Summer grew up singing gospel in church choirs in Boston and, in her teens, joined the German cast of Hair. While abroad she recorded Love to Love You Baby, which became a huge hit. She returned to the United States a disco star. Her other hits include Bad Girls and Hot Stuff. She's written a new memoir about life in the disco spotlight called Ordinary Girl.
With his wife, writer Maggie Barrett, he'd planned to begin work on a book about Tuscany in mid-September, 2001, but the project was interrupted by the terrorist attacks. He photographed the excavation of Ground Zero, culminating in an exhibition that is now on tour around the world. Several months later, they resumed work on the Tuscany project. The book, Tuscany, is out now.
Rock Critic Ken Tucker reviews two new projects from Raul Malo. His band, The Mavericks, has put out its first new CD in five years, and he's co-written an album with country singer Rick Trevino.
Kahn was only 11 years old when his father, legendary architect Louis Kahn, died. We talk with Kahn about My Architect, the award-winning documentary in which he attempts to understand his father through his buildings and his relationships.
Film critic David Edelstein reviews Shattered Glass. It's the story of journalist Stephen Glass, who was fired from the The New Republic for fabricating stories.
His new book Brundibar is based on a Czech opera of the same name. It was set to music by Hans Krasa, who was imprisoned in the Nazi concentration camp Terezin and later killed in Auschwitz. The opera was performed 55 times by the children of Terezin. Sendak has also written and illustrated the classic children's books Where the Wild Things Are, In The Night Kitchen and Outside Over There. Time magazine has said, "For Sendak, visiting the land of the very young is not something that requires a visa.
Last year she played a supporting role in Todd Haynesâ Far from Heaven. Currently sheâs starring in two films in theaters now: The Station Agent, for which she won the Jury Prize for Outstanding Performance at the Sundance Film Festival, and Pieces of April. Clarkson was also in The Safety of Objects and will be in the forthcoming films Miracle and Dogville. She won an Emmy for her guest-starring appearance as quirky Aunt Sarah in HBOâs Six Feet Under. Her earlier films include The Untouchables, Welcome to Collinwood, The Green Mile and Joe Gouldâs Secret.
He's starred in The Last Picture Show, The Fabulous Baker Boys, Tucker, The Big Lebowski, Seabiscuit and other films. On each of his movie sets he's photographed the action behind the scenes. Those photos have been collected in the new book Jeff Bridges: Pictures.
The Pernice Brothers' album, Yours, Mine & Ours, was one of the most acclaimed of 2003. Joe Pernice's new book, Meat is Murder, is part of a collection of short books inspired by music albums. The book's title comes from the album of the same name by The Smiths.
Shehadeh is the author of the new memoir When the Birds Stopped Singing: Life in Ramallah Under Siege. His previous book is the memoir, Strangers in the House: Coming of Age in Occupied Palestine. Shehadeh is a founder of Al-Haq, a pioneering, nonpartisan human rights organization.
Tate is making his comeback after nearly 30 years. His rhythm and blues hits in the '60s — produced by Ragovoy — included Get It While You Can, Stop, Ain't Nobody Home, and Look at Granny Run. But bad record deals, the demands of touring and tragedy in his personal life took their toll on Tate. He developed a drug habit and disappeared from view. Eventually he kicked his drug habit and became a pastor. Back with his producer, Ragovoy, the two have collaborated on a new album called Rediscovered. It includes a track written for him by Elvis Costello, a longtime fan.
He was honored last week with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Third Coast Festival for "his signature contributions to the field of radio." He started in radio at WBAI, Pacifica's New York station, in 1977, and soon became co-host of NPR's "All Things Considered." He's produced several series for KCRW and NPR, including "Somewhere Out There" and "The Other Side." He's also worked in live theatre, and much of his radio work has been adapted for stage and screen.
In the 1950s, he and his brother Ira Louvin were regulars at the Grand Ole Opry. Their hits included, Cash On the Barrelhead, If I Could Only Win Your Love, I Love the Christian Life and When I Stop Dreaming. The duo split up in the early 1960s, and Charlie continued performing by himself. Ira was later killed in a car accident. There's a new tribute CD: Livin', Lovin', Losin': Songs of the Louvin Brothers. It features Emmylou Harris, James Taylor, Vince Gill, Glen Campbell and Dolly Parton.
TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new film The Singing Detective, starring Robert Downey Jr. Bianculli was a fan of the BBC miniseries it was based on.
Elisabeth Sifton is the daughter of American theologian Reinhold Niebuhr, who wrote the Serenity Prayer. The prayer appeals for grace, courage and wisdom. It has become a mantra of Alcoholics Anonymous, but has appealed to, and been quoted by, many people all over the world. Niebuhr wrote it in 1943. Sifton's new book about her father and the circumstances that led to the prayer is The Serenity Prayer: Faith and Politics in Times of Peace and War. Sifton is senior vice president of Farrar, Straus and Giroux and has been an editor and book publisher for 40 years.
