Month in May.

Brian Tate, Director of Community Partnerships, and Jasmine Wilson, Community Engagement Specialist, visit with WNET UP NEXT’s Tom Stewart to talk about how the Grace Under Pressure project came to be and what it hopes to accomplish by examining mental health in our times.

“We met with about 150 nonprofit executives and community leaders to learn their thoughts on the top issues affecting New Yorkers. And mental health was among the top five topics that they cited,” says Brian Tate.

Learn more and register for Grace Under Pressure’s free, virtual town halls.

Stream programs and reports that highlight people who have found ways to improve mental health for themselves and others.

Recorded: April 5, 2022

Audio Engineering – Josh Broome

Host/Producer – Tom Stewart

Executive Producer/Editor – Daena McBride

Special Thanks – Christina Knight

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group

The post WNET Up Next Focuses on “Grace Under Pressure” in New Episode appeared first on The WNET Group.

Benjamin Franklin.

In conjunction with the upcoming PBS premiere of Ken Burns’ four-hour biographical film BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, (Monday, April 4 and Tuesday, April 5, 2022 at 8 p.m.),  WNET UP NEXT welcomes Walter Isaacson, creative consultant for the film and author of Benjamin Franklin: An American Life.

“Just being interested in everything made him the quintessential, curious American,” Isaacson said of Franklin during his conversation with WNET UP NEXT.

Considered one of America’s most significant historical figures and founding fathers, Franklin has been influential in many fields with roles as printer, publisher, inventor, humorist, diplomat, and scientist. Known for his pragmatism, Franklin established early public libraries and schools in addition to his early “media empire” of  franchised printing establishments up and down the East Coast. He became internationally known for his experiments with electricity and creation of an early battery. As a diplomat, he was responsible for securing financial aid from France that helped defeat England in the American Revolution. As the witty writer of Poor Richard’s Almanack, he pioneered an American-style sense of humor that still exists today.

Like Franklin, Walter Isaacson has worn many different hats over the course of his career, from serving as Editor of Time,  to becoming CEO at CNN and The Aspen Institute.  Currently on the history faculty of Tulane University, he also serves as a co-host of Amanpour and Company on PBS.  In addition to Benjamin Franklin: An American Life, he has written many other books, including biographies of Steve Jobs, Leonardo DaVinci, Albert Einstein, and Nobel Prize winner Jennifer Doudna.

For more on BENJAMIN FRANKLIN: A Film by Ken Burns see the official film site.

Recorded: March 4, 2022

Audio Engineer – Josh Broome

Host/Producer – Tom Stewart

Executive Producer/Editor – Daena McBride

Special thanks: Jordan Lawrence of DKC and Christina Knight of The WNET Group

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

The post Walter Isaacson Joins WNET Up Next for a Preview of “Benjamin Franklin – A Ken Burns Film” appeared first on The WNET Group.

Shelagh Turner (LAURA MAIN), Dr. Turner (STEPHEN McGANN) discuss what he has learned about sickle cell in Call the Midwife Season 8.

The acclaimed British series “Call the Midwife” comes back to PBS for its eleventh season on the evening of Sunday March 20th. To celebrate its return, WNET UP NEXT welcomes actor and author Stephen McGann, who portrays Dr. Patrick Turner. McGann shares with host Tom Stewart fascinating insights about the show, its history and production.

Adapted by series creator Heidi Thomas from the bestselling “Call the Midwife” books by Jennifer Worth, the program recounts the story of Nonnatus House, a fictional Anglican nunnery located in Poplar, a struggling area of London’s East End. The books were based on Worth’s own experiences as a nurse and midwife in the 1950’s. From the original story, Ms. Thomas has expanded the narrative and taken it through ten years of history, demonstrating profound changes in the program’s characters, its setting and the world at large.

McGann, who in real life is the husband of Heidi Thomas, has recently written a book on the show called “Call the Midwife – A Labour of Love” which offers an up-close and personal look at the show as told by cast members and production staff both past and present. There is a chapter for each of the ten years of the program (1957-1966) illustrating the themes, locations and technical challenges from each season.

Call the Midwife Season 11 premieres Sunday, March 20 at 8pm on PBS.

Following season eleven, the program will continue to film at least two additional seasons taking the world of Call the Midwife into the turbulence of the late 1960’s.

For more information, go to the official Call the Midwife site.

Recorded: February 17, 2022

Published: March 11, 2022

Audio Engineer – Josh Broome

Host/Producer – Tom Stewart

Executive Producer and Editor – Daena McBride

Special thanks: Jordan Lawrence, DKC

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

The post Celebrate a New Season of “Call the Midwife” with WNET Up Next appeared first on The WNET Group.

20 Years of Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir celebrates the many years of televised Christmas concerts with the Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra from The Conference Center of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah. Boston’s GBH and PBS are presenting this two hour long retrospective hosted and narrated by Tony award winning actor and singer Brian Stokes Mitchell.

In conversation with WNET UP NEXT host Tom Stewart, Mr. Mitchell, known informally as “Stokes,” explains his ongoing relationship with the Tabernacle Choir. His experiences with the Christmas Concerts date back to 2008, when he was that year’s featured soloist. For this production, he performs several songs, conducts a backstage tour of the vast theater from which the concerts originate, and introduces many highlights from past years. Performers include Laura Osnes, Rolando Villazon, Angela Lansbury, Kristin Chenoweth, Audra McDonald, Alfie Boe, Renee Fleming, Hugh Bonneville, Gladys Knight, Santino Fontana, Kelli O’Hara, Walter Cronkite, Tom Brokaw, and The Muppets!

Stokes also discusses his career in the Broadway theater, including his reflections on “Ragtime”, and why that show has such a special place in his heart. He also shares thoughts about his role as Chairman of the Board of the Actors Fund of America and his work as a founding member of Black Theater United. He is also currently hosting a livestreamed online talk show called “Crossovers Live”.

20 Years of Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir has its broadcast premiere on PBS on Monday, December 13 at 8:00PM ET and repeating  several times throughout the season. It will also be streaming on https://www.pbs.org  and can also be seen on BYUtv, BYUtv.org and the free BYUtv app Thursday, December 16 at 9:00PM ET. The DVD version of the concert is available for purchase and music  from the concert is also available on YouTube and Spotify.

Recorded: December 1, 2021

Published: December 5, 2021

Audio Engineer – Josh Broome

Producer/Host – Tom Stewart

Executive Producer/Editor – Daena McBride

Special thanks to the staff of GBH and McKenzie Hurst of Thatcher and Company

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

The post WNET UP Next Welcomes Brian Stokes Mitchell to the Podcast appeared first on The WNET Group.

In association with GBH‘s major multiplatform initiative “American Veteran,”  WNET Up Next interviews author and  Marine Corps veteran Phil Klay who is featured in the broadcast documentary, and is host of the podcast series “American Veteran: Unforgettable Stories” whose nine episodes are now being released on Apple Podcasts and Spotify on Tuesdays through December 14th. Klay, who served as a Public Affairs Officer in Iraq is the author of several books including the 2014 National Book Award winning “Redeployment” and 2020’s “Missionaries,” recently released in paperback. A collection of his essays is slated for publication in the spring of 2022.

The  four episode “American Veteran” documentary series has its PBS premiere on October 26th and will air on four successive Tuesday evenings and be available for streaming at  https://www.pbs.org. From the citizen soldiers of the American Revolution to today’s warrior class, it is a deeply moving story, highlighted by personal  remembrances which illuminate for civilian viewers an unfamiliar culture and explore the shifting relationships between Americans who have served in the military and those who have not.

In addition to the podcast and broadcast series, “American Veteran: Keep it Close” is a ten part digital series on the PBS Voices YouTube Channel continuing bi-weekly through January 11, 2022. Hosted by Shain Brenden, it considers the importance of objects that veterans carried with them in their service and brought back home.

Mr. Klay shares with host Tom Stewart many of his own observations about military life, including his thoughts on the recent exit of American forces from Afghanistan. He also expresses his hopes that “American Veteran” will provide new ways of thinking about the veteran experience and demystify the military to promote civic understanding.

Recorded: September 24, 2021

Published: October 22, 2021

Host/Producer – Tom Stewart

Audio Recording and Mixing – Josh Broome

Executive Producer and Editor – Daena McBride

Special thanks: Bara Levin of GBH and Cara White

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

The post WNET Up Next Welcomes Veteran & Author Phil Klay appeared first on The WNET Group.

“The end of the sentence is not the end of the  story….”

In the current era of criminal justice reform, The Power of a Pardon examines the pardon and clemency process as it’s currently playing out in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.  Award-winning documentary filmmaker Jamila Paksima brings to WNET Up Next a behind the scenes look at the film and her creative  process.

The project is a five-part digital series presented under the umbrella of Chasing the Dream, The WNET Group’s Multiplatform Initiative that explores the human stories of poverty and showcases promising solutions. Each of the five episodes will be posted weekly on pbs.org/chasing_the_dream from September 7th through October 5th; a half-hour version will subsequently air on WORLD Channel.

Pennsylvania’s Lt. Gov. John Fetterman has recently spearheaded the reform of the state’s Pardon Board, including selecting the recently pardoned Brandon Flood as the Board’s Secretary. The series follows the journeys of five reformed and formerly incarcerated individuals as they seek pardons or clemency in order to pursue lives unencumbered by their past records.

In her conversation with host Tom Stewart, Ms. Paksima also reveals how as a young Iranian-American, she was first drawn to broadcast journalism as a viewer of Nightline. In addition to her earlier  work as a producer at NBC News, she has  since produced and directed films for PBS, BBC, VIACOM, MSNBC and BET,  among others. In addition, she has created several previous multiplatform series for The WNET Group, including Getting Off The Streets. She is also host of the audio documentary podcast series, Sounds  Like Hate, currently in production for its third  season. Honored with a Pew Fellowship, she  is the executive producer of Paksima Productions, an independent film and branded content production company headquartered in Exton, Pennsylvania.

Recorded: July 13, 2021

Published: August 30, 2021

Audio Engineering – Josh Broome

Host/Producer – Tom Stewart

Executive Producer – Daena McBride

Special thanks: Maria Stoian and Nina Joung of Multiplatform Initiatives; Miriam Fishman – Logo Design.

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

The post WNET Up Next New Season Launches with “The Power of a Pardon’s” Jamila Paksima appeared first on The WNET Group.

What is  mental illness? Where does it come from? How can it be treated? These are some of the questions being addressed in Mysteries of Mental Illness, a multiplatform initiative from GBH Boston exploring the story of  mental  illness in science and society. Denise DiIanni, the Senior Executive in Charge, visits WNET Up Next to share an in-depth look at the project.

The centerpiece of MMI is a four-hour documentary series premiering on PBS stations on June 22nd and 23rd. Produced by Pangloss Films, it sets out to destigmatize mental illness by presenting a historical framework plus portraits of individuals facing many varieties of mental health challenges and the quest for modalities and treatments that can help them.

In addition to the broadcast series, which will also be available for streaming at PBS.org, a short form digital video series, Mysteries of Mental Illness: Decolonizing Mental Health has been produced by RADA STUDIO. Twenty episodes will  appear on digital platforms and public media’s WORLD Channel and will focus on how mental illness and the healthcare industry impacts communities of color.

An ambitious grasssroots community engagement campaign and a robust web presence at PBS.org have been created and will be augmented by educational materials created by PBS LearningMedia.

Ms. DiIanni has had a long career at GBH and was involved for many years in the creation and production of the award-winning NOVA series. In her conversation with host Tom Stewart, she shares both the challenges and satisfactions of working in  the world of documentary film  and offers an interesting suggestion to those who are considering joining the field.

Mysteries of Mental Illness is produced  by GBH Boston and  Pangloss Films:  Senior Executive  in Charge: Denise DiIanni; Co-Executive Producer: Laurie  Donnelly; Directors, Producers and Writers: Peter Yost  & Edna Alburquerque. Funding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Johnson & Johnson, the American Psychiatric Association Foundation and Draper, and through the support of PBS viewers.

Recorded: May 25, 2021

Published: June 15, 2021

Audio Recording – Jon Berman

Audio Editing – Josh Broome

Editor – Samantha Lobo

Host/Producer – Tom Stewart

Executive Producer – Daena McBride

Special Thanks – Jeffrey Elias, Marketing Manager, GBH Boston

WNET UP NEXT is a presentation of the Design, On Air Promotion, Fundraising and Traffic Department of The WNET Group.

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