Terry Gross

Composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim. He was mentored by Oscar Hammerstein, and went on to revolutionize musical theatre. His first major success was writing lyrics for “West Side Story.” Sondheim wrote the lyrics for “Gypsy.” He composed the music and wrote the lyrics for “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” “Follies,” “A Little Night Music,” “Sweeny Todd,” “Sunday in the park with George,” and “Into the Woods.” In 1954 he wrote the musical “Saturday Night” but it wasn’t performed for 40 years. There’s a new cast recording of it.

Actor Greg Kinnear (kin-EAR). He plays a soap opera star in the new film “Nurse Betty.” Kinnear’s other films include “As Good As It Gets” (for which he was nominated for an Academy Award) and “Sabrina.” Kinnear got his start as host and executive producer of “Talk Soup” on E! Entertainment. Later he hosted his own late-night talk show, “Later with Greg Kinnear.”

The United Nation’s High Commissioner for Human rights, Mary Robinson, and former president of Ireland. She’ll discuss the murders last week of three UN human rights workers in West Timor.

Senator and former presidential candidate John McCain. His book, “Faith of My Fathers: A Family Memoir” (Harper Perennial) is now out in paperback. He’ll discuss his years as a POW, his bid for the presidency, and his endorsement of George W. Bush.

Jazz pianist Keith Jarrett. Called one of the greatest improvisers in the history of jazz, Jarrett was famous for his wildly passionate solo recitals. In 1996, Jarrett came down with a mysterious illness—- an interstitial bacterial parasite-- that caused him to stop performing for about two and a half years. Jarrett has started performing and recording again, but he still keeps a low public profile, so his condition will not worsen again. His newest CD, Whisper Not (Universal Classics), will be released next month.

Former White House adviser David Gergen. He worked with Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton. Gergen left politics and become a regular analyst on The Newshour with Jim Lehrer and Nightline. He is also Editor-at-large at U.S. News & World Report. His new book is “Eyewitness to Power: The Essence of Leadership” (Simon & Schuster).

Bill Moyers has a new PBS series about death and dying, but the focus isn't just on dying; it's on trying to live a decent life in the face of death and on the movement to improve care at the end of life, such as new approaches to pain relief and hospice care. The series also examines some of the difficult personal and medical choices faced by people who are dying and their loved ones. The series is called "On Our Own Terms." It premieres Sunday evening on most PBS stations and continues over the next three consecutive nights.

Kathleen Hanna and Johanna Fateman of the band, Le Tigre (lay-TEE-gruh). Hanna was the lead singer of the 90s band Bikini Kill. Bikini Kill was part of the music/cultural/feminist movement know as “Riot Grrl,” which focused on the concept of ‘girl power” and young women’s empowerment. The movement was based primarily in Washington, DC and Olympia, WA, and its members formed bands, wrote fanzines, and held meetings, protests and festivals. HANNA was a leader and spokesperson for the movement. Her first solo project after Bikini Kill was called Julie Ruin. She then formed Le Tigre.

Jazz saxophonist James Carter. He has just released two new CDs— “Chasin’ the Gypsy” and “Layin’ in the Cut” (Atlantic Records). The 31-year-old New York based musician was discovered at the age of 17 by Wynton Marsalis. He’s played with Marsalis, the late Lester Bowie and Kathleen Battle. He has been praised by jazz musicians and critics alike; Richard Harrington of the Washington Post once wrote, “To hear saxophonist James Carter is to be blown away.”

Working cop and writer Richard Rosenthal. For 20 years, Rosenthal was a detective for the New York Police Department where he dealt with homicide, narcotics, and armed robbery. Now he is the chief of Police in a small village on Cape Cod. He’ll talk about the differences between the two kinds of police work. Rosenthal is the author of two books about police work called Sky Cops and K-9 Cops. He also wrote a novel called The Murder of Old Comrades. His new book, Rookie Cop(Leapfrog Press), is a memoir about his time undercover in the Jewish Defense League.