Johnny Gandelsman

Johnny Gandelsman

In Episode 20 of The Pickup Game, I chat with Johnny Gandelsman, a violinist, producer, MacArthur Fellow, and founding member of Brooklyn Rider. Our conversation ranges from the World Cup and Marjane Satrapi's views on two countries at war, to the love of New York and lifting people up in times of need.

Mark O'Brien

In Episode 19 of The Pickup Game, I chat with Mark O'Brien, a pickup game player for the past 62 years. We talk about Bob Marley's pickup game at Battersea Park, the politics surrounding the World Cup, and his recommended summer read, Home and Away by Karl Ove Knausgård @karl.ove.knausgard and Fredrik Ekelund, a captivating book told through email exchanges about the beautiful game. Mark also co-founded Scale Justice, a digital tool aimed at making legal power more accessible.

Bill Siegmund

In Episode 18 of The Pickup Game, I visit Digital Island Studios near the Flatiron, where I speak with its owner, Bill Siegmund. Bill, a Hawaii native, talks about recording live music, falling in love with Chelsea Football Club through Punch magazine, the pageantry of the World Cup, and the growing fear of traveling to the US.

Tom Montague

In Episode 17 of The Pickup Game, I sit down with Tom Montague, a British American who grew up and studied in Michigan and has called New York City home for the past 15 years. We talk about holding on to what makes us who we are, the tarnished "special relationship" between our two countries, and the shame of politics poisoning a global event that was built to celebrate our differences.

David Slarskey

In episode 15 of The Pickup Game, I hang out with David Slarskey, a lawyer, a teammate, and a one-time playwright, but ultimately a philosopher. Our conversation is a play written in three acts: conflict, merit, and the values of both success and failure.