Terry Gross

Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Stephan Salisbury discusses the internal reforms that are redefining the mission of the National Endowment for the Arts, including an elimination of smaller grants and a reconsiderations of what topics and images are acceptable. In the long term, such changes may influence facts Congressional action.

Artists like Bonnie Raitt and Bob Dylan had hits with songs by John Hiatt. Despite Hiatt's success as a songwriter, he hasn't yet topped the charts as a performer. He joins Fresh Air to talk about his career, quitting drinking, and his new album, Stolen Moments.

While the Chinatown sequel The Two Jakes hasn't found much success, many agree that it's beautifully shot thanks to the work of Vilmos Zsigmond. He won an Academy Award for Close Encounters of the Third Kind, which was celebrated for balancing special effects with conventional, domestic scenes. Zsigmond fled Hungary in 1956 during the revolution.

Was is half of the rock group Was (Not Was). They have a new album called Are You Okay?. Was, who is white, has also become an in-demand producer who is heavily influenced by black music. He helped make Bonnie Raitt's comeback album, Nick of Time.

Mosley's first book, "Devil In A Blue Dress," is a hard boiled detective story starring Easy Rawlins, a black gumshoe up against white prejudice in the 1940s. Mosley talks about the racially-mixed world of both his novels and his early life--his mother was white; his father was black.

Hidalgo and Perez's Los Angeles-based band fuses traditional Mexican music with more straightforward rock. Their new album is called The Neighborhood, which is inspired by the different cultural communities of their home city.

Fresh Air's poet-in-residence shares his reflections on the memories that gave him the most intense but evanescent pleasure.

Elmes has been working with the director since Lynch's first film, Eraserhead. He joins Fresh Air to talk about their visual, technical and narrative approach to moviemaking.

After serving in the Vietnam War, Peacock sought solace in nature. While camping in the woods, he had several encounters with grizzly bears. He wrote about his observations of the animals in his new book, Grizzly Years.

Stephen Schiff reviews the new operatic, gothic action movie directed by Sam Raimi. He says it may not live up to its lofty, Phantom of the Opera-like pretensions, but he praises the film for its comic book-like exuberance.