Noam Chomsky's linguistic theories revolutionized the field, and he is also known as a political radical. He has written many works of social, political, and economic analysis, and his latest work "Towards a New Cold War," consists of essays tracing the evolution of American foreign policy and ideology since the 1970s. A new collection of his essays called "Radical Priorities," has also been released. Chomsky, who grew up in the area, is in Philadelphia to deliver a talk on the relations between the United States and Israel.
Robert A. Harris is the producer, and along with Kevin Brownlow, one of the reconstructionists of the 1927 French silent film "Napoleon." The film used techniques such as montage, "poly-vision," and rapid edits. Harris and Brownlow tracked down missing footage across England, France, and the United States. Harris is the head of Image Film Archive, a film distribution company. Harris joins the show to discuss the film and the efforts to reconstruct it.
Eldridge Cleaver was active in the Black Panther Party in the 1960s and early 1970s. He fled the country after his involvement in a shootout with Oakland Police and returned in 1975. Cleaver served 9 months in jail before being released, and he finishes his last day of parole today. He joins the show to discuss what has happened since his return, including his political involvement (which has become more conservative) and return to Christianity.
Paul Zimmerman is the screenwriter of the upcoming film "The King of Comedy," directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Robert DeNiro and Jerry Lee Lewis. Zimmerman was previously the movies editor for Newsweek and has written several books. ZImmerman is based in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and has become active in the Bucks Alliance for Nuclear Disarmament (B.A.N.D.). The group has invited Helen Caldicott of Physicians for Social Responsibility to speak at a local event.
Hans Bethe won the 1967 Nobel Prize for Physics for determining the nuclear processes that power the sun and stars. Bethe was also involved in the creation of the atom and hydrogen bombs at the Los Alamos project during World War II. Bethe is now an activist for a nuclear freeze, and co-authored a New York Times op-ed on the topic. He joins the show to discuss the development and future of nuclear arms.
Geoffrey Stokes has been a staff writer for The Village Voice since 1973. He is the editor of the "New Village Voice Anthology," a collection of articles from the newspapers from 1956-1980. Stokes joins the show to discuss the Anthology and the Voice's history.
William Murray is the son of atheist crusader Madalyn Murray O'Hair, whom the family considered "the most hated woman in America." At the age of 14, Murray was the plaintiff in a Supreme Court case his mother filed to remove prayer from the Baltimore Public Schools. Murray experienced a difficult relationship with Murray O'Hair, who terrorized him as child. As an adult, Murray converted to Christianity and hasn't spoken to his mother since 1977. His new book is "My Life Without God."
Poet, playwright, and novelist Ntozake Shange is best known for her choreo-poem "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow is Enuf," which has been adapted for public television. Her first novel, "Sassafrass, Cypress & Indigo" has just been published. It follows three sisters whose weaver mother named them after vivid dyes. The novel mixes poems, spells, potions, and recipes, and explores the territories and choices of modern Black women.
John Cage is an avant-garde musician known for his "chance compositions," which use "found" sounds. His music mixes Eastern philosophy with Western high-technology. Cage is also an expert on mushrooms. In celebration of his birthday, the Philadelphia Museum of Art is putting on an exhibition of his scores, "John Cage: Scores & Prints." Cage joins the show to discuss his art and philosophy.
Native Philadelphian Peter Liacouras is the seventh president of Temple University. Prior to holding the role, he served as the Dean of Law at Temple from 1972 and has been a member of the faculty since 1963. He's also worked as Special Assistant Prosecutor in Philadelphia, and worked on a four-year study on the use and abuse if computers in the criminal justice system. He joins the show to discuss his vision for Temple, and the university's new advertising campaign.
Juan Gonzalez has just returned to the Philadelphia Daily News after taking a year's leave to found and serve as the first president of the National Congress of Puerto Rican Rights. Enrique Arroyo is the director of the Puerto Rican Congress of New Jersey. They join the show to discuss Latino issues in the Delaware Valley.
Judith Martin, better known as Miss Manners, the name under which she writes her Washington Post advice column. She also reviews theater under her own name for the Post. She's recently written "Miss Manners' Guide to Excruciatingly Correct Behavior." Martin joins the show to defend the importance of etiquette, discuss class relations and manners, and answer Fresh Air staff's questions on topics such as splitting the check, catching an unzipped "fly," sexism and other "-isms' in the workplace, and the perils of modern dating and marriage.
Writer and rabbi Chaim Potok is best known for his novels. However, he served as the Secretary of the Writings Committee of the Jewish Publication Society Committee of Scholars. The group has been working since 1957 on a new translation of the Old Testament, and the third volume was just published. It is the first translation in 2200 years to base itself on the original Hebrew texts. Potok joined the show in June, and he's back to offer comparisons between the new translation, the King James Bible, and the 1917 Jewish Publications translation. Potok will also answer listener calls.
Trombonist Melba Liston is one the few women to find success as a musician, arranger, and composer in the world of jazz. Liston has worked with artists as diverse as Dizzy Gillespie and Aretha Franklin. After spending five years living in Jamaica, Liston has returned to the United States and formed a new big band, the seventeen-piece "Melba Liston and Company."
Donald Drake is a reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer whose work often focuses on medical issues. Last week the Inquirer published his seven-part series on the homeless and the mentally ill, "The Forsaken." Drake spent over a year researching the topic, and has also written a musical drama, "Crazy People," based on his research. [The series would later be short-listed for the Pulitzer Prize.] Drake joins the show to discuss street people and the deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill. Drake will also answer listener calls.
Legendary editor and publisher Robert Giroux has recently tried his hand at writing. His new book is "The Book Known as 'Q': A Consideration of Shakespeare's Sonnets." Giroux calls "Q" the most mysterious work ever published, and, unlike other critics, he believes it to be an early work of Shakespeare. Giroux joins the show to discuss Shakespeare's work, life, and sexuality. Giroux also discusses some of the works and authors he has published and edited.
Gail Pressberg is the director of the Middle East desk of the American Friends Service Committee. The AFSC is a peace organization that conducts studies and promotes communications between feuding parties. Pressberg is the co-author of the AFSC report "A Compassionate Peace: A Future for the Middle East." Pressberg joins the show to discuss the current war in Lebanon, the background of Arab-Israeli relations, and the recent history of the Palestinian people. Pressberg will also respond to listener calls. (INTERVIEW BY DANNY MILLER)
New York Times architecture critic Paul Goldberger uses the history of the skyscraper to frame a conversation about urban planning, gentrification, and the shifting balance between public and private financing of development in American cities.
Fresh Air broadcasts a lecture delivered by the legendary science fiction novelist. He opines on the role of technology in learning and the future progress of human civilization.
