We kick off Season 4 of Book Spectrum with Rick Cullerton, who tells the story of how he overcame mental illness, anziety and verbal abuse to become a success in life and prominent vacation hotel owner in his new book Messed Up Like You.
Rick discusses his family life, how he learned entrepreneurship, how he hooked up with the wrong crowd, wound up in jail and later finally took over his own life — losing several pounds, turning his career aronud and becomng the man he truly wanted to be.
Weaved in and out of the book is Cullterton’s tale of how he got his pilot’s license, which is no small feat for anyone let alone a man with ADD and anziety.
Rick’s life is kind of like that of a movie character who had a lot of things happen to him, yet it all took place in the real world with no cameras, directors or actors.
Come to think of it, we are all messed up in one way or more.
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S3 E12 – Marilyn Monroe as You Never Knew Her with Jay Margolis
Many know Marilyn Monroe as the iconic movie star through her on-screen persona. On Book Spectrum’s Season 3 finale, we will bring you a look the Hollywood legend as you never knew her, far from the spotlight.
Biographer Jay Margolis, author of ‘My Maril, Marilyn Monroe, Ronald Reagan, Hollywood and Me.” tells Marilyn’s personal story through the eyes of Terry Karger, whose family were close friends of the sliver screen legend dating back to when she was known as “Norma Jeane” and the young narrator’s babysitter.
Jay discusses Terry’s memories of Ms. Monroe, who she really was when not pretending to be the “dizzy blonde” sterrotype, how Marilyn was an influence in Terry’s own life and career, her loves and relationships away from the paparazzi and tabloids as well as both Jay’s and Terry’s thoughts on the mysterious circumstances surrounding the acclaimed actress’ death.
In the book, Terry also recalls her interactions and personal relationships with other members of the Hollywood Hierarchy like Ronald Reagan, Jane Wyman and many more.
Pick the book up here: My Maril: Marilyn Monroe, Ronald Reagan, Hollywood, and Me: Karger, Terry, Margolis, Jay, Reagan, Michael: 9781637583265: Amazon.com: Books
About Terry Karger: Terry Karger graduated from the University of Southern California in 1963, one year after Marilyn Monroe’s death. She taught at Crescent Heights Elementary and would later teach at Westwood Elementary where her students had parents such as Micky Dolenz, Millie Perkins, Ronny Cox, and Richard Pryor.
About Jay Margolis: New York Times bestselling author Jay Margolis graduated summa cum laude from the University of Southern California and became a Jesse Unruh Research Scholar for his paper on African American Reparations. On October 15, 2014, The National Press Club in Washington, D.C. accepted Margolis’s book The Murder of Marilyn Monroe: Case Closed for display at the 37th Annual Book Fair & Authors’ Night, in partnership with Politics & Prose. The Murder of Marilyn Monroe: Case Closed was translated into Italian, French, and Russian and became a New York Times bestseller. Jay Margolis appeared in the 2014 United Kingdom documentary, directed by Renny Bartlett, titled The Missing Evidence: The Death of Marilyn Monroe, a Blink Films production in association with the Smithsonian Channel.
S3 E11 – Psychic Detective Nancy Orlen Weber
Have you ever watched a true crime program where a psychic was recruitied to aid investigtors with the solving of a crime or perhaps to find a missing person and wondered how they were able to do that? Joining us on Book Spectrum is Nancy Orlen Webter who has worked difficult and high profile cases and wrote about many of them in her book, The Life of a Psychic Detective.
During our conversation, Nancy discusses how she got into helping solve crimes and some of her most interesting investigations. While she has been instrumental in murder cases, she also tells of times when her talents led to happier endings like the finding of a missing loved one.
The book is not only about her work as a psychic detective, but a primer on how the reader can tap into his or her own intuitive talents.
Find out more about Nancy Orlen Weber and how to pick up her book on her website: The Life of a Psychic Detective – Nancy Orlen Weber
Host Chris Cordani

Chris Cordani, host of Book Spectrum, used to love reading the backs and sides of cereal boxes, which led to him soon hearing about this place called the Library. After asking, “The library? What’s going on down there?” he decided to check it out. Years later, he created this podcast.
Through his career, Chris has created, hosted and produced several genres of talk and entertainment radio programs, creating and growing several throughout his career. Among his work, Chris also hosts the internationally-syndicated Revenge of the 80s Radio show, produces two shows airing in the NY-Metro market and worked in several capacities for stations of various formats throughout New York, including longtime talk station WOR. Through his work, Cordani creates content for radio shows and podcasts, books and interviews top newsmakers, leaders and celebrities from varied fields including entertainment, business, current events, politics, sports and history.