Are We Witnessing Podcaster Chris Ryan’s Apex Mountain?
Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso
Higher Ground
4.8 • 1.5K Ratings
🗓️ 12 April 2026
⏱️ 89 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened. On the heels of CR month coming to a close on The Rewatchables, we’re joined this week by The Ringer’s beloved editorial director, Chris Ryan.
He’s been hailed as the Shohei Ohtani of podcasting, the basketball bard of Bob & Barbara's bar, the face of The Ringer, the Joe Rogan of the left, and perhaps most aptly, by Bill Simmons himself, “the Prince of Philadelphia.”
We begin with a roundup of today’s television, featuring The Pitt (6:38), DTF St. Louis (9:45), The Madison (11:25), and more (12:30). Then, we get into Chris’ Philly upbringing (14:22), the influence of his film critic father, the late Desmond Ryan (22:50), and what first inspired him to become a writer (34:53).
On the back-half, Ryan reflects on the “Meet Me in the Bathroom” era of New York City (41:45), finding his voice through his blog Gabe Said “We’re Into Movements” (44:40), the halcyon days of Grantland (55:30), his legendary impressions (58:50), and what he wants for the next chapter, on and off the mic (1:21:20).
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is Talk Easy. I'm Stan Forgo, so welcome to the show. |
| 0:19.5 | Welcome to the show. |
| 0:41.0 | Today, beloved podcast host, Chris Ryan. He's been hailed as the show Hey Otani of podcasting, the basketball bard of Bob and Barbara's bar, the face of the ringer, the Joe Rogan of the left, and my personal |
| 0:46.8 | favorite from Bill Simmons himself, the Prince of Philadelphia. Officially, Ryan is the editorial director |
| 0:53.2 | at the ringer and the co-host of the TV and Culture podcast, The Watch, |
| 0:58.0 | alongside his longtime collaborator and friend, writer Andy Greenwald. |
| 1:02.7 | Each week, the two break down what's happening across TV, |
| 1:06.4 | prestige dramas, streaming hits, French thrillers, |
| 1:09.2 | while also tracking the comings and goings of the |
| 1:11.6 | industry at large. |
| 1:13.3 | Ryan is also a staple across the Ringer network. |
| 1:16.5 | He's the unofficial third chair of the big picture alongside Sean Vennessy and Amanda Dobbins, |
| 1:21.3 | a frequent guest on the Bill Simmons podcast, especially when the Eagles and 76ers are struggling, |
| 1:26.4 | and of course a frequent fixture of the rewatchables, |
| 1:29.4 | which recently closed out what has been lovingly referred to as CR Month, |
| 1:33.7 | a five-episode celebration of both Ryan and some of his favorite films. |
| 1:38.3 | But because I wasn't exactly ready for CR Month to end, |
| 1:41.8 | and because I felt that after the last few weeks of programming here |
| 1:45.3 | on Talk Easy, we could all use a bit of levity, I invited Chris on to talk about some things |
| 1:50.4 | he doesn't often talk about on air, namely himself. And so today, after a little TV roundup at |
| 1:57.8 | the top, we dive into his origin story. Coming of age in Philly, |
| 2:02.3 | the influence of his film critic father, |
... |
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