EGG, the Arts Show

American nonfiction television program

EGG, the Arts Show

Narrated by| Elaine Stritch
Country of origin| United States
Original language| English
No. of seasons| 4
Original release
Network| PBS
Release| January 13, 2000 (2000-01-13) –
April 8, 2005 (2005-04-08)

EGG, the arts show is an American nonfiction television program that aired on PBS from January 13, 2000 to April 8, 2005. EGG documented both the famous and the unusual aspects and projects of classical and modern arts; its narrator was Elaine Stritch.

Produced by Thirteen/WNET New York, Jeff Folmsbee served as Executive Producer. Mark Mannucci was series producer. EGG won a Peabody Award in 2002.[1] Trio (owned by NBC/Vivendi Universal Entertainment), the pop culture/popular arts entertainment cable network has aired the series in reruns.

Pat Rabdau worked as a producer and cameraman.

## Episodes

[edit]

### Season 1 (2000)

[edit]

No.
overall| No. in
series| Title| Original release date

|
|
|

1| 1| "Who Needs It"| January 13, 2000 (2000-01-13)
2| 2| "Working Dancers"| January 20, 2000 (2000-01-20)
3| 3| "The Body"| January 27, 2000 (2000-01-27)
4| 4| "Space"| February 3, 2000 (2000-02-03)
5| 5| "Homegrown Sounds"| February 10, 2000 (2000-02-10)
6| 6| "Love, Longing, Desire"| February 17, 2000 (2000-02-17)
7| 7| "Money, Greed, Power"| February 24, 2000 (2000-02-24)
8| 8| "Machismo"| March 2, 2000 (2000-03-02)
9| 9| "What Is the Ideal Woman?"| March 23, 2000 (2000-03-23)
10| 10| "Who Am I?"| March 30, 2000 (2000-03-30)
11| 11| "Theater on the Edge"| April 6, 2000 (2000-04-06)
12| 12| "Who's the Art Boss?"| April 13, 2000 (2000-04-13)

### Season 2 (2001-2002)

[edit]

No.
overall| No. in
series| Title| Original release date

|
|
|

13| 1| "How to Be Happy/Body Language"| April 6, 2001 (2001-04-06)

Launching its first national season, this series presents new episodes that take viewers off the beaten path to focus on the excitement, diversity and raw energy of the arts nationwide. The first episode covers works by visual artist Jeff Koons, the ancient practice of bonsai, the poetry of 85-year-old retired dry cleaner Isidore Elfman and the art of yodeling, while the second offers an immersion course in three forms of body language

14| 2| "Flight"| April 13, 2001 (2001-04-13)

The first episode explores our fascination with flight and how it has inspired works of arts and music throughout the ages.

15| 3| "Hair!"| April 20, 2001 (2001-04-20)

The first episode combs America for four stories inspired by hair and delivers a full-bodied, manageable show.

16| 4| "Unnatural Science"| April 27, 2001 (2001-04-27)

The first episode looks at how art and science can miraculously converge.

17| 5| "Collectors"| May 4, 2001 (2001-05-04)

The first episode visits some of the most inspirational collectors and collections in America.

18| 6| "The Desert"| May 11, 2001 (2001-05-11)

The first episode examines how the desert can be fertile ground for human expression.

19| 7| "Made in the U.S.A."| May 18, 2001 (2001-05-18)

The first episode celebrates the ingenuity of homegrown American artists.

20| 8| "What's the Big Idea"| May 25, 2001 (2001-05-25)

The first episode examines art that is about ideas, questioning what art is and what it can be.

21| 9| "Close to Home"| June 1, 2001 (2001-06-01)

EGG profiles Jeanine Pohlhaus, Chris Verene, Gregory Crewdson and Joe Rodriguez - photographers who take intimacy as their muse and pictures that hit close to home. Is the camera friend or foe? Are they violating the privacy of their subjects or communicating human stories that need to be told?

22| 10| "Hair (encore)"| June 8, 2001 (2001-06-08)

EGG combs America for four stories inspired by hair and delivers a full-bodied, manageable show. The episode covers "hair artist" Wenda Gu, elaborate African hairstyles, a performance of the musical Hair by a community theater troupe in Apple Valley, Minnesota, and the crafting of violin bows from Chinese horsehair.

23| 11| "The Play's the Thing"| June 15, 2001 (2001-06-15)

Where do plays come from? How are they made? EGG asks an actor, a theater company and a playwright to explore the journey words take from the page to the stage. Bill Irwin creates a theater piece from Samuel Beckett's Texts for Nothing, a series of plotless ruminations on existence; the Tectonic Theater Company crafts interviews with residents of Laramie, Wyoming, into a play about the murder of Matthew Shepard; and August Wilson adds to his cycle of 10 plays that chronicle the African-American experience in the 20th century.

24| 12| "Art: Who Needs It?"| June 22, 2001 (2001-06-22)

This program demonstrates how the arts can enrich lives and change the way people think - and how art can be fun. Gene Pool's "can" suit is powerful enough to make even the grumpiest New Yorkers stop in their tracks, ponder and ...smile. Cornerstone Theater Company of Los Angeles takes theater to communities across the country - without a cast; community members become the performers. Four artists place their works on the streets. And Hawaiian steel guitar players, like the Campbell Brothers, move congregations with their sound and take their highly spirited and emotional music to secular audiences all over the country.

25| 13| "Working Dancers"| June 29, 2001 (2001-06-29)

Joy. Pain. Discipline. Sweat. EGG looks at the life of the working dancer, from the tenderfeet, new to the professional world, to company veterans; from classic ballerinas to modern dancers who push dance to a new level. The episode features a 72-person performance staged in New York's Grand Central station; Pilobolus, a modern dance company; the Oregon Ballet; and 62-year-old dancer Dudley Williams, a 35-year veteran of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

26| 14| "The Body"| July 6, 2001 (2001-07-06)

This program looks at the body as art's most classic and enduring subject.

27| 15| "Space"| July 13, 2001 (2001-07-13)

This episode looks at the ways artists have explored deep space while staying within Earth's atmosphere.

28| 16| "Off the Charts"| July 20, 2001 (2001-07-20)

This episode looks at music by gifted musicians who play for the thrill of it and to keep the music they love alive.

29| 17| "Money, Greed, Power"| July 27, 2001 (2001-07-27)

This episode explores the questions of how much money and power is enough, and why both are so addictive.

30| 18| "Who Am I?"| August 24, 2001 (2001-08-24)

This episode features the work of four photographers with vastly different approaches to demonstrate the unusual capacity of the lens to reveal identity.

31| 19| "Machismo"| August 31, 2001 (2001-08-31)

This episode explores what it means to be a macho man today.

32| 20| "What is the Ideal Woman"| September 7, 2001 (2001-09-07)

This episode looks at the experiences and expectations of women through the eyes of today's artists.

33| 21| "Scrambled Eggs 2"| September 28, 2001 (2001-09-28)

Highlights from past episodes are featured. Included: pinhole cameras; polka music from Pulaski, Wis.; Swiss artist Pipilotti Rist; sacred music played on Hawaiian steel guitar.

34| 22| "Scrambled Eggs 3"| October 5, 2001 (2001-10-05)

Showcasing the best of previous episodes, this program examines the human body as the subject of art, body adornment and butoh, Japan's dance of darkness.

35| 23| "Scrambled Eggs 4"| October 12, 2001 (2001-10-12)

“Scrambled Eggs 4,” a compilation of highlights from past episodes. Featured: bonsai; the New York Fringe Festival; artist Nancy Berson's “Human Race Machine” (video of faces morphing from one race to another); choreographer Ron Brown; violin-bow making; and filmmaker Craig Baldwin's collages.

36| 24| "Scrambled Eggs 5"| October 19, 2001 (2001-10-19)

“Scrambled Eggs 5,” a program featuring highlights from past episodes, features West Texas's Chianti Foundation, where large installations are on display; Los Angeles's Museum of Jurassic Technology (a mix of modern art and pop-culture artifacts); and Robert Pinsky's Favorite Poet Project.

37| 25| "Let's Get Physical!"| November 2, 2001 (2001-11-02)

“Let's Get Physical” explores the role of body parts in art. Included: a pianist's hands; the Alvin Ailey Dancers.

38| 26| "Working Actors"| November 9, 2001 (2001-11-09)

This episode follows three actors at different stages of their careers, each trying to tackle very different material.

39| 27| "Meet the Micrecians"| November 16, 2001 (2001-11-16)

This episode explore the micro-cinema movement -- showing small, independent films in alternative non-theatre venues -- and the unique vision of the filmmakers behind it.

40| 28| "Paint by Numbers"| November 23, 2001 (2001-11-23)

This episode explores how anyone can make art by setting the artist inside you free.

41| 29| "Working Dancers 2"| November 30, 2001 (2001-11-30)

This episode explores what it means to be a working dancer.

42| 30| "The History of Sound, Part III"| January 18, 2002 (2002-01-18)

Included: the Smithsonian's Folkways archive; Nepalese Tuva singers; Swiss composer (or “sound artist”) Christian Marclay; and “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” composer Tan Dun.

43| 31| "Kiss and Tell"| January 25, 2002 (2002-01-25)

This episode explores what happens when artists share their private lives with the public.

44| 32| "The Play's the Thing"| February 1, 2002 (2002-02-01)

This episode puts the spotlight on theater with stories about playwrights at different "stages" of their careers.

45| 33| "Men Have Feelings, Too"| February 8, 2002 (2002-02-08)

This episode features various male artists attempting to explain why men act tough and have difficulty communicating their feelings.

46| 34| "The Road"| February 15, 2002 (2002-02-15)

This episode examines giant roadside sculpture, car design, the art of Ed Ruscha and grass-roots radio.

47| 35| "A Day at the Met"| February 22, 2002 (2002-02-22)

This episode celebrates the extraordinary Metropolitan Museum of Art and the importance and power of art.

### Season 3 (2002-2003)

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No.
overall| No. in
series| Title| Original release date

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48| 1| "Giving Up the Ghost"| September 20, 2002 (2002-09-20)

Features three artists who probe life's one inescapable truth: We're all going to die. Sally Mann photographs death and its beauty. Grammy Award-winning music legend Ralph Stanley sings Appalachian songs about longing and loss. And Tim Bovard, the taxidermist-in-residence at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, turns lions, gorillas, and birds that have met their maker into gorgeous works of art.

49| 2| "Eat Me"| September 27, 2002 (2002-09-27)

A smorgasbord of food as subject of art. The short film The History of Food in Art begins with cave paintings and ends in Will Cotton's idea of Candyland. Catherine Chalmers' photographs of caterpillars, frogs, and praying mantises devouring their prey illustrate the principle of "eat or be eaten." Saxton Freymann makes whimsical sculptures out of leeks, green and red peppers, pumpkins, and potatoes. And Wim Delvoye's Cloaca is an art installation that replicates the human digestive system—right down to the very last poop.

50| 3| "Freedom"| October 4, 2002 (2002-10-04)

Three artists face the question, "What is the price of freedom?" Iranian-born Shirin Neshat creates works in film, video, photography, and performance that explore the injustices against women in her homeland. Graphic novelist Joe Sacco ventures to war-torn Bosnia and Palestine to document the struggles of the civilians who live there. And The Onion, a weekly comic newspaper, parodies the real news and exercises the constitutional right to freedom of expression; produced by Josh Block.

51| 4| "Slippery When Wet"| October 11, 2002 (2002-10-11)

This episode is about H2O and art. Mary Zimmerman's Metamorphoses is making a big splash—the whole play takes place in a 27-foot-long pool. Connie Imboden's underwater black-and-white photos are eerie and surreal; taking them has helped her conquer her lifelong fear of water. Ice sculptors compete at the 2002 Winter Olympics Art Trials, and surf photographers turn breaking waves, boards, and beach babes into works of art.

52| 5| "Family"| October 18, 2002 (2002-10-18)

Three segments on families in art: For more than 30 years, filmmaker Ross McElwee has documented the everyday events of his life and family and, in the process, explored questions that are important to everyone. Great American playwright Edward Albee mines the ins and outs of the dysfunctional family in his body of work, which includes Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Three Tall Women, and, most recently, The Goat. And from the Mills Brothers to the Everly Brothers and beyond, "Sibling Harmony" proves that some families not only get along, but sing along, too.

53| 6| "The Mysteries of Life Explained to You"| October 25, 2002 (2002-10-25)

Features artists whose work tackles the "big questions." Richard Foreman has been creating experimental theater since the 1960s, based on the premise that life makes no sense. David Wilson's Museum of Jurassic Technology is a modern-day cabinet of wonders, challenging ideas of what's real, what's not, and what a museum can be. Andy Goldsworthy's art explores the mysteries of nature and the beauty of life's impermanence.

54| 7| "Inspiration"| November 1, 2002 (2002-11-01)

Actor Liev Schreiber, jazz musician Joshua Redman, conceptual artist Vik Muniz, and painter Ann Gale talk about how they create their art. Also featured are comments from author John Updike, painter Chuck Close, and visual artist-architect Vito Acconci.

55| 8| "Gimme Shelter"| November 8, 2002 (2002-11-08)

Profiles two architectural visionaries and looks at the future of the American skyscraper. For 30 years, Paolo Soleri has been working in the Arizona desert to build a new kind of city. Samuel Mockbee and his students build fantastic modern homes from recycled materials—for the nation's poorest.

56| 9| "The Voice"| November 15, 2002 (2002-11-15)

Celebrates the power and range of that most extraordinary musical instrument—the human voice—with opera tenor Juan Diego Florez, rocker Ani DiFranco, monks of the Drepung Gomang Monastery, gospel singer Sam Moore, poet Tracie Morris, and Albanian folk singer Besim Muriqui.

57| 10| "Jerry Stiller & Anne Meara: Jerry Needs a Hobby"| January 10, 2003 (2003-01-10)

In search of a hobby for himself, Jerry looks for inspiration in the following segments: Regent, ND native Gary Greff tries to revive his dying hometown by creating the "Enchanted Highway," a stretch of I-94 peppered with enormous metal sculptures. Men ranging in age from 10 to 80 spend a few weeks at an intensive workshop on the art of barbershop quartet singing at Harmony College. And Sid Laverents, age 93, explains the creative work he's done as a prolific filmmaker.

58| 11| "Jerry Stiller & Anne Meara: Jerry Goes Macho"| January 17, 2003 (2003-01-17)

Jerry ponders his masculinity with segments about playwright David Mamet, who captures the essence of the male psyche in his works; dry cleaner/poet Isidore Elfman, who writes and performs love poems inspired by his wife; laid-off steelworkers in Bethlehem, PA who use theater to help them come to terms with their experiences; and Richard Serra's massive creation Switch, six rolled 50-foot sheets of metal that dramatize the artistic concepts of space, mass, volume, form, and light.

59| 12| "Jerry Stiller & Anne Meara: Jerry Feels Sad"| January 24, 2003 (2003-01-24)

Four documentary segments convince Jerry that art is good for the soul: Jeff Koons' playful sculptures of puppies seem to have anti-depressant properties. South of downtown Los Angeles, workers in an auto repair shop express themselves and perk up the dismal landscape by making "muffler men"—sculptures crafted from spare muffler parts. A trip to Pulaski, WI yields valuable lessons about what it really means to polka. And bonsai master Harry Hirao scours the California desert for material for his projects, which aim for the perfect blend of harmony, shape, and balance.

60| 13| "Jack LaLanne's Dance Spectacular"| January 31, 2003 (2003-01-31)

Legendary physical trainer Jack LaLanne introduces segments on dance: Oregon Ballet Theatre star Tracy Taylor defines ballet and shares the joys and pains of the art. Choreographer David Parsons captures human "flight" by shining a strobe light on dancers just as they leap into the air. Inspired by Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly, salsa dancer Johnny Vazquez teaches would-be dancers in Southern California and competes around the world. And Dudley Williams, 63, a veteran Alvin Ailey dancer, explains why age adds depth to dance performances.

61| 14| "EGG's Big Experiment"| February 7, 2003 (2003-02-07)

A rapid-fire introduction to the work of a wide variety of artists: painter Ida Applebroog, sculptor Ron Mueck, performance poet Tracie Morris, installation artists Vanessa Beecroft and Zoe Leonard, third-generation puppeteer Basil Twist, collage artist Bradley Rubinstein, musician Aimee Mann (former lead singer of 'Til Tuesday), hearing-impaired swing dancer Joseph Templin, painter Eric Fischl, photographer Adrienne Salinger, Puerto Rican troubadour Hiram Martinez, the Dance Brazil troupe, metal sculptor Rob De Mar, elderly ballroom dancer Bel Kauffman, and Elizabeth Streb's acrobatic dancers.

62| 15| "Best of Egg: Love, Fear, Hope and Dreams"| February 14, 2003 (2003-02-14)

Photographer Connie Imboden, cartoonist Joe Sacco, and a group of young singers confront their fears, hopes, loves, and dreams in order to intensify their work.

63| 16| "EGG's Lucky Loyal Viewer Sweepstakes"| February 21, 2003 (2003-02-21)

The luckiest loyal viewer presents his or her favorite episode. Also, Sally Mann's photographs of her deceased family dog, opera tenor Juan Diego Florez, and Andy Goldworthy's art about nature's mysteries.

64| 17| "The Spencer Kayden Show"| February 28, 2003 (2003-02-28)

The talented star of Urinetown hosts half an hour of coolness and weirdness.

65| 18| "When Good Puppets Go Bad"| April 4, 2003 (2003-04-04)

Characters from the puppet comedy group the Elementals look back at the history of TV puppets; Tom Friedman creates masterpieces from toilet paper, laundry detergent, bubble gum, and toothpicks; taxidermist Tim Bovard creates elaborate dioramas with actual lions, gorillas, exotic birds, and countless other stuffable animals for the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County; and "confessional" artist Tracey Emin uses her own experiences as the themes in her installations, photographs, films, poems, blankets, and drawings.

66| 19| "When Pad Puppets Apologize"| April 11, 2003 (2003-04-11)

The Elementals puppets return to make up for their inappropriately raunchy appearance on the previous program by introducing more wholesome segments. Topics include yodeling cowboy Wylie Gustafson and the National Old-Time Country Festival in Avoca, IA; citizens of Apple Valley, MN auditioning for roles in a production of Hair; and Minnesota's annual State Fair Crop Art Competition, where entries include a portrait of Jesse Ventura rendered in flax with a sprinkling of oats and Edvard Munch's The Scream done in canola, corn, and sorghum.

67| 20| "Broadway Workshop"| April 18, 2003 (2003-04-18)

Behind the scenes at the series' own original television musical.

### Season 4 (2004)

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No.
overall| No. in
series| Title| Original release date

|
|
|

68| 1| "The Jesus, Buddha & Mohammed Show"| February 13, 2004 (2004-02-13)

### Season 5 (2005)

[edit]

No.
overall| No. in
series| Title| Original release date

|
|
|

69| 1| "Body Parts"| December 21, 2005 (2005-12-21)

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Peabody Award Archives Archived 2006-04-15 at the Wayback Machine

## External links

[edit]

* Official website
* Past episodes on Little Big Pictures

*[No.]: Number