Showing results by author "Terry Gross" in All Categories

Actress, writer, comedians Ellen Degeneres and Andy Richter on this edition of Fresh Air. Ellen Degeneres will soon begin a comedy tour. Her five-year sit-com Ellen won an Emmy for her much anticipated coming-out episode. She and her character came out at the same time. This was followed by a very public relationship with actress Anne Heche, which eventually ended.

Professor of Religion Elaine Pagels and film writer and director Rusty Cundieff on this archive edition of Fresh Air. Pagels has written four books, including The Gnostic Gospels (which won both the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award). She has a new book called The Origin of Satan. Cundieff has a new horror flick called Tales from the Hood.

Religion scholar Karen Armstrong on this edition of Fresh Air. The best-selling author of The History of God and The Battle for God, has a new book, Budda, about the life of Sidhatta Gotam. From North India, Sidhatta Gotama renounced normal life, leaving his wife and child to live alone and attain enlightenment.

Hear shock-rock icon Alice Cooper on this edition of Fresh Air. During his heyday in the early 1970s, Alice Cooper appeared on stage dressed like a ghoul, with a gaunt face and mascara streaked eyes, and performed cartoonish, violent stunts. His hits included "I'm Eighteen", "School's Out", and "Welcome to My Nightmare".

Political satirist Bill Maher on this edition of Fresh Air. He's just published When you ride ALONE you ride with bin Laden: What the Government Should Be Telling Us to Help Fight the War on Terrorism.

Hear former presidential hopeful and best selling author of Great Political Wit, Senator Bob Dole, talk about his new book, Great Presidential Wit (I Wish I was in the Book), a collection of funny anecdotes and quotations by or about American presidents.

One of the founders of Apple Computers, Steven Jobs, talks about the future of computer technology on this edition of Fresh Air. Jobs led the development of the Macintosh computer and in 1985 he founded NeXT Computer. NeXT's mission is to develop customized software for businesses; two of their applications are OPENSTEP and NEXTSTEP.

In honor of his upcoming 65th birthday, jazz bassist Charlie Haden is on this edition of Fresh Air. As a child he sang with his family on their country music radio show. Later he worked with Ornette Coleman when Coleman's music created controversy and sometimes provoked a violent response by listeners. Haden has also worked with Art Pepper, and Paul Bley, and he's recorded with many artists including Abbey Lincoln, Bill Frisell, Joshua Redman, Rick Lee Jones, and more.

Because Audible was not granted digital audio rights to today's issue of Fresh Air, we have selected a great interview with film critic and historian David Thomson and sleight of hand expert and actor Ricky Jay British from Audible's Fresh Air archive.

Robert Plant, former lead singer of the band Led Zeppelin, on this edition of Fresh Air. Plant has a new solo CD that includes tracks he recorded before Zeppelin and after. It's called Sixty-Six to Timbuktu.

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and playwright, actor and director Sam Shepard on this edition of Fresh Air. Jimmy Carter received the Nobel Peace Prize this week, and was only the third President to do so. We listen back to several of his interviews: in which he talks about his work as a mediator his life in the Whitehouse and his spiritual life. Sam Shepard won a Pulitzer for his play Buried Child and was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Chuck Yeager in The Right Stuff.

Director Mike Nichols on this archive edition of Fresh Air. He directed the new HBO movie Wit based on the Pulitzer-prize winning off-Broadway play.

Actor Jeff Bridges and singer and songwriter Joe Pernice on this edition of Fresh Air. Jeff Bridges has starred in The Last Picture Show, The Fabulous Baker Boys, Tucker, The Big Lebowski, Seabiscuit and other films. On each of his movie sets he's photographed the action behind the scenes.

Writer Deirdre Bair on this edition of Fresh Air. Her new book is Jung: A Biography. Bair chronicles the life and work of the influential Swiss psychologist Carl Jung. Bair won the National Book Award for her biography of Samuel Beckett, and she's also written books about the lives of Anais Nin and Simone de Beauvoir.

Satirist Al Franken and actor Michael J. Fox on this edition of Fresh Air. Al Franken's new book spoofs how-to-succeed books. It's called Oh, The Things I Know! A Guide to Success, or, Failing That, Happiness. Franekn is former co-producer of Saturday Night Live where he created the self-help guru Stuart Smalley ("I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me!"). He's also the author of Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot and Other Observations.

Musician Ravi Shankar, actors Vince Vaughn and Gene Hackman on this edition of Fresh Air. Today, we learned that former Beatle George Harrison has died.

British novelist Martin Amis and actress Lauren Bacall on this edition of Fresh Air.

Professor and writer Azar Nafisi on this edition of Fresh Air. Nafisi taught English literature at the University of Tehran and Free Islamic University and Allameh Tabatabai University in Iran. She was expelled from the University of Tehran for refusing to wear the veil. She left Iran in 1997 and is now a professor at Johns Hopkins University.

Writer Michael Pollan. His book, The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World takes a look at four plants cultivated by humans: the apple, the tulip, potatoes and marijuana. Pollan demonstrates that plants and humans have developed a reciprocal, co-evolutionary relationship: Do we plant potatoes, or do potatoes seduce us into planting them? Pollan questions the assumption that we are in charge of our agriculture.

Writer Laura Hillenbrand and Random House editor Jonathan Karp on this edition of Fresh Air. Laura Hillenbrand is the author of the best selling book, Seabiscuit: An American Legend, about the horse who became a racetrack sensation in the 1930s.