Fresh Air

Best Of: SCOTUS Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson / Novelist Danzy Senna

07 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson's new memoir, Lovely One, gives us a rare glimpse into her legal mind. And she gets personal about her chi...

Inside The Making Of 'The Sopranos'

06 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

25 years ago, The Sopranos premiered on HBO and changed expectations of what TV could be. There's a new two-part documentary, called Wise Guy, about t...

The Anti-Fascist Vigilantes Infiltrating White Nationalist Groups

05 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

New Yorker writer David Kirkpatrick says anti-fascists are using extra judicial methods to do what the FBI can't, by infiltrating white nationalist gr...

SCOTUS Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson Gets Personal

04 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson talks with Tonya Mosley about her teen years, her time as a public defender, and the poem she keeps in her...

Danzy Senna Writes Herself (And Other Mixed-Race People) Into Existence

03 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Novelist Danzy Senna spoke with Terry Gross about racial identity, growing up with a Black father and white mother in an era when "mixed-race" wasn't ...

Film Icons: Spike Lee / Samuel L. Jackson

02 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

To wrap up our series, we're closing with director Spike Lee and actor Samuel L. Jackson. Lee spoke with Terry Gross in 2017 about growing up in Brook...

Film Icons: Steven Spielberg / Carrie Fisher

31 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In 2022, E.T. and Jaws director Steven Spielberg talked about how he fell in love with film, and how he was afraid of everything as a kid. We'll also ...

Film Icons: Clint Eastwood / Eli Wallach & More

30 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The 1964 spaghetti Western A Fistful of Dollars turned Clint Eastwood into a star. He had a famous squint in his closeups, but he told Terry Gross in ...

Film Icons: Dennis Hopper / Isabella Rossellini

29 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We continue our Classic Films and Movie Icons series and feature archival interviews with Dennis Hopper and Isabella Rossellini. They co-starred in th...

Film Icons: Meryl Streep / Sidney Poitier

28 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Our special series of archival interviews continues with two of the GOATs: Meryl Streep, the actor with the most Oscar nominations in history, spoke w...

Film Icons: Molly Ringwald / Jodie Foster / Anthony Hopkins

27 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We continue our Classic Films and Movie Icons series with two performers who gained fame as kids: Breakfast Club actor Molly Ringwald and Freaky Frida...

Film Icons: Michael Caine / Robert Duvall

26 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

From now through Labor Day we're featuring interviews from our archive with great actors and directors. Robert Duvall talks about his role in the Godf...

Film Icons: Elia Kazan / Eva Marie Saint

24 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We begin our series celebrating classic movies with Terry Gross' 1988 interview with On the Waterfront director Elia Kazan, as well as a 2020 intervie...

Remembering 'King Of Daytime TV' Phil Donahue

23 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We remember Phil Donahue, the daytime talk show host who pioneered thoughtful discussions on controversial issues, and paved the way for Oprah and oth...

Reflecting On 2 Critical Conflict Zones: Ukraine And Gaza

22 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Georgetown professor and foreign policy analyst Daniel Byman discusses Ukraine's daring offensive into Russian territory. And he reflects on the futur...

How Donald Trump Changed Federal Law Enforcement

21 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter David Rohde argues that since 2016, Trump has used conspiracy theories, co-option and threats t...

How Stadiums Became The American Public Square

20 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

As 50,000 people attend the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, we look at the history of politics, protest and play in American stadiums. "We ...

Actor Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor On The Complexity & Heartbreak Of Female Friendships

19 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat, Ellis-Taylor plays the outspoken ringleader among three women whose friendship spans several decades. Her p...

Best Of: Black Doctors Consortium Founder / The Life Of A Brain Surgeon

17 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Pediatric surgeon and founder of the Black Doctors Consortium Dr. Ala Standford talks with Terry Gross about how, at the height of the pandemic, she d...

Police Procedural 'Homicide' (Finally) Comes To Streaming

16 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Homicide: Life on the Streets, the critically acclaimed police procedural set in Baltimore, is coming to streaming (Peacock) for the first time. The s...

On The Road With Harris/Walz

15 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

As democrats prepare for their national convention in Chicago next week, we take stock of a presidential race transformed. New Yorker staff writer Eva...

How American Lobbyists Threaten Democracy

14 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Casey Michel shines a light on Americans lobbying for foreign governments in Washington, in many cases representing brutally repressive regimes and co...

Safiya Sinclair On Cutting Herself Free From Rastafari Roots

13 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Poet and writer Safiya Sinclair grew up in a devout Rastafari family in Jamaica where women were subservient. When she cut her dreadlocks at age 19, s...

An Informant Exposes The Inner Workings Of The Ku Klux Klan

12 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Joe Moore, a former Army sniper turned FBI informant, shares how he infiltrated the KKK and helped foil a plot to assassinate then Sen. Barack Obama. ...

Best Of: How 1982 Sci-Fi Changed The Game / Singer Brittany Howard

10 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In 1982, eight science fiction films were released within eight weeks of each other. Chris Nashawaty, author of The Future Was Now, tells Tonya Mosley...

Revisiting The Final Months Of WWII

10 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We commemorate the 79th anniversary of the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, by revisiting a haunting question: Was the U.S. decision to destroy...

'Sing Sing' Offers a Glimpse of Life Behind Bars

08 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Filmmaker Greg Kwedar and formerly incarcerated actor Clarence "Divine Eye" Maclin discuss their new film, which centers on the real-life Rehabilitati...

Black Doctors Consortium Founder Serves Vulnerable Communities

07 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

When the pandemic hit, Dr. Ala Stanford set up shop in parking lots, churches and mosques where she provided tests and vaccines to underserved Philade...

Migrants Risk It All On The Treacherous Darién Gap

06 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Each year, nearly half a million migrants cross the perilous stretch of jungle between South and Central America. Many face snakes, flash floods, swel...

A Brain Surgeon Opens Up About Life In The O.R.

05 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Theodore Schwartz has been treating neurological illnesses for nearly 30 years. He says being a brain surgeon requires steady hands — and a stro...

Best Of: Comic Nikki Glaser / 'Hacks' Co-Creator Paul W. Downs

03 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Comic Nikki Glaser talks with Terry Gross about finding the line between offensive and funny, hurt feelings, and why she started making jokes about se...

Remembering Freedom Singer Bernice Johnson Reagon

02 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We go into the Fresh Air archive to remember two remarkable women: Bernice Johnson Reagon was one of the powerful singers who helped galvanize the civ...

Brittany Howard On Prince, Break-Up Songs, And Her Haunted House

01 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Grammy-winning singer, guitarist and producer Brittany Howard fronted the band Alabama Shakes before going solo. She talks with Terry Gross about grow...

The 8 Sci-Fi Movies Of 1982 That Changed Everything

31 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In 1982, eight science fiction films were released within eight weeks of each other: E.T., Tron, Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan, Conan the Barbarian, Bla...

How 'Hacks' Comes Together — Over Email

30 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Paul W. Downs co-created the HBO Max show with his wife, Lucia Aniello and their friend and collaborator, Jen Statsky. The three met at the Upright Ci...

Comic Nikki Glaser Doesn't Know Why Anyone Would Want To Be Roasted

29 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The comic made headlines after the roast of Tom Brady. She spoke with Terry Gross about finding the line between offensive and funny, hurt feelings, a...

Best Of: 'Wicked' Director Jon M. Chu / Stunt Performer-Turned-Filmmaker David Leitch

27 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Jon M. Chu, the director of Crazy Rich Asians and In the Heights is now directing the film adaptation of the broadway musical Wicked. We'll talk about...

Remembering Comic Bob Newhart

26 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We remember comic and actor Bob Newhart, who died last week at the age of 94. In his stand-up comedy and hit TV series, some of the laughs came from h...

Will Hezbollah And Israel Go To War?

25 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Hezbollah, the militant group based in Lebanon, shares Hamas' goal of destroying the state of Israel. We'll talk with New Yorker staff writer Dexter F...

'Wicked' Director Jon M. Chu On The Hard Work Of Creativity

24 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Chu takes his inspiration from his dad, a Chinese immigrant who worked both the front room and the kitchen of their family-run restaurant: "The guy th...

The Dictator Playbook

23 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Autocracy, Inc. author Anne Applebaum says today's dictators — including Putin and Xi — are working together in a global fight to dismantle democr...

A Former Stunt Performer Shares Tricks Of The Trade

22 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Filmmaker and stunt coordinator David Leitch says it's easier to do stunts himself than direct his stunt performer friends. "You are responsible for t...

Best Of: A Life Of Self-Contempt / Character Actor Julianne Nicholson

20 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Humorist/writer Shalom Auslander's new memoir is a satirical look at all the ways a sense of "feh," which is Yiddish for "yuck," has made its way into...

Remembering Shelley Duvall / Sex Guru Dr. Ruth

19 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We remember actress Shelley Duvall, who died at the age of 75. Best-known for her role in The Shining, Robert Altman films and her own series about fa...

Waking Up And Feeling 'Yuck'

18 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Humorist Shalom Auslander has written for decades about growing up in a dysfunctional household within an ultra-orthodox Jewish community. Feh, title ...

The Impossible American Dream

17 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

PBS FRONTLINE documentarians Tom Casciato and Kathleen Hughes spent 34 years following two working-class families in Milwaukee who lost well-paying ma...

Julianne Nicholson Likes Being A Character Actor

16 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Julianne Nicholson says when strangers recognize her on the street, they're never quite sure how they know her: "They might think I sold them kittens,...

Why The Weapon Choice In The Attempted Assassination Matters

15 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We talk about the weapon the shooter used in the attempted assassination of former President Trump. Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post reporter To...

Best Of: A Novel Of Kidnapping & Family Trauma / Rethinking An Age-Gap Relationship

13 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Taffy Brodesser-Akner's new novel, Long Island Compromise, centers on the kidnapping of a rich businessman, and the impact, decades later, on his grow...

Remembering Actor Martin Mull And Screenwriter Robert Towne

12 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Martin Mull, who died June 27, appeared in the 1970s series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, and later starred in Fernwood 2 Night. David Bianculli offers ...

Understanding The Resurgence of Jobs In America's 'Left Behind' Counties

11 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

David Madland of the Center for American Progress says new, "good" jobs are on the rise, but many of the workers don't realize it's a result of Biden'...

Inside The Biggest Ponzi Scheme In American History

10 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Disgraced financier Bernie Madoff scammed investors out of approximately $68 billion. Investigative journalist Richard Behar spoke to Madoff in prison...

She Was 17, He Was 47: How #MeToo Changed A Marriage

09 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Jill Ciment met her husband in the 1970s when she was a teenager and he was almost 50. At the time of their first kiss, he was a married father of two...

Taffy Brodesser-Akner Writes Real People — Not Likable Ones

08 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Brodesser-Akner's new novel, Long Island Compromise, centers on the kidnapping of a rich businessman, and the impact, decades later, on his grown chil...

Best Of: Comic Michelle Buteau / Emily Nussbaum On Reality TV

06 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Comedian Michelle Buteau stars in the new comedy Babes, which follows best friends as they take different paths toward motherhood. It was a role Bute...

David Byrne on 40 Years of 'Stop Making Sense'

05 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For the 40th anniversary of Talking Heads' masterpiece concert film, Stop Making Sense, A24 remastered and rereleased the movie, bringing it to new au...

How Bon Jovi Lost His Voice — And Got It Back

04 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A few years ago, Bon Jovi stopped performing because of a vocal cord injury. The Hulu docuseries Thank You, Goodnight offers a career retrospective, p...

A Former Federal Judge Fears For Democracy

03 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

David Tatel is a former civil rights lawyer who spent 30 years as a judge on the D.C. Circuit, the nation's second highest court. He retired earlier t...

Reflections on Being Fat in a Thin World

02 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

As a comedy writer for shows like The Late Late Show with James Corden, Ian Karmel spent most of his life making fun of his weight, starting at a very...

What Do The 'Love is Blind' Lawsuits Mean For Reality TV?

02 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

New Yorker writer Emily Nussbaum discusses the lawsuits brought forth by the Love is Blind cast members, and reflects on how reality TV has impacted o...

Best Of: Dr. Fauci's Talks With Trump / 'Hacks' Star Hannah Einbinder

29 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

If you've ever wondered what conversations were like between Donald Trump and Dr. Anthony Fauci during the Covid pandemic, wonder no more. Fauci talks...

Fairport Convention Founding Member Richard Thompson

28 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

British singer/guitarist Richard Thompson spoke to Fresh Air in 1994 and 2022 about about his formative years and about pioneering a new musical genre...

Election 2024: Where Does The Money Come From?

27 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

New York Times political correspondent Shane Goldmacher has been following the flood of campaign finance money for both presidential candidates. Trum...

Michelle Buteau Finds A Lifeline In Humor

26 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Buteau says covering the news of the 2001 terrorist attacks crystalized her desire to go into comedy. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about her journey to...

Ghanaian Artist Blitz Bazawule Is Breaking Down Doors

25 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Bazawule is best-known for directing 2023 adaptation of The Color Purple: The Musical. He also co-directed Black Is King with Beyoncé. He has a new e...

Inside The Breakdown Of The Global Supply Chain

24 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

New York Times correspondent Peter Goodman illuminates the breakdown of the global supply chain during the pandemic. He says it was rooted in risky ma...

Best Of: Questlove's Hip-Hop History / 'Always Sunny' Actor Rob McElhenney

22 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson still remembers the first time he heard The Sugarhill Gang's 1980 hit "Rapper's Delight." It felt like a paradigm shift: "S...

'Slave Play' Playwright Jeremy O. Harris Works To Diversity Theater

21 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The award-winning playwright talks about his provocative Slave Play, which earned 12 Tony nominations. A new HBO documentary chronicles the making of ...

The Story Behind Diane Von Furstenberg's Iconic Wrap Dress

20 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Von Furstenberg and filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy discuss Woman in Charge, a Hulu documentary about the fashion designer's meteoric rise in the '70s...

Actor David Oyelowo On 'Lawmen: Bass Reeves'

19 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Oyelowo produced and stars in the Paramount+ series about Bass, a formerly enslaved man who went on to become one of the nation's first Black Deputy U...

Dr. Anthony Fauci Looks Back On The COVID-19 Pandemic

18 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

During his decades-long career, Dr. Fauci worked with seven different presidents to manage various public health crises, including AIDS, Ebola, SARS a...

'Hacks' Star Hannah Einbinder

17 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Einbinder co-stars with Jean Smart in the HBO Max series Hacks. Her new Max special is Everything Must Go. Einbinder grew up in a comedic household —...

Best Of: Yo-Yo Ma; Actor Griffin Dunne

15 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

About 25 years ago, acclaimed cellist Yo-Yo Ma asked a high school student to help him name his instrument. He brings his 18th century cello — aka "...

How Satchel Paige Helped Integrate MLB

14 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Hall of Famer Satchel Paige started his career pitching in the Negro leagues and later became a major league star. Author Larry Tye tells his story in...

How Formerly Enslaved People Were Stripped Of Land

13 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Journalist Alexia Fernández Campbell says that some freed men and women were given titles to land following the Civil War — but after President Lin...

Rob McElhenney On 'Welcome To Wrexham'

12 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

'The Always Sunny in Philadelphia' co-creator and co-star bought a Welsh football club during the pandemic. McElhenney says he and actor Ryan Reynolds...

Questlove On Hip-Hop And History

11 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson still remembers the first time he heard The Sugarhill Gang's 1980 hit "Rapper's Delight." It felt like a paradigm shift: "S...

Actor Griffin Dunne Revisits His Hollywood Childhood

10 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Dunne grew up in Beverly Hills, in a family of storytellers — including his father, author Dominic. He talks about his complicated relationship with...

Best Of: 'Merrily We Roll Along'; MSNBC Host Ali Velshi

08 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Stephen Sondheim's musical Merrily We Roll Along flopped when it debuted in 1981. But its Broadway revival has been a hit, garnering seven Tony nomina...

Julio Torres Spins Immigration Stress into Satire

07 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Comic, actor and filmmaker Julio Torres came to the U.S. from El Salvador in his early 20s — and he says he is personally familiar with "all the Cat...

Ronan Farrow on the link between #MeToo, Weinstein and Trump

06 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

While reporting on Harvey Weinstein and the #MeToo movement, Farrow unearthed details of the National Enquirer's plan to pay for damaging stories abou...

Colson Whitehead returns to 1970s NYC in 'Crook Manifesto'

05 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Whitehead's sequel to Harlem Shuffle centers on crime at every level, from small-time crooks to Harlem's elite. "My early '70s New York is dingy and g...

MSNBC Host Ali Velshi Traces His Ancestors' Migration

04 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In his memoir, Small Acts of Courage, Velshi chronicles his family's journey, from a village in India to South Africa — where his grandfather crosse...

'Merrily We Roll Along' Revival Is A Love Letter To Sondheim

03 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Stephen Sondheim's 1981 flop is now a Broadway hit. This revival of Merrily We Roll Along is nominated for seven Tony Awards. Two of those nominees, a...

Best Of: Maggie Rogers / Kristen Wiig

01 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In 2021, burnt out from the intensity of her early career, Maggie Rogers considered quitting music entirely. Instead, she took a detour — to Harvard...

Carrying On After A Life-Changing Accident

31 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

How do you get on with life after an accident that leads to disability and chronic pain? That's the central question in Andre Dubus III's novel, Such ...

Revisiting A Chicago Hate Crime And Its Aftermath

30 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Yohance Lacour's Pulitzer Prize-winning podcast, You Didn't See Nothin', tells the story of Lenard Clark, a 13-year-old Black boy who was beaten into ...

Yo-Yo Ma Says He's Living His Best Childhood Now

29 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

About 25 years ago, the acclaimed cellist asked a high school student to help him name his instrument. Yo-Yo Ma brings his cello — aka "Petunia" —...

The Untold Story Of The C-Section

28 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

When journalist Rachel Somerstein had an emergency C-section with her first child, the anesthesia didn't work. She recounts her own experience and the...

The Stax Records Soul Sound

27 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The small Memphis label Stax Records created soul hits by Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Wilson Pickett, Rufus and Carla Thomas, and others. It's the subje...

Best Of: Michael McDonald / The American 'Food Cartel'

25 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Grammy-winning musician Michael McDonald looks back on his childhood and his career in a new memoir. He spoke with Tonya Mosley about imposter syndrom...

'Mad Max' Director George Miller

24 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The fifth installment of the Mad Max series of post-apocalyptic action films is roaring into theaters. It's called Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, and it's a...

The Corruption Scandal That Rocked The Navy

23 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In Fat Leonard, journalist Craig Whitlock tells the story of a defense contractor who plied Navy commanders with lavish meals, trips, cash and sex wor...

Maggie Rogers (Extended Version)

22 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In 2021, burnt out from the intensity of her early career, Maggie Rogers considered quitting music entirely. Instead, she took a detour — to Harvard...

Kristen Wiig

21 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The SNL alum co-stars with Carol Burnett in Palm Royale, an Apple TV+ series about a former pageant queen who wants to break into high society. Wiig t...

Michael McDonald

20 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

McDonald says that earlier in his career, he tended to avoid writing about himself directly in songs. He opens up about his life and career in the mem...

Best Of: Kathleen Hanna / Tyler James Williams

18 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Musician, activist, and punk pioneer Kathleen Hanna talks about being at the epicenter of the '90s riot grrrl movement. She talks about the early days...

Remembering Filmmaker Roger Corman

17 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Filmmaker Roger Corman, the "King of the B" movies, died last week at the age of 98. He made hundreds of films, such cult classics as Little Shop of H...

Writer Carvell Wallace On Pain, Processing & Letting Go

16 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Wallace is known for his celebrity profiles, but his new memoir, Another Word For Love, is about his own life, growing up unhoused, Black and queer, a...

Regional Complexities Of The Israel/Hamas War

15 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Economist Middle East correspondent Gregg Carlstrom explains why some Arab leaders hate Hamas, fear Iran and have some sympathy for Israel — alt...