The JV Club with Janet Varney

Hello Calga-reeeee! Find out what that last sentence means, as well as how comedian and writer Amanda Brooke Perin handles JV’s oh-so-personal, prying questions about the weather in Alberta, on this tell-all episode of The JV Club!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Produced by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC354_191220.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Get out your Rydell High letterman/woman’s jacket and/or pomade up your hair for this chat with author and storyteller Courtenay Hameister (Author of the new book Okay Fine Whatever: The Year I Went from Being Afraid of Everything to Only Being Afraid of Most Things) who be-bopped all across these United States and even over the Pacific Ocean for a childhood of Army-Bratting… with plenty of energy left over to experience some juicy panic and anxiety in her adult years!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun

Direct download: JVC353_191218.mp3
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Tensions are high as the final two contestants of Burning Love (Janet and Abigail Spencer) face off to discuss counterculture of surfing, discovering Barbra Streisand, the rush of a flea market find, and the emotional magnetism of the City of Angels.

This interview originally was originally published in 2017. Abigail's new show "Reprisal" is now streaming on Hulu.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVCRR.mp3
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It’s a podcast spanning the whooooole wooooooorld! JV lolls on her bed on the phone, staring at the ceiling like a proper teen, with guest  Alice Fraser (“Savage”) who cover female friendships in all their highs and lows and much much more!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC352_191204.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

It’s a healing of old wounds as Rizzo and Sandy come together at last in the spirit of forgiveness. Or, it’s JV’s dear friend, actor and writer Danielle Weeks (“Baby Love”), who comes over to reminisce about their shared junior high experiences in Tucson, complete with a certain musical they performed in the school cafeteria.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC351_191127.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Surely this is the most mime-and-clowning-heavy episode of The JV Club to date, thanks to award-winning comedian DeAnne Smith, who gamely humors JV’s ongoing enthusiasm for the subject. Plus! Jodie and Joni worship, surprise cherry pie, and much more.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC350_191120.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

It’s not just anyone who gets featured in an Amy Grant music video, y’all. So load up your baked potato and delight in the joy that is Susan Yeagley (“Parks and Rec”) and her tales of the wonders of Nashville and surrounding areas. Including an upside-down country music legend!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun

Direct download: JVC349.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

FINALLY! A conversation about the Winchester Mystery House. But there’s more! The charming Sarah Enni (who you can also hear on the “First Draft with Sarah Enni” podcast) and her fellow chatterbox JV rove all over topics including staying interested in life, the deliciousness of cheese, and JV’s nickname for sheep in New Zealand.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun

Direct download: JVC348b_191107.mp3
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This week on the podcast the luminous Lillie Mae, musician extraordinaire, is freshly back from her tour with Robert Plant (yes, that Robert Plant!) and sits down with JV to talk mobile homes in the truest sense, pet deer and pigs, and the beautiful simplicity of the perfect potato. 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC347_191030.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Water towers! Grain elevators! Hair bands! Surprise and delight await you in this week’s episode of the podcast, as the simply wonderful Kari Wahlgren ("Rick and Morty," a million other things) hikes up a dirt mound and claims her place in the world!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

 

Direct download: JVC346_191023.mp3
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From ballet slippers to leather studs, this week’s guest Rebecca Knox (“Orange is the New Black”) has deep teenage roots in music… in part thanks to crying when she couldn’t get into a concert. So treat mouth to a crunchy salad and your ears to this episode!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC345.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Comedian Katie Compa ("Hard Pass”) joins JV for a chew about Swedish culture, “mean girl” friendships and the mysterious spelling of “Bamf.”

Hosted by Janet Varney

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC344.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

 If you could cram a sleepover into an hour and change, you’d have this episode of The JV Club featuring Jennie Pierson (Showtime’s ‘Kidding”), whose wonderful imagination should surely be put to use in the realm of theme park design.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

The JV Club will be LIVE at the Bellhouse in Brooklyn on Wednesday Oct. 9th! Details and tickets are available now.

Direct download: JVC343.mp3
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This week: JV welcomes musician Tatum Lynn! Put on your tap shoes and tap, tap, tap your way through a world of non-glitzy pageants, playing on an all-boy basketball team, and impromptu PA performances at department stores.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

The JV Club will be LIVE at the Bellhouse in Brooklyn on Wednesday Oct. 9th! Details and tickets are available now.

Direct download: JVC342_190925.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

This week: Two Ladies, Two Couches. JV is tickled pink to chat with her podcast crush, Rebecca LaVoie (Crime Writers On; These Are There Stories) as Rebecca recovers from leg surgery (Folks- she’s doing great!) and reflects back on the general embarrassment of high school, the deep truth of “it gets better," and her too-perfect photo mate, the mysterious Lisa N!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

The JV Club will be LIVE at the Bellhouse in Brooklyn on Wednesday Oct. 9th! Details and tickets are available now.

Direct download: JVC341_190918.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

This week JV is delighted to welcome her dear friend, the uber-talented and hilarious Kit Pongetti (“Scrubs”), for a conversation consisting of 50% JV laughter! Plus! Falling in love at first strum and the special thrill of a good old fashioned stakeout.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

The JV Club will be LIVE at the Bellhouse in Brooklyn on Wednesday Oct. 9th! Details and tickets are available now.

Direct download: JVC339190911b.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

It’s a last Boy of Summer post Labor Day! How scandalous! Indulge yourself with the delightful Mexican-American-Queer-Writer-Illustrator Terry Blas, whose experiences growing up Mormon in both Boise, ID and various places in Mexico make for quite a journey. Happy listening….

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

The JV Club will be LIVE at the Bellhouse in Brooklyn on Wednesday Oct. 9th! Details and tickets are available now.

Direct download: JVC339_190904.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Enjoy this multimedia festival of conversation and pre-loaded sound effects on this week’s episode with Boy of Summer Justin McElroy! And wait— what’s that in the air? It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! It’s a Politically Incorrect Musical!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

The JV Club will be LIVE at the Bellhouse in Brooklyn on Wednesday Oct. 9th! Details and tickets are available now.

Direct download: JVC338b.mp3
Category:Podcast -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

This special Boys of Summer episode with Michael Rosenbaum (“Smallville” and oh-so-much-more) features the very first (and possibly only?) time JV gets a lesson in how to do a Walken impression. Enjoy Michael’s talent as much as you enjoy JV flailing! Plus: it’s never too late to become the person you’re meant to be. We mean it!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC337.mp3
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CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains a discussion of Scott Thompson's experience surviving a school shooting from 23:22 to 37:38

The sketch comedy legend that is Scott Thompson joins JV this week as a spectacularly fascinating and funny Boy of Summer, including a JV-jaw-dropping-moment after a disclosure by Scott that left her temporarily speechless.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC336_190814.mp3
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Throw on your merit badge tape up that racket for this conversational mosey with the delightful Chris Sullivan (“This is Us”), who may or may not be the secret son of a certain California “Governator!” Plus! Taking chances in music, life, love, and podcasting.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC335_190807.mp3
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In a rare and exciting twist, this week’s accomplished Boy of Summer Seamus Dever (“Castle") also happens to be an old college chum of JV! Enjoy a reminiscence about Flagstaff Arizona, nerding out on Shakespeare, getting schooled on the wonders of Tom Waits, and what 90’s Moscow has to offer a college-aged American.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC334_190731.mp3
Category:Podcast -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

It’s a very special Boys of Summer with the audio from January's SF Sketchfest Tribute to Neil Patrick Harris, in conversation with your good pal JV. Magic, Muppets and More!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVCNPHd.mp3
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Join Boy of Summer Johnathan Fernandez (“Lethal Weapon”) for one of the most shocking revelations to ever occur on The JV Club… about the film Dirty Dancing. Plus! Sunday night braid sessions, secret beaches, and a new pastime we like to call Canoe-dling.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC332_190717.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Chris and Steven, the delightful gents from the Is This Adulting? podcast, have a phone tree with JV and talk cargo pants, undershirts, evangelical youth camps and the natural disasters of North Carolina in episode 331 of the podcast as Boys of Summer saunters on!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC331_190710.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Heads up! It’s another Voyage to the Stars cohort, the delightful human being that is Steve Berg! (You also probably know him from tons of other stuff, too.)
 
JV and SB goof around and talk river cities, football dustups, and late night college radio dj action in this latest episode bringing you Boys of Summer!
 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC330_190703.mp3
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This week JV sits down with Boy of Summer and Voyage to the Stars co-star Colton Dunn (“Superstore”) for a conversation about Michael Jordan t-shirts, hipster video stores, and what it means to be an “Act-lete."

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC329_190626.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Boys of Summer rolls on as JV sits down with her friend and Stan Against Evil co-star John C. McGinley to yak about lazy susans and big families, endurance in sports and Broadway, and much more, including insight and information on Down Syndrome and the amazing Global Down Syndrome Foundation, which you can check out and support via this link!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC_328.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

This week's episode was recorded in front of a live audience at POD X in Nashville, Tennessee.

JV takes a one-week break form the boys of Summer series to chat with attorney and podcaster Susan Simpson!

In addition to being one of Janet's all time favorite people that she's admired from afar, Susan's got tons of stories about being a sporty high schooler and childhood dismemberment at Chuck E. Cheese (yes, really!)

Plus: live musical performances from JV Club alum Jenny Tolman!

Direct download: JVC327_PODXb.mp3
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Boys of Summer begins with a heart-surgeon-turned-controversial-Egyptian-ex-pat: the fascinating and funny Bassem Youssef! From high school biology to cardiology, from watching Jon Stewart to becoming what some call Stewart’s Middle Eastern counterpart, episode 326 should leave you inspired!

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC326_190604.mp3
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Mind your shmanners, because this week’s guest is the delightful and talented Teresa McElroy! Learn about the follies of high school ID badges, the triumph of speech state competitions, and the guilty pleasure of a good old American hot dog.

Come see Janet at PodX in Nashville from May 31 to June 2! 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

 

Direct download: JVC324_190529b.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Clear backpacks, gator-laden bayous, and an absolutely extraordinary story of Hurricane Katrina come to you this week courtesy of the radiant Ciera Payton (“She’s Gotta Have It”), whose teenaged medical knowledge was of the “Anaconda” variety.

Come see Janet at PodX in Nashville from May 31 to June 2! 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC324.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

It’s part TWO of JV's chat with entrepreneur and fellow Post-Mormon, Tresa Edmunds.They continue to with stories about her teenage years and Latter Day Saints atrocities before getting to happier times with the MASH game!

Come see Janet at PodX in Nashville from May 31 to June 2! 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC_323.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

It’s part one of a two-parter with advocate, entrepreneur and fellow Post-Mormon, Tresa Edmunds. Interwoven stories of Tresa’s unconventional (to say the least) teenage years and “big picture” Latter Day Saints atrocities in this we-had-to-talk-for-almost-three-hours conversation with JV!

Come see Janet at PodX in Nashville from May 31 to June 2! 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC322b.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Meet the delightful singer/songwriter responsible for creating the opening song Jeff Bridges sang at Lebowski Fest! Nashville native Jenny Tolman hangs with JV in LA and these new gal pals talk Dolly and Burt, the glory of creative collaboration, and even some classroom panic attacks— you know, just to spice things up and get in touch with their true grit. 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC321b.mp3
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Episode 320 welcomes the terrific and talented Irene Koh, illustrator extraordinaire of, among many other things, the Legend of Korra: Turf Wars books! Join JV and Irene as they dish on inspiring anime, old-timey Connecticut fruit stands, and complicated girl crushes, and oodles more.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC320_190424.mp3
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Atlanta, Atlantis, and other words that begin with an “A,” like Amber Nash! This week’s guest, perhaps most famous for her role on “Archer” (now in its TENTH season), regales JV with tales of Peruvian love, historic strip clubs and so much more.

Come see Janet at PodX in Nashville from May 31 to June 2! 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC319.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Enjoy this episode with this real-life Attendant-to-the-Queen, Bridget Nelson (MST3K, Rifftrax) as she expounds with JV upon the marvels and dangers of thick shag carpet, grecian statues, and the kind of name-pun you can expect from a Tennessee Williams-loving singing group.

Come see Janet at PodX in Nashville from May 31 to June 2! 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC318_190410b.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Put on your tank top and suuuuuuper baggy jeans for a visit with Lilan Bowden (known for her role in the Disney Channel show "Andi Mack"), and don’t let the Usher poster on her teenage wall fool you. From early improv to wall collages, this episode is a potpourri of creativity.

Come see Janet at PodX in Nashville from May 31 to June 2! 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC317b.mp3
Category:Interview -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

The nearly nonstop Max Fun Crossovers continue! Try out your best Mid-Atlantic accent for this chat with Danielle Radford (who you may have heard on the Max Fun podcast Tights and Fights or on Screen Junkies), who shows us the nefarious side of choir with surreptitious cigarettes and how a certain Little Woman can clarify your dreams...

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

This show is directly funded by our Maximum Fun Members. As part of the annual #MaxFunDrive, you can sign up for as little as $5 a month at maximumfun.org/donate to help support this and other Max Fun shows you listen to AND earn great gifts in the process!

Direct download: JVC316_190327.mp3
Category:Interview -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Put on your sequined vest and don’t let the band kids snub you— you’re show choir royalty with this week’s guest, Sydnee McElroy (Sawbones)! It’s all about singing, the raggle taggle delights of high school theatre, and the long road to figuring out that it doesn’t take dress slacks and a pair of heels to prove you’re a grown up.
 
Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC_307.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

This is what teenage Alison Becker (Star of the Maximum Fun podcast "Bubble!") might refer to as “a really great episode, eh?” Join her as she takes JV for a trip from the firefly-laden woods of New Jersey across the globe to the mountains of Switzerland. By the way, do you pronounce the “T” in mountains? Tweet us about it.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC314.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Did your hometown have its own urban legend about a mine-slag-monster-man? If so, you may be from a village in Northern Britain, just like this week’s wonderful guest, author (and wrestling aficionado) Lindsey Kelk! Plus: Logans vs. Troys, Oasis vs. Trance, and Dolphin vs. Dolphin. Suit up!

You can hear Lindsey on the Maximum Fun wrestling podcast Tights and Fights and on the make-up and beauty podcast Full Coverage.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC312_190306.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Swing set Millennium Falcons! Giant Tinker Toys! Band bus makeouts! All this and oodles more with this week’s enchanting guest, Kara Morgan ("Fortune Rookie," "The Kara Morgan Show"). Reach for the stars with us and dare , yes dare, to dream the ultimate Impossible Dream: to intern on a yogurt farm.

 

 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: 190228_JVClub.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:24pm PDT

This week’s inspiring guest Erika De La Cruz (creator of the TV & Personal Development Conference Passion 2 Paycheck) goes deep with JV about controversial tildes, NoCal and SoCal surprises, Lords and Rings, and the heartbreak and unexpected gifts of losing your home at nineteen. 

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC311_190229b.mp3
Category:Podcast -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Calling all giant-cross-necklace owners and cross-legged sitters! If you’ve been waiting for a very niche episode of The JV Club made just for you, this episode with the wonderful Carrie Poppy (Host of the podcasts "Oh No Ross & Carrie" and "Hidden Mickeys") is it.

Everyone else: never fear! There’s also plenty of whale-watching-out-for, summer camp revelations, and everyone’s favorite, pig dressage.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC310_190213.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Get ready to cut some alarm wires, escape your apartment and sneak on over for some teenage tales of literature devouring, lakeside sulking, and blue hair dying with musician Vera Sola, and find out who King Solomon was (no, not that King Solomon) and the mysterious fate that befell him.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC309_190206.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

This special episode recorded live at SF Sketchfest has a little something for everyone. Thrills! (Pneumatic high school theatre orchestra pits!) Chills! (Is Aparna a biter?) Spills! (Okay, maybe no spills. But aren’t you glad there weren’t any wet messes to mop up?). Join JV and marvelous guests Scott Adsit, Aparna Nancherla and musician/dreamboat Matt Nathanson for a double M.A.S.H. game unexpectedly featuring worms.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC308_19130.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Comedian Emily Catalano joins JV mid-Sketchfest for a hotel room hang covering very controversial topics like earring backings, family card games, and comfy sweatshirts. But fear not! There’s also plenty of lighter fare, like heartbreak and religion.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC307_190123b.mp3
Category:Interview -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

JV’s old chum Sonita Henry (who's been seen in shows like Luther and Krypton) pops over from across the pond to indulge JV’s interest in regional accents, Guyanese cooking, and Sonita’s adorable boyish alter ego Giuseppi.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC306_190116.mp3
Category:Interview -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

Join us this week for a very exciting guessing game of “Which Instrument Did You Play in the Marching Band” and much, much more with the simply delightful (and Janet's fellow only child) Rachel McElroy, who, it’s probably safe to say, had one of the most original and exciting dollhouse inhabitant dynamics of the late 20th century.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

Direct download: JVC_190109b.mp3
Category:Interview -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

The very funny, very candid and very present Carly Jibson talks Broadway grinds, Tinder surprises and something wonderful called “Poopy Chicken,” all the while reminding us it’s possible to be vulnerable at the same time you’re being a complete badass.

Hosted by Janet Varney.

Edited by Julian Burrell for Maximum Fun.

 

Direct download: JVC304a_190102.mp3
Category:Interview -- posted at: 12:00am PDT

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