In this candid and wonderfully unpredictable conversation, I sit down with Samuel Garza Bernstein. An award-winning author, screenwriter, playwright, and lifelong storyteller whose career spans film, television, theater, and Hollywood’s Golden Age. Samuel has written about and brought to life some of Hollywood’s most fascinating personalities, including books about legendary stars Joan Crawford, Cesar Romero, and most recently Roddy McDowall. But this conversation isn’t really about his impressive résumé. It’s about the man behind the stories and the way he sees the world. Samuel grew up with unexpected trips, packed suitcases, and a father whose bipolar disorder could send the family off on another grand and sometimes unconventional adventure. One minute life was here; the next, it might be somewhere halfway around the world. That unpredictable upbringing, Samuel believes, helped shape the storyteller he would become. He developed a fascination with people, personalities, and most importantly the boundless power of imagination. His philosophy is simple but powerful: if you can imagine it, you can create it. We talk about Hollywood’s Golden Age and the bold, complicated, larger-than-life women who captured Samuel’s imagination. We talk about the female characters and actresses who influenced him, what they represented to him growing up, and how those powerful personalities helped shape his creative voice and sense of identity. Today, Samuel divides his time between Porto, Portugal, and Los Angeles. We talk about Portugal’s remarkably low crime rate, and the country’s controversial and often misunderstood approach to drug decriminalization and harm reduction. And because no good conversation stays in one lane, we eventually get into some decidedly heavier territory: political tribalism, critical thinking, and homelessness in Los Angeles. But rest assured it never gets too heavy. Samuel is quite possibly, the best cocktail-party guest you could ever end up chatting to.
