Showing results by author "Terry Gross" in All Categories

Musician Bootsy Collins and author Linday Gray Sexton, on this archive edition of Fresh Air. Bootsy Collins got his start with James Brown, where he "defined the finger-popping funk bass style" (Rolling Stone). He went on to work with George Clinton as part of the Parliment-Funkadelic tribe, before forming Bootsy's Rubber Band. On stage, he created alter egos, including Bootzilla, Boot-Tron, and King of the Geepies.

Hear singer Frankie Valli and comedian and actor Patton Oswalt on this edition of Fresh Air. There's a new four-CD box set of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons called Jersey Boys. Valli helped bridge 50s doo-wop and 60s rock-and-roll with two dozen top 40 hits, including "Big Girls Don't Cry", "Sherry", and "Walk Like a Man". Jersey Boys is also the name of a Tony award winning Broadway musical based on the lives of the Four Seasons.

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

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

Because Audible was not granted digital audio rights to today's issue of Fresh Air, we have selected a great interview with British comedian, stand-up performer, and actor Eddie Izzard from the Fresh Air archive.

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

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

Bluegrass musician Earl Scruggs and actor Adrien Brody on this edition of Fresh Air. Bluegrass musician Earl Scruggs originated the staccato three-finger, five-string banjo technique that became known as the "Scruggs style." Actor Adrien Brody won the Oscar last year for his role in Roman Polanski's The Pianist.

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

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

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

Actress Sarah Jessica Parker on this edition of Fresh Air.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Non-proliferation expert Joseph Cirincione and The Weekly Standard's William Kristol on this edition of Fresh Air. He specializes in defense and proliferation issues at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He is senior associate and director of the Non-Proliferation Project. He will discuss the evolution of the Bush administration's policy toward Iraq.

NPR's senior foreign correspondent Anne Garrels and her husband Vint Lawrence on this edition of Fresh Air. She was one of few journalists still in Baghdad during the invasion of Iraq. Often she reported from her room at the Palestine Hotel, as bombs flew overhead.