Fresh Air

Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson's new memoir, Lovely One, gives us a rare glimpse into her legal mind. And she gets personal about her childhood, marriage and her time as a public defender. Also, we hear from writer Danzy Senna, who writes about the experiences of being biracial in America and the meaning of race itself. Her new novel Colored Television. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

25 years ago, The Sopranos premiered on HBO and changed expectations of what TV could be. There's a new two-part documentary, called Wise Guy, about the making of the show, centering on the series creator and executive producer, David Chase. We're using that as an excuse to revisit our interviews with Chase, as well as Lorraine Bracco, who played Tony's psychiatrist, Dr. Melfi, and Michael Imperioli, who played Tony's impetuous nephew. Film critic Justin Chang reviews Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New Yorker writer David Kirkpatrick says anti-fascists are using extra judicial methods to do what the FBI can't, by infiltrating white nationalist groups to expose them and their planned attacks.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson talks with Tonya Mosley about her teen years, her time as a public defender, and the poem she keeps in her office. Her new memoir is called Lovely One.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Novelist Danzy Senna spoke with Terry Gross about racial identity, growing up with a Black father and white mother in an era when "mixed-race" wasn't a thing. "Just merely existing as a family was a radical statement at that time," she says. Her new book is Colored Television.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

To wrap up our series, we're closing with director Spike Lee and actor Samuel L. Jackson. Lee spoke with Terry Gross in 2017 about growing up in Brooklyn and his acting and directorial debut, the 1986 movie She's Gotta Have It. In 2000, Jackson talked about playing tough guys, watching movies in segregated theaters, and nearly dying on the New York subway.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In 2022, E.T. and Jaws director Steven Spielberg talked about how he fell in love with film, and how he was afraid of everything as a kid. We'll also revisit our 2016 interview with actor Carrie Fisher about what it was really like to become a sex symbol as Princess Leia.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The 1964 spaghetti Western A Fistful of Dollars turned Clint Eastwood into a star. He had a famous squint in his closeups, but he told Terry Gross in 1997, it wasn't necessarily character driven. "They bombed me with a bunch a lights, and you're outside and it's 90 degrees, and it's hard not to squint." We'll also hear from Eastwood's co-star in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Eli Wallach, who went on to play a bandit in several Westerns. Cultural historian Christopher Frayling tells us how the Italian director Sergio Leone broke the conventions of the Hollywood Western, and stuntman Hal Needham describes his most daring feats.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We continue our Classic Films and Movie Icons series and feature archival interviews with Dennis Hopper and Isabella Rossellini. They co-starred in the movie Blue Velvet, and after it became a hit, both of their careers were redefined. Later, on the centennial of singer Dinah Washington's birth, jazz historian Kevin Whitehead has appreciation.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Our special series of archival interviews continues with two of the GOATs: Meryl Streep, the actor with the most Oscar nominations in history, spoke with Terry Gross in 2012 about playing Margaret Thatcher. And Sidney Poitier, the first Black man to win best actor, in 2000 talked about how the radio helped him learn an accent for auditions.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We continue our Classic Films and Movie Icons series with two performers who gained fame as kids: Breakfast Club actor Molly Ringwald and Freaky Friday actor Jodie Foster. We'll also discuss Foster's Oscar-winning role as an FBI agent in The Silence of the Lambs and hear from her co-star who played serial killer Hannibal Lector, Anthony Hopkins.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

From now through Labor Day we're featuring interviews from our archive with great actors and directors. Robert Duvall talks about his role in the Godfather films as Tom Hagen, the Corleone family lawyer — and about speaking the most famous line in Apocalypse Now. And we'll get some insights into acting from Michael Caine, including why you don't need to raise your voice to be intimidating, and why he hates doing love scenes.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We begin our series celebrating classic movies with Terry Gross' 1988 interview with On the Waterfront director Elia Kazan, as well as a 2020 interview with his granddaughter, actor Zoe Kazan. Plus, we'll hear from the film's romantic lead, actor Eva Marie Saint, who told Fresh Air in 2000 that she got the part after improvising with Marlon Brando.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We remember Phil Donahue, the daytime talk show host who pioneered thoughtful discussions on controversial issues, and paved the way for Oprah and others. And we remember actress Gena Rowlands, who best known for her often improvised independent film collaborations with her husband John Cassavetes. Also, Justin Chang reviews the film Close Your Eyes.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Georgetown professor and foreign policy analyst Daniel Byman discusses Ukraine's daring offensive into Russian territory. And he reflects on the future of Gaza, after Israel's military operation ends.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter David Rohde argues that since 2016, Trump has used conspiracy theories, co-option and threats to bend Justice Department and FBI officials to his will. Rohde's new book is Where Tyranny Begins. Maureen Corrigan reviews Paradise Bronx by Ian Frazier.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As 50,000 people attend the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, we look at the history of politics, protest and play in American stadiums. "We fight our political battles in stadiums," Columbia historian Frank Andre Guridy says. "They become ideal places to stake your claims on what you want the United States to be." His new book is The Stadium.Also, as part of his series celebrating albums turning 50 this year, Ken Tucker revisits Neil Young's On the Beach.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat, Ellis-Taylor plays the outspoken ringleader among three women whose friendship spans several decades. Her previous films include Origin and King Richard. She talks with Tonya Mosley about growing up in rural Mississippi, buying two billboards, and getting into acting to stave off adulthood. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews A Wilder Shore, by Camille Peri.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Pediatric surgeon and founder of the Black Doctors Consortium Dr. Ala Standford talks with Terry Gross about how, at the height of the pandemic, she dedicated herself to addressing health inequities in Black and Brown communities. She set up shop in parking lots and churches providing tests and vaccines to tens of thousands of people.Also, we'll talk with brain surgeon Dr. Theodore H. Schwartz, author of the new book Gray Matters. He'll talk about how brain surgery has been transformed by new technologies, new instruments, and more powerful computers. And Ken Tucker takes us back 50 years to Neil Young's On the Beach. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Homicide: Life on the Streets, the critically acclaimed police procedural set in Baltimore, is coming to streaming (Peacock) for the first time. The show, which ran for seven seasons, is based on a book by David Simon, from before he created The Wire. In an appreciation of the show, we're listening back to interviews with some of the people behind it: Executive producer and writer Tom Fontana, actor Andre Braugher, and actor Clark Johnson.And film critic Justin Chang reviews Alien: Romulus.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As democrats prepare for their national convention in Chicago next week, we take stock of a presidential race transformed. New Yorker staff writer Evan Osnos tells us about the enthusiasm and energy he's seen on the campaign trail with Vice President Kamala Harris and running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.Later TV critic David Bianculli reviews Bad Monkey, the new mystery series starring Vince Vaughan.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Casey Michel shines a light on Americans lobbying for foreign governments in Washington, in many cases representing brutally repressive regimes and countries that oppose U.S. interests. Laws requiring registration of lobbyists and disclosure of their efforts have been little-enforced, and thus ignored by countless agents who've reaped huge profits from their work. Michel's new book is Foreign Agents.Also, Carolina Miranda reviews a YouTube documentary about the spectacular failure of a Star Wars-themed hotel in Orlando.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Poet and writer Safiya Sinclair grew up in a devout Rastafari family in Jamaica where women were subservient. When she cut her dreadlocks at age 19, she became "a ghost" to her father. Her memoir, How to Say Babylon, is out in paperback.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Joe Moore, a former Army sniper turned FBI informant, shares how he infiltrated the KKK and helped foil a plot to assassinate then Sen. Barack Obama. Moore explains how hate groups are growing. His new book is 'White Robes and Broken Badges.'Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In 1982, eight science fiction films were released within eight weeks of each other. Chris Nashawaty, author of The Future Was Now, tells Tonya Mosley how those movies shaped the genre and the movie industry. Plus, Brittany Howard, the former Alabama Shakes singer/guitarist, tells Terry Gross that growing up, she was told repeatedly she didn't look like a lead singer. "It made me sing ... louder and perform just as hard as I could," Howard says. Her new album is What Now.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We commemorate the 79th anniversary of the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, by revisiting a haunting question: Was the U.S. decision to destroy two Japanese cities with atomic weapons really necessary to end World War II? Author Evan Thomas discusses the motivations of key U.S. leaders, and of Japanese commanders and diplomats. His book is The Road to Surrender. Plus, John Powers reviews The Instigators, a new action comedy starring Matt Damon and Casey Affleck.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Filmmaker Greg Kwedar and formerly incarcerated actor Clarence "Divine Eye" Maclin discuss their new film, which centers on the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts program founded at Sing Sing prison. Plus, Justin Chang reviews the film Good One. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

When the pandemic hit, Dr. Ala Stanford set up shop in parking lots, churches and mosques where she provided tests and vaccines to underserved Philadelphia communities like the one she grew up in.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Each year, nearly half a million migrants cross the perilous stretch of jungle between South and Central America. Many face snakes, flash floods, sweltering heat, sexual violence, and death. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Caitlin Dickerson talks to Tonya Mosley about what she saw and the migrants she followed for the September Atlantic cover story.John Powers reviews the Apple TV+ series Women in Blue, about women cops in '70s Mexico City.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Dr. Theodore Schwartz has been treating neurological illnesses for nearly 30 years. He says being a brain surgeon requires steady hands — and a strong bladder. His new book is Gray Matters. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Comic Nikki Glaser talks with Terry Gross about finding the line between offensive and funny, hurt feelings, and why she started making jokes about sex. Her new Emmy-nominated stand-up special on HBO is Someday You'll Die.Ken Tucker reflects on the New York Dolls' album Too Much Too Soon for its 50th anniversary. Paul W. Downs co-created the acclaimed HBO Max show Hacks with his wife, Lucia Aniello and their friend and collaborator, Jen Statsky. Downs talks with Ann Marie Baldonado about how they came up with the idea for Hacks, and how his wife continued directing the show while she was in labor. Hacks is nominated for 16 Emmy Awards this year.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We go into the Fresh Air archive to remember two remarkable women: Bernice Johnson Reagon was one of the powerful singers who helped galvanize the civil rights movement in the 1960s, as a member of the Freedom Singers quartet. She died July 16 at the age of 81. Also, we remember writer Gail Lumet Buckley, the daughter of singer Lena Horne, who chronicled her family's history from enslavement to becoming a part of the Black bourgeoisie. She died this week at age 86. August 2nd is the 100th anniversary of the birth of James Baldwin, so we listen back to Terry Gross's 1986 interview with him.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Grammy-winning singer, guitarist and producer Brittany Howard fronted the band Alabama Shakes before going solo. She talks with Terry Gross about growing up biracial in a small Alabama town, living in a haunted house, and writing break-up songs for her new album, What Now.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In 1982, eight science fiction films were released within eight weeks of each other: E.T., Tron, Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan, Conan the Barbarian, Blade Runner, Poltergeist, The Thing, and Mad Max: The Road Warrior. Entertainment writer Chris Nashawaty talks to Tonya Mosley about how those movies shaped the genre and the movie industry. His book is The Future Was Now. Also, Ken Tucker reflects on the New York Dolls' album Too Much Too Soon for its 50th anniversary.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Paul W. Downs co-created the HBO Max show with his wife, Lucia Aniello and their friend and collaborator, Jen Statsky. The three met at the Upright Citizens Brigade. Downs talks with Ann Marie Baldonado about how they came up with the idea for Hacks, tackling cancel culture, and how his wife continued directing the show while she was in labor. Hacks is nominated for 16 Emmy awards this year, including for Downs for his role as Jimmy. Also, David Bianculli reflects on the Turner Classic Movies series Two for One. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The comic made headlines after the roast of Tom Brady. She spoke with Terry Gross about finding the line between offensive and funny, hurt feelings, and why she started making jokes about sex. Her new Emmy-nominated stand-up special on HBO is Someday You'll Die. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Jon M. Chu, the director of Crazy Rich Asians and In the Heights is now directing the film adaptation of the broadway musical Wicked. We'll talk about making movies, and being raised by immigrant parents who owned a Chinese restaurant in Silicon Valley.Also, we hear from stunt performer-turned-director David Leitch. He directed the film The Fall Guy, starring Ryan Gosling as a stuntman. Ken Tucker continues his series of great albums turning 50 this year with an album by Roxy Music.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We remember comic and actor Bob Newhart, who died last week at the age of 94. In his stand-up comedy and hit TV series, some of the laughs came from his an awkward, stammering way of speaking. "It isn't an affectation. It's the way I speak," he told Terry Gross in 1998. Also, Justin Chang reviews Deadpool & Wolverine.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Hezbollah, the militant group based in Lebanon, shares Hamas' goal of destroying the state of Israel. We'll talk with New Yorker staff writer Dexter Filkins, about his reporting trip to both sides of the Lebanese/Israeli border. Israel and Hezbollah have escalated their shelling and bombing attacks on each other. Filkins says that's leading to fears of an all-out war that would devastate both sides, and could draw in Iran and the U.S.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Chu takes his inspiration from his dad, a Chinese immigrant who worked both the front room and the kitchen of their family-run restaurant: "The guy that in the back of the kitchen, that was my hero." The director of Crazy Rich Asians and In the Heights talks with Terry Gross about growing up in Silicon Valley, seeing Wicked for the first time, and learning to be adaptable. Maureen Corrigan reviews Dinaw Mengestu's new novel, Someone Like Us. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Autocracy, Inc. author Anne Applebaum says today's dictators — including Putin and Xi — are working together in a global fight to dismantle democracy, and Trump is borrowing from their playbook: "We're going to have to defend and protect our political system if we want to keep it." Also, David Bianculli reviews the Apple TV series Time Bandits.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Filmmaker and stunt coordinator David Leitch says it's easier to do stunts himself than direct his stunt performer friends. "You are responsible for their safety," he explains. "Your heart goes through your chest." His film The Fall Guy is about the unknown performers who put their lives on the line. He talks with Terry Gross about barrel rolling cars, being lit on fire, and doing another take when everything hurts. Also, Ken Tucker marks the 50th anniversary of Roxy Music's Country Life.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Humorist/writer Shalom Auslander's new memoir is a satirical look at all the ways a sense of "feh," which is Yiddish for "yuck," has made its way into his psyche and every aspect of his life. Auslander has written extensively over the years about growing up in a dysfunctional ultra-Orthodox Jewish family. His new memoir, aptly titled Feh, is about a journey to write a different story for himself.We'll also hear from Julianne Nicholson. Proud to call herself a character actor, she's appeared in dozens of films and TV series, from Ally McBeal and Boardwalk Empire to August: Osage County and Mare of Easttown, where she earned an Emmy. Nicholson is starring in the new film Janet Planet.And, Ken Tucker takes us back 50 years to Stevie Wonder's album Fulfillingness' First Finale, which he says is an underrated treasure.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We remember actress Shelley Duvall, who died at the age of 75. Best-known for her role in The Shining, Robert Altman films and her own series about fairytales. She spoke with Terry Gross in 1992 about working with the two directors. Also, we remember the famous sex therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer. And TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new Apple TV+ docuseries Omnivore, and John Powers reviews the new summer blockbuster Twisters.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Humorist Shalom Auslander has written for decades about growing up in a dysfunctional household within an ultra-orthodox Jewish community. Feh, title of his latest memoir, comes from the Yiddish word for "yuck." He talks about self-hatred, changing the narrative and his friendship with late actor Philip Seymour Hoffman. Also, Justin Chang reviews the new horror movie Longlegs.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

PBS FRONTLINE documentarians Tom Casciato and Kathleen Hughes spent 34 years following two working-class families in Milwaukee who lost well-paying manufacturing jobs and then struggled to regain their way of life. The film, hosted by Bill Moyers, is called Two American Families.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Julianne Nicholson says when strangers recognize her on the street, they're never quite sure how they know her: "They might think I sold them kittens, or I work in the ice cream shop." She stars in the new film Janet Planet. She earned an Emmy for her role in HBO's Mare of Easttown as Mare's (Kate Winslet) best friend. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews the novel Practice, by Rosalind Brown.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We talk about the weapon the shooter used in the attempted assassination of former President Trump. Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post reporter Todd Frankel explains how the AR-15 became an icon of gun culture and a favored weapon for mass shooters. Also, Ken Tucker revisits Stevie Wonder's album Fulfillingness' First Finale for its 50th anniversary.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Taffy Brodesser-Akner's new novel, Long Island Compromise, centers on the kidnapping of a rich businessman, and the impact, decades later, on his grown children. Her previous book, Fleishman Is in Trouble, was adapted into an acclaimed FX/Hulu series.Jill Ciment met her husband in the 1970s when she was a teenager and he was almost 50. At the time of their first kiss, he was a married father of two; she was his art student. In her memoir Consent she reconsiders the origin story of their marriage.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Martin Mull, who died June 27, appeared in the 1970s series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, and later starred in Fernwood 2 Night. David Bianculli offers an appreciation, then we revisit Terry Gross' 1995 interview with Mull. Robert Towne, who died July 1, was nominated for an Oscar in 1974 for his screenplay for The Last Detail, and won the Academy Award in 1975 for his screenplay for Chinatown. He spoke to Terry Gross in 1988.Justin Chang reviews A Quiet Place: Day One.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

David Madland of the Center for American Progress says new, "good" jobs are on the rise, but many of the workers don't realize it's a result of Biden's new industrial policies.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Disgraced financier Bernie Madoff scammed investors out of approximately $68 billion. Investigative journalist Richard Behar spoke to Madoff in prison more than 50 times in researching his new book. Behar also conducted interviews with Wall Street insiders, prosecutors, FBI agents, and people who lost most or all of their money investing through Madoff's company.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Jill Ciment met her husband in the 1970s when she was a teenager and he was almost 50. At the time of their first kiss, he was a married father of two; she was his art student. In her memoir Consent she reconsiders the origin story of their marriage.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Brodesser-Akner's new novel, Long Island Compromise, centers on the kidnapping of a rich businessman, and the impact, decades later, on his grown children. She channeled what she learned as a journalist writing celebrity profiles for the book: "I think that the goal of all writing is to humanize those that we can only see from far away." Her previous book, Fleishman Is in Trouble, was adapted into an acclaimed FX/Hulu series.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Comedian Michelle Buteau stars in the new comedy Babes, which follows best friends as they take different paths toward motherhood. It was a role Buteau had to be talked into doing by her real life friend and co-star Ilana Glazer because, at the time, she was already in the thick of living out her character's life as the mother of twin babies. Also, we'll talk with New Yorker staff writer Emily Nussbaum about working conditions for cast members on the popular reality TV show Love is Blind. And Ken Tucker Rock critic Ken Tucker revisits Steely Dan's 1974 album Pretzel Logic, on its 50th anniversary.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

For the 40th anniversary of Talking Heads' masterpiece concert film, Stop Making Sense, A24 remastered and rereleased the movie, bringing it to new audiences and longtime fans. Talking Heads frontman David Byrne returns to Fresh Air to speak with Terry Gross about songwriting, dancing, and constructing the big suit.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A few years ago, Bon Jovi stopped performing because of a vocal cord injury. The Hulu docuseries Thank You, Goodnight offers a career retrospective, plus a view of his surgery and return to the stage. He spoke with Terry Gross about his voice, writing "Livin' on a Prayer," and his new album, Forever.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

David Tatel is a former civil rights lawyer who spent 30 years as a judge on the D.C. Circuit, the nation's second highest court. He retired earlier this year. As an appellate judge, he was required to follow Supreme Court precedents, but what about precedents that resulted from what he considers flawed judicial reasoning? We talk with Tatel about being a judge during a time he thought the Supreme Court veered off course — and being a judge who is blind. His new book is called Vision: A Memoir of Blindness and Justice.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As a comedy writer for shows like The Late Late Show with James Corden, Ian Karmel spent most of his life making fun of his weight, starting at a very young age. His new memoir is called T-Shirt Swim Club: Stories of Being Fat in a World of Thin People. It chronicles how he used comedy to cope growing up, and now that he's lost hundreds of pounds, what he's discovered about himself and society. Also, David Bianculli reviews season three of The Bear.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New Yorker writer Emily Nussbaum discusses the lawsuits brought forth by the Love is Blind cast members, and reflects on how reality TV has impacted our culture. Her new book about the history of reality TV is Cue the Sun! Also, classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a recording by Finnish condutor Klaus Mäkelä.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

If you've ever wondered what conversations were like between Donald Trump and Dr. Anthony Fauci during the Covid pandemic, wonder no more. Fauci talks about his new memoir, in which he relates several profanity-laced scoldings he got from the President. Also, we hear from Hannah Einbinder, who stars with Jean Smart in the comedy series Hacks. And Maureen Corrigan shares some summer book recommendations.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

British singer/guitarist Richard Thompson spoke to Fresh Air in 1994 and 2022 about about his formative years and about pioneering a new musical genre that blended rock with traditional music of the British isles. He has a new album called Ship to Shore. Justin Chang reviews the new film Janet Planet, the first feature from the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Annie Baker.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New York Times political correspondent Shane Goldmacher has been following the flood of campaign finance money for both presidential candidates. Trump is now ahead of President Biden, backed by wealthy independent donors, many of whom gave millions after he was convicted of felony charges. Also, we discuss how Trump and Biden have prepared for their first debate Thursday night, and how this debate will be different. Also, Ken Tucker revisits Steely Dan's 1974 album Pretzel Logic, on its 50th anniversary.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Buteau says covering the news of the 2001 terrorist attacks crystalized her desire to go into comedy. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about her journey to the stage, needing humor in dark times, and proving her college professor wrong. She stars in the film Babes and in the Netflix series Survival of the Thickest.Also, Ken Tucker shares three summer songs he's had on repeat.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Bazawule is best-known for directing 2023 adaptation of The Color Purple: The Musical. He also co-directed Black Is King with Beyoncé. He has a new exhibit of paintings about his formative years growing up in Ghana. Also, book critic Maureen Corrigan shares her picks for summer crime/suspense novels.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New York Times correspondent Peter Goodman illuminates the breakdown of the global supply chain during the pandemic. He says it was rooted in risky management practices, government deregulation, and a quest for greater profits. His new book is How the World Ran Out of Everything. TV critic David Bianculli reviews the sequel to the science fiction series Orphan Black, titled Orphan Black: Echoes. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson still remembers the first time he heard The Sugarhill Gang's 1980 hit "Rapper's Delight." It felt like a paradigm shift: "Suddenly they start talking in rhythmic poetry and we didn't know what to make of it," The Roots bandleader says. Questlove's new book is Hip-Hop is History. The Always Sunny in Philadelphia co-creator and co-star Rob McElhenney bought a Welsh football club during the pandemic. McElhenney says he and actor Ryan Reynolds bought the team to "bring hope to a town that had fallen on hard times." The FX series Welcome to Wrexham, now in its third season on Hulu, chronicles the team, its owners and fans.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The award-winning playwright talks about his provocative Slave Play, which earned 12 Tony nominations. A new HBO documentary chronicles the making of the production. Plus, Justin Chang reviews Kinds of Kindness.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Von Furstenberg and filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy discuss Woman in Charge, a Hulu documentary about the fashion designer's meteoric rise in the '70s. Plus, Maureen Corrigan recommends two perfect summer reads. And David Bianculli reviews the Netflix miniseries Kafka.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Oyelowo produced and stars in the Paramount+ series about Bass, a formerly enslaved man who went on to become one of the nation's first Black Deputy U.S. Marshals. "We see many stories centering Black people, from a historical context, about how we've been brutalized, how we've been marginalized," Oyelowo says. "But very rarely, in my opinion, do you see those triumphant stories where we overcome."Plus, John Powers reviews Green Border.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

During his decades-long career, Dr. Fauci worked with seven different presidents to manage various public health crises, including AIDS, Ebola, SARS and COVID-19. For Fauci, speaking what he calls the "inconvenient truth" is part of the job. His new memoir is On Call: A Doctor's Journey in Public Service.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Einbinder co-stars with Jean Smart in the HBO Max series Hacks. Her new Max special is Everything Must Go. Einbinder grew up in a comedic household — her mom, Laraine Newman, is an original SNL cast member. Being funny was "the main currency in our home," she says. "It was a love language for sure."Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

About 25 years ago, acclaimed cellist Yo-Yo Ma asked a high school student to help him name his instrument. He brings his 18th century cello — aka "Petunia" — to the Fresh Air studio for music and conversation. Actor Griffin Dunne grew up in Beverly Hills, where his family would entertain Hollywood celebrities. That made for entertaining stories, but at the heart of his new memoir, Griffin writes about how the Dunne family overcame significant traumas, including the murder of his sister, Dominique. It's called The Friday Afternoon Club.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Hall of Famer Satchel Paige started his career pitching in the Negro leagues and later became a major league star. Author Larry Tye tells his story in Satchel. Plus, Justin Chang reviews Inside Out 2.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Journalist Alexia Fernández Campbell says that some freed men and women were given titles to land following the Civil War — but after President Lincoln's death, the land was taken back. Campbell is a contributor to 40 Acres And A Lie, a three-part series featured in Mother Jones and the public radio show and podcast Reveal, which explores how the land loss deprived Black people of building intergenerational wealth. David Bianculli reviews the new Apple TV+ series, Presumed Innocent.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

'The Always Sunny in Philadelphia' co-creator and co-star bought a Welsh football club during the pandemic. McElhenney says he and actor Ryan Reynolds bought the team to "bring hope to a town that had fallen on hard times." The FX series 'Welcome to Wrexham,' now in its third season on Hulu, chronicles the team, its owners and fans.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson still remembers the first time he heard The Sugarhill Gang's 1980 hit "Rapper's Delight." It felt like a paradigm shift: "Suddenly they start talking in rhythmic poetry and we didn't know what to make of it," The Roots bandleader says. Questlove's new book is Hip-Hop is History.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Dunne grew up in Beverly Hills, in a family of storytellers — including his father, author Dominic. He talks about his complicated relationship with fame and the trauma the family experienced after the 1982 murder of his sister, Dominique. Dunne's new memoir is 'The Friday Afternoon Club.'Maureen Corrigan reviews 'Consent,' by Jill Ciment.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Stephen Sondheim's musical Merrily We Roll Along flopped when it debuted in 1981. But its Broadway revival has been a hit, garnering seven Tony nominations. We talk with director Maria Friedman, who was a friend of Sondheim's, and actor Jonathan Groff. MSNBC host Ali Velshi traces his family's migration across three continents, from a village in India to South Africa — where his grandfather crossed paths with Mahatma Gandhi — to Kenya, Canada and the U.S. Velshi's new memoir is Small Acts of Courage.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Comic, actor and filmmaker Julio Torres came to the U.S. from El Salvador in his early 20s — and he says he is personally familiar with "all the Catch-22s of the immigration system." Torres addressed immigration in Problemista; his new HBO comedy series is Fantasmas. Plus, John Powers reviews Becoming Karl Lagerfeld.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

While reporting on Harvey Weinstein and the #MeToo movement, Farrow unearthed details of the National Enquirer's plan to pay for damaging stories about Trump and then bury those stories — a practice known as "catch and kill." The connection between that practice and the 2016 election gave prosecutors a felony case against the former president.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Whitehead's sequel to Harlem Shuffle centers on crime at every level, from small-time crooks to Harlem's elite. "My early '70s New York is dingy and grimy," the Pulitzer Prize-winning author says. Plus, Ken Tucker reviews Swamp Dogg's new album, Blackgrass.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In his memoir, Small Acts of Courage, Velshi chronicles his family's journey, from a village in India to South Africa — where his grandfather crossed paths with Mahatma Gandhi — to Kenya, Canada and the U.S. Plus, David Bianculli reviews Hit Man.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Stephen Sondheim's 1981 flop is now a Broadway hit. This revival of Merrily We Roll Along is nominated for seven Tony Awards. Two of those nominees, actor Jonathan Groff and director Maria Friedman, talk with Terry Gross about the show.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In 2021, burnt out from the intensity of her early career, Maggie Rogers considered quitting music entirely. Instead, she took a detour — to Harvard Divinity School, where she earned a master's degree in religion and public life. Her new album is Don't Forget Me.SNL alum Kristen Wiig co-stars with Carol Burnett in Palm Royale, an Apple TV+ series about a former pageant queen who wants to break into high society. Wiig talks about working with Burnett and the rush of SNL.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

How do you get on with life after an accident that leads to disability and chronic pain? That's the central question in Andre Dubus III's novel, Such Kindness. He talks about the injuries he faced when he was a carpenter, and how his relationship changed with his father after the senior Dubus was struck by a car and never walked again. His previous books include Townie and House of Sand and Fog. Justin Chang reviews the Western film The Dead Don't hurt.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Yohance Lacour's Pulitzer Prize-winning podcast, You Didn't See Nothin', tells the story of Lenard Clark, a 13-year-old Black boy who was beaten into a coma by white teenagers, after riding his bike into a predominantly white neighborhood. Lacour talks about the importance of the case today, and how it shaped his life and the city of Chicago.Also, John Powers reviews the film Kidnapped: The Abduction of Edgardo Mortara. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

About 25 years ago, the acclaimed cellist asked a high school student to help him name his instrument. Yo-Yo Ma brings his cello — aka "Petunia" — to his conversation with Terry Gross. He talks about being a child prodigy, his rebel years, and straddling three cultures: American, French, and Chinese. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at here.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

When journalist Rachel Somerstein had an emergency C-section with her first child, the anesthesia didn't work. She recounts her own experience and the history of C-sections in her book, Invisible Labor.TV critic David Bianculli reviews the last season of Evil. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The small Memphis label Stax Records created soul hits by Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Wilson Pickett, Rufus and Carla Thomas, and others. It's the subject of a new documentary on MAX. We're featuring interviews with musicians who were a big part of the Stax sound: Guitarist, songwriter, and producer Steve Cropper tells us about becoming part of the house rhythm section, and going on to help write hits for Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett. Keyboardist Booker T. Jones remembers being pulled out of class in high school to go play music at Stax. And Issac Hayes tells us about writing the classic hit "Soul Man."Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Grammy-winning musician Michael McDonald looks back on his childhood and his career in a new memoir. He spoke with Tonya Mosley about imposter syndrome and his first band as a tween. Also, investigative journalist and author Eric Schlosser talks about how mergers and acquisitions and very little regulation have all but decimated competition within food systems and supply chains. And Justin Chang reviews Furiosa, the latest film in the Mad Max franchise.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The fifth installment of the Mad Max series of post-apocalyptic action films is roaring into theaters. It's called Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, and it's a prequel to the 2015 film, Mad Max: Fury Road, which earned 10 Oscar nominations. First, Justin Chang reviews the new movie, and then we revisit our 2016 interview with director George Miller. Also, we remember alto saxophonist David Sanborn, who toured or recorded with David Bowie, James Brown, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, and others.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In Fat Leonard, journalist Craig Whitlock tells the story of a defense contractor who plied Navy commanders with lavish meals, trips, cash and sex workers. In return they let him overcharge taxpayers.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In 2021, burnt out from the intensity of her early career, Maggie Rogers considered quitting music entirely. Instead, she took a detour — to Harvard Divinity School, where she earned a master's degree in religion and public life. Rogers spoke with Fresh Air's Sam Briger about her songwriting process, becoming a star overnight, and being a nostalgic person. Her new album is Don't Forget Me. This episode is a special extended version of the interview that aired on NPR. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The SNL alum co-stars with Carol Burnett in Palm Royale, an Apple TV+ series about a former pageant queen who wants to break into high society. Wiig talked with Ann Marie Baldonado about working with Burnett, the rush of SNL, and co-writing the mega hit movie Bridesmaids. Ken Tucker shares three songs of the summer.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

McDonald says that earlier in his career, he tended to avoid writing about himself directly in songs. He opens up about his life and career in the memoir, What a Fool Believes. He spoke with Tonya Mosley about his first band as a tween, his songwriting process, and being big in the Black community.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Musician, activist, and punk pioneer Kathleen Hanna talks about being at the epicenter of the '90s riot grrrl movement. She talks about the early days of Bikini Kill and writing the anthem "Rebel Girl." Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Claire Messud's new novel.Also, actor Tyler James Williams shares the motivation behind his role as a no-nonsense teacher on the hit series Abbott Elementary.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Filmmaker Roger Corman, the "King of the B" movies, died last week at the age of 98. He made hundreds of films, such cult classics as Little Shop of Horrors, A Bucket of Blood, House of Usher, The Last Woman on Earth, and The Cry Baby Killer. We feature our 1990 interview with him, and with those whose careers he helped launch – including actors Peter Fonda and Bruce Dern, as well as directors James Cameron, Martin Scorsese, and Jonathan Demme. And our critic at large, John Powers, has an appreciation.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Wallace is known for his celebrity profiles, but his new memoir, Another Word For Love, is about his own life, growing up unhoused, Black and queer, and getting his start as a writer at the age of 40.David Bianculli shares an appreciation of John Mulaney's six-part live Netflix talk show, Everybody's in L.A.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Economist Middle East correspondent Gregg Carlstrom explains why some Arab leaders hate Hamas, fear Iran and have some sympathy for Israel — although not for how Israel is waging the war.For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or here.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Williams was thrust into the public eye as a kid, when he starred in Everybody Hates Chris. Now, playing a teacher on Abbott Elementary, he strives to make the child actors on set feel comfortable. He spoke with Tonya Mosley about the trauma of fame as a kid, his Crohn's diagnosis, and tuning out online chatter. Justin Chang reviews the Japanese film Evil Does Not Exist, by Drive My Car director Ryûsuke Hamaguchi.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Kathleen Hanna's band Bikini Kill was the epicenter of the riot grrrl feminist punk movement of the '90s. Their song "Rebel Girl" was the anthem. Now Hanna has a memoir (also called Rebel Girl) about her time in the punk scene, her childhood, and finding joy in expressing anger in public. Also, book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Claire Messud's new novel, This Strange Eventful History. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

WNBA star Brittney Griner talks about the physical and emotional hell of her nearly 300 days in Russian prisons. Russian authorities apprehended Griner at the Moscow Airport when she was found carrying a tiny amount of medically prescribed cannabis — then charged her with drug smuggling. Her memoir is Coming Home. Jazz historian Kevin Whitehead reviews a 1959 Sonny Rollins reissue. And we'll talk about plant intelligence with climate journalist Zoë Schlanger. Her book is The Light Eaters.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Viet Thanh Nguyen's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Sympathizer has been adapted into a series on HBO/MAX. It's set in Vietnam during the last days of the war, and in LA, just after. The narrator becomes a consultant to a Hollywood film about the war. The novel is written from a Vietnamese perspective. "It's my revenge on Francis Ford Coppola, my revenge on Hollywood, to try to get Americans to understand that Vietnam is a country and not a war," he told Terry Gross in 2016. Nguyen's family fled their village in South Vietnam in 1975, when it was taken over by the North. Also, David Bianculli reviews Let It Be, the Beatles film restored and rereleased after being shelved for more than 50 years.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We remember painter and sculptor Frank Stella, whose early work was considered revolutionary. He died last week at age 87. Stella became famous and controversial in the 1950s for his "black paintings," which were a stark contrast to the abstract expressionism of the time, and made him one of the fathers of minimalism. Later, we'll feature an interview with one of the most influential early rock and roll guitarists, Duane Eddy. He also died last week. Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Long Island, Colm Tóibín's new sequel to his bestselling novel Brooklyn. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

#BlackLivesMatter. #OscarsSoWhite. #ICantBreathe. Filmmaker Prentice Penny's docuseries about Black Twitter celebrates the voices and movements that impacted politics and culture. Penny was also the showrunner of the HBO series Insecure. Also, John Powers reviews the four-part series Shardlake, based on C.J. Sansom's first novel in a series about a crime-solving lawyer in 16th-century England.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Griner spent nearly 300 days incarcerated in Russia after authorities at the Moscow airport found two nearly empty cartridges of cannabis in her luggage. The WNBA star spoke with Terry Gross about the dehumanizing prison conditions, her release, and return to the court. Griner, who is 6'9", says she felt like a zoo animal in prison. "The guards would literally come open up the little peep hole, look in, and then I would hear them laughing." Her new memoir is Coming Home.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Climate journalist Zoë Schlanger explains the fascinating science behind how plants learn, communicate, and adapt to survive. She says plants can store memories, trick animals into not eating them, and even send alarm calls to other plants. Her new book is called The Light Eaters. TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new Netflix series A Man in Full, starring Jeff Daniels and Diane Lane.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In a new Hulu docuseries, Jon Bon Jovi looks back on his career and his recovery after vocal surgery. He spoke with Terry Gross about his breakthrough hit "Runaway" and how he's evolved as a musician. Also, we'll hear from fantasy author Leigh Bardugo. She's best known for her YA series Shadow and Bone. Her new adult novel, The Familiar, set in 16th century Spain, is about a young woman who can perform miracles.Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews a new collection of letters by Emily Dickinson.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The New York Times described Paul Auster as the "Patron Saint of Literary Brooklyn." He died Tuesday of complications of lung cancer. He was 77. We'll listen back to some of our interviews with him, including one about his early career when he was desperately trying to make a living as writer, and even tried writing porn.Justin Chang reviews the new film The Fall Guy, starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Congress and President Biden say TikTok must shed its financial ties to China or face a ban in the U.S. But Washington Post tech reporter Drew Harwell says selling the company is complicated. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or here.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In The Demon of Unrest, author Erik Larson chronicles the five months between the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 and the start of the Civil War, drawing parallels to today's political climate.Also, David Bianculli reviews the FX/Hulu spy thriller series The Veil, starring Elisabeth Moss.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Leigh Bardugo is best known for her YA Shadow and Bone series. Her adult novel, The Familiar, centers on a young woman in 16th century Spain who must hide her identity as a Jew who converted to Catholicism. She spoke with producer Sam Briger. Also, jazz historian Kevin Whitehead looks at a reissue of Sonny Rollins. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or here.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A few years ago, Bon Jovi stopped performing because of a vocal cord injury. The Hulu docuseries Thank You, Goodnight offers a career retrospective, plus a view of his surgery and return to the stage. He spoke with Terry Gross about his voice, writing "Livin' on a Prayer," and his forthcoming album, Forever.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Songwriter, guitarist and singer St. Vincent talks about her new album, All Born Screaming. Also, we talk with child psychiatrist Harold Koplewicz. His latest book is called Scaffold Parenting: Raising Resilient, Self-Reliant and Secure Kids in an Age of Anxiety. To get staff recommendations, highlights from our archive, and intel on what's coming up on the show, subscribe to our newsletter.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Green's YA novel, Turtles All the Way Down, has been recently adapted to film (on MAX May 2). Green described living with OCD, and how "one little thought" could take over his mind, in this 2017 interview with Terry Gross. Also, Justin Chang reviews Challengers, starring Zendaya and directed by Luca Guadagnino.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Nearly a year after the Hollywood writers' strike started, the entertainment industry remains in flux. Harpers journalist Daniel Bessner says TV and film writers are feeling the brunt of the changes.Maureen Corrigan reviews a collection of Emily Dickinson letters. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at here. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Journalist Susan Page talks about Barbara Walters's groundbreaking career as a newswoman and her signature interview specials, which blended news and entertainment. Page was interested in understanding Walters' inner life – the source of her drive, how she navigated hostile work environments, and being teased for her speech impediment. Page's book is The Rulebreaker.Also, rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Taylor Swift's 11th studio album, The Tortured Poets Department.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The songwriter, guitarist and singer known as St. Vincent took her stage name from St. Vincent's Hospital in New York, where the poet Dylan Thomas died. Her seventh album, All Born Screaming, is out April 26. She spoke with Terry Gross about visiting her dad in prison, touring with her aunt and uncle as a teen, and the inspiration for her hit song "New York." For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at here.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Journalist Ari Berman says the founding fathers created a system that concentrated power in the hands of an elite minority — and that their decisions continue to impact American democracy today. Berman's book is Minority Rule.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Writer Salman Rushdie talks about the knife attack that nearly killed him — and his life since then. In 2022, he was onstage at a literary event when the assailant ran up from the audience, and stabbed him 14 times. His new book is called Knife. Also, Diarra Kilpatrick talks about writing and starring in the new series, Diarra From Detroit, a dark comedy about a public school teacher who is ghosted by a Tinder date and, in her quest to find out why, investigates a decades-old mystery that takes her into the underbelly of Detroit. Ken Tucker reviews Tierra Whack's new album World Wide Whack.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Longtime PBS news anchor Robert MacNeil died last week at 93. He spoke with Terry Gross a few times over the course of his journalism career. We revisit those conversations. Also, we listen back to Eleanor Coppola's 1992 interview about her documentary, Hearts of Darkness. It chronicles the chaotic filming of Francis Ford Coppola's movie Apocalypse Now. She also died last week, at age 87.David Bianculli reviews HBO's The Jinx — Part Two, which picks up where The Jinx left off: With Robert Durst admitting to murder.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Fast Food Nation author Eric Schlosser says mergers and acquisitions have created food oligopolies that are inefficient, barely regulated and sometimes dangerous. His new documentary with Michael Pollan is Food, Inc. 2. Also, Justin Chang reviews the film The Beast. Keep up with Fresh Air, learn what's coming next week, and get staff recommendations by subscribing to our weekly newsletter. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at https://plus.npr.org/freshairLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Alua Arthur works with families, caretakers, and people close to death who want to be intentional about the end of life. She's learned through her work and her own experiences with loss that facing the inevitable can help lessen the anxiety and fear so many of us have around death. Her new book is called, Briefly Perfectly Human. Also, we remember painter Faith Ringgold, who died Saturday at the age of 93.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Rushdie was onstage at a literary event in 2022 when he was attacked by a man in the audience: "Dying in the company of strangers — that was what was going through my mind." His new book is Knife.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Growing up, when Diarra Kilpatrick watched murder mystery shows with her grandmother, she never saw Black women driving the narrative. Her new BET+ series seeks to change that. It's called Diarra From Detroit.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Andrew Scott stars as a con artist with no conscience in the new Netflix series Ripley. It's an adaptation of the Patricia Highsmith novel The Talented Mr. Ripley. He spoke with Terry Gross about tapping into his darker side for the role — and playing the "hot priest" in Fleabag.Also, we hear about how cars became our most gendered technology. Women used to be considered unqualified to drive, or just terrible drivers. Glamorous women were used to advertise cars. And yet cars have been designed for male bodies, in ways that put women drivers at risk. Journalist Nancy Nichols is the author of Women Behind the Wheel. Maureen Corrigan reviews Lionel Shriver's latest novel, Mania.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire is the latest film starring two of cinema's biggest monsters. Today we take a look at the first time they were introduced to audiences. Film historian Rudy Behlmer tells us about the 1933 film King Kong. And Steve Ryfle wrote a book about the making of the 1954 Japanese film Godzilla.Also, film critic Justin Chang reviews Civil War.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Atlantic journalist Stephanie McCrummen says foreign interests are acquiring Serengeti territory in Northern Tanzania, effectively displacing indigenous cattle-herders from their traditional grazing lands. McCrummen spoke with Dave Davies about the billionaires, conservation groups, and safari tourism in this story. Also, John Powers reviews the TV adaptation of Viet Thanh Nguyen's Pulitzer Prize-winning book, The Sympathizer.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

What happens to the body in the deep sea? You need oxygen to survive, but too much oxygen can be deadly. Also, if you rise to the surface too quickly, nitrogen bubbles can form in your body and kill you. We'll talk with author and scientist Rachel Lance, who has conducted research for the military, using a hyperbaric chamber in which the air and the pressure can be controlled to mimic what divers and submarines are exposed to. Her new book is about the scientists whose dangerous experiments about underwater pressure and injury were critical to the success of D-Day. It's called Chamber Divers. David Bianculli reviews the new series Franklin, starring Michael Douglas as Ben Franklin.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Linguist Amanda Montell says our brains are overloaded with a constant stream of information that stokes our innate tendency to believe conspiracy theories and mysticism. Her book is The Age of Magical Overthinking. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews Lionel Shriver's new novel, Mania. Subscribe to the Fresh Air newsletter for a peek behind-the-scenes at whyy.org/freshair For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at https://plus.npr.org/freshairLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Andrew Scott (best known as "hot priest" from Fleabag) plays con artist Tom Ripley in the Netflix adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley. He says his job is to advocate for his characters, not judge them. He spoke with Terry Gross about finding soul in comedy and lightness in drama. Also, Lloyd Schwartz shares a little-known history of "soundies."Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

NCAA/WNBA star Sue Bird spoke with Terry Gross about her career, coming out publicly, and fighting for equity in women's sports. A new documentary about her last season on the court is Sue Bird: In the Clutch.Also, we hear from Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker, co-founders of the punk band Sleater-Kinney. While they were working on their latest album, Little Rope, Brownstein's mother died in an car accident. They'll talk about how the grief affected the album.Also, Ken Tucker reviews Beyonce's new album, Cowboy Carter.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

HBO's Curb your Enthusiasm comes to an end Sunday night, after 25 years and 12 seasons. We're featuring our interviews with cast members Larry David, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Garlin, Jeff Greene, Susie Essman and more.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Guardian's reproductive health reporter Carter Sherman says efforts are underway in a number of states to assign fetuses "some kind of rights that we would generally ascribe to a human person."Also, TV critic David Bianculli reviews Ripley starring Andrew Scott. Film critic Justin Chang reviews Woody Allen's new French-language drama Coup de Chance. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

"A lot of things started going wrong from the very beginning," historian Hampton Sides says of Cook's last voyage, which ended in the British explorer's violent death on the island of Hawaii in 1779. His book is The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact, and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook.Ken Tucker reviews Beyoncé's album Cowboy Carter.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A global pandemic, school shootings, climate change, war: Children and teenagers are experiencing and being treated for unprecedented levels of anxiety and depression. We talk with founding president of the Child Mind Institute, Dr. Harold Koplewicz, about screen time, suicidal ideation, and testing for ADHD. His latest book is Scaffold Parenting: Raising Resilient, Self-Reliant, and Secure Kids in an Age of Anxiety. Also, Justin Chang reviews the film La Chimera.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Retired point guard Sue Bird holds the record for most career assists in the WNBA, with 3,234 over the course of her 19-season professional career. She's also won four WNBA championships, five Olympic gold medals and two NCAA championships. She spoke with Terry Gross about playing overseas in Russia, staying cool under pressure, and her pump-up song for games.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

If you've ever wondered how directors convince stars to appear in their films, or what they do when an actor committed to a lead role suddenly starts throwing up roadblocks, you can ask Ed Zwick. He's a writer, director and producer who's been making TV and movies for decades. His new memoir is Hits, Flops, and Other Illusions: My Fortysomething Years in Hollywood. Also, we'll hear from Eugene Levy. He's appeared in dozens of films, including four satirical movies by Christopher Guest, which he co-wrote. He also starred in the hit comedy series Schitt's Creek. Levy currently stars in The Reluctant Traveler, a series in which he visits distant lands and tastes exotic foods that aren't exactly in his comfort zone.David Bianculli will review the new documentary about Paul Simon.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Beyoncé's highly anticipated country album, Cowboy Carter, is out today. One of the musicians on it is fiddle and banjo player Rhiannon Giddens. We'll listen to our 2010 in-studio performance with the group she was part of then, the Carolina Chocolate Drops. They played string band and jug band music of the '20s and '30s, music most people associate with a white southern tradition. But the members of the Carolina Chocolate Drops are Black. They saw themselves as part of a little known Black string band tradition— forerunners of modern country music and bluegrass.John Powers reviews A Gentleman in Moscow, starring Ewan McGregor, which begins streaming today on Paramount+. David Bianculli reviews the new Apple TV+ documentary about Steve Martin.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Author Nancy Nichols says that for men, cars signify adventure, power and strength. For women, they are about performing domestic duties; there was even a minivan prototype with a washer/dryer inside. Her book is Women Behind the Wheel: An Unexpected and Personal History of the Car.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In 2020, Oregon voters overwhelmingly approved to decriminalize possession of small amounts of hard drugs, and mandate more spending on drug treatment and social services. But 3.5 years of frustration, with overdose deaths and open air drug use, has turned public opinion around, and lawmakers have restored criminal penalties. We'll speak with New Yorker contributing writer E. Tammy Kim, who traveled through the state speaking with activists, treatment providers, police, lawmakers and drug users about the experience, and the ongoing debate over how to respond to America's drug crisis.Also, Kevin Whitehead remembers classical and pop singer Sarah Vaughan on the 100th anniversary of her birth.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

ProPublica reporter Abrahm Lustgarten says in the coming decades it's likely tens of millions of us will relocate to escape rising seas, punishing heat, floods and wildfires due to global warming. He says nine of the ten fastest growing regions of the country are on the front lines of the most severe and fast-changing climate conditions. His book is On the Move: The Overheating Earth and the Uprooting of America.Ken Tucker has high praise for Tierra Whack's new album, World Wide Whack. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at https://plus.npr.org/freshairLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker co-founded the band Sleater-Kinney together 30 years ago, and became an important part of the 1990s feminist punk scene in Olympia, Washington. Rolling Stone once called Sleater-Kinney the best American punk rock band ever. Brownstein and Tucker just released their 11th album, called Little Rope. While they were working on the record, Brownstein's mother died in a car accident. They spoke with Ann Marie Baldonado about how the grief affected the album, and what it's like to make music together for decades.Also, David Bianculli reviews the Netflix series 3 Body Problem.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Catherine Coldstream spoke with Terry Gross about her years as nun in a Carmelite monastery. She talks about what drew her to the vocation, what it was like to live a silent and obedient life, and why she ran away. Her memoir is called Cloistered.Maureen Corrigan reviews Percival Everett's new novel, James. It's a reimagining of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. When Mark Daley and his husband became foster parents to two brothers, they fell in love with the children right away. But they also knew that their family could change at any moment. Eventually, the boys were reunified with their biological parents. Daley's memoir is Safe: A Memoir of Fatherhood, Foster Care, and the Risks We Take for Family.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Reporter Jake Adelstein's memoir, Tokyo Vice, is about covering the organized crime beat in Japan. The MAX series (based on the book) is now in its second season. Adelstein spoke with Dave Davies in 2009. Also, Justin Chang reviews the remake of the '80s film Road House.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Marijuana has been legalized in some states, but ProPublica's Sebastian Rotella says there's still a thriving illicit market in the U.S., dominated by criminals connected to China's authoritarian government.Also, John Powers reviews the Romanian film Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Catherine Coldstream spoke with Terry Gross about her years as nun in a Carmelite monastery. She talks about what drew her to the vocation, what it was like to live a silent and obedient life, and why she ran away. Her memoir is called Cloistered.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Christine Blasey Ford describes what it was like to come forward and testify that Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her in high school. Her 2018 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee threatened to derail his confirmation, but Kavanaugh succeeded in being becoming a supreme court justice. Ford still requires security for protection. After mostly avoiding the media, she's written a memoir. It's called One Way Back.Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews Percival Everett's new book, James, which reimagines The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the point of view of Finn's enslaved companion. Finally, we say goodbye to producer Seth Kelley.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

NPR Politics correspondent Sarah McCammon grew up in a white evangelical church that taught her to never question her faith. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about her upbringing, how her faith was tested, and her decision to leave the church. She now reports on the Christian right and their support of Donald Trump. McCammon's book is The Exvangelicals. Also, Justin Chang reviews The Shadowless Tower. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Jenny Slate talks about childbirth and motherhood, the subjects of her new comedy special, Seasoned Professional. She'll do the voices of some of her animated characters, including Marcel from her Oscar-nominated film Marcel the Shell with Shoes On.Also, we hear from comic/actor Julio Torres. Growing up in El Salvador as a gay atheist he says he felt like an alien. Then he literally was labeled an "alien" when he came to the U.S. on a student visa. He's drawn on those experiences to write, direct and star in the new satirical film Problemista.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Michael Cecchi-Azzolina has worked in several high-end New York City restaurants — adrenaline-fueled workplaces where booze and drugs are plentiful and the health inspector will ruin your day. His memoir is Your Table Is Ready. Also, Terry shares a remembrance of revered magazine editor William Whitworth. David Bianculli reviews Restless Dreams, a documentary about Paul Simon.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We talk with Peter Pomerantsev, whose new book, How to Win an Information War, is about the man he describes as the "forgotten genius" of propaganda. Throughout WWII, Sefton Delmer ran propaganda campaigns for the British against Hitler's regime. Some of those efforts bordered on pornography. We'll also talk about witnessing Putin's use of disinformation when Pomerantsev worked in Russia, and his work as the co-founder of a project documenting Russian war crimes in Ukraine.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Schitt's Creek star Eugene Levy visits distant lands and tastes exotic foods as the host of the Apple TV+ series The Reluctant Traveler. Levy describes it as a show about "a guy traveling who doesn't love to travel."Also, book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Adelle Waldman's new novel, Help Wanted, and David Bianculli reviews a TV show about the Lincoln assassination called Manhunt.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The comic/actor returns. Now she has a 3-year-old daughter, who she sings to in the voice of her character Marcel the Shell with Shoes On. Slate spoke with Terry Gross about finding comedy in her feelings, divorce, and growing up in a haunted house. Her new stand-up special on Amazon Prime Video is Seasoned Professional.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Comic, actor and filmmaker Julio Torres came to the U.S. from El Salvador in his 20s. His new film, Problemista, draws from his personal experience struggling to get a visa. "This movie deals with the problem of immigration, but I think of it as a very silly, happy and joyful movie," he says. Torres talks with Terry Gross about his love of difficult people, collaborating with his mom, and getting started in stand-up. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at https://plus.npr.org/freshairLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New Yorker staff writer Evan Osnos recently interviewed Biden for his new profile about the president's accomplishments and failures in office, his current face-off with Trump, and the fears of many voters that he is too old for the job. Also, we'll hear from writer Lucy Sante. She's been writing books since the 1980s, exploring everything from photography to urban history. In her latest memoir, I Heard Her Call My Name, she writes about coming out as a trans woman in her 60s. Maureen Corrigan will review Sloane Crosley's new memoir about grief. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at https://plus.npr.org/freshair Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Emma Stone has two Oscar nominations for Poor Things: One for best actress and one for best picture, as a producer. She spoke with Terry Gross about working with an intimacy coordinator and why she sees her anxiety as a superpower. Mark Ruffalo plays a debauched cad opposite Emma Stone in the movie. The role was a big departure from his previous work playing real people, in dramas like Spotlight or Foxcatcher, or as the Incredible Hulk in the Marvel movies. The Oscar-nominated actor spoke with Sam Briger. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at https://plus.npr.org/freshairLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Writer, director and producer Ed Zwick has made dozens of films and TV shows including Legends of the Fall, The Last Samurai, and Blood Diamond. In his memoir, Hits, Flops, and Other Illusions, he writes about studios, actors and the frustrations and joys of the business. John Powers reviews the pulpy noir crime film Love Lies Bleeding.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In a wide-ranging conversation with The New Yorker, President Biden proclaimed that he is the best option to beat Donald Trump — despite polls indicating he is falling behind. We talk with Evan Osnos about Biden's outlook. Among the things that Americans are unsure of are Biden's age, his mental agility, his handling of immigration, and the war in Gaza.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As a war correspondent, Rod Nordland faced death many times over. But in 2019, Nordland confronted a different type of danger when he was diagnosed with glioblastoma, the most lethal form of brain tumor. "I had to face the reality that my death was within a fairly short timespan, highly probable," he says. "I think it made me a better person." His new memoir is Waiting for the Monsoon. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews Sloane Crosley's new memoir Grief Is For People.And David Bianculli reviews Jon Stewart's return to The Daily Show, and the new season of John Oliver's Last Week Tonight.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Emmy-winning host of RuPaul's Drag Race describes himself as "an introvert masquerading as an extrovert." In a new memoir, he writes about growing up Black and queer in San Diego. And how he forged a new and glamorous identity in the punk rock and drag scenes of Atlanta and New York City. The memoir is titled The House of Hidden Meanings.Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews a new oral history of the Village Voice.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Denis Villeneuve remembers watching the 1984 movie version of Frank Herbert's 1965 sci-fi novel Dune and thinking, "Someday, someone else will do it again" — not realizing he would be that filmmaker. He spoke to Sam Briger about shooting Dune in the desert and his love of silent film.Ken Tucker reviews a new solo album from guitarist Mary Timony. Neuroscientist Dr. Charan Ranganath's book is Why We Remember. We talk about how stress affects memory and what's happening in the brain when something's on the tip of your tongue.For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at https://plus.npr.org/freshairLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Paul Giamatti stars in The Holdovers as a pompous and disliked teacher at a boys boarding school in the '70s. He's now up for an Oscar for best actor. Giamatti spoke with Sam Briger about the role and reuniting with director Alexander Payne, 20 years after Sideways.Also, we remember comic and Curb Your Enthusiasm actor Richard Lewis, who died Feb. 27. The Brooklyn-born comic made his standup debut in 1971. His routines were full of biting takes on love, life, and physical and mental health. Lewis spoke with Terry Gross in 1988 and 2000.Also, Justin Chang reviews Dune: Part Two.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Why do many Christian nationalists think Trump is chosen by God to lead the country? We talk with Bradley Onishi about the ties between Christian nationalism and political and judicial leaders. Onishi became a Christian nationalist and a youth minister in his teens and then left the church. He is the author of Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism — and What Comes Next, and he cohosts a podcast about religion and politics called Straight White American Jesus.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Villeneuve remembers watching the 1984 movie version of Frank Herbert's 1965 sci-fi novel Dune and thinking, "Someday someone else will do it again" — not realizing he would be that filmmaker. He spoke to Sam Briger about shooting Dune in the desert, depicting sandworm surfing, and his love of silent film. Also, David Bianculli reviews the new CBS murder mystery series, Elsbeth. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at https://plus.npr.org/freshairLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Busy Philipps plays Mrs. George, a "cool mom" seeking the approval of her teen daughter in the new movie musical version of Mean Girls. Philipps got her start in acting as a teen on the series Freaks and Geeks. She spoke with Ann Marie Baldonado about sexism in Hollywood, collaborating with Tina Fey, and the best friendship advice her mom gave her. Also, Ken Tucker reviews a new solo album from Mary Timony, and David Biacnulli reviews the series Shōgun.For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at https://plus.npr.org/freshairLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Charan Ranganath recently wrote an op-ed about President Biden's memory gaffes. He says forgetting is a normal part of aging. We also talk about PTSD, how stress affects memory, and what's happening when something's on the tip of your tongue. His new book is Why We Remember. Also, John Powers reviews Cocktails with George and Martha: Movies, Marriage, and the Making of Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Podcasts or at https://plus.npr.org/freshairLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Mark Ruffalo is nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actor for his role in Poor Things. He plays a hilarious debauched lawyer who seduces Emma Stone's character. Ruffalo has also appeared in Marvel movies as the Incredible Hulk. For that role he had to act in a motion capture suit. "It's the man-canceling suit. It makes you look big where you want to look small, and small where want to look big," he says. Also, we hear from Jeffrey Wright. He's up for an Oscar for best actor for his role in American Fiction, where he plays a novelist who's frustrated with the publishing industry's expectations of Black authors. He cynically writes a book under a pseudonym that's full of clichés, like violence and poverty — and it's a hit. Maureen Corrigan reviews an off-beat bestselling Japanese mystery series.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In his Oscar-nominated biopic Maestro, Bradley Cooper was determined not to imitate the legendary Leonard Bernstein. Instead, the actor worked with conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin to find his own rhythm. They spoke with Terry Gross about conducting, Bernstein's legacy, and playing with batons when they were kids. Also, Justin Chang reviews Italy's submission for best foreign film, Io Capitano.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As Donald Trump seeks to gain the Republican presidential nomination, he faces 91 felony charges across four states and several lawsuits, many with dates in court that run right up to the election. We talk with reporter Alan Feuer, who is part of the team at the New York Times covering Trump's legal battles. The first of four criminal case trials is expected to start on March 25.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Lucy Sante has been writing books since the 1980s, exploring everything from photography to urban history. In a new memoir, she shares her story of transition from male to female at 67 years old. "I am lucky to have survived my own repression," Sante says. "I think a lot of people in my position have not." The book is titled I Heard Her Call My Name: A Memoir of Transition.Also, TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new Apple TV+ series Constellation.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Wright is up for an Oscar for best actor this year for the film American Fiction, where he plays a novelist who's frustrated with the publishing industry's expectations of Black authors. He cynically writes a book under a pseudonym that's full of clichés, like drug abuse, violence, and poverty — and it's a hit. Wright's first starring role was in the 1996 film Basquiat. He talks with us about his big break in the play Angels in America, and the time early in his career when he was acting opposite Sidney Poitier and asked for advice on acting.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

From relentless campaigning to snubs and speeches, the Academy Awards have often reflected a cultural conflict zone. Michael Schulman sifts through the controversies in his book, Oscar Wars. Maureen Corrigan reviews The Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Actress Molly Ringwald came to represent '80s teen angst after starring in Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, and Pretty in Pink. She's now in the new series Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, about the high society women that Truman Capote loved and betrayed.Also, we hear from another actor who got her start as a teen — Busy Philipps. In the '90s, she played tough girl Kim Kelly in Freaks and Geeks. Philipps' latest project is the movie musical Mean Girls where she plays a mom trying to be young and cool.John Powers reviews the new Vim Venders film Perfect Days.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Sterling K. Brown won an Emmy for his portrayal of Christopher Darden in The People v. O.J. Simpson, and another for This Is Us. He's now nominated for an Oscar for his performance in American Fiction.Colman Domingo is also nominated, for his role in the biopic Rustin as Bayard Rustin, the civil rights leader responsible for organizing the 1963 March on Washington. Rustin was forced into the background because he was gay. Justin Chang reviews Drift, starring Cynthia Erivo. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

How is New York City coping with the 175,000 migrants from the Southern border? New York Times reporter Andy Newman says the city's legal mandate to provide shelter to any who need it is being tested by a stream of migrants — some of whom were sent on buses by Southern governors.Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews Francis Spufford's Cahokia Jazz.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We remember Peabody award-winning broadcast journalist Bob Edwards, who died on Saturday at the age of 76. He was the first and longest-serving host of NPR's Morning Edition, from the show's inception in 1979 until 2004. Terry Gross recorded two interviews with Edwards. Also, John Powers review Perfect Days, the new film from director Wim Wenders.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Ruffalo plays a debauched cad in Yorgos Lanthimos' bawdy, dark comedy Poor Things. The role was a big departure from his previous work playing real people in dramas like Spotlight or Foxcatcher, or as the Incredible Hulk in the Marvel movies. The Oscar-nominated actor spoke with Sam Briger about these roles, how he got his start in acting, and how a brain tumor changed his life.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Molly Ringwald became a film icon in the '80s after starring in a trio of films: Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, and Pretty in Pink. "I don't like to use the word iconic because it's overused — but they really are. Those films are really iconic," she tells Tonya Mosley. Now she's in the new Ryan Murphy series Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, about the high society women that novelist Truman Capote loved and betrayed.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Journalist Michele Norris has spent the last 14 years collecting what she describes as "an archive of the human experience" with The Race Card Project. She wanted to see how Americans really talk and think about race, so she asked people to share their thoughts in six words. Norris adapted the project into a memoir called Our Hidden Conversations. Also, we'll hear from Kai Wright, host of the WNYC podcast Blindspot: The Plague in the Shadows about the early years of the AIDS epidemic, when so little was known about HIV, and so much was misunderstood.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We remember Wayne Kramer, the guitarist of the late '60s proto-punk band MC5. The revolutionary band's idols were the Black Panther party, Malcolm X and John Coltrane. Kramer died last week at 75. He spoke with Terry Gross in 2002.Also we listen back to our 1988 interview with actor Carl Weathers, who played Apollo Creed in the Rocky movies. He died at 76. Justin Chang reviews the French film The Taste of Things.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Award-winning ProPublica reporter Topher Sanders has spent the last two years investigating America's aging freight train system. He says the Federal Railroad Administration monitors "less than 1% of what's happening on the rails." Sanders talks about the toxic East Palestine, OH derailment, the prevalence of blocked railroad crossings, and why railway safety legislation is yet to be passed. Also, rock critic Ken Tucker shares three new songs. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The civil rights leader Medgar Evers is maybe more known for his assassination in 1963 than the work he did to fight for voting rights and desegregation. MSNBC host Joy-Ann Reid tells the story of Medgar and his wife Myrlie in a new book. Evers was the NAACP field secretary in Mississippi, a state that lynched more Black people than any other. The risks of the job created a lot of tension in their marriage — and after Medgar's death, Myrlie's fury drove her to be an activist herself.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

When Mark Daley and his husband, Jason, became foster parents to two brothers, they fell in love with the children right away. But Daley and his husband also know that their family could change at any moment. Eventually, the boys were reunified with their biological parents. Daley's memoir is Safe: A Memoir of Fatherhood, Foster Care, and the Risks We Take for Family. Daley talks about the foster care system at large, as well as the joy and pain he and Jason experienced as foster parents.Also, TV critic David Bianculli reflects on Curb Your Enthusiasm, as it enters its 12th and final season.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Journalist Michele Norris has spent the last 14 years collecting what she calls "an archive of the human experience." She wanted to see how Americans really talk and think about race, so she asked people to share their thoughts in six words. The results were overwhelming. Eventually, the project moved online and got more than half a million entries from over 100 countries. Norris turned the project into a new book called Our Hidden Conversations. Also, John Powers reviews a biography of Frantz Fanon, by Adam Shatz.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Emma Stone is nominated for an Oscar for her starring role in Poor Things. She spoke with Terry Gross about the film and her relationship to her anxiety. David Bianculli reviews Ryan Murphy's FX anthology series Feud: Capote vs. The Swans. Also, Benjamin Breen talks about his book, Tripping on Utopia: Margaret Mead, the Cold War, and the Troubled Birth of Psychedelic Science. It's about the pioneering work anthropologists Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson did on the use of psychedelics as a way to expand consciousness, and how that later connected to government research on the use of psychedelics as a weapon.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Oppenheimer and Barbie have been nominated for 13 and 8 Oscars, respectively. We feature our interview with Christopher Nolan, who wrote and directed Oppenheimer, about the making of the atomic bomb. Also, we hear from prolific music producer Mark Ronson about the soundtrack and score of Barbie. He co-wrote one of the songs that's been nominated for an Oscar and a Grammy, "I'm Just Ken."David Bianculli reviews the latest installment of Ryan Murphy's FX anthology series Feud, this time about Truman Capote.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Kai Wright's WNYC podcast, Blindspot, revisits the early years of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, focusing in particular on populations that are frequently overlooked — including the pediatric patients at Harlem Hospital.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Stone has two Oscar nominations for Poor Things: One for best actress and one for best picture, as a producer. She spoke with Terry Gross about working with an intimacy coordinator, why she sees her anxiety as a superpower, and how Superbad changed her life.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Hundreds of thousands of people, mostly from Central America, arrive at the U.S.-Mexico border every year. What to do with these migrants is one of the most divisive issues in Washington. New Yorker staff writer Jonathan Blitzer says the crisis is partially the result of decades of American policy. Blitzer's new book is called Everyone Who is Gone is Here. He also recounts the stories of those attempting to cross the border.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

NBC journalist Antonia Hylton spent more than a decade piecing together the history of Maryland's first segregated asylum, where Black patients were forced into manual labor. Her new book is Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum. Also, Ken Tucker reviews the new album The Interrogator from The Paranoid Style.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Tracee Ellis Ross co-stars in the new movie American Fiction, which is nominated for five Oscars, including Best Picture. For eight seasons, she starred in the ABC comedy series Black-ish. Ross played the mother, Bow, and she worked with the writers to make sure her character wasn't just what she calls "wife wallpaper." She spoke with Tonya Mosley about those roles. Also, Dr. Uché Blackstock talks about her new book, Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons With Racism In Medicine. Maureen Corrigan reviews the debut novel Martyr! from Iranian American poet Kaveh Akbar.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We remember composer and classical music satirist Peter Schickele, whose alter ego was "P.D.Q. Bach." His comic music arrangements were funny, but the level of musicianship was no joke. He spoke with Terry Gross in 1985. Also, we remember Mary Weiss, lead singer of the Shangri-Las, the girl group whose biggest hit was "Leader of the Pack." From working-class Queens, they acquired a tough girl image, in contrast to the glamor girl groups of the era. Weiss was on Fresh Air in 2007 when she released a solo album. Also, TV critic David Bianculli reviews Masters of the Air, the new World War II series from Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks on Apple TV+. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New York Times correspondent David Sanger says that Iran and its proxies are posing new challenges: "We're seeing outbreaks of low-level but highly damaging conflict all over the region."Also, John Powers reviews the new Mexican film Tótem. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Tracee Ellis Ross co-stars in the Oscar-nominated movie American Fiction. For eight seasons, she starred in the ABC comedy series Black-ish. We talk about her new projects, her superstar mother, Diana Ross, and forging her own path outside of her mother's success. We also talk about how she's come to embrace, at 51, never having children or being married.Also, film critic Justin Chang reviews the new Vietnamese drama Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell and book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Kahveh Akbar's debut novel Martyr! Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Time correspondent Simon Shuster has been interviewing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy since 2019, when Zelenskyy was still a famous entertainer and satirist. Shuster talks about Zelenskyy's rise to power, the infamous call with Trump that led to Trump's first impeachment, and how the war with Russia has changed him. Shuster's new book is The Showman.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Dr. Uché Blackstock was one of the first doctors to raise the alarm that COVID-19 was disproportionately impacting Black people. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about how medical schools contribute to inequities in health care, and what we can do about it. Her book is Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Ava DuVernay's new film Origin explores a new way to consider the historical subjugation of Black people in America: as the adverse result of a caste system. The film is inspired by Isabel Wilkerson's book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. In the movie, Wilkerson embarks on a journey to learn about caste, traveling to Germany and India to get to the root of the Black experience in America.Also, we'll talk about how algorithms flatten culture with journalist Kyle Chayka. He says algorithms affect every aspect of our lives — from what we watch on Netflix, what songs are at the top of the charts, to what our local coffee shop looks like. His book is Filterworld.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

HBO's Succession swept at the Emmys, winning six awards for its fourth and final season. We compiled interviews with show creator/head writer Jesse Armstrong and actors Kieran Culkin and Matthew Macfadyen. Also, David Bianculli reflects on the 25th anniversary of The Sopranos.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Home schooling is now America's fastest growing form of education, but Washington Post reporter Peter Jamison tells Dave Davies, "It's remarkable how little oversight there is of home-schooled children." Also, we remember TV critic Tom Shales.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Filterworld author Kyle Chayka examines the algorithms that dictate what we watch, read and listen to. He argues that machine-guided curation makes us docile consumers. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews You Only Call When You're in Trouble, a new novel from Stephen McCauley.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

You may have heard about the pioneering research of anthropologist Margaret Mead, but do you know about her work with psychedelics? Mead and her husband, Gregory Bateson, thought psychedelics might reshape humanity by expanding consciousness. We'll speak with author Benjamin Breen about that research and how it led to the CIA's secret experiments in the '50s and '60s, using psychedelics in interrogation. He also shares with us details about a NASA-funded experiment to try to get dolphins to talk by giving them LSD. His book is Tripping on Utopia.Also, John Powers reviews the Apple TV+ series Criminal Record.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Award-winning director Ava DuVernay's new film Origin explores a new way to consider the historical subjugation of Black people in America: As the adverse result of a caste system.The film is inspired by Isabel Wilkerson's book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. In the movie, Wilkerson embarks on a journey to learn about caste - traveling to Germany and India to get to the root of the Black experience in America. DuVernay also directed 13th, When They See Us, and Selma.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Actor Sterling K. Brown co-stars in the new film American Fiction. We'll talk about his role in that, as well as playing O.J. Simpson prosecutor Christopher Darden. Also, we'll hear from Paul Giamatti. He just won a Golden Globe for his role in The Holdovers, as a pompous and disliked teacher at a boys boarding school. The Holdovers is the second collaboration between Giamatti and director Alexander Payne. The first was the surprise hit movie Sideways.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Grammy-Award winning baritone first auditioned to play the Demon Barber of Fleet Street back in high school. He didn't get the part then; but he starred in in the latest Broadway revival. Groban will leave the role this month. He spoke with Fresh Air's Ann Marie Baldonado about his affinity for Stephen Sondheim, poking fun at his own image on TV, and starting his singing career as a teen. Also, Justin Chang reviews the new film Memory.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Washington Post reporter Julian Mark talks about the resignation of Harvard President Claudine Gay, and the broader movement to dismantle DEI practices in academia and corporate America. Also, TV critic David Bianculli reviews Monsieur Spade, starring Clive Owen on AMC.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Giamatti says his latest movie, filmed at various prep schools in Massachusetts and directed by Alexander Payne, triggered memories of the time he spent as a day student at a private school. He spoke with Sam Briger about his reunion with Payne after 20 years, Billions, and what he loves about acting.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Annie Liontas experienced three brain injuries in the span of one year, which led to dizziness, memory fog and anger — and impacted Liontas' marriage and sex life. Their memoir is Sex with a Brain Injury: On Concussion and Recovery. Also, David Bianculli reviews HBO's True Detective: Night Country starring Jodie Foster Kali Reis.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Brown won an Emmy for his portrayal of Christopher Darden in The People v. O.J. Simpson, and another for This Is Us. He now appears in the film American Fiction. He spoke with Terry Gross about losing his father, how his feelings about the O.J. Simpson case changed, and prejudice he faced in Hollywood.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Bradley Cooper talks about writing, directing, and starring in the new film Maestro, in which he portrays conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein. Also with us is conducting consultant Yannick Nézet-Séguin, who conducts the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. The film focuses on Bernstein's music and his relationship with his wife, including the friction caused by his affairs with men. Also, we hear from restaurateur Rose Previte, author of the new cookbook Maydān: Recipes from Lebanon and Beyond. And Justin Chang reviews Memory, starring Peter Sarsgaard and Jessica Chastain.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We remember Tom Smothers, of the comic folk duo the Smothers Brothers, who died last week at the age of 86. Their popular TV variety show in the late 1960s captured the spirit of the counterculture, and was often censored by network execs. We feature our interview with Tom and Dick Smothers and have an appreciation by TV critic David Bianculli.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Bloomberg News reporter Emma Court explains how these so-called "miracle" weight loss drugs work, and discusses side effects, long-term impacts, and what it all means for the body positivity movement.Also, John Powers reviews Michelle Yeoh's Netflix comedy-thriller series The Brothers Sun.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In her new cookbook, Maydān: Recipes from Lebanon and Beyond, Rose Previte writes about what it's like to be a women restauranteur in a male-dominated industry, and what it was like to grow up in rural Ohio in a Sicilian-Lebanese household. She shares her mother's staple recipes and dishes she learned from other women from around the world. Also, we remember Full Monty actor Tom Wilkinson, who died on last week at the age of 75.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In his new biopic Maestro, Bradley Cooper was determined not to imitate the legendary Leonard Bernstein. Instead, the actor worked with conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin to find his own rhythm. They spoke with Terry Gross about conducting, Bernstein's legacy, and playing with batons when they were kids.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We start the new year with Barbra Streisand, and listen back to the interview we recorded in November. Throughout her career, her mother would send her bad reviews of her performances. The intention was to prevent Barbra from getting a "swelled head," but they also served as fuel for a woman who was determined to be a star. Later, book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Prophet Song, the novel that won the 2023 Booker Prize.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Taraji P. Henson stars as jazz singer Shug Avery in the new musical adaptation of The Color Purple. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about what the play means to her. Also, we'll hear from Brad Mehldau, one of the most acclaimed and influential jazz pianists of his generation. He joins us at the piano, for music and conversation. And Justin Chang will share his list of the best movies of 2023.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Our dark week continues with a performance by and conversation with two of the best traditional jazz musicians around, trumpeter Jon-Erik Kellso and guitarist Matt Munisteri. In 2007, they founded the band The EarRegulars which plays Sunday nights at a very old bar in Greenwich Village called the EAR inn. They spoke with Fresh Air producer Sam Briger.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We continue our series of some of our favorite interviews of the year with co-founder and lead MC of the Roots, Tariq Trotter, a.k.a. Black Thought. When Trotter was a teen, he experienced one of the biggest tragedies of his life, the murder of his mother, and it was his friend and creative partner Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson who took him in. Together they co-founded The Roots. We talk about growing up in Philly and landing the house band gig at The Tonight Show. His memoir is called The Upcycled Self.Later, critic Nick Quah takes a look back at the year in podcasts.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

When Shields was 11 months old, she was in soap commercials and print ads. At the age of 12, she starred as a child prostitute in the film Pretty Baby. In her teens, she modeled jeans for Calvin Klein and became a household name. A Hulu documentary examines how she was sexually objectified as a child and teen actress. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about her life and career. Rock critic Ken Tucker shares two great albums that he feels were overlooked this year.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Canadian musician Allison Russell talks and sings about the abuse she endured from her racist adoptive father — and about how she learned she was worthy of being loved. Her 2023 album is The Returner. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson has put together a playlist of some of his favorite Christmas recordings. Questlove is co-founder of The Roots, which is among other things, is the house band for The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. Also, roots and rockabilly musician JD McPherson plays some of his own Christmas tunes.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It's a David Byrne Christmas. The cofounder and frontman of Talking Heads has put together a playlist of his favorite Christmas songs for us. Also, we'll hear from actor Nicolas Cage. In the new movie Dream Scenario, he plays a college professor who becomes a star on the internet after he mysteriously appears in the dreams of millions of people. He talks about how that relates to his own experience of becoming an internet meme.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

From now until the end of 2023, we're listening back to some stand-out interviews from this year. Timothy Olyphant is best known for portraying lawmen in cowboy hats. He reprises the role of U.S. marshal Raylan Givens in the eight-part sequel, Justified: City Primeval, based on Elmore Leonard's novel. He also played Sheriff Seth Bullock in Deadwood. He spoke with Dave Davies about the roles. Film critic Justin Chang reviews The Zone of Interest.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Cage has been acting for almost 45 years, and has appeared in more than 100 films. Dream Scenario is one of five scripts he's encountered in his career that he knew, immediately upon reading, he had to take on. He spoke with Dave Davies about becoming a meme, changing his name from Coppola to Cage, and maybe breaking into TV. Also, jazz critic Kevin Whitehead remembers composer Carla Bley, who died this year.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The singer-songwriter and Talking Heads frontman presents some of his favorite holiday music — including songs by The Pogues, James Brown, LCD Soundsystem and Paul Simon. The playlist on Apple MusicThe playlist on Spotify Also, David Bianculli shares highlights from TV this year.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Braugher died of lung cancer last week at age 61. He's best known for his portrayals of police in two opposite genres: in the comedy series Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which lampooned cop shows, and in the drama series Homicide: Life on the Street. We have two interviews with him — one from 1995 and one from 2006.Also, Kevin Whitehead shares a remembrance of jazz musicians who died this year. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

This Christmas, the film adaptation of the musical The Color Purple hits the big screen. For award-winning actress Taraji P. Henson, starring as Shug Avery in the American classic is a full circle moment. Henson first saw Steven Spielberg's film version as a high schooler in D.C., and knew from then on that she wanted to be an actor. "I just remember going to the movies, seeing all those Black people on the screen and I was like, 'Oh my God. I want to do that.' " She spoke with Tonya Mosley about the musical, playing Cookie on Empire, and how her acting training at Howard prepared her for Hollywood.Also, rock critic Ken Tucker reviews two new Christmas albums.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Humorist and author David Sedaris is a public radio regular – his 'Santaland Diaries' first aired on NPR's Morning Edition in 1992 and has gone on to become a holiday staple. He also is a regular Fresh Air guest, and in a first, we're sharing an exclusive bonus episode with Sedaris – normally only available for our Fresh Air+ supporters – with everyone. If you're not already a Fresh Air+ supporter, enjoying weekly bonus episodes like this and sponsor-free listening on all our episodes, you can find out more at https://plus.npr.org. You can hear all of Sedaris' 1997 interview here https://n.pr/4agJKmN. Sedaris' 'Santaland Diaries': https://n.pr/3TswxkO. Sedaris in 2022: https://n.pr/3Tm2qvf. Sedaris in 2018: https://n.pr/3Tsevz0. Sedaris in 2017: https://n.pr/48jrebn. Sedaris in 2013 https://n.pr/3GNj937. Sedaris in 2008: https://n.pr/3GL1wks. Sedaris in 2004: https://n.pr/47TsaDA. Sedaris in 2000: https://n.pr/48lw8oy. Sedaris in 1996: https://n.pr/41nfz98. Sedaris in 1994: https://n.pr/3Nw7V6W. Sedaris in 1993 https://n.pr/3Nv0FIf. Hear all 40+ years of Fresh Air's archives: https://FreshAirArchive.org.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Colman Domingo stars in the biopic Rustin as Bayard Rustin, the civil rights leader responsible for organizing the 1963 March on Washington. Rustin was forced into the background because he was gay. Domingo is also starring in The Color Purple, as Mister, the abusive husband. Maureen Corrigan shares her picks for the 10 best books of the year.Also, writer and director Cord Jefferson talks about his new satirical film American Fiction. It's about a Black writer who can't get his novel published because it's not considered "Black enough." Under a pseudonym, he writes the kind of Black novel publishers seem to want.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The towering TV writer/producer died last week at 101. He created All in the Family, Sanford and Son, The Jeffersons, Good Times, Maude, and a lot more. His TV shows used humor to address subjects not typical for television: racism, homophobia, politics, and generational conflicts. His most enduring character, Archie Bunker, the bigoted father of a working class family in Queens – was partly based on Lear's own father. We'll listen back to our interview with Lear, as well as with Esther Rolle. Initially, she was reluctant to play the role of the maid, Florida, on Maude, but that led to her own spinoff series, Good Times. And we also hear from TV director John Rich, who directed All in the Family.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New York Times reporter Charlie Savage says Trump has a plan — and potentially the backing — to purge the federal bureaucracy, which he disparages as "a deep state that's filled with villains." Also, film critic Justin Chang shares his top 10 films of the year.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Poet and memoirist Christian Wiman has had a rare form of cancer for 18 years. "When death hangs over you for a while, you start to forget about it," he says. Wiman's new book is Zero at the Bone: Fifty Entries Against Despair. Also, David Bianculli reviews the return of Monk in a new movie on Peacock.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The movie American Fiction is a satire about a Black writer who can't get his latest book published because it's not "Black" enough. He decides to write a book with every offensive Black stereotype he can think of — and gets a $1 million book deal. Screenwriter/director Cord Jefferson says he experienced something similar as a writer in Hollywood. Also, jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews a new album from tenor saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Colman Domingo stars in two big films this year, in very different roles. In "Rustin," he plays the civil rights leader Bayard Rustin. In the new musical adaptation of "The Color Purple" he plays Mister, a cruel and abusive husband. "I think as artists, as actors, we are always watching," Domingo tells Terry Gross. "We're watching heroes. We're watching ordinary people do extraordinary things every single day. We're watching horrible people do terrible things and be committed to it. ... For me, I didn't build outside of myself, modeling on somebody who did some vicious things or abusers. I have to look within."Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Former congresswoman Liz Cheney says a second Trump presidency would be an "existential threat" to democracy: "There's simply no defense, no excuse for putting that power back in the hands of Donald Trump." Her new memoir is Oath and Honor. Also, Terry Gross interviews Dave Davies, Fresh Air's longtime fill-in host. He's cutting back on his workload at the show. We're paying tribute to him by listening to clips of some of his memorable interviews.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Barry Manilow recently broke Elvis' record for performances in Las Vegas, and he has a new Broadway musical called Harmony. He spoke with Terry Gross in 2002 about his hits of the '70s and '80s and writing advertising jingles early in his career. Film critic Justin Chang reviews the new film Poor Things, starring Emma Stone and Willem Dafoe.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In his new book, Kenan Thompson shares stories from his life and career, like his early days at SNL, his estrangement from his longtime co-star Kel Mitchell, and how he was conned by an accountant, lost all of his Nickelodeon money and had to file for bankruptcy. "It's humbling when people in the McDonald's drive-thru line recognize you, and then they also recognize that you're paying for a meal with change," he tells Tonya Mosley. His new book is When I Was Your Age. Also, John Powers reviews the documentary Anselm.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

More than half of the population menstruates, and yet there is still so much shame and stigma surrounding what is a normal part of life. We talk with filmmaker Lina Lyte Plioplyte about her new documentary Periodical. The film looks at the origins of the cultural stigma around periods. We also talk about period poverty, taxation on menstrual products, and reframing how we think about menopause. The documentary is streaming on Peacock and airing on MSNBC. 
Also, Maureen Corrigan shares her picks for the 10 best books of the year.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The former representative says a second Trump presidency would be an "existential threat" to democracy: "There's simply no defense, no excuse for putting that power back in the hands of Donald Trump."Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Dave Davies, Fresh Air's longtime fill-in host, is cutting back workload on the show. Today we're paying tribute to him — by listening to clips of some of his memorable interviews. And we'll talk about his reporting career in Philadelphia and the odd jobs he had along the way.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Computer scientist Joy Buolamwini coined the term the "coded gaze" while in grad school at MIT. As a brown-skinned woman, the facial recognition software program she was working on couldn't detect her face until she put on a white mask. She's written a book about the potential harms of AI — which include the social implications of bias and how it affects everyone. Also, we'll talk about UFO conspiracy theories with journalist Garrett Graff. He talks with us about how they've led to other conspiracy theories about the government.And Justin Chang will review the latest film by Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki, The Boy and the Heron.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Maddow's new book, Prequel, chronicles the the ultra right-wing groups that sided with Hitler's Germany and plotted to overthrow the U.S. government before World War II. The plot led to the largest sedition trial in American history. The book is also about sitting members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives who colluded with a Nazi agent to spread Nazi propaganda to millions of Americans with the help of American taxpayers money. Prequel is based on Maddow's hit podcast series, Ultra.Also, Justin Chang reviews The Boy and the Heron, by Hayao Miyazaki.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Journalist Ari Berman says both the Supreme Court and the lower courts are working to dismantle the 1965 law that's considered one of the most effective pieces of civil rights legislation ever enacted in the U.S. "It's precisely because it worked and because it worked so well that there has been such a dedicated effort for 50 plus years to try to weaken and nullify it," Berman says. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews two mysteries: Alexis Soloski's Here in the Dark and The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Journalist Tim Alberta grew up in a conservative, republican, evangelical church, where his father was the pastor. He wanted to know why so many evangelical Christians had become extremists, and ardent supporters of Trump. Over the past 4 years, he traveled to churches around the country, reporting on pastors and congregants who backed Trump, and those who felt forced out of their church because they couldn't support him. His new book is The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Computer scientist and AI expert Joy Buolamwini warns that facial recognition technology is riddled with the biases of its creators. She is the author of Unmasking AI and founder of the Algorithmic Justice League. She coined the term "coded gaze," a cousin to the "white gaze" or "male gaze." She says, "This is ... about who has the power to shape technology and whose preferences and priorities are baked in — as well as also, sometimes, whose prejudices are baked in."Also, we remember former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, who died at age 96 last week. She spoke with Terry Gross in 1984.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We talk with journalist Garrett Graff about his new book, UFO: The Inside Story of the U.S. Government's Search of Alien Life Here – and Out There. It's about reported sightings, how they've been investigated by the military, what secrets the military keeps and why, and the scientific search for extraterrestrial intelligence. He says that the government is absolutely covering up information about what's in the skies, but not for the reasons you may think. Later, John Powers reviews the new romantic comedy, Fallen Leaves.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We hear some live music and conversation from two of the best traditional jazz musicians around, trumpeter Jon-Erik Kellso and guitarist Matt Munisteri. In 2007, they founded the band The EarRegulars, who play Sunday nights at a very old bar in Greenwich Village called the EAR Inn. They have a new live album.David Bianculli reviews the new season of Fargo. Then we hear from playwright Larissa FastHorse. She's the first known Native American woman to have a show on Broadway with The Thanksgiving Play. It's a satire that pokes fun at political correctness and the way we talk – and think about – indigenous people in America.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Leslie Jones says performing stand-up for the first time as a freshman in college felt like putting on a shirt that fit perfectly: "It was just so natural." She spoke with Tonya Mosley about the best advice she got, her bittersweet time at SNL, and why she loves physical comedy. Her memoir is Leslie F*cking Jones.Also, Justin Chang reviews the Leonard Bernstein biopic Maestro, starring Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Pianist Jason Moran talks jazz and plays selections from his latest recording, which borrows from the music of James Reese Europe, the composer and musician who led the all-Black Harlem Hellfighters regiment band during WWI. Moran's new album is called From the Dancehall to the Battlefield, and it features Moran's take on Europe's compositions and pop music of that time.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In 2007, trumpeter Jon-Erik Kellso and guitarist Matt Munisteri founded the band The EarRegulars, who play Sunday nights at a very old bar in Greenwich Village called the Ear Inn. But don't let the word "traditional" fool you. Although some of the songs they play are a hundred years old, the way they play is vibrant and exciting. They brought their instruments to the studio to play us some tunes.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Larissa FastHorse's satire, The Thanksgiving Play, focuses on four well-meaning white people trying to put on a politically correct school production for Native American history month. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about diversifying Broadway, her rewrite of Peter Pan, and changes she suggested for the Macy's Thanksgving Day Parade.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Stephanie Land's 2019 memoir Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay and a Mother's Will to Survive was a visceral portrait of living in poverty as a single mom, cleaning houses. It was a bestseller and later adapted into a critically acclaimed Netflix series. Now Land has a new book, Class, about her experience juggling college, motherhood, and work. During that time she experienced food insecurity, and struggled to get government assistance. "I see such a lack of empathy toward people who live in the margins of society," she tells Tonya Mosley. Also, rock critic Ken Tucker reviews the new album from guitarist Marnie Stern, and David Bianculli reviews the latest season of Fargo.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

This week, Rupert Murdoch stepped down from his position as chair and CEO of Fox, and his son Lachlan replaced him. How might Fox change under Lachlan's leadership? And how has it already changed since Tucker Carlson was fired? Brian Stelter, author of the book Network of Lies, explains. Film critic Justin Chang reviews the black comedy May December, directed by Todd Haynes. Sofia Coppola talks about her new movie, Priscilla. It portrays the relationship between Priscilla and Elvis Presley — from Priscilla's point of view. The two met when she was 14 and he was 24. Coppola makes films about the internal lives of young women, including The Virgin Suicides, Marie Antoinette, and Lost in Translation. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Comic, actor, screenwriter and director Albert Brooks is the subject of a new HBO documentary called Defending My Life. It examines his career from his standup in the late '60s to his films including Real Life, Modern Romance, and Lost in America. It's directed by Brooks' longtime friend Rob Reiner. Brooks spoke with Terry Gross in 1996. Also, Justin Chang reviews May December, directed by Todd Haynes, which dramatizes a '90s tabloid story.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New Yorker writer Evan Osnos explains the contentious relationship between China and the U.S. and discusses the significance and possible results of Wednesday's meeting between Biden and President Xi.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In The Invisible Ache, actor Courtney B. Vance and psychologist Dr. Robin L. Smith examine the mental health crisis affecting Black men and boys. According to the CDC, the rate of suicide among Black men and boys "is accelerating faster than any other group in the United States," Dr. Robin says. She attributes the rise to historical racial trauma, compounded by the current nationwide epidemic of loneliness and isolation. Vance lost both his father and his godson to suicide. He has spent years trying to understand the pain his father suffered in silence, and to heal the generational trauma.Also, jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews a new album by pianist Angelica Sanchez.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

This week, Rupert Murdoch steps down from his position as chair and CEO of Fox, and his son Lachlan replaces him. How might Fox change under Lachlan's leadership? And how has it already changed since Tucker Carlson was fired? Today we discuss that with Brian Stelter, author of the new book Network of Lies: The Epic Saga of Fox News, Donald Trump, and the Battle for American Democracy. Also, David Bianculli reviews the mini-series The Curse, starring Emma Stone and the series co-creators Nathan Fielder and Benny Safdie.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We go inside the first days of Russia's invasion of Ukraine with journalist Mstyslav Chernov. He and his team were the only international journalists to spend the first 20 days covering the siege of the city of Mariupol. "I just understood that we need to record everything. Every frame, every second."A new PBS FRONTLINE documentary features their images — the constant shelling of the city, mass graves, and graphic images of women and children who are suffering and dying. Chernov is a video journalist for the Associated Press. He and his team won a Pulitzer Prize for their work in Mariupol.Later, Maureen Corrigan reviews a new short story collection by Claire Keegan.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Throughout her career, Barbra Streisand's mother would send her bad reviews of her performances. The intention was to prevent her daughter from getting a "swelled head," but they also served as fuel for a woman who was determined to be a star. The EGOT-winning icon spoke with Terry Gross about her career and her memoir, My Name is Barbra.Co-founder of The Roots, Tariq Trotter (aka Black Thought), reflects on his difficult childhood in Philly, his decades-long friendship with Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, and 50 years of hip-hop. Trotter's new memoir is The Upcycled Self.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

For Veterans Day we're revisiting two interviews about war. Elliot Ackerman served five tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, during which time, he says, he witnessed the absolute worst — as well as the absolute best — that human beings are capable of. Ackerman is also a journalist, novelist, memoirist and National Book Award nominee. His Silver Star is for leading a platoon in the Battle of Fallujah in Iraq.Historian Matthew Delmont talks about the more than one million Black people who served in the military in WWII, the contributions they made and discrimination they faced, and those who struggled for equality in civilian life. Delmont's book is Half American.Film critic Justin Chang reviews David Fincher's new thriller, The Killer.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Before the war between Israel and Hamas, it sometimes looked as if Israel might be headed toward a civil war. At least that's what New York Times correspondent Isabel Kershner thought. She covers Israeli and Palestinian politics and society and has been covering the current war. A few months before the war, she published a book about divisions within Israel resulting from ideological, religious, ethnic, and generational differences, and how those differences help explain Israel's shift to the right. Her book is called The Land of Hope and Fear: Israel's Battle for Its Inner Soul.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Throughout her career, Barbra Streisand's mother would send her bad reviews of her performances. The intention was to prevent her daughter from getting a "swelled head," but they also served as fuel for a woman who was determined to be a star — despite all the forces in her life telling her no. "I don't know if it was like, 'I'll prove you wrong,' because [my mother] kept telling me to get a job as a secretary," Streisand says. "I just somehow always saw my future." The EGOT icon spoke with Terry Gross about her career and her memoir, My Name is Barbra. Also, John Powers reviews the new Australian romantic comedy series Colin from Accounts on Paramount+. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Tariq Trotter, aka Black Thought, reflects on his difficult childhood in Philly, his decades-long friendship with Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, and 50 years of hip-hop. Trotter's new memoir is The Upcycled Self.Also, TV critic David Bianculli reviews Rob Reiner's new HBO documentary about Albert Brooks.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Sofia Coppola's new movie is about the relationship between Priscilla and Elvis Presley -- from Priscilla's point of view. The two met when she was 14 and he was 24. Coppola makes films about the internal lives of young women, including The Virgin Suicides, Marie Antoinette, and Lost in Translation, which she won an Oscar for in 2003. This fall she published her first book, Archive, which covers her career in film. Also, rock critic Ken Tucker has an appreciation of a musician you may never have heard of: singer-songwriter Dwight Twilley.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

David Byrne talks about his life and music. The Talking Heads movie Stop Making Sense – which many people consider the best concert film ever made – has been restored and remastered for its 40th anniversary. Also, we'll talk about the capabilities and consequences of facial recognition technology with New York Times tech reporter Kashmir Hill. Her book is called Your Face Belongs to Us.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We remember actor Matthew Perry, who died last week at age 54. He spoke with Terry Gross in 2007 about auditioning to play Chandler Bing on Friends, and how overnight fame changed his life. And we'll listen back to our 2003 interview with his Friends co-star, Lisa Kudrow, about her time on the show. Justin Chang reviews Priscilla, directed by Sofia Coppola.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New York Times reporter Mark Mazzetti says prior to Oct. 7, Israel's leadership was focused on an attack by Iran and its proxies —not Hamas. "They were ... myopic about what the true threat was."TV critic David Bianculli reviews the Netflix miniseries adaptation of All the Light We Cannot See.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It's the 40th anniversary of Talking Heads' masterpiece concert film, Stop Making Sense. A24 remastered and rereleased the movie, bringing it to new audiences and longtime fans. Talking Heads frontman David Byrne returns to Fresh Air to speak with Terry Gross about songwriting, dancing, and yes, the big suit.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The former Illinois congressman reflects on confronting the "fanaticism of the hardcore" of the GOP. Kinzinger served on the House committee investigating the Jan. 6th attack on the Capitol. His book is Renegade.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Historian Tanisha Ford tells Tonya Mosley the story of Harlem activist Mollie Moon, credited with raising millions to build economic and racial equality in the U.S. Ford's new book is Our Secret Society. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews Alice McDermott's new novel, Absolution. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Werner Herzog talks with Terry Gross about the curiosity that's fueled his career. The filmmaker and writer is drawn to extremes: extreme characters, extreme settings, extreme scenarios. His new memoir is Every Man for Himself and God Against All. Ken Tucker reviews the new album from The Rolling Stones. In Past Lives, Greta Lee stars as a playwright caught between two men she loves. Lee says the film allowed her to explore the immigrant experience in a way that felt vulnerable — and personal. She spoke with Ann Marie Baldonado.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The author of such spy novels as The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and The Night Manager is the subject of a new documentary by Errol Morris called The Pigeon Tunnel. It features the final interviews with le Carré who died in 2020. It details his life as a writer and his earlier work as a spy for Britain's domestic and foreign intelligence services. We'll listen back to the interviews Terry Gross recorded with him in 1989 and 2017.Also, Justin Chang reviews Alexander Payne's new comedy film The Holdovers.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New Yorker writer Jonathan Blitzer gives a deeper lens into Johnson, a conservative who refused to certify the 2020 election results. Blitzer also talks about the influence of Rep. Jim Jordan. Kevin Whitehead reviews a new album from big band composer Darcy James Argue.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Herzog reflects on the curiosity that's fueled his career in the new memoir, Every Man for Himself and God Against All. The filmmaker and writer is drawn to extremes: extreme characters, extreme settings, extreme scenarios. But don't mistake him for a mad man like some of his film subjects: "You have to control what is wild in you. You have to be disciplined. And people think I'm the wild guy out there but I'm a disciplined professional," he tells Terry Gross. Later, Lloyd Schwartz reviews new releases that celebrate the late opera star Maria Callas's singing and acting.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Author Scott Eyman explains how silent film actor Charlie Chaplin was smeared in the press, scandalized for his affairs with young women, condemned for his alleged communist ties and banned from returning to the U.S. His book is Charlie Chaplin vs. America. Also, Ken Tucker reviews The Rolling Stones' new album, Hackney Diamonds.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Atlantic staff writer McKay Coppins shares a moderate Republican's startling account of dysfunction in the Senate, and the dangerous drift toward extremism in the GOP voting base. Coppins spent countless hours with Utah Senator Mitt Romney, reflecting on his long career that includes a term as governor of Massachusetts and two runs for the White House. Romney, who's not seeking re-election, gave McKay hundreds of pages of personal journals, private correspondence and emails detailing his interactions with other political actors, including Donald Trump, and sharing candid opinions about his experiences. The result is McKay's new biography: Romney: A Reckoning.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Jada Pinkett Smith spoke with Tonya Mosley about growing up in Baltimore, her career in Hollywood, and her friendship with Tupac. Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Justin Torres' long awaited second novel, Blackouts, which has been shortlisted for the National Book Award.Also, we'll hear from Keegan-Michael Key. Along with Jordan Peele, Key was half of the sketch comedy duo Key & Peele. He's now co-written The History of Sketch Comedy.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Martin Scorsese's film, based on David Grann's 2017 book, tells the true story of white men in the 1920s who married into and systematically murdered Osage families to gain claims to their oil-rich land. Grann spoke with Dave Davies about this story when the book came out. Also, Justin Chang shares his review of the movie.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In Past Lives, Greta Lee stars as a playwright caught between two men she loves. Lee says the film allowed her to explore the immigrant experience in a way that felt vulnerable — and personal. She spoke with Ann Marie Baldonado about speaking Korean for the film, her mother's reaction to the film, and the muscle movies that made her want to act. David Bianculli reviews the revival of Frasier.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Alliance Defending Freedom is a Christian conservative legal group that has won 15 Supreme Court cases, including overturning Roe v. Wade. We talk with David Kirkpatrick, who wrote about the group in a New Yorker article titled "The Next Targets for the Group that Overturned Roe." Those next targets include further restricting or banning the abortion pill mifepristone, and limiting LGBTQ rights. We'll also talk about Kirkpatrick's recent interview with a senior political leader of Hamas.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Jada Pinkett Smith dominated headlines with the news that she and her husband, famed actor Will Smith, have been separated for 7 years. It was one of several explosive revelations in her new memoir Worthy. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about her unconventional marriage, life growing up in Baltimore, and her acting career. She also shares intimate details about her childhood friendship with the late rapper Tupac Shakur and the infamous slap at the Oscars.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Lawrence Wright, who is known for best selling books about Al Qaeda and Scientology, has a new novel about the colorful world of Texas politics. In Mr. Texas, a naive rancher lucks into a seat in the state legislature, where he meets lobbyists, influence peddlers, conspiracy mongers and power brokers. Wright spoke with Dave Davies about their home state.Also, book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Blackouts by Justin Torres.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Iranian American filmmaker Maryam Keshavarz was banned from returning to Iran after the release of her first feature, Circumstance, about Iran's youth underground culture, and two young women who fall in love. That film and her new one, The Persian Version, won the Audience Award at Sundance. She spoke with Terry Gross about her family and sneaking American pop music into Iran as a kid. Ken Tucker will review a new Joni Mitchell box set of rare recordings from the early '70s. Also, we'll hear from electronic music producer and DJ Jennifer Lee, better known as TOKiMONSTA. In 2016 she was diagnosed with a rare brain disease that required two surgeries — leaving her without the ability to hear sound or speak. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about her recovery and relearning the language of music.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Patrick Stewart is best known for starring as Jean-Luc Picard in two Star Trek series, 30 years apart. In his new memoir, Making It So, he shares details of his life growing up in working class in England. At 15, he left school and went on to become a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. He spoke with Sam Briger in 2020 about those early years. Also, film critic Justin Chang reviews the new film Anatomy of a Fall, which won the top prize at Cannes. And Ken Tucker reviews Volume 3 of the Joni Mitchell archive series from 1972-1975.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Baron joined The Washington Post in 2013 – just months before the paper was acquired by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. He led coverage of major news events including Donald Trump's election and presidency, the document leak describing the NSA's surveillance operations, and the murder of George Floyd. His new book is Collision of Power. Also, John Powers reviews two books by Helen Garner.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We'll talk with terrorism expert Daniel Byman about the deadly foundations of the war between Israel and Hamas, and where the war may lead. Byman has written extensively about the Middle East. His books include A High Price: The Triumphs and Failures of Israeli Counterterrorism. He's a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a professor at Georgetown University.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Key & Peele and Schmigadoon! star explains why he loves sketch comedy — watching it, performing it and writing about it. His book, with writing partner Elle Key, is The History of Sketch Comedy.David Bianculli reviews Wes Anderson's adaptation of Roald Dahl short stories, now on Netflix.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Loosely based on Maryam Keshavarz's own life, The Persian Version centers on an Iranian American woman who identifies as bisexual and whose mother entered into an arranged marriage as a teen. Both this film and her 2011 movie Circumstance won the Audience Award at Sundance.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Musician Allison Russell talks and sings about the physical and sexual abuse she endured from her racist adoptive father — and about how she learned she was worthy of being loved. Her new album is The Returner.David Bianculli reviews Wes Anderson's adaptations of Roald Dahl short stories, now on Netflix. Also, Cat Bohannon talks about her new book Eve, which explores the development of the female body-- from its ability to produce milk to why women menstruate — and why women's bodies for so long have been left out of biological and medical research.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Holes spent more than 20 years investigating crimes in California and played a critical role in identifying the so-called Golden State Killer. His memoir Unmasked is out in paperback.Also, John Powers reviews The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Huge swaths of the country are pivoting from fossil fuels, toward wind, solar and other renewables. New York Times climate reporter Brad Plumer discusses this progress and the roadblocks that lie ahead.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Poet and writer Safiya Sinclair grew up in a devout Rastafari family in Jamaica where women were subservient. When she cut her dreadlocks at age 19, she became "a ghost" to her father. Her new memoir is How to Say Babylon.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

When it comes to biological and medical research, female bodies have historically been under-studied. Author Cat Bohannon traces the female body through evolutionary history in her new book, Eve. She talks about how women process opioids and painkillers differently, human menstruation, and the difference between male and female brains.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Music producer and DJ Jennifer Lee — aka TOKiMONSTA — underwent two brain surgeries in 2016 that temporarily stripped her of her ability to understand words or music. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about that life-altering experience and being in the male-dominated field of electronic music. Also, Kevin Whitehead shares an appreciation of tenor saxophonist Von Freeman.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In her new memoir, comedian Leslie Jones writes about being on Saturday Night Live – and the years she spent working odd jobs to get by before she was famous. Ken Tucker reviews Allison Russell's new album, The Returner. Award-winning actor, producer, and activist Kerry Washington also has a new memoir. In Thicker Than Water, she examines her life, career and the discovery of a secret about her origins that her parents revealed to her just a few years ago.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Scottish actor David McCallum played an eccentric medical examiner on the CBS crime series NCIS, but he found fame nearly 60 years ago in his role as Russian agent Illya Kuryakin on the TV series The Man from U.N.C.L.E. He died Sept. 25 at age 90. Also, we feature our interview with Allen Ginsberg. A tribute album of musical interpretations of his poems will be released next week. Film critic Justin Chang reviews the new futuristic action thriller The Creator.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The secretive company Clearview AI scans unidentified faces, and finds a match in their database of billions of photos. The pics are scraped from websites and apps, including Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn, without the companies' permission. NYT tech reporter Kashmir Hill found that once your face is identified for a client, Clearview can quickly connect the client to a lot of information about you. Chances are your face is in Clearview's database, without your knowledge or permission. Clearview's clients include many police departments and some government agencies. Hill says it could spell the end of privacy. Her new book is Your Face Belongs To Us.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Russell talks and sings about the physical and sexual abuse she endured from her racist adoptive father — and about how she learned she was worthy of being loved. Her new album is The Returner. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb says cars are killing animals, while highways cut off them off from their food sources and migration paths. His new book about road ecology is Crossings.Maureen Corrigan reviews C Pam Zhang's Land of Milk and Honey.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy