Showing results by author "Terry Gross" in All Categories

Hear journalist and historian Burton Hersh, book critic Maureen Corrigan, and rock critic Ken Tucker on this edition of Fresh Air. Burton Hersh has chronicled the Kennedy family for over 35 years. His new book is Bobby and J. Edgar: The Historic Face-Off Between the Kennedys and J. Edgar Hoover that Transformed America. Hersh writes that, as attorney general, Robert Kennedy tried to keep his FBI director on a short leash.

Actress Lisa Kudrow on this edition of Fresh Air. She stars in the new film Wonderland. Set in 1980s Hollywood, it's about a mysterious mass murder that took place on Wonderland Avenue. Porn Star John Holmes was involved somehow, but the crime was never solved.

Crime writer James Ellroy and poet Maxine Kumin on this edition of Fresh Air. Ellroy sets his novels in 1950's L.A., where he grew up. His series of novels, L.A. Quartet was a best seller. His latest novel is called Hollywood Nocturnes. When he was ten, his mother was murdered near their L.A. home. He wrote an article about returning to L.A. to go through the police files on his mother in Gentleman's Quarterly.

Hear comedian and actor Garry Shandling, rock critic Ken Tucker, and book critic Maureen Corrigan on this edition of Fresh Air. Garry Shandling's 1992-1998 HBO series, The Larry Sanders Show, a parody of talk shows, is now out in a four-DVD box set.

Abstract painter Frank Stella and senior annalist at the National Security Archive Peter Kornbluh on this edition of Fresh Air. Sixty-four-year-old Frank Stella was first known in the late 1950s for his Black Paintings series - striped monochrome works that helped touch off the minimalism movement. Over the years his work evolved from the canvas to colorful geometrical configurations of sculpture and architectural dimension.

Actor Matt Damon on this edition of Fresh Air. He's touring the country promoting his new film, The Bourne Identity, a thriller about a man with amnesia flushed out of the Mediterranean Sea, riddled with bullet holes. Damon has been in many hit films, including The Talented Mr. Ripley, Saving Private Ryan and Good Will Hunting, which he co-wrote with close friend Ben Affleck.

Author Edna Gurewitsch and singer Eric Burdon on this edition of Fresh Air. Edna Gurewitsch is the wife of the late Dr. David Gurewitsch, who was Eleanor Roosevelt's personal physician from 1945 to her death in 1962. Gurewitsch has written a new book about the close personal relationship that developed between her husband and the former first lady, Kindred Souls: Eleanor Roosevelt and David Gurewitsch, 1945-1962.

Film director and writer Todd Solondz, film critic David Edelstein and music journalist and film maker Robert Gordon on this edition of Fresh Air. Todd Solonz's recent film Storytelling, inflamed some critics more than his previous two features, Welcome to the Dollhouse and Happiness.

Actors Morgan Freeman and Tim Roth on this archive edition of Fresh Air. Morgan Freeman is one of the stage and screen's most acclaimed actors for his ability to immerse himself in different roles. He originated the role of the chauffeur in the Broadway production of Driving Miss Daisy. Later he revived the role in the movie version, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award.

Novelist Pat Conroy on this edition of Fresh Air. Pat Conroy wrote The Great Santini and The Prince of Tides, which were both made into feature films. Conroy's book, My Losing Season, is now out in paperback.

Writer Alec Wilkinson and an archive interview with William Maxwell on this edition of Fresh Air. Alec Wilkinson remembers his friend and mentor William Maxwell, who died Monday at the age of 91. Wilkinson is a staff writer for The New Yorker, and has been there since 1980.

Writer David Sedaris and actor Alan Cumming, on this edition of Fresh Air. Sedaris is best known for his contributing work with public radio's This American Life. He's written three books of essays, Barrel Fever, Naked, and his newest Me Talk Pretty One Day which was just released in paperback. Scottish actor Alan Cumming co-wrote, co-directed, and is co-starring in the new film The Anniversary Party, along with Jennifer Jason Leigh.

Hear Combatants for Peace co-founders Bassam Aramin and Zohar Shapira, and conductor/composer Lorin Maazel, on this edition of Fresh Air. Bassim Aramin and Zohar Shapira are the cofounders of the Combatants for Peace, a group of Israeli and Palestinian individuals who were once involved in the cycle of violence in their area. Aramin was a member of the Fattah movement, and at the age of 17 began a seven-year sentence in an Israeli prison.

Hear film director Paul Thomas Anderson, film director David Cronenberg, actor Viggo Mortensen, writer/director Brad Bird, comedian/actor Patton Oswalt, writer/director Tamara Jenkins, director Jason Reitman, screenwriter Diablo Cody, and film critic David Edelstein on this edition of Fresh Air.

Hear filmmaker Brett Morgen and rock critic Ken Tucker on this edition of Fresh Air. Brett Morgan's new film is the hybrid documentary/animated feature Chicago 10. Morgen used a combination of archival footage, animation, and music to tell the story of eight anti-war protesters who were put on trial following the 1968 Democratic National Convention.

Hear writer Dan Koeppel and jazz critic Kevin Whitehead on this edition of Fresh Air. Dan Koeppel has written stories for National Geographic Adventure, Wired, Audobon, and Popular Science. He'll talk about the world's most popular fruit - the banana. His book, Banana: The Fate of the Fruit That Changed the World, tells how banana companies brought the banana from Central America to the United States and how an epidemic is threatening the future of the fruit.

Hear Drew Gilpin Faust and Dr. Richard Shannon on this edition of Fresh Air. Drew Gilpin Faust is the president of Harvard University, where she holds the Lincoln Professorship in History. In her new book, she writes about how the deaths - both in number and manner - during the American Civil War transformed the nation. Her new book is This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War.

Hear NASA climate scientist Dr. James Hansen, writer and scientist Mark Bowen, and actor Paul Dano, on this edition of Fresh Air. Dr. James Hansen says that the Bush administration has attempted to silence him since he began speaking out about global warming. Mark Bowen's recent book about Hansen is Censoring Science: Inside the Political Attack on Dr. James Hansen and the Truth of Global Warming.

Hear columnist Bob Sullivan and rock historian Ed Ward on this edition of Fresh Air. Bob Sullivan covers Internet scams and consumer fraud for MSNBC.com and appears regularly on NBC Nightly News. His new book is about the hidden fees found in many phone, cable, credit card, and other bills. It is Gotcha Capitalism: How Hidden Fees Rip You Off Every Day - And What You Can Do About It.

Hear British singer/songwriter Nick Lowe and rock critic Ken Tucker, on this edition of Fresh Air. Nick Lowe performs and has a conversation. His best known songs include "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding", "Cruel to be Kind", and "The Beast in Me" (which Johnny Cash recorded). Lowe's new album is At My Age. In the early 1970s, Lowe played London's pub rock scene in the band Brinsley Schwarz.