Jeff Yarbrough is a senior editor of the Los Angeles based bi-weekly national gay magazine "The Advocate." He'll tell us what went wrong with the gay rights protest that was supposed to take place during the academy awards ceremony.
Political Science Professor Andrew Hacker. His new book is "Two Nations: Black and White, Separate, Hostile, Unequal" (published by Charles Scribner's Sons) about race relations in the United States.
Reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer Vernon Loeb. He's been reporting from the Far East for the last several years. He'll talk with Terry about the problems facing the region like the explosion of AIDS in Thailand and especially Bangkok; the repression and ethnic fighting in Burma; and the amassing on the Thai/Burmese border of refugees fleeing repression in Burma.
Writer Natalie Robins. Her new book, "Alien Ink: The F.B.I.'s War on Freedom of Expression," (published by William Morrow & Co.) is about the secret files the FBI has kept on American writers like Ernest Hemingway, Norman Mailer, E.L. Doctorow, and Grace Paley. The author obtained access to the files going back to writers like Jack London and Lincoln Steffens. The files are still being kept and many writers are unaware that they exist.
James McCloskey, founder of Centurion Ministries, Inc., which was organized to free innocent men and women from prison. Since McCloskey began his work in 1980 at least ten innocent prisoners have been freed. Just this week Clarence Chance, 42, and Benjamin Powell, 44 were freed after serving 17 and 1/2 years of life sentences. They were wrongly accused of murdering a sheriff's deputy. Witnesses who initially implicated them later told officials that they were pressured to lie.
Sheila Kuehl is now a women's rights lawyer. But most people will remember her as Zelda Gilroy on the old TV show "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis." Her TV career ended when rumors began to circulate that she was a lesbian -- and those rumors were true. Now Kuehl is one of the most vocal lesbian activists in Los Angeles
Grace Paley was New Yorks's first official woman state writer. Known for writing about neighborhoods including the Bronx and Greenwich Village, Paley now lives in Vermont. Paley is known for her collections of short stories, but is also a poet. Her new book is "New and Collected Poems."
Television critic David Bianculli previews "Nickelodeon Special Edition: A Conversation with Magic." on the Nickelodeon network in which Magic Johnson discusses AIDS with a group of kids. (David says, don't miss it).
Author Adam Ulam (OO-lom) ("om" as in bomb) Director of the Russian Research Center and Gurney Professor of History and Political Science at Harvard. His new book is "The Communists: The Story of Power and Lost Illusions 1948-1991." (published byScribner's). He's also the author of "The Bolsheviks.
Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead muses on the importance of swing to jazz with two new releases, "The Jelly Roll Joys," by Dave Burrell (on the Gazell label), and "Eugene (1989)" by Anthony Braxton (on the Black Saint label).
Punk rocker and now actor John Doe of the soon to be reunited band, "X." Since the band broke up, he went solo with his own album, and took up acting. He's now starring in a new independent film, "Roadside Prophets," written and directed by Abbe Wool, who co-wrote the punk rock movie, "Sid & Nancy."
British actress Juliet Stevenson of the Royal Shakespeare Company. She's probably best known for her role in "Truly, Madly, Deeply," a role that was written for her. She create the role of Madame de Tourvel in the original British production of "Les Liaisons Dangereuses." And she's playing the role of Nora in Ibsen's "A Doll's House," which airs on PBS'S Masterpiece Theatre this Sunday (March 29).
Israeli writer A. B. Yehoshua. He's one of Israel's most acclaimed authors. His work, written in Hebrew, includes essays, short stories and novels and spans 30 years. His writing has often been compared to William Faulkner. His books include the novel, "Five Seasons," the collected stories, "The Continuing Silence of a Poet," and his latest novel, "Mr. Mani," is about six generations of a Jewish family. (published by Doubleday).
Rock historian Ed Ward profiles Bobby Robinson and his Harlem record labels which were responsible for such hits as "Kansas City," and "Fannie Mae," and for launching the career of Gladys Knight.
Film critic Stephen Schiff reviews Michael Douglas' new thriller, "Basic Instinct." The movie has provoked controversy among gay rights groups because the one bisexual female character is portrayed as a murdering psychopath.
Writer David Osborne. He's co-author of a new book, "Reinventing Government: How the Entrepreneurial Spirit is Transforming the Public Sector." The book argues that government bureaucracies are outdated and inefficient, and comes up with proposals to decentralize city and state governments, and promote competition. Osborne has been a consultant to Bill Clinton, among other politicians. (Addison-Wesley Publishing Co).