Gary and Dad's Podcast: Stories from an Egyptian Immigrant
13 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 6 years ago - ★★★★ - 3 ratingsActor/producer Gary Lee Mahmoud (@garyleenyc) talks with his 80 year old dad about his life as an Egyptian immigrant, world history, and foreign affairs with a dash of humor thrown in. Dad brings to the table a variety of insights from his extensive travels and studies. Gary brings a microphone.
Read more at https://garyanddad.com/
Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
Episode 13 - Gulags, Mass Executions, and Julia Louis-Dreyfuss
April 13, 2018 18:42 - 31 minutes - 59.6 MBDad won’t bend over for anything…except his granddaughter. Gary and Dad went to see the new movie “The Death of Stalin” written and directed by VEEP creator Armando Iannucci. Verdict? If you’re into VEEP… and gulags and mass executions, then this movie is for you! Also, if you're ever in Egypt and need help, just yell "Muhammad!" And finally, a big thank you to Gary Cooper for being such a popular movie star that Dad named me after him. It was that or Fareed. Seriously. Thank you, Mr. Cooper.
Episode 12 - The Crown
February 23, 2018 16:26 - 36 minutes - 69.4 MBOn this day after Groundhog Day episode, Gary and Dad take a deep historical dive and discuss the Season 2 premier of the Netflix show The Crown. The episode centers around the British military intervention in Egypt after then Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalizes the Suez Canal. Dad offers Egyptian insight into the events of the time as he lived them. And despite knowing nothing about sports, he also correctly predicts the Super Bowl winner!
Episode 11 - Merry Christmas
December 25, 2017 17:07 - 26 minutes - 49.4 MBMuslim-raised, atheist dad talks about celebrating Christmas with young Gary. We also talk about Egyptian Christians and Voltron (because no Christmas would be complete without Voltron).
Episode 10 - Call me Grandpa! (and some other less important stuff)
December 15, 2017 01:25 - 34 minutes - 65.2 MBDad looks back on his first year as a grandfather. Much to dad's delight, his new granddaughter loves to read, finishes her food, and cleans up after herself. In other words, she does every thing Gary didn't. We also chat about the "Egyptian Jon Stewart," The Vietnam War, the Muslim Brotherhood, and how much dad hates beards (the facial hair, not fake wives for gay dudes).
Episode 9 - Religious Fundamentalism in the Middle East
June 30, 2016 22:28 - 46 minutes - 88.9 MBOn Father's Day, Gary and Dad sat down over some baklava to discuss the change in culture of Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries over the course of the 20th century through modern day. What was once a relatively relaxed liberal atmosphere in Dad's home country has become socially oppressive as religiously conservative values have spread out from Saudi Arabia and taken hold in many surrounding countries. We try to explore why.
Gary and Dad Episode 8 - First American Apartment and First Car
June 15, 2016 18:23 - 33 minutes - 63.8 MBDad discovers the enchanted American paradise of Staten Island. He uses a little bit of money and a whole lot of rope to MacGuyver a king size bed to try to be a Casanova with the ladies. And he happily gets his first car, rejecting all dealer suggested upgrades except one. You'll never guess why.
Episode 7 - The College Years
May 12, 2016 21:17 - 23 minutes - 44.9 MBDad shares some of his college year lessons including: Halva is best eaten alone, a new wristwatch isn't as exciting as it seems, there's no wrong way to have cake and tea, and "case" girls are shameless. Gary and Dad also spend a good 7 minutes trying to figure out if it's "albumin" or "albumen." Gary still doesn't know what either word means.
Episode 6 - Dad Goes To Japan
April 14, 2016 00:56 - 37 minutes - 72.7 MBDad takes his first business trip to Japan in 1981 and has a surprise reunion with his family in Egypt on the way back. In between, he learns that you don't drain the tub, toilet seats are for tourists, and the Japanese government will pay you to literally push people.
Episode 5 - Accents and Trips
April 04, 2016 00:47 - 26 minutes - 52.1 MBIn 1985, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger tells dad he can't understand his accent. Not much has changed since as his daily battles to phone in his prescription drugs demonstrate. Dad talks about a couple of vacations with Gary including his first trip to Disney when Uncle Rafaat had a brilliant plan to figure out where they parked the car. And nothing says warm memories like former U.S. President Richard Nixon.
Episode 4 - The Cold War
March 24, 2016 20:36 - 30 minutes - 57.5 MBAfter watching the Oscar nominated movie "Bridge of Spies," Gary asks dad about his memories of the Cold War - touching both on the history of the events and his perspective as an Egyptian. Dad recalls the two times the American military went on high nuclear alert - the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1961 and the Yom Kippur War 12 years later. Dad also teaches Gary how to pronounce "baklava."
Episode 3 - Happy 80th Birthday, Dad!
March 09, 2016 16:48 - 36 minutes - 69.9 MBWe celebrate dad's 80th birthday as he recalls some of his domestic and international travels, a little French history, and some of his problems with language, including on one occasion, demanding his "Jewish holidays."
Episode 2 - Growing Up in Egypt
March 03, 2016 00:52 - 36 minutes - 69.5 MBDad recalls living through World War II, Egyptian "medicine," a brief detour in the army, and making sure to hide the knives before his first drink.
Episode 1 - Dad comes to America
February 23, 2016 22:52 - 33 minutes - 63.1 MBDad recalls Egyptian “democracy,” his trip to Germany to hang out on the Berlin Wall and “eat Christmas” and how he ultimately worked his way out of Egypt to come to America.