Reviews
“It’s an okay listen, but then they said “1986 was maybe the last great year of Hollywood” and then I remembered that certain people will be ignored in the narrative. Update: I think I know what’s troubling about this podcast, they’re talking about a very sensitive subject, they’re trying to be...”Read full review »
rosa manzo via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
03/11/24
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“Maybe if you are talking about an underage person being exploited and abused… don’t play sound clips of them moaning? Just a thought.”
Joe Adams Music via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
12/31/23
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“It's wild to be this podcast only has 3.8 stars, I can only imagine it was some professional jealousy campaign by other less-good journalists/podcasters - it is head and shoulders more interesting, better reported and better voiced than 90% of the investigative/deep dive podcasts out there....”Read full review »
ajn161 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
09/22/23
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“I’m 5 episodes into the Tracy Lords story and I’m ready to puke. I’m so sick of the sound bites from every single person involved in making porn with a child go on to describe that child as “sexually charged”… SHE WAS SEXUALLY ABUSED NOT “CHARGED”.
I get that no one knew it at the time but I do...”Read full review »
BossyHen via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
08/31/23
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“LA porn’s worth it.
Bennington ‘86 great.”
PoorInDetroit via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
08/14/23
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“The annoying Princeton grad who narrates this is like fingers on a chalkboard. She repeats over and over what the other hosts say.
When you do a podcast on troubled people who grow up poor, perhaps you can find a host less blue bloodish and far less annoying.”
artfaylossombay via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
07/23/23
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“The Traci Lords season 1 was awesome. Well researched, but Lili Anolik is insufferably annoying in it. I feel bad for Ashley West from the Rialto Report having had to do the podcast with her, her voice is just grating, her attempts at trying to be clever fall flat. It’s why I couldn’t listen to...”Read full review »
QuitPinchingMe via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
07/03/23
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“Spare yourself. The host manages to turn this into an anti trump anti ‘maga’ piece. What a waste.”
Chelseadriscoll via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
05/24/23
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“I find the narration style of the host repeating verbatim what was just said by an interviewee redundant and self-involved. This narrator is not the only radio host to do it, but it’s weird to me how prevalent it is. I don’t like her gossipy tone either, it seems like she wants Donna Tartt to...”Read full review »
neemmeen via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
04/25/23
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“Cannot stop listening! Obsessed!”
Mblack240us via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
04/21/23
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“Basically the same comments as others. It’s working for many others though, so I don’t think you should change. I’m just not the target demo”
wushu judge via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
04/15/23
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“The narration is so awful. Every sentence is given this bizarrely snarky delivery. You can practically see the narrator curl her lip and roll her eyes with every phrase. Not sure I’ll make it through the series, despite being very interested in the content.”
LetsDoItForJohnny! via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
02/13/23
“If you’re a fan of Bret Easton Ellis, Donna Tartt and co., I would think you’ll find this interesting and fun to listen to. Very well produced and researched IMO: It gets a little stalker-ish at times, especially concerning Tartt, who is a private person. But tons of great 80’s and 90’s stories...”Read full review »
Rites Of Spring via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
02/10/23
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“The “narrator” buries stories and interesting tidbits under bushels of her overly wrought verbal prose. Much use of alliteration and self-satisfied soliloquies go on and on and on before she ever gets to the point. The premise is interesting and I’ll listen because I’ve read so many of the...”Read full review »
Debawriter via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
01/22/23
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“This podcast is really interesting but so confusing. I have never Googled this much during a podcast to try to get a handle on the characters.
Truth, I never heard of this book and I’m an avid reader the same age as all these characters. (So I wasn’t a kid when the book came out.) I am listening...”Read full review »
foxgyrl via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
12/28/22
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“I was enjoying Once Upon A Time In… The Valley but episode 7 and 9 both stopped at 5:46 and I couldn’t listen to them very disappointed.”
D-man987 via Apple Podcasts ·
Australia ·
12/18/22
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“I was absolutely addicted to this podcast and listened to the whole Bennington series in one week. Thank you!”
nutellakell via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
11/18/22
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“I went to Bennington. The mystification of 80s Bennington and over-sensationalized commentary does a total disservice to what makes the college truly unique and transformative. There can be a narrative that highlights all aspects - the wildness, questionable morals of the 80s, the hardworking...”Read full review »
djcookout via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
11/17/22
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“I went through the first season and until the last two episodes it was really addictive! After this they do repeat a lot of material which makes it bleeeeh”
Ioannis Valasakis via Apple Podcasts ·
Great Britain ·
11/16/22
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“The story is good but excruciating to listen to the host because she speaks so close to the microphone I can hear her saliva building up and for someone who has a high sensitivity to sounds - it’s physically painful to listen so I had to stop”
Candy O fom hogtown via Apple Podcasts ·
Canada ·
10/16/22
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“I thought this was an interesting idea. And then I started to listen to the episodes. I loved the Secret History when it first came out. I reread it recently and couldn’t get through it. I don’t think that either one of these writers is such a big talent. They are both so full of themselves. ...”Read full review »
cubanita#1 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
10/02/22
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“You know… I think I was unfair in my initial review and wanted to amend it. I did listen to the whole thing, and to be perfectly honest I can’t stop thinking about it. Even if I really dislike elements of this podcast, I need to respect something that really was thought provoking in me.”
Cassparagus via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
09/21/22
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“This was my all time favorite podcast, EVER”
kewey2 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
09/05/22
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“I don't care how confident or self assured Traci Lords appeared to be at 15 years old, she was under the age of consent. Don't victim blame a child for an industry that is well known to have exploitative tendencies. Rethink your entire lives.”Read full review »
tcraighenry via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
08/24/22
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“I’m a big fan of BEE so I was really excited for season 2. The writer/narrator, Ms. Anolik, is really obnoxious. Her observations, interpretations, and even her cadence of speech are gossipy and grating. Occasionally some interesting nuggets about Ellis’ life are mined, but eventually the cost...”Read full review »
Medic1138 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
08/03/22
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“I love this podcast so much. Everything about it is amazing. The Secret History of The Secret History- nothing could be better. Five stars for sure.”
pvcw19 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
05/14/22
“I loved the “Hollywood” segment, maybe because I grew up in South Bay and knew so many of the spots where Traci Lords hung out there. And I loved the shifting point of view; I certainly wasn’t bothered by the sleaze factor, though several friends of mine were.
I then listened to “Bennington” and...”Read full review »
Stany2401k via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
04/26/22
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“I kept listening and waiting for it to get better. There is detailed research that went into this show, but it’s entirely skewed and 100% self-serving to the narrator and her view. I don’t recommend wasting your time. It’s very anti-climatic.”
Miador via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
04/03/22
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“Detailed research and great storytelling”
Daveiii via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
03/28/22
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“As a Donna Tartt fanatic, I enjoyed this as much I have ever enjoyed any podcast, ever. Going back to read all the books now!”
lbstover via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
03/23/22
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“I thought this would be about the intersecting lives of rising literary powerhouses. But this podcast has no substance at all.
The syrupy, giggly host wastes time fawning over the tediously obnoxiously vain Bret Easton Ellison; she glosses over substance to focus on Ellison’s Wayfairers and...”Read full review »
HarrietBrown666 via Apple Podcasts ·
Canada ·
03/15/22
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“I admittedly gobbled up the gossip in season 2 cuz I love tangled webs and Donna Tartt. I acknowledge this was truly a guilty pleasure. Heavy on the pleasure. So, I decided to check out season 1. Omg i am so disgusted by the narrative that was spun around the child abuse VICTIM Traci Lords. I...”Read full review »
Comesailaway118 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
03/14/22
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“This podcast is the best pod I have ever listened to in my life (and the first review I have ever written). The subjects are highbrow but it’s not too esoteric. It’s fun. It’s like the umami spot that hits at the back of your mouth. And the construction/narration feels like fiction itself....”Read full review »
Eastvillage2022 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
03/12/22
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“I agree with all of the criticisms and all of the praise. I think the author is fully aware that she is crossing the lines into the sleazy, the vapid, the inappropriate, and deliberately recreating the kind of gossipy voice that she attributes to the Bennington undergrad of the day—an obnoxious...”Read full review »
Briseis27 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
02/06/22
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“Please, dear reader, I beg you- get an editor, take yourself out of the story, and please get someone else to read it; we know that you are smart from your vocabulary -do you need to pound us over the head with it with your film noir delivery?”
vanceonline via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
02/02/22
“Lili Anolik is the Queen of Podcasts, periodt. She manages to take a somewhat straightforward topic and build in as much nuance and crescendo as humanly possible, in both Once Upon a Times… I hope there are many more seasons of this because this was brilliant.”
los angeles chef via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
01/29/22
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“Loki Anolik’s narration is stiff in it’s attempt to sound conversational. You can tell she is reading a script, but you can also tell every time she corrects herself, or clarifies herself, it is scripted. “Blah blah blah, but no! more like bloh bloh bloh”. It presents oddly to the ear. Aside...”Read full review »
Knight12354 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
01/25/22
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“To ‘expose’ Donna Tartt? The host seems thrilled to have plucked some characters drawn on for the novel The Secret History, to appear as disgruntled talking heads. It’s disingenuous. All writers draw on their experience? Bret Easton Ellis appears, mainly for the gossipy intel about various...”Read full review »
pluscachange via Apple Podcasts ·
Great Britain ·
01/19/22
“I keep wanting to stop listening to this podcast. I don’t know Brett Ellis or Donna Tartt. I haven’t read their books. Probably never will.
I don’t like anything about any of these characters. I am not of the generation that bore them. There are dozens of people in this podcast and I have a...”Read full review »
Harpoon 95 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
01/17/22
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“Interesting subject, but I am so annoyed my Ms Anolik’s robotic voice. Truly she knows she sounds bad, she apologizes for her tone. Why not have had someone else narrate? Also why the constant over explanation? She approaches each episode like the listener has amnesia. We know it’s “not that...”Read full review »
om4yoga via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
01/14/22
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“Remarks for the host: there is no need to keep mentioning the poor audio quality or your horrible laugh every time you introduce another interview. It takes the listener out of the story and isn’t necessary. We get it, you never intended for this to be a podcast, and actually it probably...”Read full review »
Jolene253 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
01/12/22
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“Anolik’s research and narrative shine even though the subject matter isn’t up my alley. Many reviewers seem to be naturally attracted to this era or subject matter and therefore have a view - positive or negative. I however was supremely engrossed by this new story to me, most importantly based...”Read full review »
jesstrinyc via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
01/11/22
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