Former United Nation's Chief weapons inspector Scott Ritter spent seven-years hunting down Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction. He has written about his experience in "Endgame: Solving the Iraq Problem Once and for All." (Simon and Schuster) He resigned his U.N. post in August 1998 claiming the U.N Security Council and the U.S. Government had fatally undermined his team's ability to do its job. Ritter served as an Intelligence officer in the U.S. Marines for eight-years.
Former hostage Terry Anderson talks about his 100-million dollar lawsuit against the government of Iran. He alleges Iran supported the Islamic extremists who kidnapped him and held him hostage for seven-years. The former Associated Press Middle East correspondent now teaches journalism at Ohio University. The lawsuit was filed last week in U.S. District Court in Washington. The Iranian government denies any role in his captivity. We'll first listen back to an excerpt from Anderson's 1993 (12/28/93) interview with Terry. And then we have their current interview.
We remember jazz singer Joe Williams who died yesterday at the age of 80. Williams begin singing professionally at age 17, influenced by Erskine Tate, Jimmy Noone and Coleman Hawkins. In 1954, he became Count Basie's number one singer and was perhaps the principal reason the band was the dominate big band of the 50s and 60s. His hits include "Every Day (I Have the Blues)" and "All Right, Ok, You Win." He started performing as a soloist in 1961. (REBROADCAST from 6/20/89)
The New York Times' Roger Cohen puts in a call from Berlin. Cohen reported from Bosnia during the war there. He's the author of the book, "Hearts Grown Brutal: Sagas of Sarajevo."
To discuss the situation in Kosovo and the NATO bombings, a talk with Julia Glyn-Pickett the spokeswoman for Belgrade station Radio B92, the leading independent radio station in Serbia, one of three provinces of the Republic of Yugoslavia. Earlier this week the Yugoslavian government banned the station from broadcasting and journalists were forbidden to talk with foreign media about the situation. The government also expelled journalists from Britain, France, the U.S., and Germany. The journalist will speak to us from London.
New York Times science writer Natalie Angier talks about her new book "Woman: An Intimate Geography." (Houghton Mifflin)She is also a Pulitzer Prize recipient for her writing in The Times. Her other books include: "The Beauty of the Beastly," and "Natural Obsessions." She lives in Takoma Park, Maryland.
Screenwriter Stephen Schiff talks about writing the scripts for "True Crime" and "Deep End of the Ocean."He first established his reputation as a film critic for Vanity Fair and Fresh Air. He also wrote film essays and profiles for The New Yorker. He served an unprecedented three terms as chairman of the National Society of Film Critics. His first screenplay was for the most recent film adaptation of Lolita.
Composer John Barry. He's best known for his 11 James Bond scores, including "Goldfinger," and "Thunderball." Barry has won five Oscars: for the song and score of "Born Free," and for scores for "Lion in Winter," "Out of Africa," and "Dances with Wolves." He has a new CD compilation of his work, "John Barry: The Hits & The Misses" (Play it Again label).
Psychologist Mary Pipher is the author of the bestselling book, "Reviving Ophelia" about the struggles of adolescent girls. She's now turned her attention to process of getting older and entering old age and the relationship between adult children and their aging parents. Her new book is "Another Country: Navigating the Emotional Terrain of Our Elders" (Riverhead)
Terry Gross talks with writer Allen Barra ("Bear-ah"), the author of "Inventing Wyatt Earp: His Life and Many Legends" (Carroll & Graff Publishers). It tells the story of the famous sometime lawman and the shootout at the O.K. Corral at Tombstone, Arizona where Wyatt Earp was the only man left standing. Barra is a sports columnist for the Wall Street Journal.
Actress Nancy Marchand talks with TV critic David BIianculli. She's best known for her reoccurring roll as Mrs. Pynchon on the TV series "Lou Grant." Recently she had a role in HBO's series "The Sopranos." Marchand's film credits include "Jefferson in Paris," "The Naked Gun," and "The Bostonians."
Cookbook author Bruce Aidells. He's co-authored (along with Denis Kelly) the new book, "The Complete Meat Cookbook" (Houghton Mifflin). It's the first comprehensive reexamination of meat cooking to come along in 20 years. Recipes include: The Classic Hamburger, Not-Like-Mom's Meat Loaf, and Beef Stew with Mushrooms, Onions, and Dark Beer. Aidells is also the founder of Aidells Sausage Company. The teams previous cookbook "Hot Links & Country Flavors" won a Julia Child Award.
Journalist David Goodman. He's written a new book about post-apartheid South Africa, "Fault Lines: Journeys into the New South Africa" (University of California Press). He tells the story of four South Africans whose lives are divided by race and/or class. Goodman has written for The New Yorker, The Nation, Boston Globe, and the Village Voice. Archbishop Desmond Tutu says of his book, "A searingly honest b