Pete Seeger has dedicated his career to celebrating working people and civil rights. He was blacklisted in the 1950s, which kept him off television for decades. He joins Fresh Air to talk about how he developed his repertoire and honed his craft as a performer.
A collection of Roger Ebert's essays is called A Kiss is Just A Kiss. He co-hosts the television show At the Movies with fellow critic and professional rival Gene Siskel.
Soprano Beverly Sills retired from singing in 1980 at the age of fifty, but still works in opera as the director of the New York City Opera. Rather than traveling abroad to hone her craft, she studied and built a career in America.
Studs Terkel studied law and acted in theater before becoming a radio broadcaster. His syndicated program and books feature oral histories of everyday people in the United States. He joins Fresh Air's Terry Gross to discuss how he conducts interviews in a way that is both insightful and respectful.
The singer is one of the foremost interpreters of the American songbook, and he has continued to record classics despite pressure to "give up the old stuff." Bennett joins the show to share and discuss recordings that span his entire career, including discussion of composers such as the Gershwins, Johnny Mercer, Count Basie, and Rodgers and Hart.
Fred Rogers began his popular children's program before becoming a father himself. During his lunch breaks, he attended seminary school and became an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church. Though faith is central to his personal life, he aims to make his show accessible and welcoming to children of all backgrounds.
Since establishing himself as a creative force at the age of 23, painter Frank Stella has explored several different styles and techniques. Among his most famous and controversial works are his black paintings.
After a shakeup in the original cast, Saturday Night Live hired Piscopo, who became known for his impressions of celebrities like Frank Sinatra and Bruce Springsteen. Now an alum of the program, he joins Fresh Air's Terry Gross to talk about the next phase of his career.
Allen grew up in Australia, where he had limited exposure to English and American popular music. After moving to New York, he found success writing songs for other pop stars and with his theatrical concerts.
After years of making low-budget exploitation movies, John Waters has received major studio backing for his latest film, Polyester. His newfound, mainstream success includes the Mayor of Baltimore naming February 7th John Waters Day and the release of a documentary about him, Divine Waters. His most recent endeavor has been teaching prisoners about channeling their violent tendencies into art.
Composer Peter Schickele invented the fictitious, forgotten son of J.S. Bach and writes music under that name. Schickele believes that a more lighthearted approach to classical music could expand the genre's audience.
In order to develop a sizable repertoire as an orchestral soloist, Soltzman has had to transcribe several classical pieces written for other instruments.
John Sayles has written, directed, and acted in several independent movies. His films run the gamut from horror to science fiction to serious takes on social issues.
Alex Haley documented his family history going back several generations in Roots, which was later adapted into a popular television series. His first book was the landmark Autobiography of Malcom X, which was written in collaboration with the civil rights leader.
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.
James Farmer returns to Fresh Air to share memories of the 1961 Freedom Rides and later race riots that erupted during later that decade. His new memoir, Lay Bare the Heart, has just been published.
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.
