Terry Gross

If your New Year's resolutions include getting a better grasp on your personal finances and putting money away for your retirement, you'll want to hear what my guest Mary Rowland has to say. She's written a new book called "A Commonsense Guide to Your 401(K)."

Director Curtis Hanson and actor Russell Crowe from the film "L.A. Confidential." It's about corruption and retribution in L.A. in the 1950s and 60s and is adapted from the 1990 novel by James Ellroy. (James Ellroy is a previous Fresh Air guest whose memoir "My Dark Places" was about his mother's murder in L.A. in 1958) The film won best picture, best director and best screenplay awards from the New York Film critics circle and the LA film critics. It's also been nominated for 5 Golden Globe awards. (REBROADCAST from 9/18/97)

Novelist Elmore Leoanrd. The new film "Jackie Brown" is based on his crime novel, "Rum Punch." It's directed by Quentin Tarantino. He's 72 years old and has been called "the greatest living writer of crime fiction" (New York Times). Though he'd been writing for decades, critics didn't take notice of him until the 1980s. Now his work is known for it tight prose, "ear-perfect" dialogue and depiction of lower class life.

Actress Pam Grier. She's starring in the new film Quentin Tarantino film, "Jackie Brown." She got her start playing tough, scantily-clad women in black exploitation films, such as "Black Mama, White Mama," "Foxy Brown," and "Sheba Baby." She played a hooker in "Fort Apache: The Bronx," and (REBROADCAST from 5/10/90)

Songwriter Matt Dennis. He wrote "Angel Eyes," which was one of Frank Sinatra's signature songs. Dennis also wrote several other songs that Sinatra recorded. Dennis first wrote for Sinatra when Sinatra was the singer with Tommy Dorsey band's, and Dennis was the band's staff arranger and composer. (Originally aired 12/12/95)

Trumpet player and arranger Billy May talks about working with Frank Sinatra. May worked with Sinatra on and off from the mid 40's to the mid 80's. He arranged Sinatra's albums Come Fly With Me, Come Swing with Me, and Come Dance with Me, on Capitol Records He did the arrangements for the Ellington -Sinatra album on Reprise. On Sinatra's 1979 release, Trilogy, May arranged the section called The Past. They met in 1939 when May was playing trumpet and arranging for the Charlie Barnett band, and Sinatra was singing with Tommy Dorsey. (Originally aired 12/12/95)

Songwriter Sammy Cahn also wrote many of the songs that Frank Sinatra recorded, including Come Fly With Me, Teach Me Tonight and High Hopes. He also wrote the scores for many Broadway shows including Walking Happy and Skyscraper, and for the movies Come Blow Your Horn, Robin and the Seven Hoods, and A Pocketful of Miracles. Cahn died in 1993 at the age of 79. (Originally aired 7/23/1985)

Writer Gay Talese reads from "Sinatra Has a Cold" an article he first published in Esquire Magazine in 1966. The reading aired on public radio's This American Life last February. Talese's books include, "Unto The Sons," the story of the immigrant experience in America, and also the chronicle of Talese's own Italian ancestors coming to this country. Also the best-sellers "The Kingdom and the Power," "Honor Thy Father," and "Thy Neighbor's Wife."

Charles Granata is a Cop who has an extensive archive of Sinatra recordings. Many of them have been used for Sinatra reissues. He was Project Director for the box set: "Frank Sinatra: The Best of the Columbia Years 1943-1952).

Part Two of our series on Frank Sinatra: Nancy Sinatra, Sinatra's daughter. She recorded a few hits of her own including "These Boots are Made for Walking," and "Something Stupid," the duet she recorded with her father. Nancy Sinatra wrote a book about her father, "Frank Sinatra: An American Legend." (REBROADCAST from 12/12/95)