You'll hear a little of this and lot of that on LightOnLightThrough - my reviews of great television series and movies, my interviews with authors and creative media people and their interviews of me, my media theory and political commentary, thoughts about my favorite cars and food and space travel, discussions of my music, and a few of my readings from my science fiction stories. In the first years, starting in 2006, I put up a new episode at least once a month. More recently, it became more or less often than once a month, usually less often. But in the Summer of 2020, I began getting more in the mood to podcast, and on 17 October 2023, I began publishing a new episode of the podcast every Tuesday at 12:01 pm -- a minute after Noon (New York time). - Paul Levinson
24 October 2021: Interview about LightOnLightThrough podcast
26 December 2023: Chuck Todd interviews Paul Levinson about Alternate Realities on The Chuck Toddcast
I'm still thinking about Scorsese's No Direction Home - likely because I
watched another piece of it, again, last night ... the "Meet the
Press" section...
Dylan was the quintessential anti-interview in the 1960s...
Q - How many protest singers are
there?
A - Dylan - About 136 ...
Q - About or exactly 136?
A - Dylan - 142...
He bristled and laughed at
questions, and pretty much refused to answer them. Most
of this was well-deserved - the questions were vacuous, even
ridiculous...
If ever there was an example of the merit of I. A. Richards' advice
that the creator of a work is the last person you should ask about
the meaning of a work, Dylan in the 1960s would be it.
This was the case with Dylan even when he wasn't being sarcastic.
In an early radio interview, he tells Studs Terkel that "A Hard
Rain" is not about atomic rain - it's just about something
important about to come down. I. A. Richards would say
that shouldn't prevent anyone from hearing apocalypse in that
song.
So how seriously should we take Dylan's commentary that is the
backbone of Scorsese's movie? Now in the 21st-century,
Dylan seems to have little problem reflecting honestly on his
work. Actually, I first noticed this in the excellent
interview Dylan gave to Ed Bradley on 60 Minutes a few years ago.
The reasons for the change in Dylan's interview performances are
complex and multiple, like everything else about Dylan. The
questions today are not as stupid as those in the 1960s.
Dylan in the 1990s began to redefine his interviews as part of his
serious creative work - rather than part of his spoofs - likely
because he finally saw them as useful on the path to understanding
himself and his impact, which has always been his goal.
Award-winning author and professor Paul Levinson talks about TV, movies, politics, social media, outer space, good food, science fiction; occasionally reads from his science fiction stories; plays concerts of his music; interviews authors, actors, showrunners, and other podcasters in the now published weekly (Tuesdays at noon, New York time) podcast.