Novelist Robert Stone has written a new memoir that begins with a stint in the Navy in the late 1950s, continues through his work as a journalist in Vietnam and then includes his counterculture years in the 1970s, taking hallucinogenic drugs, cross-country road trips, and hanging out with Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters. His memoir is, Prime Green: Remembering the Sixties. Stone's novels include Dog Soldiers (which was adapted into the film Who'll Stop the Rain), and Outerbridge Reach.
Journalist Jody Rosen. He’s put together an album called “Jewface” (Reboot Stereophonic Records). It’s the first anthology of Jewish minstrel songs. Tracks include “Cohen Owes Me 97 Dollars,” “I’m a Yiddish Cowboy” and other long lost hits from the vaudeville stage of the early 20th century. Rosen is the music critic for Slate.com and also writes for The Nation. He’s the author of the book “White Christmas: The Story of an American Song.”
Writer Stefan Kanfer. His new book is “Stardust Lost: The Triumph, Tragedy, and Mishugas of the Yiddish Theater in America.” It’s about the glory days of Yiddish theater in the late 19th and early 20th century. Kanfer was a writer and editor at Time magazine for 20 years and is the author of many books including biographies of Lucille Ball and Groucho Marx.