David Rakoff

Writer and humorist David Rakoff's writing was witty and sardonic and very funny. He died in August at the age of 47. He was on the Lopate Show in October 2010 to talk about his book Half Empty, which won the 2011 Thurber Prize for American Humor. We’re replaying a selection of that interview now to remember him.

Listen to other interviews with Dakid Rakoff here.

Writer David Rakoff died Thursday at the age of 47. His humorous essays examined a wide range of subjects, from his annoyance at first-world problems to undertaking a 21-day fast to his own bout with cancer. His most recent essay collection,  Half Empty, won the 2011 Thurber Prize for American Humor. He was a frequent contributor to This American Life, and the author of the essay collections Don’t Get Too Comfortable and Fraud. He responded to our Guest Picks question “What’s one thing you are a fan of that people might not expect?” with “As someone often seen as hating everything and being immune to pleasure, which isn’t true, I love everything (except sports). I’m just scared of it.” He was on the Leonard Lopate Show a number of times, and was always a generous guest. You can listen to those interviews below.

David Rakoff stopped by The Leonard Lopate Show to share some of his favorite books, movies and more with us.

David Rakoff, writer at large for GQ and regular contributor to This American Life, defends pessimism. His new book Half Empty includes reporting and personal essays, and examines the realities of our ever-optimistic culture to find that, most of the time, the best is not yet to come and dreams don’t come true.

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