Comedy

Graham Chapman came out while working on the sketch comedy show Monty Python's Flying Circus. He discusses his activism to support gay rights, as well as the many times the television program lampooned conventional masculinity.

The writer has columns in Playboy and the Village Voice. Her new book -- a satirical take on dating, sex, and fashion -- is called But Enough About You.

Phyllis Diller became a comedian at the age 37; she and her husband, who had five children together, believed it would be the best way for her to support the family financially. She is known for her frazzled onstage persona, jokes about her imagined husband Fang, and her many plastic surgeries.

Avner Eisenberg, known as "Avner the Eccentric," is a "new vaudevillian"; he uses juggling, magic, acrobatics, and clowning in his act. Eisenberg also performs as a theater actor. He also appeared in the film "Jewel of the Nile."

Comedienne Phyllis Diller joins the show to describe how she got into comedy at the age of 37, after working as a housewife, reporter, copywriter, and in press relations.

The performer's material draws from his upbringing as a Jewish kid in the Bronx, his college education and his improv training in Chicago's Second City.

Rita Rudner started as a Broadway dancer before moving to comedy stages. She says she is constantly writing jokes and testing out new material on friends, strangers, and fellow comedians. Rudner recently made her seventh appearance on the David Letterman Show.

Paul Zimmerman is the screenwriter of the film "The King of Comedy," directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Robert DeNiro and Jerry Lewis. Zimmerman was previously the movies editor for Newsweek and has written several books. ZImmerman is based in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and is active in the Bucks Alliance for Nuclear Disarmament (B.A.N.D.). Now, that "The King of Comedy," has been released, Zimmerman returns to Fresh Air to discuss the film.

Garrison Keillor returns to Fresh Air to talk about his new short story collection. Host Terry Gross invites listeners to call in with their questions.

New York City-based cartoonist and illustrator Ed Koren is best known for his work in The New Yorker and The Nation. He talks about how he chronicles many aspects of city living, ranging from daily commutes to street protests.