Since we originally published this episode in May 2024, there has been significant developments for Lyle and Erik Menendez, brothers who were convicted of killing their parents in the early 1990s. On October 24th, Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón requested that the brothers be resentenced. We are replaying this episode in its entirety because it provides the context you need to understand how we got here. Lyle and Erik Menendez, two Beverly Hills brothers, were convicted of murdering their parents in a tabloid case that captivated the nation in the 1990s. But in recent years, they have captured the attention of a new generation, becoming unlikely social media stars despite being in prison for the last 34 years. In this episode, Susie and Jess look at the dedicated fan accounts advocating for a new trial and the new evidence that might actually free them. FOR MORE: The New Menendez Defenders (The New York Times) Ex-Member of Menudo Says He Was Raped by Father of the Menendez Brothers (The New York Times) New evidence may back Menendez brothers’ sexual abuse claims. But can it free them? (The Los Angeles Time) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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49:14
Madonna and the Making of a Cultural Icon (Pt 2)
When Madonna performed “Like A Virgin'' at the first MTV Video Music Awards in 1984, she scandalized the audience and her own team. But she also stole the show, cementing MTV’s place in cultural history. In this episode, Susie and Jess look back at Madonna’s early years in New York, the events that led her to that stage and how she became one of pop's most enduring icons. GUESTS: Mary Gabriel, author of Madonna: A Rebel Life FOR MORE: Madonna: Our 1985 Cover Story (Spin) Madonna’s Celebration Tour Proves She Won’t Quit (NY Times) Buy Mary Gabriel’s book Madonna: A Rebel Life See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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40:15
Madonna And The MTV Moment (Pt 1)
In 1984, a relatively unknown 26-year old Madonna appeared at the first MTV Video Music Awards. Dressed like a rock and roll bride, Madonna sang “Like a Virgin.” The performance was considered so risque, so scandalous that many – including her own manager – predicted it would end her career. But far from stopping her, that moment changed Madonna’s life, transforming her from rising star to pop idol. In this week’s episode, Susie and Jess talk about that iconic performance, the rise of MTV and how together MTV and Madonna were a force that defined 80s pop culture. GUESTS: Mary Gabriel, author of Madonna: A Rebel Life FOR MORE: 60 Times Madonna Changed Our Culture (NY Times) Inside Madonna's Legendary Performance at the First VMAs (Rolling Stone) Buy Mary Gabriel’s book Madonna: A Rebel Life See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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47:39
What is ‘Girl Culture’?
Girl dinner. Hot girl walks. Weird girls. Clean girls. Rat girls. Snail girls. Everywhere we look, it seems, a certain kind of girliness is being celebrated – from Beyonce to Barbie to Taylor Swift to TikTok. But what really is girl culture? Jess and Susie revisit a seminal photography book from the early 2000s, Lauren Greenfield’s “Girl Culture,” to ask: What does it mean when girlhood is being glorified but individual girls are more miserable than ever? FOR MORE: The joy of communal girlhood; the agony of teen girls (by Jessica Bennett, NYT, 2024) Being 13 (By Jessica Bennett, NYT, 2023) This Is 18 (By Jessica Bennett, NYT, 2018) Girl Culture, by Lauren Greenfield (TIME, 2002) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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36:10
How the Menendez Brothers Became Social Media Stars
Lyle and Erik Menendez, two Beverly Hills brothers, were convicted of murdering their parents in a tabloid case that captivated the nation in the 1990s. But in recent years, they have captured the attention of a new generation, becoming unlikely social media stars despite being in prison for the last 34 years. In this episode, Susie and Jess look at the dedicated fan accounts advocating for a new trial and the new evidence that might actually free them. FOR MORE: The New Menendez Defenders (The New York Times) Ex-Member of Menudo Says He Was Raped by Father of the Menendez Brothers (The New York Times) New evidence may back Menendez brothers’ sexual abuse claims. But can it free them? (The Los Angeles Time) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
About In Retrospect with Susie Banikarim and Jessica Bennett
Is there a cultural moment from your past that looks different in retrospect? Maybe it’s a scandalous tabloid story seared into your teenage brain or a political punchline that just feels wrong now. It might be a very specific red swimsuit that inspired a decade of plastic surgery (see: “Baywatch”) or the inescapable smell of an entire generation of prepubescent boys (Axe body spray, anyone?). Each week on IN RETROSPECT, Emmy-winning journalist Susie Banikarim and New York Times editor Jessica Bennett revisit a pop culture moment from the 80s and 90s that shaped them — to try to understand what it taught us about the world, and a woman’s place in it.
Talk to us at @inretropod, @susiebnyc and @jessicabennett on Instagram. New episodes each Friday.
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