Randolph emerged from a gospel music tradition, playing steel guitar in the so-called "sacred steel" style of some African-American Pentecostal churches. Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews his new album, We Walk This Road, which features original tunes and covers of songs by Bob Dylan, Prince and John Lennon.
Whitman founded the FBI's Art Crime Team and has tracked down more than $225 million worth of stolen art and cultural property -- including a $36 million self-portrait by Rembrandt. Whitman describes the heists in his new memoir, Priceless: How I Went Undercover to Rescue the World's Stolen Treasures.
Marilyn Mmiller was one of the most adored and charismatic Broadway musical stars of the 1920s and '30s. She also had a brief movie career -- before her death in 1936, at the age of 37. Critic Lloyd Schwartz review two of her movies, Sally and Sunny, just released on DVD.
Lisa Cholodenko's film about two teenagers trying to track down their moms' anonymous sperm donor is a "stupendous" situational comedy, says critic David Edelstein, who praises the film for shaking up our way of looking at the mainstream family.
The film The Kids Are All Right stars Annette Bening and Julianne Moore as a couple whose two teenage children have decided to track down their moms' anonymous sperm donor, played by Mark Ruffalo. Director Lisa Cholodenko explains how her own experiences inspired the film.
Journalist Joel Achenbach describes how our nation's electricity grid is based on 1960s technology that wastes power and discourages the use of renewable energy.
Until now, Finch has been primarily known for the backup singing she's done in the band The Mission Express. But rock critic Ken Tucker says Finch's new album, Cry Tomorrow, is a fully formed, mature piece of work.
Post-modern wunderkind David Mitchell pulls of an old-fashioned yet action-packed tale in The Thousand Autumns Of Jacob de Zoet, a novel set in early 19th-century Japan. The story follows Jacob, a bookkeeper at an outpost of the Dutch East Indies Co., as he falls for a local midwife.
On the FX series Louie, comedian Louis C.K. plays a divorced father of two — in other words, a guy just like the real Louis C.K. The series is a sequel of sorts to his first show, Lucky Louie, in which he played a married father of two — which he was at the time.
Lyndall Gordon's Lives Like Loaded Guns explores the family secrets of the reclusive 19th-century poet. Gordon theorizes that Dickinson may have been epileptic, and describes the cult-generational family feud over the posthumous publication of the poet's work.
The former U.S. poet laureate explains his admiration for Emily Dickinson -- and shares some of his favorite Dickinson poems. Collins says her words have a "sheer, untouchable originality."
Tilda Swinton stars as a wealthy wife and mother who gets involved with a younger man in Luca Guadagnino's acclaimed new film I Am Love. Fresh Air's critic-at-large John Powers says the movie offers grownup audiences something they've been missing.
Tuesday midnight sales of the latest Twilight movie, Eclipse, topped $30 million. Critic David Edelstein, who saw the film with his 12-year-old daughter, says he was hypnotized by the sexual tension and the flawless complexions -- but wonders about the lack of vampire blood.
A new biography tells the story of Buck's Chinese childhood, as the daughter of zealous missionaries. In Pearl Buck in China, Hilary Spurling makes a compelling case for a reappraisal of Buck's fiction -- transforming her from dreary "lady author" into woman warrior.
The East Africa bureau chief for The New York Times talks about reporting from what he considers the most dangerous place in the world: Somalia -- and why he continues to go back.
Doug Inkley, the senior scientist at the National Wildlife Federation, says the population of sea turtles and brown pelicans in the Gulf is being decimated. Inkley details the ongoing efforts to save two of the most visible species affected by the BP oil spill.
Journalist Michael Klare says we've used up what he calls the "easy oil" on Earth. What's left is "tough oil" — deep underground, far offshore or in complex geological formations. Klare details the hazards of drilling in these environmentally hazardous areas in his book, Rising Powers, Shrinking Planet.
Frank Loesser wrote the musicals Guys and Dolls and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying -- in addition to over 700 other songs. On today's Fresh Air, musical anthropologist Michael Feinstein discusses Loesser's musical legacy and plays some of his favorite Loesser tunes -- including several rare archival recordings.
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Linda Greenhouse examines the public discourse that led to the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision. She details the various legal briefs presented by both sides of the abortion debate to the court — and explains the newest challenges facing the legislation today.
The longest-serving U.S. Senator in history died Monday. He was 92. In a 2004 interview on Fresh Air, Byrd discussed his 50-year Senate career with Terry Gross — and talked about the noteworthy votes he cast over the years.
