The members of Sphere are heavily influenced by Thelonious Monk; some of them even performed with him. Jazz critic Francis Davis says their original compositions fall short of Monk's tunes, but the musicians' individual solos are outstanding.
Television critic David Bianculli reports back from a press tour in Los Angeles, where he was able to preview the shows debuting in the next few months. He shares his thoughts on the upcoming season.
Coleman was a child piano prodigy who has written for Broadway, television and pop artists. Despite his popular success, he says that, in order to keep working, he still has to audition for directors and producers.
Comedian Bob Goldthwait, who has appeared in the "Police Academy" movies and the Whoppi Goldberg film "Burglar." Goldthwait recently completed an HBO special and frequently appears on MTV.
Photographer Ted Spagna. His most recent project has been photographing people and animals while asleep. It's attracted the interest of sleep researchers who see links that were not previously apparent.
Matt Neuman writes for the HBO show Not Necessarily the News, which lampoons political figures and current events. He joins Fresh Air to talk about his brand of edgy of humor.
The actress, daughter of Eddie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, is best known for her role as Princess Leia in Star Wars. Her new autobiographical novel deals with drug abuse and depression.
Rock critic Ken Tucker thinks that new albums from Randy Travis and Dwight Yoakum might appeal to people who were once turned off by country music's old-fashioned sound.
Stephen Schiff says that the recent Japanese movie Tampopo pays homage to the Seventh Samurai and countless other films. The food-obsessed plot is both absurd and telling: the movie satisfies and leaves you hungry for more.
Language commentator recalls how he learned Italian by watching dubbed American movies while studying abroad, and considers why Italian filmgoers prefer dubbing over subtitles.
Bill Raymond has long worked with the collaborative theater troupe Mabou Mines. Their recent production, Cold Harbor, in which Raymond stars, is about Ulysses S. Grant.
Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz has cautious admiration for the Kronos Quartet, which exclusively plays pieces from the 20th century. He says the members are excellent performers who often fail to explore the true depths of their chosen repertoire.
Broadway actress Sophie Hayden worked in New York as an accomplished baton twirler before making it onto the stage. She put her skills to use in a recent production of Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors--where she twirled a machete.
Rock historian Ed Ward looks back at Elvis Presley's early recording session, which show that the singer borrowed as much from white country music as he did from the blues.
Bruce Duffy substantial debut novel is about the real-life philosopher, who wrote little about his own life. Book critic John Leonard says it's astonishing--and never reductive.
Lawyer and First Amendment expert Martin Garbus has a new book called Traitors and Heroes. He discusses the Lenny Bruce obscenity trials, the Reagan administration's effect on news coverage, and censorship issues abroad.
