Mystery writer Walter Mosley. He's written a new book in his series about gumshoe hero Easy Rawlins. It's called "Black Betty" (Norton). Betty's a shark of a woman who leaves dead men in her wake. Like the other books in the series, "Black Betty" has Easy in post-War, but pre-present South Central L.A.--this time the year is 1961. Mosley gained public attention when then-presidential candidate Bill Clinton said that Mosley was his favorite mystery writer.
Writer Mikal Gilmore, youngest brother of executed killer Gary Gilmore. Gilmore's 1977 death --at his own request-- by firing squad in Utah, was the first American execution in ten years. Brother Mikal finds seeds of his brother's two murders sown far back in Gilmore family history, and its Mormon roots.
Civil rights attorney and law professor Jack Greenberg. He was just out of law school--a white Jewish man from the Bronx when he joined the fledgling NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF). Greenberg took over the helm of the LDF from his mentor Thurgood Marshall when Marshall was appointed to the Federal Court of Appeals. During Greenberg's tenure there, the LDF litigated some of the watershed cases of the civil rights struggle. He has just published a memoir of his 35 years at the LDF.
Television correspondent Robert Krulwich. In a Frontline production (co-produced with the Center for Investigative Reporting) called "Public Lands, Private Profits" to be aired at 9 p.m. tonight on PBS (check local listings), Krulwich examines today's gold mining industry--the impact of mining activities and the current political battle for control of mineral resources on public lands. The Mining Law of 1872 was passed to encourage settlement and development in the West. It's still on the books.
Author and physician Abraham Verghese. An Indian raised in Ethopia, Abraham Verghese arrived in the United States in 1980 as a rookie doctor. Upon completing an internship in infectious diseases, Dr. Verghese accepted a position in the rural, Appalachian town of Johnson City, Tennessee. The year was 1985 and AIDS had begun to ravage large metropolitan areas. Within the year, Dr. Verghese was treating his first case of AIDS in this rural outpost.
Film director Bernando Bertolucci. He broke new ground with his 1972 film "Last Tango in Paris." Pauline Kael called it "a landmark in movie history." In the 80's, he became dismayed by the pervasive materialism he saw in the West. His focus turned to the East. He made "The Last Emperor" set in China and "The Sheltering Sky" set in the Sahara Desert. His new movie is "Little Buddha." It's a fable. A Tibetan monk travels from the Kingdom of Bhutan to Seattle to visit a young American boy.
Phil Niekro, Manager, and Lisa Martinez, pitcher for the new all female professional baseball team, the Colorado Silver Bullets. This is the team's inaugural season. The Silver Bullets are the first all-female team to be recognized by the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues and the first to compete only against men. Manager Niekro says, "Every time they make an error, they say 'I'm sorry.'"
Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews a new collection of Jelly Roll Morton recordings: "Jelly Roll Morton: Library of Congress Recordings" (Rounder records, 4 volumes).
British-Asian film-maker Gurinder Chadha is making her feature-film debut with the new comedy-drama, "Bhaji on the Beach," a movie in the British social realist tradition, about three Asian women on a day trip to a working class resort in England. Chadha is of Indian descent; she was born in Kenya, but has lived in Britain most of her life. She formed her own independent production company, Umbi Films, in 1990 which produced three documentaries for television. "Bhaji on the Beach," has recently made the round of film festivals
Writer and teacher Reynolds Price A native of North Carolina, Price has written works known for their sense of place and off-beat characters. He's a prolific and a varied writer: he 's written short stories, poems, plays, and essays, and since the publication of his first novel, "A Long and Happy Life," in 1962, he's published more than two dozen books. In 1984 Price was diagnosed with spinal cancer, and became paralyzed from the waist down. Cancer, though, didn't slow his writing down.
Author Melba Beals. Forty years ago today the United States Supreme Court ruled that school segregation was unconstitutional in "Brown v. Board of Education." Three years later, Beals and eight other black teenagers chose to attend the all white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. In the process Beals suffered a school year marked by unremitting violence and hatred. Danny, the soldier assigned to protect her, warned her that she too would have to become a soldier.
Author Michael Dorris. His work is wide-ranging in topic and emotional impact. In his earlier book "The Broken Cord" he wrote of his struggle to understand the severe health and behavior problems of an adopted son, Abel, who had Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Abel, a Native American, died in an accident after a difficult life. Dorris himself is part Modoc Indian. He founded the Native American Studies Program at Dartmouth College where he now teaches Anthropology.
Performance poet Sekou Sundiata. Often he performs with his music ensemble, "Dadahdoodahda." A Village Voice critic wrote of Sundiata, ". . . like Billie Holiday, Sundiata surprises with images and tumbling phrases that blend with subtle rhythmic variations. Dadahdoodahda provided enough familiar riffs and melodies to fill a dance floor. . .
