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Paul Giamatti

4/30/202645 min

What Does It Mean to Become Someone Else?

Award-winning actor and producer Paul Giamatti joins Joanna Ebenstein for a wide-ranging, eerie, and often amusing conversation about monsters, performance, and the porous boundary between life and death.

From childhood fascinations with werewolves and classic horror to the uncanny psychological states accessed through acting, Giamatti reflects on a lifelong obsession with transformation—of bodies, identities, and consciousness. He recounts a genuinely unsettling ghostly moment during a production of Hamlet, explores the idea of acting as a form of possession, and considers why theatre can feel more spiritually ch...

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First 90 seconds
  1. Speaker 00:00

    What is poverty? Poverty is more than lacking food or clean water. For many children, it becomes a cycle of hopelessness. At Compassion International, we follow Jesus's call to care for the most vulnerable, helping children discover hope and a future. Learn more at compassion.com.

  2. Speaker 10:15

    Geico presents a 30-second podcast between your podcast. Today's story is shared by one of our listeners. It's called Betrayed by Bill. It was in that moment I caught who was staring back at me in betrayal, or more like what? My insurance bill. With trembling hands, I grabbed my phone and switched to Geico, saving about $900 in the process, and never to be betrayed again. Now that was bloody riveting.

  3. Joanna Ebenstein· Host0:43

    It feels good when the story ends with savings. It feels good to Geico.

  4. Jess Gunesekere0:46

    This is an Overcoat Media production.

  5. Joanna Ebenstein· Host0:51

    Welcome to Memento Morbid, where we explore death, life, and the in-between. It's hosted by me, Joanna Ebenstein, founder of Morbid Anatomy, an organization and community devoted to these very themes. Hello. During this episode of Memento Morbid, if any names, books, ideas, or artworks spark your curiosity, check out the podcast show notes for more. You'll also find a link to our sub stack, which contains imagery discussed and additional content.

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