Former Saturday Night Live writers Al Franken and Tom Davis are touring the country with their own show. They join Fresh Air to discuss comedy and writing.
Evelyn Kaye is a Jewish woman married to a Methodist and author of the book "Cross-Currents: Children, Families & Religion. Reverend Ralph Moore is an Episcopal priest and the director of the Christian Association at the University of Pennsylvania. Rabbi Mayer Selekman is a rabbi at Temple Shalom in Broomall, Pennsylvania. They join the show for a panel discussion on interfaith marriage.
Leslie Uggams is an actress and singer known for her roles in the television miniseries "Roots" and "Backstairs at the White House" and the t.v. show "Sing Along with Mitch." She is also well-known for work in musicals and on Broadway. Uggams discusses her career and life including being a child actor, a member of a youth gang, and singing versus acting. Uggams is currently performing in Philadelphia.
Actress Mary Stuart has starred as "Joanne" on the television soap opera "Search For Tomorrow" since 1951. Stuart's autobiography is titled "Both of Me." Stuart joins the show to discuss her career and life.
Painter Jamie Wyeth is the son of painter Andrew Wyeth and the grandson of painter and illustrator N. C. Wyeth. The youngest Wyeth is known for his work inspired by Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, the Brandywine River, and Maine, as well as his portraits. The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is celebrating its 175th anniversary, and its closing exhibit showcases Wyeth's work.
Mike Frisch, a professor of History at the University of Buffalo, currently working at the University of Pennsylvania, discusses oral history. Frisch spoke with Fresh Air contributor Charles Hardy. (INTERVIEW BY CHARLES HARDY)
Gary Bridges (WYSP), David Dye (WIOQ), and Michael Picozzi (WMMR) are disc jockeys. They join the show to discuss rock radio, the music business, and the life of a d.j.
Bill Evans, jazz pianist, died yesterday at the age of 51. Contributor and jazz critic Francis Davis, host of Fresh Air's "interval," a segment on out-of-print jazz, joins the show to pay tribute to Evans.
Ruth, June, and Anita Pointer, who sing together as the The Pointer Sisters, used to sing mostly big band tunes with complicated harmonies. They join the show to discuss their influences and new musical direction. Their new album is "Special Things."
Dave Brubeck's quartet released the groundbreaking record Time Out, which introduced odd-time signature jazz music to a mainstream audience. He was recently commissioned to compose a Catholic mass.
Irving Stone who writes biographical novels joins the show to discuss his novels and their adaptations. His latest book "Origin" is about Charles Darwin.
Vernel Bagneris is a playwright, actor, and dancer. He wrote, directed, and acts in the musical "One Mo' Time," now playing in Philadelphia. The musical is set in 1920s' New Orleans and draws heavily on the jazz from that time and place. It centers around a touring group of vaudevillians performing at the segregated Lyric Theater. Bagneris describes it as a "piece on Black theater history." Bagneris and pianist Morten Larsen give an in-studio concert sharing music from the show's time period.
Ann Rule was a writer for True Crime magazine when she was assigned a story about a serial killer who turned out to be a former acquaintance of Rule's. Rule worked with Ted Bundy at a suicide prevention center. She had even reported suspicions about Bundy to police. Her account of Bundy's crimes and her time working with him is called "The Stranger Beside Me."
Harris Wofford was Special Assistant to President John F. Kennedy for Civil Rights, the Assistant Director of the Peace Corps, a lawyer for Martin Luther King, Jr., and president of Bryn Mawr University. He currently practices law in Philadelphia. His new book is "Of Kennedys and Kings: Making Sense of the Sixties." He joins the show to discuss the leadership styles of three SIxties' figures: John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Philadelphia pianist and "friend of Fresh Air" Bruce Mills joins the show to discuss his career as a blind jazz pianist and to perform an in-studio concert at Fresh Air's new studio.
