The Good News

Greg Scheinman's Profile comes to CultureMap

Greg Scheinman, host of his PBS television talk show, "Profile with GregScheinman"
Photo by Allie Ghaman
Sam Gainer of the accounting mega firm Gainer Donnelly & Desroches is thesubject of the first episode of the second season of "Profile with GregScheinman" Thursday night at 10:30 p.m. on Channel 8.
Phoebe Tudor, who raised millions for the renovation of the Julia IdesonLibrary, is the subject of an upcoming episode.
Photo by Tony Bullard

If you want to know how to be a success, talk to people who are successful.

That was Greg Scheinman's thinking, at least. Fresh off selling his children's video company, Team Baby, to former partner (and former Disney CEO) Michael Eisner, Scheinman was looking for inspiration in his next venture and hoping to talk to some of Houston's biggest names. Inspiration struck when he realized he could sit down with outstanding Houstonians — by turning those conversations into a show.

And thus Profile with Greg Scheinman was born, produced, says Scheinman, "on my own time, on my own dime," with airtime on Houston PBS. After a successful first season, the second season of Profile premieres Thursday at 10:30 p.m. on Channel 8 with Sam Gainer of accounting mega firm Gainer Donnelly & Desroches as the first week's profile.

And this season CultureMap is the official online home of Profile. You can watch video clips and full episodes from both seasons — and get behind-the-scenes insights on upcoming shows on a special Profile page on the CultureMap Web site.

Scheinman focuses on people from across the cultural and business spectrum, with one important thing in common — they have to live, work and breathe Houston.

"I just go after people who I'm interested in, people who are successful interesting and well-rounded. I have five main areas — business, philanthropy, media, arts and sports — and I try to have a line-up that is a mix of those subjects," Scheinman says. "I just try to pick people I'd like to have lunch with, except they'd never really have lunch with me, so I bring a camera. People who I can learn from and who inspire and motivate me. There are so many people who are doing great things and there isn't enough coverage of them out there.

"I want to know how they got their start, what their journey was like, what was the biggest risk they've taken — because they've all taken risks to get where they are. I'm interested in what could help me be a better businessperson, father, etc. Plus, there are some people who just make it seem easy. That's amazing to me. They never seem frantic, they just inherently know how to delegate, manage and see the forest for the trees. Like, Sam might be an accountant and Monica might be a chef, but they have the same personality traits that make them successful."

Scheinman, a native New Yorker, settled in Houston seven years ago. "I was excited to move here because whenever we had visited before my wife and I were married I was always struck by how nice and genuine the people are," he says. "Being from New York, it seems like everyone is so jaded. Houston is a great environment, a great place to raise a family. For the fourth biggest city in the country, it's amazing to me how Houston is still like a small town. There's that six degrees or less of separation in people in business and culture."

What guests are Scheinman excited about this season?

Jeff Kalina, the director of emergency medicine at Methodist Diagnostic Hospital ("It's unbelievable to see what he does every day.")
Phoebe Tudor ("I was not quite sure what we were going to talk about, but she's spearheaded this amazing renovation of the Julia Ideson Library. Some people think that world is just luncheons and balls, but she has a master's in historical preservation from Columbia.")
John Daugherty (who took Scheinman to see his boat collection on Lake Conroe)
Gracie Cavnar
Jaime Rootes ("He's such a young guy. ... You almost feel inferior, like how does he get it all done?")
not to mention Monica Pope, Janet Gurwitch and more.

But at the end of the day, Profile still feels like peeking in on a long lunch with figures from across the spectrum in Houston. "The goal is just to have a candid conversation," Scheinman says. "We don't have a set, these aren't half-hour interviews with talking heads that can come in with prepared answers. It's interesting how some of the answers change by the end of the day, people really open up."

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Movie Review

Timothée Chalamet cements star status in new movie Marty Supreme

Courtesy

Timothée Chalamet

In a time when true movie stars seem to be going extinct, Timothée Chalamet has emerged as an exception to the rule. Since 2021 he has headlined blockbusters like the two Dune movies and Wonka, and also earned an Oscar nomination for playing Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown (his second nomination following 2018’s Call Me By Your Name). Now, he’s almost assured to get his third nomination for the stellar new film, Marty Supreme.

Chalamet plays Marty Mauser, a world-class table tennis player living in New York. But reducing Marty to his best skill doesn’t do him justice, as he’s also a motormouth schemer who will do almost anything to achieve his dreams. He doesn’t have any qualms about wooing married women like neighbor Rachel (Odessa A’zion) or actress Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow), or hiding his true ping pong skills to win money in scams with friends like Wally (Tyler the Creator).

Marty is seemingly on the go the entire movie, whether it’s trying to convince Kay’s millionaire husband Milton Rockwell (Kevin O’Leary) to fund his table tennis ambitions; or trying to track down the dog of Ezra (Abel Ferrara), a man he accidentally injures; or trying to avoid the ire of the boss at the shoe store where he works. Just when you think he might slow down, he’s off to the races on another plan or adventure.

Directed by Josh Safdie and written by Safdie and frequent co-writer Ronald Bronstein, the film is an almost continuous blast of pure energy for 2 ½ hours. So many different things happen over the course of the film that the story defies conventional narratives, and yet the throughline of Marty keeps everything tightly connected. His particular type of brash behavior turns much of the film into a comedy as he does and says things that are both shocking and thrilling.

Another thing that makes the movie sing is the fantastic characterization by Safdie and Bronstein. Almost every person who is given a speaking line in the film has a moment where they pop, which speaks to airtight dialogue that the writers have created. Characters will be introduced and then disappear for long stretches of time, and yet because they make such an impression the first time they’re on screen, it’s easy to pick up their thread right away.

Safdie, as he’s done previously with brother Bennie (Uncut Gems), calls on a host of well-known non-actors or people with interesting faces/vibes to inhabit supporting roles, and to a person they are crucial to the film’s success. O’Leary (of Shark Tank fame), rapper Tyler the Creator, director Ferrara, magician Penn Jillette, and fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi each deliver knockout performances. The relative unknowns who play smaller roles are just as impressive, making each beat of the film feel naturalistic.

Leading the way is the powerhouse performance by Chalamet. For one person to believably play both the famously reserved Dylan and also a firecracker like Marty is astonishing, and this role cements Chalamet’s status as his generation’s movie star. A’zion is a rising star who gets great moments as Marty’s on-again/off-again love interest. Paltrow pops in and out of the film, lighting up the screen every time she appears. Fran Drescher as Marty’s mom and Sandra Bernhard as a neighbor also pay dividends in small roles.

Josh Safdie’s first solo directorial effort is unlike any other movie this year, or maybe even this century. Thanks to its breakneck storytelling, a magnificent performance by Chalamet, and countless intangibles that Safdie employs expertly, the film smacks viewers in the face repeatedly and demands that they come back for more.

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Marty Supreme opens in theaters on December 25.

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