Popp Talk, July 11, 2026

Popp Talk, July 11, 2026

Popp Talk with Mary Jane Popp Hidden Symbols, Global Risks, and the Search for Truth Guests, Julia Bramer and Jon Mills Mysticism Behind Sylvia Plath’s Work Mary Jane Popp opens the program by introducing a wide-ranging episode focused on tarot, mysticism, and the future of civilization. Her first guest, Julia Bramer, discusses years of archival research into Sylvia Plath’s writings and personal materials, arguing that Plath’s poetry contains substantial evidence of occult and mystical influences. Bramer says Plath explored practices such as tarot, astrology, automatic writing, crystal gazing, bibliomancy, and the Ouija board. A Poet Beyond the Familiar Tragedy Bramer challenges the public tendency to define Sylvia Plath primarily through The Bell Jar, mental illness, and her death. She describes Plath as a complex poet shaped by family interests in mythology, alchemy, Freemasonry, and mysticism, with Ted Hughes later expanding those influences. Bramer also discusses Plath’s emotional fragility, previous suicide attempts, troubled marriage, and alleged ritualistic efforts to retaliate against Hughes, while presenting these interpretations as conclusions drawn from archival research and literary analysis. How Tarot Becomes a Language of Symbols The conversation turns to tarot history and practice. Bramer explains that the earliest surviving decks date to medieval Europe and describes the traditional belief that symbolic knowledge from Kabbalah, astrology, alchemy, and numerology was concealed within cards. She says tarot readings depend on the placement, orientation, and interaction of 78 cards, and compares the process to dream interpretation because the reader offers symbols while the client connects them to personal circumstances. Transformation Rather Than Prediction Bramer emphasizes that tarot should provide guidance rather than fixed predictions. She explains that the frequently feared death card usually represents transformation, including marriage, graduation, childbirth, or another event that permanently changes a person’s life. A reversed death card may instead suggest feeling stuck or unable to complete a desired transition. She also discusses her books Tarot Life Lessons and The Occult Sylvia Plath, which combine real client stories, personal reflections, and literary research. Civilization at a Dangerous Crossroads In the second major interview, psychoanalyst and philosopher Jon Mills discusses his book The End of the World: Civilization and Its Fate. Mills says he is concerned about the combined effects of climate disruption, warfare, nuclear weapons, artificial intelligence, social inequality, and political instability. He clarifies that he is not predicting the planet’s immediate destruction, but warns that continued denial and inaction could contribute to severe social collapse. Aggression, Division, and the Need for Enemies Mills argues that human beings possess both aggressive and cooperative tendencies. He describes the search for enemies and scapegoats as part of human psychology and defines evil, for the discussion, as the deliberate infliction of pain and suffering. Popp and Mills examine political polarization, social-media disinformation, tribal thinking, and the inability to hold civil conversations with people who have different values or identities. Conversation as the First Step Forward The episode closes with Mills urging people to become more self-aware, confront uncomfortable realities, listen to opposing perspectives, and resist denial or defensiveness. He says open dialogue is essential for building a wider ecological and social consciousness. Popp summarizes the message as a call to keep working toward positive change rather than surrendering to hopelessness, fear, or division.

Popp Talk, July 4, 2026

Popp Talk with Mary Jane Popp Kindness is the way to Happiness and Life in Performance and Reinvention Guests, Jordan Birnbaum and Victoria Summer from Disney's "Saving Mr. Banks" Kindness, Creativity, and the Courage to Keep Creating Searching for Truth, Joy, and Human Connection In this episode of Popp Talk, host Mary Jane Popp welcomes two guests: Jordan Birnbaum, a speaker, author, entrepreneur, and founder of Jordan Birnbaum Consulting, and Victoria Summer, an actress, singer, and performer known for roles including Julie Andrews in Saving Mr. Banks. Mary Jane opens by framing the program around truth, positivity, joy, and the importance of finding out what people are really about. The first half centers on kindness, happiness, social science, and human connection, while the second half shifts into Victoria Summer’s creative life, music, acting, marriage, charity work, and ongoing artistic goals. Jordan Birnbaum on Social Science and Motivation Jordan Birnbaum explains social science as the study of forces people experience every day, often intuitively, that shape mood, decisions, stress, behavior, and motivation. He says learning the names of these forces allows people to use them intentionally. His main example is loss aversion, the idea that people are often more motivated to avoid losses than to secure gains. Mary Jane challenges and expands that idea by asking whether loss can become a learning process, and Jordan agrees that failure, when understood correctly, can provide new information rather than define a person’s worth. Kindness as the Fastest Route to Happiness The discussion then turns to kindness, which Jordan defines as an intention and action meant to positively affect someone else. Mary Jane shares a personal story about giving cookies to a young neighbor who had to work on his birthday, explaining that his smile lifted her as much as it lifted him. Jordan says this is exactly how kindness works: helping someone else makes it almost impossible to remain in a bad mood. They also discuss smiling at strangers, making people feel seen, including lonely people during holidays, and being attentive to those who may be grieving, isolated, or disconnected. Technology, AI, and the Need for Real People Mary Jane and Jordan then discuss technology, phones, face-to-face communication, and artificial intelligence. Mary Jane worries that young people are losing the ability to connect directly because so much communication happens through screens. Jordan agrees that technology creates new challenges and says people now need to be more intentional about real-life connection. Their AI discussion explores job loss, creativity, sentience, ChatGPT, human mistakes, and the danger of allowing AI to replace human imagination. Jordan says generative AI can help people get past the blank page, but Mary Jane emphasizes that she still wants the human voice, human mistakes, and human judgment to remain central. Victoria Summer’s Life in Performance In the second interview, Mary Jane introduces Victoria Summer as an actress and singer whose career began early with ballet, music, pantomime, church choir, and local theater. Victoria recalls waking up as a child to play Tchaikovsky and dance before breakfast, showing how deeply classical music shaped her. She discusses Vindication Swim, the upcoming Brooklyn All-American, big-band performances, and her love of singing with an orchestra. She also explains her musical influences, especially Michael Jackson and Elton John, and why her version of “Stranger in Moscow” connects emotionally with Elton John’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road era. Role Models, Rescue Animals, Love, and Family Victoria describes her philosophy as using art to elevate people and make them happy, whether through voiceover, audiobooks, stage performance, film, or music. She also discusses her project Next Generation Role Model, created during COVID to spotlight young people doing good in the world. Mary Jane and Victoria talk about hope, dreams, writing goals down, and continuing to move toward an ideal life. Victoria also shares her love of animals, her rescued pets Bentley, Tiger, and Storm, and the story of meeting her husband, Fabrizio, in England before lockdown led them into a whirlwind relationship and eventual marriage. New Music, Charity Work, and Reinvention The conversation closes with Victoria reflecting on her career ambitions, including a desire for a musical path similar to Michael Bublé, future theater work, new music, and a developing one-woman show. She discusses playing Julie Andrews in Saving Mr. Banks, her respect for Celine Dion’s comeback, and her admiration for Tom Cruise’s passion and refusal to slow down creatively. Victoria also shares her work as a global ambassador for Teen Cancer America, including afternoon tea fundraisers. Mary Jane closes by affirming that age should never stop people from creating, reinventing themselves, or pursuing new work with imagination and joy.

Popp Talk, June 27, 2026

Popp Talk with Mary Jane Popp Films That Matter, Families That Endure, and the Stories That Still Bring Us Home Guests, Carrie Richey, and Judy Norton from the classic "Walton's" TV Show Searching for Truth Through Film, Family, and Feeling In this episode of Popp Talk, host Mary Jane Popp welcomes two guests from the worlds of film, television, writing, and cultural memory: Carrie Rickey and Judy Norton. The episode opens with Mary Jane reflecting on how technology, movies, television, and artificial intelligence are reshaping the way people receive information and decide what feels real. From there, the hour moves into two connected conversations about meaningful storytelling: first through the life and work of filmmaker Agnès Varda, and then through the enduring emotional legacy of The Waltons. Carrie Rickey on Agnès Varda’s Complicated Passion Mary Jane’s first guest, Carrie Rickey, discusses her book A Complicated Passion: The Life and Work of Agnès Varda. Carrie describes Varda as a Belgian-born, French-raised photographer, filmmaker, and artist whose career lasted 65 years, making her one of the longest-working women in cinema history. Varda worked nearly until her death in 2019, overcame major obstacles as a woman director, and became known for empathy, humor, curiosity, independence, and an unwillingness to accept “no” as the final answer. Carrie explains that while film lovers know Varda well, she wanted American readers to better understand the scope of Varda’s influence. A Filmmaker Ahead of Her Time Carrie explains that Varda addressed subjects such as sexism, abortion, labor exploitation, immigrant rights, race relations, and food insecurity long before many filmmakers were willing to do so. She also notes Varda’s connections to major cultural figures, including Susan Sontag, Simone de Beauvoir, Huey Newton, Harrison Ford, and Gérard Depardieu. The conversation expands into the erased history of early women directors, including Alice Guy-Blaché and Lois Weber, and how the rise of the studio system helped push many independent women filmmakers out of the official record. For Carrie, Varda’s life offers a model of creative persistence, independence, and storytelling rooted in real life rather than spectacle. Real Stories Versus Artificial Answers Mary Jane and Carrie then discuss the state of modern movies, streaming, and artificial intelligence. Mary Jane says she misses films that leave audiences emotionally changed or remembering something meaningful, while Carrie contrasts formula-driven entertainment with films about real people, real communities, and lived experience. Their conversation turns to AI, which Carrie says cannot replace human thought, emotion, or the work of forming one’s own ideas. She shares frustrations with AI-generated student work and a chatbot customer-service exchange, reinforcing the episode’s broader concern that technology should not replace authentic human feeling, memory, and creativity. Judy Norton and the Family That Never Really Left In the second half, Mary Jane welcomes Judy Norton, best known as Mary Ellen Walton from The Waltons. Judy reflects on her long creative life as an actor, singer, director, writer, and performer, saying she enjoys all of these outlets because each offers a different kind of creative energy. She explains that what matters most to her is having goals that inspire her and work that can touch people, whether by offering hope, entertainment, laughter, or a moment of relief from life’s difficulties. She also shares that the Waltons cast remains genuinely close and still feels like family, both personally and to generations of viewers discovering the series for the first time. Behind the Scenes of The Waltons and the Stories That Still Matter Judy talks about her YouTube channel, where she revisits The Waltons, shares behind-the-scenes memories, and answers questions from fans. She says the channel began during the pandemic and became a meaningful community for viewers who found comfort in the series. She discusses favorite episodes, including “The Easter Story,” centered on Olivia’s polio recovery, and “The Firestorm,” which deals with book burning, fear, and prejudice through a powerful moment involving a German Bible. Judy notes that even though The Waltons premiered in 1972, its themes remain relevant because they deal with family, fear, courage, decency, and the human spirit. Hope, Creativity, and Choosing the Good Mary Jane and Judy close by discussing music, travel, family, horses, British mystery shows, L. Ron Hubbard’s fiction, Earl Hamner’s storytelling, and Judy’s continuing desire to choose projects that truly speak to her. Judy says her philosophy of life is rooted in optimism and hope: life can improve, people are mostly good, and giving up is never the answer. She shares a small story about someone who went out of her way to correct a refunded CD payment, using it as an example of everyday character and kindness. Mary Jane ends the episode with her familiar encouragement to live simply, laugh often, love deeply, and dare to dream.

Popp Talk, June 20, 2026

Popp Talk with Mary Jane Popp Sweet Potatoes, Holistic Health, Anti-Aging and a Life of Many Voices Dr. Susan Smith Jones & Jim Messkimen Sweet Potatoes, Many Voices, and the Art of Living Well A Two-Part Hour of Health, Humor, and Performance In this episode of Popp Talk, host Mary Jane Popp presents a two-guest program that moves from holistic nutrition to show-business creativity. The first half features Dr. Susan Smith Jones, who discusses the health benefits of sweet potatoes and her book A Hug in a Mug. The second half features actor, voice artist, impressionist, and performer Jim Messkimen, who talks about impressions, improvisation, acting, audio books, art, and his famous mother, Marion Ross of Happy Days. Dr. Susan Smith Jones and the Power of Sweet Potatoes Mary Jane opens by introducing Dr. Susan Smith Jones as a longtime holistic health expert, author, educator, and advocate for optimum nutrition and balanced living. Dr. Jones says the featured “sweet treat” of the episode is the sweet potato, one of her ten favorite superfoods. She explains that sweet potatoes are often confused with yams, but that they stand apart nutritionally because of their color, antioxidants, vitamins, fiber, minerals, and versatility in meals. A Nutritional Powerhouse From Head to Toe Dr. Jones explains that orange sweet potatoes are rich in beta carotene, which converts into vitamin A and supports vision, immunity, and skin health. She also discusses vitamin C, vitamin E, potassium, fiber, and anthocyanins, especially in purple sweet potatoes. These nutrients, she says, help support cardiovascular health, blood pressure, digestion, gut bacteria, immune defense, brain function, eye health, inflammation reduction, skin elasticity, collagen production, and healthy hair growth. Gut Health, Inflammation, and Everyday Immunity A major part of the health conversation centers on digestion and inflammation. Dr. Jones explains that sweet potatoes contain both soluble and insoluble fiber, supporting healthy gut bacteria while also keeping digestion moving. She connects gut health to overall immune function and explains that antioxidants in sweet potatoes may help reduce systemic inflammation, which she describes as connected to many diseases. She also emphasizes sweet potatoes as immune-supporting food during cold, flu, and COVID seasons. Easy Ways to Eat Sweet Potatoes Dr. Jones gives several practical ways to use sweet potatoes in everyday food. She suggests baking them simply with a little salt and extra virgin olive oil, spiralizing them into pasta, steaming and chilling them for smoothies, adding them to pancakes, salads, soups, muffins, breads, puddings, and desserts, or slicing them into baked chips. She especially recommends a bright orange soup made from sweet potatoes, carrots, and butternut squash, which she says is rich in beta carotene and supportive for vision, immunity, inflammation, and overall health. A Hug in a Mug and Holistic Living Mary Jane asks Dr. Jones about her latest book, A Hug in a Mug, whose subtitle focuses on fruits, vegetables, juices, soups, spices, teas, and healthy living extras. Dr. Jones says the book offers natural approaches for ailments from head to toe, along with more than one hundred recipes and practical guidance on healthy living. She also mentions related topics such as intermittent fasting, cold therapy, motivation, sleep, exercise, and injury prevention. She directs listeners to SusanSmithJones.com, where they can learn about her books, newsletter, X updates, and personalized autographed copies. Jim Messkimen and a Life of Many Voices After the health segment, Mary Jane welcomes Jim Messkimen, describing him as an extraordinary impressionist, actor, voice-over artist, and the son of Happy Days actress Marion Ross. Jim explains that although Mary Jane heard he had thirty-eight voices, he now does well over one hundred. He says he is always listening, collecting, and analyzing voices, especially from politics, entertainment, and public life. His impressions include figures such as George W. Bush, Morgan Freeman, Jack Nicholson, Robin Williams, Alan Rickman, Judi Dench, Johnny Carson, Jimmy Stewart, Patrick Stewart, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. Happy Days, Jumping the Shark, and Growing Up Around Talent Mary Jane asks Jim about his connection to Happy Days, and he explains that he appeared in the famous “jump the shark” episode, where Fonzie waterskied over a shark while the cast visited Hollywood. Jim says he was the actor on the beach who announced the shark. He also discusses his mother Marion Ross, noting that she had a good ear for dialects and mimicry and that her tolerance and encouragement helped support his own interest in voices. He says Marion is doing well and approaching her ninety-sixth birthday. Improvisation, Acting, and the Comfort of the Unknown Jim talks about his love of improvisation and says he is often more comfortable improvising than memorizing strict, scripted lines. He credits his training at the National Improv Theatre in New York and reflects on working in settings where exact wording matters, including The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. He also discusses his appearances on Whose Line Is It Anyway? explaining that improvisation is not as mysterious as people think because ordinary conversation is improvised all day long. Impressions as Acting, Listening, and Physical Transformation Jim explains that impressions are not only about vocal sound. He listens for pitch, rhythm, attack, word choices, physical posture, facial structure, and the emotional character of the person he is portraying. He says some voices come naturally because they fit his vocal range, while others require physical adjustment and practice. He uses Alan Rickman as an example of a voice requiring a specific internal and external shape. For Jim, the goal is to become the person enough that their thoughts and speech patterns begin to flow naturally. Audio Books, Writers of the Future, and Galaxy Press Mary Jane and Jim discuss his work with Galaxy Press and the L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future anthology. Jim says he, his wife, and his daughter have narrated stories for recent anthology volumes, including volume 40, and he encourages listeners to check out the audiobook or physical book. He also describes directing the large-cast audiobook version of Battlefield Earth, a nearly thousand-page project that took about nine months to record, involved many actors, music, and sound effects, and won an audio award. Art, Cartooning, and the Creative Path Mary Jane asks who Jim Messkimen is beyond the voices, and Jim says he is an artist at heart. His first love was drawing and cartooning, and he once imagined becoming a cartoonist. He drew for school papers and yearbooks, worked at Hanna-Barbera as a storyboard assistant, became a professional illustrator and cartoonist, and later studied classical art in Spain and Northern California. Although acting eventually became his main career, he still paints, draws, and shares artwork occasionally through his website and social media. Closing With Creativity and Curiosity The interview closes with Jim sharing where listeners can find him, including JimMesskimen.com, social media, and his online courses for impressions and voice acting. Mary Jane also expresses interest in having him back to discuss artificial intelligence and its possible impact on voices, performance, and thought. She ends the show by praising Jim’s talent and closing with her familiar reminder to “live simply, laugh often, love deeply, and above all else, dare to dream.”

Popp Talk, June 13, 2026

Popp Talk with Mary Jane Popp Shamanic Teachings of the Condor and The Hidden Power in Your DNA Guests, Martha Travers & Judy Wilkins Smith Ancient Wisdom, Ancestral DNA, and the Search for the Power Within A Wide-Ranging Journey Into Mystery, Health, and Human Potential In this episode of Popp Talk, host Mary Jane Popp introduces a broad conversation about the future, artificial intelligence, health, vitamins, minerals, longevity, and the hidden power inside human DNA. Before moving into those later subjects, she begins with her fascination for Native American and Indigenous teachings, asking whether ancient traditions contain lessons people still need today. The episode features two main guests: Martha Travers, discussing Andean mystical traditions and shamanic teachings, and Judy Wilkins Smith, discussing genealogy, ancestral patterns, and the power hidden in DNA. Martha Travers Opens the Door to the Mystical Andes Mary Jane first welcomes Martha Winona Travers, author of Shamanic Teachings of the Condor: Encounters with the Mystical Traditions of the Andes. Martha explains that the word “mystical” can mean different things depending on a person’s experience, but for her it describes moving beyond the ordinary ego-based self into communion with the great creative forces of life. She connects mystical experience with union, comparing it to the meaning of yoga, and describes it as a return to awareness of the larger cosmic path that human beings often forget. The Eagle, the Condor, and the Reunion of Mind and Heart Martha introduces the Andean teaching of the Eagle and the Condor, explaining that the eagle represents intellect, reason, and the mind, while the condor represents intuition, heart, and the ability to sense realities beyond the five senses. She says her teacher, Taita Alberto Taxo, taught that both are necessary and that humanity is moving toward a time when the eagle and condor fly together in the same sky. Mary Jane challenges the idea by pointing to division, hatred, war, and conflict in the modern world, while Martha responds that deeper human life still contains a desire to care for one another and seek common ground. Nature as Teacher, Healer, and Shared Human Source Mary Jane presses Martha on whether ancient nature-based ways can really apply to a world shaped by computers, artificial intelligence, cities, and technology. Martha says the goal is not to go backward or force everyone into agriculture, but to reconnect each individual with the living sources of physical life: earth, water, fire, air, food, sunlight, and breath. She explains that the Andean teachings help people in any setting, rural or urban, restore harmony by reconnecting with nature and the heart. For Martha, technology can be used wisely only when people also understand whether their choices promote health, balance, and well-being. A Spirited Debate About Climate, Cities, and Going Forward The exchange becomes more pointed as Mary Jane argues that nature has been damaged by pollution, depleted land, bad air, and climate change. Martha responds that the earth, water, and land have their own healing power when given the opportunity, and that human beings are still in the middle of a larger transformation. Mary Jane questions whether people can truly come together when they live in such different realities, such as a rural landscape versus a high-rise city apartment. Martha answers that connection begins through sharing, conversation, children, common ground, and individual inner change rather than a forced return to the past. Martha’s Path Through Shamanism, Community, and Andean Practice Mary Jane asks how Martha’s long study with Indigenous Kichwa people in the Andes changed her. Martha explains that before that journey, she was already a mother living in a rural setting, homeschooling her children, growing food, and becoming interested in shamanism. After meeting Taita Alberto Taxo through a gathering brought to Michigan by John Perkins of Dream Change, she traveled to Ecuador and began learning with his family and community. Martha says the experience did not change her into something entirely different so much as affirm and deepen a path she was already walking, bringing her solitary mystical experiences into a living community of joyful practice. Judy Wilkins Smith and the Superhero Hidden in the Family System The second featured conversation begins when Mary Jane welcomes Judy Wilkins Smith, a systemic work and constellations expert, Fortune 500 executive coach, and author of The Hidden Power in Your DNA. Judy says people often sense that there is a larger version of themselves waiting to be expressed, much like the hero figures they admire in comics, fantasy, and popular culture. She explains that a person’s “superhero” power may not be a cape or dramatic ability, but qualities such as kindness, happiness, persistence, generosity, or the part of them that naturally opens doors when amplified and used with purpose. Dreams, Goals, Disney, and the Magic of Persistence Judy shares her own example of wanting to own Disney timeshare because Disney and magic had mattered to her since childhood. She says she achieved that goal through persistence, small savings, kindness, and staying awake to opportunity. Mary Jane connects this to the old lyric from South Pacific: “You’ve got to have a dream.” Judy agrees that dreams and goals matter because they move people beyond their current circumstances. She says people should not necessarily want less, because wanting more can help humanity evolve, especially when people share what they create with those they love. Genealogy Beyond the Family Tree Mary Jane challenges Judy’s emphasis on genealogy, saying she personally does not care much about the past and wants to move forward. Judy responds that looking backward briefly can be wise because ancestral patterns echo into the present. She describes several levels of genealogy, beginning with the family tree and moving into deeper awareness of what happened in ancestral countries, cultures, and family systems. Using Mary Jane’s Romanian ancestry as an example, Judy explains that a history of conquest, survival, and repeated hardship may leave emotional patterns that descendants either repeat unconsciously or transform consciously. Emotional DNA, Family Patterns, and the Aha Moment Judy explains that people inherit not only physical DNA but also emotional DNA, including patterns of thoughts, feelings, actions, and inactions. These patterns may come from parents, grandparents, countries of origin, family trauma, or ancestral survival strategies. Mary Jane repeatedly questions how people can actually change these patterns, and Judy says the first step is to identify what is operating, then create a goal larger than current circumstances. Judy also describes constellation work as a way of making hidden family or organizational dynamics visible, using representatives or elements in relation to one another so people can see unconscious loyalties and arrive at an “aha” moment. Parents, Expectations, and Choosing One’s Own Life Mary Jane and Judy discuss how parents often want better for their children, but may also try to live through them or push them toward dreams they themselves never fulfilled. Judy says the key question is whether a child is living their own life or someone else’s. She explains that a person’s growth is never only individual because each person belongs to a family system, whether they like it or not. When one person changes, stretches, and evolves, that shift affects the larger system. Mary Jane reflects on how her own mother may have wanted a more traditional life for her, even while being proud of her radio and television career. Finding the Next Step and Living the Life You Actually Have As the interview closes, Judy advises listeners to begin by asking who they are, where they are, what they want, and what excuses are keeping them from moving forward. She says people should examine their thoughts, feelings, actions, and inactions around a desire, then ask what those patterns mean about themselves and others. Judy directs listeners to JudyWilkins-Smith.com and says The Hidden Power in Your DNA is widely available. Mary Jane closes the segment by encouraging listeners to find their own special “aha” moment and reminds them of the Confucius quote that people have two lives, and the second begins when they realize they only have one.