Entertainment

Coyote was a member of the Digger, a San Francisco-based guerrilla theater collective. After a brief stint as a stockbroker, he's now a movie actor, appearing in Jagged Edge, E.T., and Outrageous Fortune. He wrote the introduction to a new edition of Emmett Grogan's autobiography, Ringolevio, about the 1960s counterculture.

A new made-for-TV movie about the late actress's life and television career, called Lucy & Desi: Before the Laughter, is as awful as any tele-movie, says critic Maureen Corrigan. Since Ball's death last year, networks have been trying to recapture the magic of Lucy's sitcom -- an impossible task since, according Corrigan. the original show was nearly perfect.

Esposito has been featured in Spike Lee's movies Mo' Better Blues and Do the Right Thing. He joins Fresh Air to talk about the intensity of working on the set of Do the Right Thing, and how he started acting at the age of six.

Forsythe plays the villain Flattop in the new Dick Tracy movie. He also appeared in the Patty Hearst biopic and Serigio Leone's Once Upon a Time in America.

Fresh Air Terry Gross's most pressing question for the blues and gospel group is, Why hasn't she heard of them before? For over twenty years, the real life brothers Sherman and Wendell, along with bandmate Popsy Dixon, have performed soulful, vocal-driven music. Their new album is called In the Spirit.

Landesman founded several nightclubs frequented by beat writers. He later published their work in his literary magazine Neurotica -- despite finding their writing limited. Landesman later lampooned the beat generation in his Broadway musical, The Nervous Set.

Curtis's parents are Hollywood actors Jane Lee and Tony Curtis. In contrast to her own childhood, she keeps her own daughter out of the public eye. Curtis joins Fresh Air to talk about her roles in horror, comedy, and TV.

Cage stars in the upcoming David Lynch movie. The actor says he enjoyed Wild at Heart's dreamlike atmosphere, which allowed him to push the boundaries of his performance. He joins Fresh Air to discuss some of his earlier work, and the extremes he's gone to capture a character. Cage is the nephew of Francis Ford Coppola; he changed his name to distinguish himself from his famous family.

Kirby has had prominent roles in films like Good Morning, America, The Godfather II, and When Harry Met Sally. He stars in a new, mob-themed comedy called The Freshman. His father is fellow movie actor Bruce Kirby.

Miller starred in dozens of Roger Corman's B-movies, including Bucket of Blood. Later, big name directors so admired his work that they began to give Miller small parts in their films. He appeared in all of of Joe Dante's movies, including the recent Gremlins 2.

Critic John Leonard says the new trio of texts exploring the controversy stirred by the Satanic Verses vary in style, form, and slant. But all of them overlook a neglected part of the story: the responses of religious leaders in the West, who seemed to have learned nothing from their faith traditions' condemnation of great thinkers like Galileo, Martin Luther, and even Jesus Christ.

Rooker appears in two recently-released films -- the big budget action flick Days of Thunder, and the independently produced Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer. He was born into a poor, predominantly white town in Alabama, and later moved to a black neighborhood in Chicago. After growing up among people working 15-hour days, it took Rooker until his early twenties to believe that acting could be a real job.

The film actor enjoyed working with the puppets and puppeteers for the new movie, Gremlins 2. Glover's character is based on Donald Trump; he frequently portrays sleazy villains, like in his earlier movie, 52 Pick-Up.

Davidson's act earned him a spot on the sketch comedy show In Living Color, starring the Wayans brothers. He grew up in Washington, DC and began performing at a topless club. Davidson's comedy special will soon air on the Showtime network.

Lee says his substantial height kept him from landing leading man roles. During his long-running career, he's appeared in over 150 films. Lee made a name for himself in horror, playing both Dracula and Frankenstein's monster. He's starring in the forthcoming sequel to Gremlins.

Actress Celeste Holm. She appeared in the films such as "All About Eve," "Gentlemen's Agreement," and "High Society," on Broadway in shows such as "Oklahoma!" and "The King and I," and in numerous television roles over the years. She's now taking part in a retrospective of 20th Century Fox films being held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

Film critic Owen Gleiberman reviews Michael Caine's home video "Acting in Film."

Actor, writer, and Monthy Python member John Cleese and therapist Robin Skynner. The pair have co-written a new book, "Families and How To Survive Them."

Actor Joe Morton. Morton plays attorney Michael James on the ABC series "Equal Justice," and he played the leading role in John Sayles 1984 film, Brother From Another Planet."

Actor Meshach (mee-shack) Taylor. He plays Anthony Bouvier on the T-V series "Designing Women," and he's appearing in the upcoming film, "Mannequin on the Move."