Showing results by author "Terry Gross" in All Categories

Rockabilly singer Wanda Jackson and actor Robert Forster on this edition of Fresh Air. Wanda Jackson had several hits in the late 50s and early 60s, including "Mean Mean Man". "Let's Have a Party" and "Fujiyama Mama".

Actress Angie Dickinson and Professor Gerald Early on this edition of Fresh Air. Angie Dickinson played an undercover cop in the TV series Police Woman from 1974-78. Her film roles include Dressed to Kill, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, Pretty Maids all in a Row, and Ocean's Eleven which she made in 1960 with the Rat Pack: Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr.

Comedienne Carol Burnett on this edition of Fresh Air. Carol Burnett earned wide critical and popular acclaim and an Emmy for her work on The Garry Moore Show (from 1959-62). The Carol Burnett Show debuted in 1967 and won 22 Emmys in a run of more than a decade.

Comic book artist and writer Frank Miller and keyboard player and record producer Ray Manzarek on this edition of Fresh Air. Frank Miller transformed Batman into a brooding, tortured vigilante in his remakes of the classic Batman comic: The Dark Knight Returns and The Dark Knight Strikes Again.

Khaled Hosseini's new novel is A Thousand Splendid Suns, and it is currently at the top of the New York Times best seller list. His debut novel, The Kite Runner, about a young man who returns to Afghanistan after a long absence, has been on the best seller list for two years, as both a hardcover and paperback.

They Might Be Giants band members John Linnell and John Flansburgh on this edition of Fresh Air. The wacky musical duo has just published a children's book (with companion CD) entitled Bed, Bed, Bed. Linnell and Flansburgh have known each other since childhood, and they started They Might Be Giants in Brooklyn, New York, where they still have a phone machine called Dial-a-Song.

On this edition, Fresh Air pays tribute to Sam Phillips, the founder of Sun Records who died Wednesday at the age of 80. Terry Gross speaks with music writer Peter Guralnick and songwriter and singers Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash. Peter Guralnick is the author of a two volume biography of Elvis Presley: Last Train to Memphis and Careless Love.

Singer and Songwriter Tom Waits on this archive edition of Fresh Air. Since the 1973 release of his first album, Closing Time, Waits has won over fans with his original songwriting and distinctive, gravely vocal style. One reviewer calls Waits "the Ultimate hobo boho, a Jack-in-the-box cum storyteller." Musicians including Johnny Cash, Bruce Springsteen, and Rod Stewart have recorded covers of his songs.

Hear investigative reporter for The New York Times Philip Shenon and the first director of the White House Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives, John DiIulio, Jr. In his new book, Philip Shenon looks into the missed evidence and the ignored clues as well as the political considerations that interfered with the 9/11 Commission's work. His book is The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation.

Equestrians David and Karen O'Connor and pianist Bill Charlap on this Fresh Air. Only the second husband and wife team to share a medal in Olympic history, the O'Connors helped win the U.S. a bronze medal and a gold (David O'Connor in the individual event) in the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. Internationally recognized equestrians, they won a silver medal for the U.S. in the 1996 Olympics. In 2000, the U.S. won the bronze in the Team Three Day Event Dressage.

Hear actor and director Denzel Washington and book critic Maureen Corrigan on this edition of Fresh Air. Denzel Washington directs and acts in the new film The Great Debaters, inspired by the true story of Wiley College's winning debate team of the early 1930s.

On this edition of Fresh Air, host Terry Gross speaks with Michael Pollan. To learn more about the meat industry in the US he bought a calf, and then followed the process from fattening it to slaughter. He wrote about it in the Sunday, March 31st issue of The New York Times Magazine. The article "Power Steer" is the cover story. Pollan is also the author of the book, The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World.

Actor Michael Caine on this edition of Fresh Air. Caine has made over 70 films, from Alfie to Sleuth to Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and Hannah and Her Sisters. He has worked with such esteemed directors as Brian DePalma, John Huston, and Woody Allen.

Actress Sarah Jessica Parker on this edition of Fresh Air.

Fresh Air guest host Barbara Bogaev talks with actor Michael C. Hall from HBO's Six Feet Under. He plays David Fisher, the gay brother who co-runs a funeral home on the show. He's currently starring as Billy Flynn, an oily attorney in the Broadway revival of Chicago. James Earl Jones, of the astounding voice, talks about his memoir. And you'll hear a review of the foreign film Mostly Martha.

The Cuban Missile Crisis took place 40 years ago this week. Fresh Air talks with historian and former Kennedy aide Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. and Peter Kornbluh who directs the National Security Archive's Cuba Project. The organization obtained newly declassified documents about the Crisis. They've published the information in the new book The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962. The National Security Archive also helped organize the historic 40th anniversary conference held in Cuba last week.

We celebrate the centennial of Bing Crosby's birth with jazz critic and writer Gary Giddins. His biography of Bing Crosby is called, Bing Crosby: A Pocketful of Dreams - the Early Years, 1903-1940. From 1930s to the 50s, Crosby was a pop culture icon, dominating American entertainment with his hit records and movies.

Actor Dennis Hopper and actress and painter Mary Woronov on this rebroadcast edition of Fresh Air. Some of Hopper's films include Easy Rider, Apocalypse Now, Blue Velvet, Speed, Carried Away, Hoosiers, and Basquiat. He made his feature film debut in Rebel Without a Cause in 1955. In addition to acting, Hopper has directed films and written screenplays. He is also a photographer and an art collector.

Former US Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Ron Suskind on this edition of Fresh Air. The two have collaborated on the new book, The Price of Loyalty: George W. Bush, the White House, and the Education of Paul O'Neill. The book chronicles his nearly two years with the Bush administration.

Hear professor Randall Balmer, rock critic Ken Tucker, and TV critic David Bianculli on this edition of Fresh Air. Randall Balmer is professor of American religious history at Barnard College, Columbia University, and a visiting professor at Yale University Divinity School. He is also the editor-at-large for Christianity Today. His new book is God in the White House: A History: How Faith Shaped the Presidency, from John F. Kennedy to George W. Bush.