Biography & Memoir

Film director Paul Mazursky has written the new memoir "Show Me the Magic: My Adventures in Life and Hollywood." (Simon & Schuster) Mazursky films include "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice," "An Unmarried Woman," "Down and Out in Beverly Hills," and "Moscow on the Hudson." He wrote the screenplay for "I Love You, Alice B. Toklas."

Former Special Counsel to President Clinton, Lanny Davis. He served from December 1996 thru January 1998. During that time he saw the President thru various financial scandals and developed a style for dealing with bad news head on. Davis left the White House just as the Monica Lewinsky story was breaking. DAVIS has a new memoir, "Truth to Tell: Tell it Early, Tell it All, Tell it Yourself: Notes from My White House Education" (The Free Press).

Former president of South Africa, F.W. Deklerk. He dismantled apartheid, released Nelson Mandela from prison, and later shared a Nobel Peace Prize with Mandela. Deklerk has a new autobiography, "F.W. DeKlerk: The Last Trek A New Beginning (St. Martin's Press).

Actor and now author Bill Murray. He's co-written the new book "Cinderella Story : My Life in Golf." with George Peper. Cinderella Story is really two books. The first is a string of anecdotes about Murray's club-wielding adventures with a number of celebrities including: Jack Nicklaus, John Denver, Clint Eastwood, and Hunter Thompson. The book is also an autobiography of a kid who started out caddying for 60 cents a half-hour with his brothers.

Singer Mel Torme died Saturday at age 73 of complications from a stroke. We'll hear an interview Terry Gross did with Mel in 1988. For more than 50 years, Torme was one of most accomplished and versatile pop and jazz singers. Known for years as "The Velvet Fog," Born Melvin Howard Torme to Russian-Jewish immigrants in Chicago on Sept. 13, 1925, Torme first made his reputation in the Big Band era as a songwriter, arranger, drummer and singer. He later sang in MGM musicals.

The Governor of Minnesota Jesse Ventura. He's got a new memoir called, "I Ain't Got Time to Bleed: Reworking the Body Politic from the Bottom Up." (Villard).

Former chief United Nation's hostage negotiator Giandomenico Picco. He has written about his experiences in the new book "Man without a Gun: One diplomat's secret struggle to free the hostages, fight terrorism, and end a war." (Times Books) Picco helped negotiate the release of more than a dozen western hostages being held by Islamic militants in Lebanon. He currently serves as president of GDP Associates, an international consulting firm in New York city, and is founder of the Non-Governmental Peace Strategy Project based in Geneva, Switzerland.

Actress Camryn Manheim. She recently won an Emmy Award for her role as attorney Ellenor Frutt on ABC's "The Practice." When she went up on stage to receive the award she joyously exclaimed "This is for all the fat girls!" She's written a memoir about her struggle to accept herself and her weight. It's called "Wake Up, I'm Fat!" (Broadway Books).

Former U.S. Senator from Maine, George Mitchell. After leaving the Senate he chaired the Northern Ireland peace talks. His new book is about that, "Making Peace: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of the Negotiations that Culminated in the Signing of the Northern Ireland Peace Accord, told by the American Senator who Served as Independent Chairman of the Talks" (Knopf).

Monica Lewinsky discusses her relationship with the President. Her new book is "Monica's Story" (St. Martins).

Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews "The Amateur: An Independent Life of Letters" (Pantheon) a memoir by Wendy Lesser, the founder and co-editor of "The Threepenny Review" a journal of literature and arts which will soon celebrate its 20th anniversary.

Actress and rapper Queen Latifah. She's written a new memoir, "Ladies First: Revelations of a Strong Woman" (William Morrow). At the age of 19 she was the first female solo rapper to have a major record deal. She also had breakthrough roles in TV's "Living Single" and in Spike Lee's "Jungle Fever." She also had a lead role in the recent film "Living Out Loud." Her latest CD is "Order in the Court" (Motown).

Former Executive Editor of The New York Times Max Frankel talks about his life in one of the world's most influential papers. His new book is "Max Frankel: The Times of My Life and My Life with The Times." (Random House) Frankel began writing for The Times as a stringer while at Columbia University in New York City. Over the next half of century, he rose to become Executive Editor a post he retired in 1994. He received the Pulitzer Prize for international reporting in 1973.

Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews "Scars of Sweet Paradise" (Metropolitan Books), the new biography of Janis Joplin by historian Alice Echols.

Laura Landro has written the new book "Survivor: Taking Control of Your Fight Against Cancer." (Simon & Schuster) In 1991, Landro, then a Wall Street Journal reporter, was diagnosed with leukemia. She used her journalist training to seek out the best form of treatment. She is now senior editor of entertainment, media, and marketing coverage at the Wall Street Journal.

Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews "The Crime of Sheila McGough" ("McGuff") by journalist Janet Malcolm, published by Knopf.

Music writer Peter Guralnick has written volume two of his biography of Elvis Presley. "Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley." (Little, Brown and Company). Part One of his biography is, "Last Train to Memphis."

Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews "Fanny Trollope: The Life and Adventures of a Clever Woman" (Viking) a biography of the mother of novelist Anthony Trollope.

First violinist Arnold Steinhardt is one of the founding members of the Guarneri (Gwa-NAIR-ee) String Quartet, which has been playing together for 35 years. He's written a new memoir, "Indivisible by Four: A String Quartet in Pursuit of Harmony" (Farrar Straus & Giroux). The Quartet is considered to be one of the finest string quartets performing today.

Book critc Maureen Corrigan chooses her favorite reads from this past year.