Jean Smart reflects on her career-defining role as Deborah Vance in the HBO series *Hacks*, highlighting the character’s emotional evolution and the complex, often fraught bond with her protege, Ava. She discusses the creative freedom found in roles like the matriarchal crime boss Floyd Gerhardt in *Fargo*, where physical vanity was secondary to the performance. Beyond her professional achievements, Smart shares personal insights, including her discovery of a direct ancestor involved in the Salem witch trials and the challenges of maintaining a long-term marriage in Hollywood. Following this conversation, Maureen Corrigan reviews Daniel Mason’s novel *Country People*, describing it as a whimsical blend of academic satire and rural tall tales that captures the absurdity of modern intellectual life through a lens of sharp, digressive humor.
Sign in to continue reading, translating and more.
Open full episode in Podwise