How the impacts of college debt trickle down generations, the latest news in Hollywood, LA City Councilman Mike Bonin's love of superheroes.
Tough choices for families as student debt spans generations
As student debt piles up, a new generation of college students are feeling the bind from family loan obligations that have stretched across decades.
"We're in the early stages of a major social transformation," said Josh Boak, reporter at the Associated Press. "Right now there's about $1.2 trillion in outstanding student loans. We've seen that share disproportionately now belong to people who are older than forty."
That has major consequences for children and the families they support, said Boak, especially as children get ready to head off to college themselves.
Boak explores this issue further in his article, "A multigenerational hit: Student debt traps parents and kids."
What the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal could mean for CA
American trade negotiators have struck a deal with 11 nations along the Pacific Rim.
The accord links 40 percent of the global economy, cutting tariffs and streamlining trade between the countries.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal comes after more than six years of talks— disagreements often caused negotiations to stall— and is part of a plan by the Obama Administration to strengthen American influence in the Asia-Pacific region.
There will be winners and losers in the deal (if it passes), but economists say it could be a boon for some California staples.
Joining Take Two to discuss:
- , Wall Street Journal reporter
- Jock O'Connell, international trade advisor at Beacon Economics
Tijuana River Valley agreement reached to clean up water
An agreement to clean up the Tijuana River Valley was signed Monday by the International Boundary and Water Commission.
Tires, trash and general nastiness is what you'd typically find in the river, which flows downstream, winding through northern Mexico, before ending up in the ocean near Imperial Beach in San Diego.
Since the river starts in Mexico and ends up in the States, determining who is responsible for the clean up has been a long-standing problem.
Joining Take Two to discuss:
- Paloma Aguirre of , a group which advocates for marine conservation
To listen to the full interview, click on the blue audio player above.
'The Grinder' executive producer Nicholas Stoller talks show's inspiration
"The Grinder" debuted on Fox last week. The sitcom revolves around brothers Dean and Stewart, played by Rob Lowe and Fred Savage, respectively.
Dean spent years playing a lawyer as the star of a courtroom drama called, well, "The Grinder." After his show gets canceled, Dean decides to move back home and pursue a career as a real lawyer. Hilarity ensues.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mybEO-Hb0Y
Nicholas Stoller is the show's executive producer. He spoke with host Alex Cohen about the inspiration behind the plot, which often makes fun of TV courtroom shows.
Stoller says that -- for the production team -- writing for Dean's show is one of the most fun parts of the process. "Everyone has a million pitches on the show within the show," Stoller says. "Not only because it's fun to parody that kind of thing, but I'm sure a part of all us -- especially all comedy writers -- kind of wishes we were writing serious stuff once in a while."
Stoller adds that Dean's "Grinder" could be its own show.
"It's not that pushed, in terms of what you actually see when you turn on the TV these days," Stoller says.
Press the blue play button above to hear more.
On the Lot: Hollywood's lack of female directors, New York Film Festival
On this week's installment of On the Lot with
:
- A government employment watchdog wants to know why Hollywood has so few women in the director's chair.
- Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks are the big names of the New York Film Festival, thanks to "Bridge of Spies."
- Ridley Scott's "The Martian" had a big weekend at the box office.
The secret identity of an LA lawmaker: Mike Bonin, the superhero collector
We talk with a lot of newsmakers, community leaders and celebrities. Usually it's about their work, but rarely do we find out they have a secret identity.
Until now.
Host A Martinez's desk is legendary for having nearly 100 action figures of The Flash (mostly the Barry Allen version).
http://gfycat.com/IllegalIdleJoeyBut we discovered that someone out there we regularly talk to has his own collection of superhero action figures.
L.A. City Councilman Mike Bonin has been interviewed about tackling homelessness, jaywalking, regulating AirBnB and more.
He's also a huge fan of DC superheroes, with more than 100 figures in just his City Hall office (there are even more at his home).
"I have an addictive personality," he said. "I went on a spree that hasn't stopped yet."
This obsession started only a few years ago when his sister passed away. He then started to reconnect with aspects of his childhood, which included reading comic books.
It took his now-husband by surprise.
"My husband had been out of town for a few weeks, and he came back and discovered I had a bookshelf of probably 15 action figures," he recalled. "I had a secret identity!"
There was no Batman vs. Superman-level beef, however.
"He did allow me to put the Golden Age Flash and the Golden Age Green Lantern figures on our wedding cake," said Bonin.
The collection is a good icebreaker, he says, because it shows off his personal side to constituents and colleagues.
There are a couple of "white whales" that he's still on the lookout for: Liberty Belle, a superheroine from the 1940s and Robin from the Earth-Two universe who wears a yellow cape.
But he's got a secret tool in his utility belt for those figures that are MIA.
"I've gone so far as to hire someone to do custom action figures," he said.
To listen to the full interview, click on the blue audio player above.
Correction: An earlier version of this story misspelled the name of the character Liberty Belle. KPCC regrets the error.