With his wide leaps between long tones and a sometimes generous use of space, trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith nods occasionally to 20th-century European concert music. But he's also one of the modern improvisers most grounded in African-American vernaculars; he's the stepson of Mississippi bluesman Alex Wallace, and he played for a spell in Little Milton's blues band. Smith's projects are all over the map, but often have this much in common with the blues: the byplay between a strong voice — his horn, in this case — and percussive strings.
Actor Dennis Hopper co-stars in the new film "Carried Away." Hopper plays Joseph Svenden a school teacher who has an affair with a 17 year old female student. The film is based on the Jim Harrison novel "Farmer." Hopper made his feature film debut in "Rebel Without a Cause" in 1955.
Transplant surgeon pioneer Thomas Starzl. Last June he supervised the surgical team that transplanted a baboon's liver into a 35 year-old man who was dying of hepatitis B. It has since become known that the patient was HIV-positive, though he showed no symptoms of the disease. The case raised questions about whether it's ethical to "experiment" on a person who is HIV-positve. Starzl has a new book, called "The Puzzle People."
He began his career with Chicago's Second City improv group. He went on to win a Tony on Broadway, in Carl Reiner's play Enter Laughing, and to star in Glengarry Glen Ross, The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming, The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, Wait Until Dark, Catch-22 and The In-Laws. This interview first aired September 29, 1995.
Patrick Murphy is the Public Guardian of Cook County, Illinois. He represents abused or neglected children in Chicago’s . In his new book Wasted: The Plight of America’s Unwanted Children (Ivan R. Dee, Inc) he argues that while keeping families together may sound like good public policy, there are many cases in which it only endangers the lives of children. His previous book is titled Our Kindly Parent the State. (Viking) (Interview by Barbara Bogaev)
Rock critic Ken Tucker looks at three new albums by by performers who are relatives of the already famous--Lenny Kravitz (Lisa Bonet's husband), Michael Penn (Sean Penn's brother), and Jason Bonham (son of the late Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham). Ken says in acting, there's no stigma in cashing in on fame by association, but rock and roll relations can have a hard time of it.
A natural gas mining company sent Josh Fox a letter offering him $100,000 in exchange for the rights to drill on his land. Instead of saying yes, Fox made a documentary called Gasland about the unexpected results of natural gas drilling -- and why he believes there is continued cause for concern.
Character actor John C. Reilly. He's starred In all three of director/writer Paul Thomas Anderson's films. He played a small-time gambler In "Hard Eight," a porn star In "Boogie Nights," and a police officer In the new "Magnolia." Reilly has also worked with directors Brian DePalma ("Casualties of War") and Terrence Malik ("The Thin Red Line"). Reilly got his start In Chicago at the Goodman School of Drama and worked with the Steppenwolf theatre.
Inspired by a ride at Disneyworld, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was a surprise blockbuster in 2003, grossing close to half a billion dollars and winning an Oscar nomination for Johnny Depp -- a rare honor for a comic lead performance. Virtually the same cast and crew returns for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.
Historian Stephen E Ambrose's new book is “The Wild Blue: The Men and Boys who Flew the B-24s Over Germany.” (Simon & Schuster) It’s about the 18-22 year old men, including the young George McGovern, who flew dangerous missions in the plane they called “The Liberator.” The casualty rate was nearly 50 percent. Ambrose is the author of a number of books of history, including the New York Times number one bestseller “Nothing Like it in the World.”
After "Robert Galbraith" was revealed to be the pen name for J.K. Rowling, many readers have been circling back to a "debut" novel they'd initially overlooked. Critic Maureen Corrigan says the mystery is respectable, but she will shelve it in the "I've read worse, but I've read better" category.
In the 1980's, Mould pioneered alternative rock with the band Husker Du, making what was described as "angry, self-hating music." Mould went solo for a while after the band fell apart. Now he's with the band "Sugar" and they've released their third album, "File Under: Easy Listening." One reviewer writes of the new release that it "shows Mould near the peak of his power-pop form and harbors a few prominently catchy songs."
Sharon Jones, head of the old-school funk and soul band Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, is working it. She and her band have a new album, their third, called 100 Days, 100 Nights. They've been touring to support the album, and Jones was recently part of the cast of Berlin, along with Lou Reed. She also shot a part for the upcoming Denzel Washington film The Great Debaters.
Investigative reporter Michael Berens writes for the Chicago Tribune. His recent series of articles is about the epidemic of life-threatening infections that occur in America's hospitals. He reports that infection rates are soaring and they are exacerbated by hospital cutbacks and carelessness by doctors and nurses. Deaths caused by hospital germs are now the fourth-leading cause of mortality among Americans, and can largely be prevented. Plus the problem is often kept secret by hospitals and it persists because of a lack of government oversight.
Father James Martin has written a new memoir about his spiritual journey from the corporate world to the priesthood. His book is In Good Company: The Fast Track from the Corporate World to Poverty, Chastity and Obedience (paperback, Sheed & Ward). Martin is associate editor of America, the national Catholic magazine and is the winner of three Catholic Press Association Awards. Hes also the author of This Our Exile: A Spiritual Journey with the Refugees of East Africa.
A concert with the McGarrigle sisters, Kate and Anna. There are new CDs of their first two albums, released in the late 70s: "Kate & Anna McGarrigle" and "Dancer with Bruised Knees." The McGarrigles are known for their close and "subtle harmony." Their music is considered hard to categorize, although it sounds folky. The sisters absorbed an eclectic blend of music when they were growing up in Canada: Victorian ballads, blues, jazz, French-Canadian folk songs, Broadway tunes, and country music.
Broadway singer John Raitt. He's the father of singer Bonnie Raitt. The two have collaborated on a new album of show tunes, "The Broadway Legend," (Angel). Raitt made his Broadway debut as Billy Bigelow in the original production of "Carousel." He also was in the original Broadway cast and film of "The Pajama Game." He's performed in many other musicals including "Oklahoma," and "South Pacific."
T.E. Lawrence, the British officer who played a key role in the Middle East during World War I, served as one of that war's few romantic champions. Scott Anderson's Lawrence in Arabia explains how Lawrence used his knowledge of Arab culture and medieval history to advance British causes.
Author Stephen McCauley first made a splash with The Object of My Affection, the novel that was later made into a movie starring Jennifer Aniston. His new novel, Alternatives to Sex, concerns a a gay fortysomething realtor with an addiction to cruising the Internet in pursuit of casual sex.
Hypnotherapist David Calof has been using hypnosis for 20 years to help clients discover - thru their own subconscious - the way to solve their emotional problems. He's written a new book about his work, "The Couple Who Became Each Other: And other Tales of Healing from a Hypnotherapist's Casebook" (Bantam Books). Calof practices family therapy and hypnotherapy in Seattle. (Interview by Marty Moss-Coane)