Terry Gross

Kent Walker is the oldest son of Sante Kimes, the 66-year old con-artist and convicted killer. Last year Kimes was convicted along with her other son Kenny Kimes of murdering an elderly Manhattan millionaires. The two have also been connected to the deaths or disappearances of three other wealthy people. Sante Kimes has been dubed the "Dragon Lady." Her other crimes include shoplifting, arson, and slavery. Kent Walker's book is "Son of a Grifter"

James Bamford has investigated the inner-workings of the National Security Agency for his new book, Body of Secrets: Anatomy of the Ultra-Secret National Security Agency: From the Cold War Through the Dawn of a New Century (Doubleday). The book examines the Agency's past and its present activities including the ongoing hunt for the terrorist Osama bin Laden.

In 1945 the USS Indianapolis was torpedoed in the South Pacific. Nearly 900 men ended up in the water, but after four days fighting hypothermia, dehydration and sharks, only 317 crewmen survived. A talk with two of the survivors: Paul Murphy, Chairman of the Indianapolis Survivors Organization (www.ussindianapolis.org) , and Harold Bray. Their story was told in the 1958 book Abandon Ship! The Saga of the USS. Indianapolis, the Navy's Greatest Sea Disaster by Richard Newcomb which has just been republished.

Chicago's 'Steppenwolf Theatres production of One Flew Over the Cukoos Nest is also on Broadway. . .We feature interviews with actor Gary sinise who stars in it, and director Terry Kinney. Steppenwolf is an actor-driven theatre known for its ensemble acting, and cutting-edge acting style.

Sherpa Jamling Tensing Norgay. Author of the new book Touching My Father's Soul, Norgay was Climbing Leader for the 1996 Everest IMAX Filming Expedition and summitted the Mountain that year. He's also the son of Tenzing Norgay, one of the first men in history to summit Mt. Everest. In his book, Jamling Norgay recounts his 1996 Mt. Everest ascent: the climb and its familial meaning. He now heads Tenzing Norgay Adventures which is based in India.

Writer Benson Bobrick. He's the author of the recently published "Wide as the Waters: The Story of the English Bible and the Revolution It Inspired." The book chronicles the difficulties scholars had in translating the Bible into English - efforts that culminated in the King James version. Bobrick is the author of several books and lives in Brattleboro, Vermont.

Alfredo Duran who was 24 years old when he was part of the Brigade 2506, the group that invaded Cuba. And Robert Reynolds who was chief of the CIAs Miami station during the Bay of Pigs.

African novelist and chemist Emmanuel Dongala. He was born in the Congo Republic, was educated in the U.S., and left the Congo with the outbreak of civil war in 1997. Two of his novels have just been translated to English: “Little Boys Come From the Stars” and “The Fires of Origins” (both by Lawrence Hill Books). With the help of writers Philip Roth and William Styron, Dongala now has a visiting professorship in chemistry at Simon’s Rock of Bard College in Massachusetts. Dongala is also president of the Congolese PEN Centre.

Classical pianist and conductor Murray Perahia. Hes been exploring the music of J.S. Bach in his recordings. His latest is Bachs Keyboard Concertos vol. 1 which he recorded and conducted with the St. Martin in the Fields ensemble. He also recorded the Goldberg Variations and Bachs complete English Suites. (All are on Sony Classical). In 1994 Perahia suffered a thumb injury that left him unable to play regularly for a year. He took up his first conducting post as Principal Guest conductor of the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields. They just completed a 10-city tour.

Journalists Lou Michel (“Meh-SHELL”) and Dan Herbeck are staff writers for the Buffalo News. The two have collaborated on the new book “American Terrorist: Timothy McVeigh & the Oklahoma City Bombing” (ReganBooks). MICHEL lived twenty minutes away from the McVeigh’s father, and over time he developed a relationship with the elder McVeigh which in turn helped him gain access to his son. Michel and Herbeck conducted nearly 80 hours of interviews with Timothy McVeigh.