Best of Fresh Air

Spalding Gray's career performing humorous, autobiographical monologues has sometimes been a detriment to his attempts to break into film and television acting; no casting director wants to be mentioned in one of Gray's stage shows.

Actress Lynn Redgrave, known for numerous stage productions and the film Georgy Girl, comes from a family of actors. She joins Fresh Air to discuss her craft and how both her weight and famous last name shaped her career.

The Philadelphia-based musician didn't begin playing his instrument until he was 22, after serving in the Air Force as a fighter pilot. He describes his first 10 years performing with jazz legends as his version of going to school.

Deborah Eisenberg began writing short fiction in her 30s, without any formal training, while she worked as a waitress. Her first collection, Transactions in a Foreign Currency, received critical acclaim.

In contrast with other women television news anchors, journalist Linda Ellerbee eschews fashion and formality to focus her viewers' attention on her reporting rather than her appearance. After a salary dispute, she recently left her post at NBC. Her new memoir is called And So It Goes.

Before becoming a writer, Higgins was a journalist and lawyer--two career paths which have strongly influenced his style as a fiction author.

John Phillips, who led The Mamas and the Papas, has a new autobiography, which details the tensions, drug use, and affairs that ultimately led to the band's demise.

Novelist Rita Mae Brown joins Fresh Air to discuss her participation in the 1960s and 1970s in civil rights, women's, and gay and lesbian movements.

Shearing was born blind and began learning piano at age 4. Both practical limitations and prejudice kept him from playing certain kinds of gigs. But during World War II, while many fellow musicians served in the military, Shearing was given more opportunities to work. He later moved to the United States to further his career.

Spencer joins Fresh Air to talk about how became a writer and what life is like now that he's established himself. His newest book, Waking the Dead, grapples with ideas of loss -- a theme prominent in his breakout novel, Endless Love.