Events
Sherry Lansing with Stephen Galloway
8pm
(Note: event date changed from May 2)
in conversation with Stephen Galloway
Leading Lady: Sherry Lansing and the Making of a Hollywood Groundbreaker
Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School
Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90404
PURCHASE TICKETS
$20 General Admission seat
$45 Reserved Section Seat + a copy of Leading Lady
$95 Reception (6:30-7:30pm) + Reserved Section Seat
+ copy of Leading Lady
Sherry Lansing has worked in the motion picture business for almost 30 years where she was involved in the production, marketing, and distribution of more than 200 films, including Academy Award winners Forrest Gump (1994), Braveheart (1995), and Titanic (1997). Throughout her film career, she earned a reputation as a trailblazer, a visionary leader, and a creative filmmaker. In 1980, she became the first woman to head a major film studio when she was appointed President of 20th Century Fox. Later, as an independent producer, Lansing was responsible for such successful films as Fatal Attraction, The Accused, School Ties, Indecent Proposal, and Black Rain. Returning to the executive ranks in 1992, she was named Chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures and began an unprecedented tenure that lasted more than 12 years (1992 – 2005), during which the studio enjoyed enormous creative and financial success.
She founded The Sherry Lansing Foundation (SLF) in 2005, a nonprofit organization dedicated to cancer research, health, public education, and encore career opportunities. Among the SLF’s initiatives is the EnCorps STEM Teachers Program, founded by Lansing to transition corporate professionals and military veterans into top quality California public school math and science teachers. Lansing is also a co-founder of the Stand Up To Cancer initiative, which funds collaborative, multi-institutional cancer research “Dream Teams.”
She serves on the University of California Board of Regents, as a trustee of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles, where she co-founded the Scholarship Fund for deserving “Littles Sisters and Brothers.” In December 2004, Lansing was appointed to the Independent Citizens’ Oversight Committee of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine.
Lansing additionally serves on the boards of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, the Broad Center for the Management of School Systems, the Carter Center, the Entertainment Industry Foundation, the W.M. Keck Foundation, the Lasker Foundation, and the Pacific Council on International Policy. She also serves on the Executive Committee of Friends of Cancer Research and is Honorary Chair of STOP CANCER, a nonprofit philanthropic organization which she founded in partnership with the late Dr. Armand Hammer.
Lansing graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science Degree from Northwestern University in 1966.
Stephen Galloway is an Emmy Award-winning journalist who serves as the executive features editor for The Hollywood Reporter. Among his honors, he was named 2013 journalist of the year at the National Entertainment Journalism Awards.
He has interviewed a who’s who of Hollywood including Steven Spielberg, Denzel Washington, Sean Penn, Brad Pitt and George Clooney. He also created the Reporter’s acclaimed roundtable series, featuring the likes of Clint Eastwood, Peter Jackson, Quentin Tarantino, James Cameron, Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman.
In 2014, he was named the Cosgrove Visiting Artist at Loyola Marymount University, where he continues to host the interview series The Hollywood Masters. Born in the United Kingdom, he holds an M.A. from Cambridge University and is a graduate of the American Film Institute’s Center for Advanced Film and Television Studies.
Michael Nesmith with D.A. Wallach
8pm
Michael Nesmith
in conversation with D.A. Wallach
Infinite Tuesday: An Autobiographical Riff
Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School
Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90404
PURCHASE TICKETS
$45 General Admission seat + a copy of Infinite Tuesday*
$50 Reserved Section Seat + a copy of Infinite Tuesday*
* a book signing follows for all copies of Infinite Tuesday
$40 Signed book only (shipping, tax, handling included-US addresses only)
Read a feature on Nesmith in the Los Angeles Times, April, 7
Michael Nesmith‘s career in music and television took him from starring in The Monkees to a celebrated run of albums as a solo artist and in the First National Band. He created the TV show Popclips, a forerunner of what would become MTV, and produced the films Repo Man and Tapeheads. He is the author of two novels and the founder of the Pacific Arts Corporation, which produces projects in the worlds of audio, video, and virtual reality, including Videoranch 3D.
The long, strange journey of Michael Nesmith is as fascinating as it as was fraught–from fleeing Dallas as a young man with his pregnant girlfriend, to gaining international fame as a member of the Monkees, to falling deep into the grips of what he calls Celebrity Psychosis, to finally achieving inner peace and finding a creative wellspring in the teachings of Christian Science. Influenced in equal parts by the consciousness-expanding ambitions of Timothy Leary and the cerebral humor of Douglas Adams, in Infinite Tuesday, Nesmith spins a spellbinding tale of an unexpected life, in which stories about meeting John Lennon, or recording with Nashville greats, or inventing the music video trace an arc from Hollywood to Silicon Valley, illuminating a remarkable mind along the way.
D.A. Wallach is a recording artist, songwriter, investor, and essayist who Kanye West and Pharrell Williams discovered while he was an undergraduate at Harvard College. He has been featured in GQ, Rolling Stone, Vogue, and numerous other publications, and has toured with N*E*R*D, Lady Gaga, and Weezer. D.A. has also performed on TV Shows including Jimmy Kimmel Live and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.
As one half of Chester French, D.A. has released three full-length albums, and has written and performed on records with Janelle Monae, Rick Ross, Diddy, and many others. His solo debut for Capitol Records is Time Machine.
Beyond music, D.A. invests in and advises several start-up technology companies, including SpaceX, Doctor On Demand, Ripple Labs, DAQRI, and Spotify, where he was the official Artist in Residence. Forbes selected D.A. as one of its 30 Under 30 and Fast Company named him one of the 100 Most Creative People in Business. In 2015, he launched Inevitable Ventures, an investment partnership with multibillionaire Ron Burkle that supports radical entrepreneurs in areas ranging from health care to labor.
In 2016, D.A. made his feature film debut in La La Land, which won a record number of Golden Globe Awards and received 14 Academy Award nominations, making it one of the 3 most nominated films in history. He frequently publishes essays on media, technology, and philosophy on his website and Medium.
Kelly Oxford with Busy Philipps
8pm
Kelly Oxford
in conversation with Busy Philipps
When You Find Out the World Is Against You: And Other Funny Memories About Awful Moments
Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School
Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90404
PURCHASE TICKETS (On Sale Friday Mar 3, 10am)
$46 Reserved Section seat + a copy of Oxford’s book
$20 Reserved Section Seat
— New York Times on #NotOkay Social Media campaign launched by Oxford that drew millions,
— CBS News on the #NotOkay social media movement
Kelly Oxford likes to blow up the internet. Whether it is with the kind of Tweets that lead Rolling Stone to name her one of the Funniest People on Twitter or with pictures of her hilariously adorable family (human and animal) or with something much more serious, like creating the hashtag #NotOkay, where millions of women came together to share their stories of sexual assault, Kelly has a unique, razor-sharp perspective on modern life. As a screen writer, professional sh*t disturber, wife and mother of three, Kelly is about everything but the status quo.
“Kelly Oxford’s writing is hilarious and fearless. She’s the badass Canadian sister I never had.” — Mindy Kaling
“Kelly is part geek, part freak. When You Find Out The World Is Against You shows us ourselves: our sensitivities, our awkward moments, our strange desires. She takes us through summer camp, dating, rape culture, Trump, death . . . Kelly Oxford c’est moi.” — James Franco
“I have worshipped the mind of Kelly Oxford for eons. Kelly Oxford’s concise, whip-smart observations feel eerily universal. When You Find Out the World is Against You shows that there is something to be learned from even the most absurd or devastating moments of life.” — Jill Soloway
“Two things I’m grateful for: how imperfect Kelly Oxford is at life and decision-making, and how terrific she is at writing about what a goddamn mess she is.” — Patton Oswalt
When You Find Out the World is Against You is filled with the biting, wise, and laugh-out-loud insights that have won Kelly legions of fans. Whether she’s detailing her obsession as an eleven-year-old with going to camp so she can become a “kissing bandit,” exploring the bittersweet boredom that so often accompanies parenthood, calling out the insanity of a posse of internet poodle vigilantes, writing bracingly about the anxiety that has plagued her as long as she can remember or taking us to ride shotgun as she stalks her husband on an accidental date with another man, When You Find Out the World Is Against You is Kelly at her most honest and disarmingly funny best. Her comedic skill, down-to-earth voice, and bull’s-eye observations on the absurdity of modern life mean there is nothing quite like seeing the world through Kelly’s eyes.
Busy Philipps is currently in HBO’s Vice Principals, an 18-episode comedy series from Eastbound & Down creators Danny McBride and Jody Hill. She was last seen on the popular TBS comedy Cougar Town where she plays ‘Laurie Keller’ opposite Courteney Cox. She was also recently seen in Joel Edgerton’s thriller The Gift. The STX film starred Joel Edgerton alongside Jason Bateman and Rebecca Hall, a story of a young married couple’s lives that are thrown into a tailspin when an acquaintance from the husband’s path brings mysterious gifts and a horrifying secret to light.
Philipps first garnered attention at the age of 19 in Judd Apatow and Paul Feig’s critically praised series, Freaks and Geeks, for her memorable performance as tough but sympathetic rebel teen ‘Kim Kelly’. Other television appearances include: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles; a recurring role as the devout Christian med-student ‘Hope Bobeck’ on season 14 of ER; a starring role in the UPN sitcom Love, Inc.; and as a regular in Dawson’s Creek.
Philipps’ film roles include Kat Coiro’s A Case of You opposite Justin Long, Peter Dinklage and Sam Rockwell, Douglas McGrath’s I Don’t Know How She Does It starring Sarah Jessica Parker; the comedy romance He’s Just Not That Into You; and Made of Honor alongside Patrick Dempsey and Michelle Monaghan. Other film credits include, the lead role in the Shawn and Marlon Wayans comedy White Chicks; the high school tragedy, Home Room; as well as the teen drama The Smokers; and Anatomy of a Hate Crime for which she impressed critics and fans.
Sarah Dunn with Ali Wong
8pm
in conversation with Ali Wong
The Arrangement
Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School
Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90404
PURCHASE TICKETS
$43 Reserved Section seat + a copy of The Arrangement
$20 General Admission Seat
$30 Reserved Section Seat
Sarah Dunn is a novelist and television writer whose credits include Spin City (for which she co-wrote Michael J. Fox’s farewell episode) and the critical darling Bunheads, which you would have loved. Her debut novel, The Big Love, is available to read in nineteen languages. Dunn is also the creator and executive producer of the 2016 ABC series, American Housewife. She lives outside New York City with her family and their seventeen chickens.
“Daring and darkly funny, Sarah Dunn’s The Arrangement is this summer’s must-read. Her take on middle-age and family life is wry, poignant and spot-on. Readers will recognize themselves and their friends in this wonderfully comic novel.”
―Candace Bushnell, author of Sex and the City
“A hilarious, spot-on comedy of the heart about middle-aged marriage and what happens when it goes off the rails.”
―Maria Semple, author of Where’d You Go, Bernadette
Ali Wong is a comedian, actress, and writer living in Los Angeles, CA. On Mother’s Day 2016, Netflix released her first stand-up special, Baby Cobra which was filmed when she was 7 months pregnant. Wong is currently shooting ABC’s new sitcom American Housewife as well as writing on Fresh off the Boat. Wong has performed on Late Night with Seth Meyers, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, John Oliver’s New York Stand-Up Show and Comedy Underground with Dave Attell. She has also appeared in Oliver Stone’s Savages and was a series regular on NBC’s Are You There Chelsea? and the ABC drama, Black Box opposite Vanessa Redgrave and Kelly Reilly. She makes regular appearances on Chris Hardwick’s late-night game show @Midnight, and Inside Amy Schumer.
When friends at a wine-soaked dinner party reveal they’ve made their marriage open, sensible Lucy balks. There’s a part of her, though-the part that worries she’s become too comfortable being invisible-that’s intrigued. Why not try a short marital experiment? Six months, clear ground rules, zero questions asked. When an affair with a man in the city begins to seem more enticing than the happily-ever-after she’s known for the past nine years, Lucy must decide what truly makes her happy-“real life,” or the “experiment?”
P.J. O’Rourke with Adam Felber
8pm
P. J. O’Rourke
in conversation with Adam Felber
How the Hell Did This Happen?
The Election of 2016
Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School
Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90404
PURCHASE TICKETS
$42 Reserved Section seat + a copy of How the Hell Did This Happen?
$20 General Admission Section Seat
$30 Reserved Section Seat
$95 Reception (6:30-7:30pm) + Reserved Section Seat
+ copy of How the Hell Did This Happen?
An essential take on the stranger-than-fiction (and stranger-than-fact) 2016 presidential elections from a quintessential voice on American politics and culture
P. J. O’Rourke has written eighteen books on subjects as diverse as politics and cars and etiquette and economics. Parliament of Whores and Give War a Chance both reached #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. He is a contributing editor at the Weekly Standard, H. L. Mencken Research Fellow at the Cato Institute, a regular panelist on NPR’s Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me, and a columnist for The Stansberry Digest investment letter.
This election cycle was so absurd that celebrated political satirist, journalist, and diehard Republican P. J. O’Rourke endorsed Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. As P.J. put it, “America is experiencing the most severe outbreak of mass psychosis since the Salem witch trials of 1692. So why not put Hillary on the dunking stool?”
In his latest book, P.J. brings his critical eye and inimitable voice to some seriously risky business. Starting in June 2015, he asks, “Who are these jacklegs, high-binders, wire-pullers, mountebanks, swellheads, buncombe spigots, four-flushers and animated spittoons offering themselves as worthy of America’s highest office?” and surveys the full cast of presidential candidates including everyone you’ve already forgotten and everyone you still wish you could forget.
P.J. offers a brief history of how our insane process for picking who will run for president, concluding: “Consistency is not a hallmark of American politics, but exceptions are made when the constant is stupidity. Today’s primaries are as stupid as they’ve always been.” He takes us through the debates and key primaries and analyzes everything from the campaign platforms (or lack thereof) to presidential fashion sense, rising from the depths of despair to come up with a better way to choose a president (starting with a road trip). Following his come-to-Satan moment with Hillary and the Beginning of End Times in November, PJ reckons with a new age: “America is experiencing a change in the nature of leadership. We’re getting rid of our leaders. And we’re starting at the top.” How the Hell Did This Happen? answers the key questions of a presidential election where both candidates were running against the most formidable of opponents—themselves.
Adam Felber is an American political satirist, author, radio personality, actor, humorist, novelist, television writer, and comic book writer. Felber attended Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, and graduated as an English major in 1989. He has lived in Brooklyn, New York, and now lives in Los Angeles, California.
He is a regular panel member (and occasional guest host) of the NPR radio quiz show, Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me!. Felber is the author of the novel Schrödinger’s Ball, which uses as a conceit the concept of Schrödinger’s cat.[1] He has also written for several television shows including Real Time with Bill Maher, Talkshow with Spike Feresten, Arthur, The Smoking Gun, and Wishbone.
Felber also wrote the second Skrull Kill Krew limited series for Marvel Comics in 2009 as part of the Secret Invasion event.[2]
Felber’s mother is the late romance novelist, Edith Layton.
Jami Attenberg with Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
8pm
in conversation with Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
All Grown Up
Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School
Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90404
PURCHASE TICKETS
$40 Reserved Section seat + a copy of All Grown Up
$20 General Admission Section Seat
$55 Two Reserved Section Seats + one copy of All Grown Up
From the New York Times best-selling author of The Middlesteins comes a wickedly funny novel about a thirty-nine-year-old single, childfree woman who defies convention as she seeks connection.
Jami Attenberg is the New York Times bestselling author of five novels, including The Middlesteins and Saint Mazie. She has contributed essays about sex, urban life, and food to The New York Times Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, and Lenny Letter, among other publications. She divides her time between Brooklyn and New Orleans.
“Jami Attenberg’s sharply drawn protagonist, Andrea, has such a riveting, propulsive voice that All Grown Up is hard to put down, but I urge you to resist reading it in one sitting. Both the prose and the author’s knowing excavation of one woman’s desires, compromises, strengths, and fears deserve closer attention. Like Andrea herself, this novel is beautiful and brutal, intelligent and funny, frank and sexy.”—Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, New York Times best-selling author of The Nest
“Hilarious, courageous, and mesmerizing from page one, All Grown Up is a little gem that packs a devastating wallop. It’s that rare book I’m dying to give all my friends so we can discuss it deep into the night. I’m in awe of Jami Attenberg.” —Maria Semple, author of Where’d You Go, Bernadette
Who is Andrea Bern? When her therapist asks the question, Andrea knows the right things to say: she’s a designer, a friend, a daughter, a sister. But it’s what she leaves unsaid—she’s alone, a drinker, a former artist, a shrieker in bed, captain of the sinking ship that is her flesh—that feels the most true. Everyone around her seems to have an entirely different idea of what it means to be an adult: her best friend, Indigo, is getting married; her brother—who miraculously seems unscathed by their shared tumultuous childhood—and sister-in-law are having a hoped-for baby; and her friend Matthew continues to wholly devote himself to making dark paintings at the cost of being flat broke.