Actor Robert Prosky is best known for his performance as a role call sergeant in Hill Street Blues. He appears in David Mamet's new movie Things Change. For 23 years he worked at Washington, DC's Arena Stage.
The sequel to the lackluster Winds of War is well worth the time, says TV critic David Bianculli. The miniseries about World War II already has a third installment in the works, which is slated to air next year.
Arnold Rampersad's biography of the African American poet has been called "a literary event." Despite dedicating his writing to the black experience, Hughes grew up in a largely white community. His more radical work didn't find much of an audience, which led to him adopting a more social-realist style later in his career.
Kevin Boyle's group Article 19, name after the United Nations provision protecting free speech, fights against censorship around the world, both in democracies and dictatorships.
Ken Tucker reviews the home video release of the highest grossing film of all time. He says the movie doesn't transfer well to the smaller dimensions of a TV screen, but its heart is still there. Conversely, Cinderella is perfect for home viewing, but it still suffers from Disney's sentimental revisions of the original tale. The Three Caballeros, another recent Disney release, is also worth watching.
Performer-in-residence Harry Connick, Jr. plays the music of Harold Arlen. While his name may be known to few, Arlen wrote several popular and recognizable songs.
Rock critic Ken Tucker steps out of his comfort zone and reviews three recent best-sellers he otherwise wouldn't have listened to. He says Anita Baker's Giving You the Best That I Got is lush but soulless, while the Bangles' Everything is an excellent ripoff of a 1960s rock album. Duran Duran's Big Thing is the band's attempt to prove they're serious musicians -- but it's a hapless bummer.
Jonathan Katz stars as standup comedian Jackie Shore in the new movie Things Change, which was written by his friend David Mamet. Katz played a con man in the earlier Mamet movie House of Games, which Katz says was loosely based on their experience as small-time ping pong hustlers.
Stephen Schiff says that director Leonard Nimoy's adaptation of Sue Miller's novel is lifeless, but Diane Keaton's performance might justify the cost of a ticket.
Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews the second volume of traditional music from the Bulgarian State Radio and Television Female Vocal Choir, called Le Mystere des Voix Bulgares. He says the singers' masterful renditions highlight the unusual harmonies not often found in Western music.
Folklorist Jan Harold Brunvard recently returned from a trip to New Zealand, where he learned about a curious away homeowners try to keep dogs off their lawns/
Author William Gibson is credited with creating the cyberpunk genre, which dispenses with nationalistic ideas of the future, and instead posits a world where multinational corporations rule and nation-states have eroded. His newest novel is called Mona Lisa Overdrive.
Wall Street Journal reporter Brooks Jackson details how election campaigns raise funds by finding ways to circumvent legal donation limits, and coordinating with special interests and political action committees. Corporations and other groups are exploiting these actions in an attempt to influence policy. Jackson's new book is called Honest Graft.
Book John Leonard reviews Eva Luna by Isabel Allende and Mascara by Ariel Dorfman. Leonard says that, in different ways, neither of them are fully satisfying.
Despite recording throwaway pop and calypso songs, Dinah Washington called herself a jazz singer. Critic Kevin Whitehead reviews the third volume of Washington's posthumous greatest hits collection, which features several of her collaborations with jazz musicians.
Carpenter has made films in a variety of genres, but he has a special affection for horror and sci-fi. His first movie, Halloween, spawned several sequels. His latest, They Live, is a political satire about aliens colonizing Earth.
AKA Michael Harris on the Bob Newhart Show. He joins Fresh Air to talk about his character's developing love life. Scolari also juggles, a talent which will soon be featured on sitcom.
TV critic David Bianculli reviews the updated version of the 1960s spy show. He says it's a fun watch, especially seeing the updated technology, but he can't help but notice a few careless gaffes in the script.
Curtin is an alumnus of Saturday Night Live, and now stars in the sitcom Kate & Allie. She joins Fresh Air to talk about the direction of her new show and some of her favorite SNL sketches. Curtin also reflects on how actresses and women writers on SNL always had to fight for airtime.
