Showing results by author "Terry Gross" in All Categories

Hear singer-songwriter Ray Davies on this edition of Fresh Air. Davies first became known as the leader of the band The Kinks, one of the great and enduring British bands to came out of the 60s. Davies' first solo record, Other People's Lives was released in 2006. While recording the album in New Orleans, he was shot in the leg by a man who stole his girlfriend's purse. His new album, Working Man's Cafe, was released this month.

Jazz pianist Keith Jarrett on this archival edition of Fresh Air.

Illustrator Marjane Satrapi and guitar legend Jimmy Page on this edition of Fresh Air. Marjane Satrapi is the author of the memoir, Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood. The book is in the form of an illustrated comic. Satrapi was born in 1969 in Iran, and grew up in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution.

Singer and Songwriter Tom Waits on this archive edition of Fresh Air. Since the 1973 release of his first album, Closing Time, Waits has won over fans with his original songwriting and distinctive, gravely vocal style. One reviewer calls Waits "the Ultimate hobo boho, a Jack-in-the-box cum storyteller." Musicians including Johnny Cash, Bruce Springsteen, and Rod Stewart have recorded covers of his songs.

On this edition, Fresh Air pays tribute to Sam Phillips, the founder of Sun Records who died Wednesday at the age of 80. Terry Gross speaks with music writer Peter Guralnick and songwriter and singers Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash. Peter Guralnick is the author of a two volume biography of Elvis Presley: Last Train to Memphis and Careless Love.

Professor of Religion Elaine Pagels and film writer and director Rusty Cundieff on this archive edition of Fresh Air. Pagels has written four books, including The Gnostic Gospels (which won both the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award). She has a new book called The Origin of Satan. Cundieff has a new horror flick called Tales from the Hood.

Fresh Air guest host Barbara Bogaev talks with actor Michael C. Hall from HBO's Six Feet Under. He plays David Fisher, the gay brother who co-runs a funeral home on the show. He's currently starring as Billy Flynn, an oily attorney in the Broadway revival of Chicago. James Earl Jones, of the astounding voice, talks about his memoir. And you'll hear a review of the foreign film Mostly Martha.

Historian and journalist Hampton Sides on this edition of Fresh Air. Sides is reporting from Centcom in Qatar. Last week he wrote a piece in the New Yorker about his decision not to become "imbedded" with troops.

Artist, writer and designer Maurice Sendak and actress Patricia Clarkson on this edition of Fresh Air. Sendak's new book, Brundibar, is based on a Czech opera of the same name. It was set to music by Hans Krasa, who was imprisoned in the Nazi concentration camp Terezin and later killed in Auschwitz.

On this edition of Fresh Air, host Terry Gross talks with Iranian born novelist Salar Abdoh, author of The Poet Game. It's a fictitious account of an Iranian secret agent sent to New York City to investigate rumored terrorist plots, in the wake of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Plus, FBI special agent Christopher Whitcomb. He was part of the bureau's hostage rescue team. Whitcomb participated in the missions at Waco, Ruby Ridge and Kosovo.

Historian and civil rights activist Roger Wilkins and writer Vernor Vinge on this edition of Fresh Air. Wilkins has written a new book Jefferson's Pillow. He considers our founding fathers and their conflicting attitudes toward race and how it affects his own sense of patriotism. Wilkins is a professor of history at George Mason University, a Pulitzer-prize winner, and former Assistant Attorney General under President Johnson.

Actors Peter Falk and J.K. Simmons on this edition of Fresh Air. Falk is best known for his role as a rumpled L.A. detective in the 1970s TV series Columbo, where he garnered three Emmy awards. Simmons is a regular on HBO's OZ the graphic and disturbing drama of life in a maximum security prison. Simmons plays convict and neo-nazi Vernon Schillinger. And he has a recurring role in Law & Order.

An expert in climate change research, Paul Mayewski and science fiction writer Sheri S. Tepper on this edition of Fresh Air.

Writer Mary Karr on this edition of Fresh Air. Mary Karr, author of the best-selling memoir The Liar's Club. Her new memoir Cherry which chronicles her teen age years is now out in paperback. In a follow up to what critics call "a hard scrabble childhood," she returns to East Texas to detail her adolescence. Karr relates anecdotes of rebellion, self-doubt and sexual coming of age. The recipient of several literary awards such as the Pushcart Prize and the Bunting Award, she has published two volumes of poetry. She is the Peck Professor of English Literature at Syracuse...

Writer Jon Krakauer talks about his new book about Mormon Fundamentalism, Mormon practitioner Richard Turley and Nigerian-born actor Chiwetel Ejiofor on this edition of Fresh Air. Jon Krakauer is the author of the book Into Thin Air about the disastrous Mt Everest Climb in 1996 in which eight climbers were killed.

Actors Paul Giamatti and Mark Webber on this edition of Fresh Air. Paul Giamatti stars in the Todd Solondz film Storytelling. He plays an aspiring filmmaker who sets out to document the empty life of a New Jersey high school senior and his well-to-do parents. Giamatti's film credits include Planet of the Apes, Big Momma's House, Saving Private Ryan, and The Truman Show. Mark Webber, 21, is Giamatti's costar in Storytelling.

Voice and acting coach Patsy Rodenburg and fashion journalists Trinny Woodall and Susannah Constantine on this edition of Fresh Air. Rodenburg has worked with some of the world's leading English-speaking actors, including Judi Dench, Daniel Day-Lewis, Maggie Smith, and Nicole Kidman.

Irish writer Nuala O'Faolain and music legend Johnny Cash on this edition of Fresh Air. Her first novel, My Dream of You.

Studio drummer Hal Blaine and an archive interview with journalist James Fallows on this edition of Fresh Air.

Actor Michael C. Hall and director and screenwriter Hal Hartley on this edition of Fresh Air. Michael C. Hall plays David Fisher, the gay brother who co-runs a funeral home on the HBO hit Six Feet Under. The American Film Institute has nominated Hall for Best Male TV Actor-Drama for his role in the series. Hall comes to TV from the stage. Most recently, he was on Broadway as the emcee in Cabaret. Prior to that role, he was in a number of off-Broadway productions.