Terry Gross

Critic Owen Gleiberman says "Ghost" is a tense, touching, and funny love story starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, and Whoopi Goldberg. Swayze's character dies, and Goldberg channels his spirit to communicate with his still-living love Demi Moore.

Gregg grew up in a poor Philadelphia neighborhood, and eventually had a 13-year career as a National League umpire. He has a new memoir about what it takes to make good calls.

Dennis McFarland's severe stage fright led him to give up a career as a concert pianist. He chose writing instead, in part because it didn't involve performing in front of an audience. His first novel, about a divorcé whose brother commits suicide, is called The Music Room.

Peter Bart was a senior vice president of the MGM/United Artists studio, and has just written a new book called "Fade Out." He discusses his efforts to turn the company around as the Hollywood studio system came to a close.

Critic Owen Gleiberman reviews The Adventures of Ford Fairlane, which stars comedian Andrew Dice Clay as a rock and roll detective. Gleiberman calls the movie monotonous; Clay's performance, like his standup, is crass, but not without charisma.

The jazz musician is an in-demand sideman, and is also known for his composed pieces. In discussing his career, Ehrlich says that improvisation and composition are part of the same musical gesture. His new quartet album is called The Traveller's Tale.

Former NYPD officer Vincent Murano worked in the Internal Affairs Division, and went undercover to investigate crooked cops. His new book details his methods and some of his more memorable cases.

Film scholar Douglas Gomery has a new essay in the anthology Seeing Through Movies, in which he discusses the history of the movie theater, and how theater owners designed the audience experience over the decades.

Environmentalist Michael Oppenheimer says that rising temperatures could cause international crises like wildfires and food shortages. He has a new book about ways to curtail this trend on the individual, corporate, and governmental levels, called Dead Heat.

Harding says ambition and arrogance pushed him to work toward a record deal. His efforts paid off -- his new album is called Here Comes the Groom. He brings his guitar to the studio to perform for Fresh Air listeners.