Lee Milteer, Spalding Gray & More

In this June 1993 episode of The Dini Petty Show, Spalding Gray joins Dini to talk about the craft behind the autobiographical monologue. Gray, a classically trained actor, explains that he turned to monologues out of a desire for connection because novel-writing felt too solitary. He describes a live audience as a catalyst for memory, where one thought unlocks another, almost like a public form of psychoanalysis.

He reveals that his 90-minute shows are built from organized outlines and index cards rather than memorized scripts, and he recalls filming The Killing Fields, where the seeds of Swimming to Cambodia were planted. Gray also criticizes the rehearsed, pre-screened anecdotes of American talk shows like Letterman and Carson. He reflects on Monster in a Box, about his struggle to write a novel, and on Gray's Anatomy, which he calls his most accessible work because it deals with navigating the medical profession and the fear of mortality.

Jeff Adams and Lee Milteer also appear in this episode. The full broadcast is available to license from the Dini Petty Show archive for broadcast, documentary and research use. Add it to your quote request to get started.