Terry Gross

In contrast with other women television news anchors, journalist Linda Ellerbee eschews fashion and formality to focus her viewers' attention on her reporting rather than her appearance. After a salary dispute, she recently left her post at NBC. Her new memoir is called And So It Goes.

The Nobel Prize-winning writer's formative experiences were informed by war in Eastern Europe, an itinerant childhood, and American novels and films. He has lived in the United States since 1960.

Before becoming a writer, Higgins was a journalist and lawyer--two career paths which have strongly influenced his style as a fiction author.

The musician started his career as a pianist, later focusing on vocals at the age of 27. He has developed an unusual technique and impressive three-and-a-half octave range.

Independent filmmaker Spike Lee's first feature, She's Gotta Have It, has garnered critical adulation and popular success. He joins Fresh Air to discuss his experiences as a black director, having an all-black cast, and making a movie that deals frankly with women's sexual desires.

John Phillips, who led The Mamas and the Papas, has a new autobiography, which details the tensions, drug use, and affairs that ultimately led to the band's demise.

Malcom Rebennack writes and performs music under the name Dr. John. He began as a studio musician before developing his theatrical stage show, which drew from New Orleans traditions.

Caribbean writer Derek Walcott divides his time between Trinidad and Boston. While his work often focuses on his West Indian identity; Walcott writes in English--the language of the colonizers who suppressed and diluted is country's indigenous culture.

Broadcast journalist Robert MacNeil is producing a new television series called The Story of English, which examines how the language is changing. His experience working in three Anglophone countries--Canada, England, and the United States--has given him unique insights into the subject. He joins Fresh Air's Terry Gross to talk about his experiences as a journalist in conflict zones, as well as his start in television broadcasting.

Novelist Father Andrew Greeley has just published an autobiography called Confessions of a Parish Priest. He joins Fresh Air to talk about his seminary training, his early experiences leading a congregation in Chicago, and his perspectives on the Catholic Church's views on sexuality.