Filmmaker Joe Dante is a big reason why I fell in love with movies as a kid. So it was a great pleasure to talk with him for my library’s podcast about his childhood in Livingston, New Jersey; about the effect that atomic-age monster movies had on his young mind; and about what the success of “Obsession” and “Backrooms” says about the future of moviegoing.
JOE O’BRIEN is a public librarian in Livingston, NJ, specializing in media & content. They host & produce L-Town Radio, the Livingston Public Library’s monthly podcast, and make fun, engaging videos for the library’s social media. Joe has won New Jersey Library Association Awards for Innovative Programming (2021) and Public Relations (2024), and was named one of Library Journal‘s “Movers & Shakers” for 2025.
Away from the library, Joe’s works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry have been published by various journals and websites. Joe founded the independent literary magazine FLAPPERHOUSE in 2014, and served as Managing Editor during its five-year run. They occasionally make lo-fi rock & folk music in their spare time.
Joe holds a BFA in film & television from New York University, and a Master of Information degree from Rutgers University. They previously worked for Playwrights Horizons, the Strand Bookstore, and the Associated Press. They live in West Orange, NJ.
Joe O'Brien 