Sharkey's Place: Story Time!

Sharkey's Place: Story Time!

From Sharkey's Place by Rick Regan

March 27, 2026 · 29 min · Season 2 · Episode 7

About this episode

The episode explores themes of artistic ownership, the price of fame, and the power of storytelling in a bar setting.

In Season 2, Episode 7 of Sharkey's Place , the bar in Milbridge, Maine, transforms into an impromptu performance space. The episode explores themes of artistic ownership, the price of fame, and the power of storytelling. The Coffee Revolution The evening begins with Kirini and Sandra discussing their "fresh-faced" new helper, who has turned the bar's coffee service into a "cash machine". The Roaster : The new employee taught herself to use the coffee roaster via YouTube and now claims the machine is "saying, 'Feed me! Feed me beans!'". Profitability : Kirini notes that there is as much money in coffee as there is in beer, successfully selling to "the boys" in the morning. Artistic Integrity and the "Sandras" Neil Ruffin, an artist and poet, arrives smelling of turpentine and paint. He is finishing a series of paintings of Sandra, referred to as "the Sandras". The Burn Order : Sandra instructs Neil to burn four of the paintings. Ownership of Image : She refuses to sell them to a client named Alexi because she doesn't want nude images of herself "in every room" or shared among his friends. Neil agrees, stating that since it is her image, he must retract it if she objects to its…

People in this episode

Host: Rick Regan

Guests: Neil Ruffin, Boots Moran

Topics covered

  • artistic ownership
  • price of fame
  • power of storytelling
  • coffee business
  • artistic integrity
  • best-seller list

Keywords

  • art
  • storytelling
  • coffee
  • fame
  • best-seller
  • ownership
  • performance

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Times Best Sellers

Books & works: Five Nickels

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