Fresh Air

When Ronny Chieng got a job as a correspondent and then anchor at The Daily Show, he kept the news to himself. "I didn't want to brag," the Malaysia-born comic says. "I just wanted to do the work." Chieng now costars in the seriesInterior Chinatown, and has a new Netflix comedy special, Love to Hate It.

Also, Ken Tucker reflects on the best pop music of 2024.

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Pop sensation Elton John wrapped up his farewell tour in 2023, only to pop up in a surprise concert at the October 2024 New York City premiere of the new documentary, "Elton John: Never Too Late." Still, as John reduces his public output — and as that documentary drops on the Disney+ streaming platform — we thought our listeners might like to hear again from the British music legend himself. Weekly bonus episodes like this, curated from our vast archive, are usually only available for our Fresh Air+ supporters. But today, in the spirit of giving, we're making this episode available to all. Not a Fresh Air+ supporter yet? Find out more, and join for yourself, at https://plus.npr.org/freshair. Listen to Elton John in 2013: https://n.pr/3BoEEYT| Listen to Elton John in 2019: https://n.pr/49ssSJG | Listen to 40+ years of Fresh Air's archives at https://FreshAirArchive.org.

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Jon Batiste joins us at the piano to play his reimaginings of Beethoven, and more. His new album is called Beethoven Blues.

Also, we hear from visual artist Mickalene Thomas. She puts Black women in the front and center of her work. Her latest exhibition, Mickalene Thomas: All About Love, celebrates the women in her life.

Book critic Maureen Corrigan shares her picks for the best books of the year.

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The British actor and singer played abolitionist Harriet Tubman in Harriet, and Aretha Franklin in Genius: Aretha. Now she's defying gravity as Elphaba in Wicked.She spoke with Terry Gross in 2021 about some of her roles and her vocal training.

Also, Ken Tucker shares his picks for great Christmas music, and David Bianculli reviews the Amazon Prime series The Sticky.

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The U.S. is short approximately 4 million homes. Wharton professor Ben Keys traces the beginning of the housing crisis to the 2008 financial meltdown — and says climate change is making things worse.

Also, Justin Chang reviews the Iranian film The Seed of the Sacred Film.

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Danielle Deadwyler stars in the Netflix adaptation of the August Wilson play The Piano Lesson. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about her journey from the Atlanta theater scene to the big screen, her three masters degrees, and playing Mamie Till, mother of Emmett, in the 2022 movie Till.

Also, our book critic Maureen Corrigan shares her top 10 books of 2024.

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The former band leader for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert returns totalk with Terry Gross about his new album,Beethoven Blues. We also talk about his early years, like how he had a reputation at Juilliard for playing his melodica everywhere and breaking into song in class. It nearly resulted in him getting kicked out. Now he serves on the board.

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Herzog reflects on the curiosity that's fueled his career in the memoir, Every Man for Himself and God Against All,now out in paperback. The filmmaker and writer is drawn to extremes: extreme characters, extreme settings, extreme scenarios. But don't mistake him for a mad man like some of his film subjects: "You have to control what is wild in you. You have to be disciplined. And people think I'm the wild guy out there but I'm a disciplined professional," he tells Terry Gross.

Film critic Justin Chang reviews Queer.

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Musician Jerron Paxton is known for performing music from the 1920s and '30s. He just came out with an album of his own songs, calledThings Done Changed. Paxton brought some of his instruments to his conversation with Sam Briger.

Also, Terry Gross talks with author Michael Owen about Ira Gershwin, the lyricist behind many of the most enduring songs in The Great American Songbook.

TV critic David Bianculli reviews the documentary Beatles '64.

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Are you hyper-vigilant about your health, constantly monitoring yourself and panicking when you feel the slightest symptom? You're not alone. Writer Caroline Crampton has a new book about illness anxiety disorder, a.k.a. hypochondria. We talk about our evolving understanding of the disorder, its connection to PTSD, and new treatments. Her book is A Body Made of Glass.

John Powers reviews two new spy series, Black Doves and The Agency.

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Economist David Wessel talks about Trump's plans on tariffs and tax cuts, and the potential economic impact of Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy's Department of Government Efficiency.

Maureen Corrigan reviews Niall Williams' novel, Time of the Child.

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In Mickalene Thomas' work, Black women are front and center. "We've been supportive characters for far too long," she says. "I would describe my art as radically shifting notions of beauty by claiming space." Her new exhibition of collages, paintings, and photographs is called All About Love. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about how she "draws with scissors," using her mother as a muse, and her reinterpretation of Manet.

Also, David Bianculli reviews the new documentary Beatles '64.

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We're going to hear from a musician whose music is vibrant, exciting and new — even if it sounds like it could have been found on a scratchy record from the 1920s. His name is Jerron Paxton and he has a new album called Things Done Changed. He brought some of his instruments to the studio when he spoke with Fresh Air's Sam Briger.

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A new film adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning August Wilson play The Piano Lesson is now on Netflix. It's about a brother and sister battling over what to do with a family heirloom piano. Denzel Washington and his daughter Katia served as producers, and his sons John David and Malcolm starred in and directed it. The brothers talk about bringing the play to the screen.

Also, we hear from Selena Gomez about the Spanish-language musicalEmilia Pérez. Gomez plays the wife of a brutal drug cartel leader who decides to undergo gender-affirmation surgery.

Film critic Justin Chang reviews blockbusters Wicked and Gladiator II.

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The animated film Piece By Piece traces Pharrell Williams' early life as a boy growing up in Virginia Beach and follows his trajectory to a Grammy-winning songwriter, performer and producer. He spoke with Tonya Mosley about his synesthesia, the song Prince rejected, and disliking his own voice.

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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" — to his conversation with Terry Gross. He talks about being a child prodigy, his rebel years, and straddling three cultures: American, French, and Chinese.

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Ira Gershwin wrote the lyrics for some of the most enduring songs in the Great American Songbook, including "I Got Rhythm," "S'Wonderful," "Embraceable You," "Love is Here to Stay," and "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off." Biographer Michael Owen talks about Ira's collaboration with his brother George, his writing process, and the line he added to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."

Later, jazz historian Kevin Whitehead remembers drummer Roy Haynes.

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August Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning play The Piano Lesson is about a conflict in a Black family over whether to keep an exquisite heirloom piano — or to sell it to buy the land their family was enslaved on. Denzel Washington's son Malcolm directed the new film adaptation for Netflix, and his brother John David stars as Boy Willie. Tonya Mosley talks with the brothers about collaborating as a family on the project.

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During her years as a military linguist, Bailey Williams pushed her body to extremes. She later learned that eating disorders are more prevalent in the Marine Corps than in any other military branch. Her memoir is Hollow.

John Powers reviews the Paramount+ series Landman.

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Michael Schur wrote for the The Office, and created The Good Place, and co-createdParks and Recreation and Brooklyn Nine-Nine.His new show for Netflix, A Man on the Inside, features Ted Danson as a widowed retiree who goes undercover in a retirement community. He spoke with Terry Gross about the series.

Later, comic and Silicon Valley actor Jimmy O. Yang talks about his new Hulu series, Interior Chinatown.He plays a waiter who inadvertently becomes central to a crime story.

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Author Scott Eyman explains how silent film actor Charlie Chaplin was smeared in the press, scandalized for his affairs with young women, condemned for his alleged communist ties and banned from returning to the U.S. "At one time or another he was the target of the entire security apparatus of the United States of America," Eyman says. His book is Charlie Chaplin vs. America.

Also, Justin Chang reviews two highly-anticipated blockbusters, Wicked and Gladiator II.

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Michael Schur wrote for the The Office,and created The Good Place,and co-createdParks and Recreation and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. His new show for Netflix, A Man on the Inside, features Ted Danson as a widowed retiree who goes undercover in a retirement community. He spoke with Terry Gross about the series, making fun of NPR (lovingly) on Parks, and being a life-long rule-follower.

Also, our TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new series and says it's the sweetest show sinceTed Lasso.

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Trump has called the press the "enemy of the people" and threatened retribution, including jailing reporters, investigating NBC for treason, and suggesting CBS's broadcast license be taken away. Terry Gross talks with David Remnick, editor of The New Yorker, and Marty Baron, former executive editor of The Washington Post, about the media landscape as we head into a second Trump administration.

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The actor-singer-entrepreneur stars in Emilia Pérez, the new Spanish-language musical about a cartel boss who undergoes gender-affirming surgery. Gomez talks with Tonya Mosley about re-learning Spanish, her Disney years, and working alongside comedy legends Martin Short and Steve MartininOnly Murders in the Building.

Also, Ken Tucker shares three great country songs: Maren Morris' "People Still Show Up," Dwight Yoakam's "A Dream That Never Ends," and Shawna Thompson's "Lean On Neon."

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In his new Hulu comedy series,Interior Chinatown, Jimmy O. Yang plays a waiter who inadvertently becomes central to a crime story. As an Asian American actor, he says he relates to the character's feeling of invisibility. Yang talks with Ann Marie Baldonado about auditioning for Silicon Valley, working alongside his dad, and feeling like an outsider among other Asians in California.

Also, film critic Justin Chang reviews the Indian movie All We Can Imagine as Light.

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Kerri Russell stars in the Netflix political drama The Diplomat as a foreign service officer tapped to become the American ambassador to the UK. Russell also starred in the series Felicity and The Americans. She spoke with us last year about these characters and getting her start on The All New Mickey Mouse Club as a kid.

Also, we remember author Dorothy Allison, who died this week at age 75. Her critically acclaimed 1992 novel Bastard out of Carolina was based on her own childhood experience of being physically and sexually abused. We listen back to Terry's interview with Allison about the book and her life.

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In Richard Price's new novel, Lazarus Man, a five-story building collapses, upending the lives of the building's residents. It's about second chances and finding the faith to carry on. Price has written for HBO's The Wire and The Deuce, and co-created HBO's The Night Of andThe Outsider. Several of his novels, including Clockers, were adapted into films. He spoke with Terry Gross.

Also, Maureen Corrigan shares two books that offer humor and beauty: Billy Collins' collection of poetry Water, Water, andThe Dog Who Followed The Moon by James Norbury.

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With wars in Gaza, Lebanon, and Ukraine, and with high tariffs on the horizon, The EconomistEditor-In-Chief Zanny Minton Beddoes says president-elect Trump's agenda may be chaotic. But she stays resolutely optimistic about possible good elements in his foreign policy.

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We've all had bug bites, or dry scalp, or a sunburn that causes itch. But what if you felt itchy all the time — and there was no relief?Atlantic journalist Annie Lowrey suffers from primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), a degenerative liver disease in which the body mistakenly attacks cells lining the bile ducts, causing them to inflame. The result is a severe itch that doesn't respond to antihistamines or steroids. She talks with Terry Gross about finding a diagnosis, treatment, and what scientists know about itch.

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Author Phil Klay says Trump has been willing to politicize the military to push his partisan agenda before, and is likely to further erode norms around the military as he looks for those willing to "go with his whims." Klay is a Marine Corps veteran and National Book Award-winning writer.

Also, John Powers on the Spanish language movie musical Emilia Pérez.

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Oscar-winning actor Al Pacino talks with Terry Gross about growing up in the South Bronx with a single mother and The Godfather, and why he almost passed on Part II. His new memoir is Sonny Boy.

Also, we hear from Saoirse Ronan. She stars in two new films: The Outrun, about a young woman struggling to get sober, and the World War II drama, Blitz. She spoke with contributor Ann Marie Baldonado about the roles, as well as the most intense on set experience she's ever had — birthing lambs.

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Comic Jenny Slate spoke with Terry Gross earlier this year about finding comedy in her feelings, motherhood, and growing up in a haunted house. Her latest stand-up special on Amazon Prime Video is Seasoned Professionaland she has a new book of essays out now called Lifeform.

Justin Chang reviews Clint Eastwood's new film,Juror #2.

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In Savings and Trust, historian Justene Hill Edwards tells the story of the Freedman's Bank. Created for formerly enslaved people following the Civil War, its collapse cost depositors millions. She spoke with Tonya Molsey about how this part of history reverberates today.

Also, book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Vanishing Treasures.

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Irish actor Saoirse Ronan returns to Fresh Air to talk with contributor Ann Marie Baldonado about her two new films (The Outrun andBlitz) as well as her experience as a child actor and her collaboration with Lady Bird and Little Women director Greta Gerwig.

Also, Carolina Miranda reviews the Netflix filmPedro Páramo.

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We remember renowned composer, arranger and producer Quincy Jones and listen back to Terry Gross's 2001 interview with him. He died Sunday at the age of 91. He got his start playing with Ray Charles when they were both in their teens. Jones became famous as an arranger and producer for musicians including Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, and Michael Jackson on his albums Bad, Off the Wall and Thriller.

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Oscar-winning actor Al Pacino talks with Terry Gross about growing up in the South Bronx with a single mother, getting his start in Greenwich Village performing in avant-garde theater, nearly dying of COVID, and his life today. We'll also talk about The Godfather, and why he almost passed on Part II. His new memoir is Sonny Boy.

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Alex Van Halen has written a new memoir about forming the rock band Van Halen with his brother Eddie. It takes readers from their childhood to the wild ride of sex, drugs, and rock and roll. Eddie Van Halen died in 2020. Alex talks with Tonya Mosley about his grief and reflects on their relationship.

Also, artist Titus Kaphar talks about his new movie, Exhibiting Forgiveness, based on his life. It's about a celebrated painter whose world unravels when his estranged father suddenly resurfaces.

Carolina Miranda reviews the new Netflix film Pedro Paramo

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We remember actor Teri Garr, who died last week at age 79. She charmed audiences in her film roles and appearances on late night TV. She's best known for her role as the dim witted seductive lab assistant to Gene Wilder's mad scientist in Mel Brook's Young Frankenstein. She was later nominated for an Oscar for her performance in Tootsie. After being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, Garr became a spokeswoman for MS research and support. She spoke with Terry Gross in 2005.

Also, Justin Chang reviews the new World War II drama Blitz, directed by Steve McQueen and starring Saoirse Ronan.

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Alex Van Halen has written a new memoir about forming the rock band Van Halen with his brother Eddie, who died of cancer in 2020. The book, titled Brothers, takes readers from their childhood to the wild ride of sex, drugs, and rock and roll. He spoke with Tonya Mosley about grief, lighting his drums on fire, and what he really thinks of This is Spinal Tap.

Also, TV critic David Bianculli reviews the fall TV broadcast season.

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Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Eliza Griswold says complaints about homophobia, white privilege and diversity are splintering progressive organizations — including one particular church in Philadelphia. Her book is Circle of Hope.It's a finalist for the National Book Award.

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The HBO seriesSomebody Somewhereis about a 40-something woman who returns home to Kansas to care for her dying sister, then stays, but feels like an outsider until she finds a place in the LGBTQ community. We talk Bridget Everett, star of the series, who is also an acclaimed (and bawdy) cabaret singer.

Also, writer Nick Harkaway talks about his novel Karla's Choice. It's a new story about George Smiley, the British spymaster made famous in the books written by Harkaway's late father, John le Carré.

Ken Tucker reviews a new biography of Randy Newman.

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The witty, cynical and often tongue-in-cheek songwriter Randy Newman is the subject of a new biography. He also wrote a bunch of film scores, including the music for Toy Story, Ragtime, A Bug's Life, and Monsters, Inc. We're revisiting Newman's interview with Terry Gross from 1998 and Ken Tucker reviews the book, A Few Words in Defense of Our Country.

Justin Chang reviews the new Vatican thriller Conclave.

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When painter, sculptor, and installation artist Titus Kaphar's life was upended by his estranged father, he turned to film. First he decided to tell his story in a documentary, but scrapped the project when it felt unsatisfying. His new feature film, Exhibiting Forgiveness, tells his story and brings his paintings to life. Kaphar talked to Tonya Mosley about his journey to healing.

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Writer Nick Harkaway grew up hearing his dad read drafts of his George Smiley novels. He picks up le Carré's beloved spymaster character in the new novel, Karla's Choice.He spoke with Sam Briger about choosing his own pen name, channeling his dad's writing style, and his stint writing copy for a lingerie catalogue.

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Growing up in Manhattan, Kansas, Bridget Everett and her "blue sense of humor" never quite fit in. After moving to New York City and developing a cabaret show, she returned home for her HBO showSomebody Somewhere.The series is semi-autobiographical, about a woman struggling with self-worth and grief as she finds her people and her voice.

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Grammy-winning producer, singer, songwriter and rapper Pharrell Williams has a new animated biopic called Piece by Piece. He talks with Tonya Mosley about synesthesia and collaborations with Snoop Dogg, Kelis, and Gwen Stefani.

We'll also hear from Riley Keough, Elvis's granddaughter and Lisa Marie Presley's daughter. She talks about the memoir she co-authored with her late mother. Before her unexpected death, Lisa Marie chronicled her childhood, her marriage to Michael Jackson, and growing up in Elvis's shadow.

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We're revisiting our interview with Tom Petty, whose hits include "American Girl," "Breakdown," and "I Won't Back Down." The soundtrack of the new Apple TV+ series Bad Monkey is all Tom Petty covers. He spoke with Terry Gross in 2006.

Sterlin Harjo, co-creator of the Peabody award-winning FX/Hulu TV series Reservation Dogs, is a 2024 recipient of the MacAathur "genius" award. Reservation Dogs is about a group of teenagers living on reservation in rural Oklahoma. Harjo is a member of the Muscogee and Seminole Nations and spoke with Terry in 2022.

Justin Chang reviews the new filmAnora by Sean Baker, director ofTangerine andThe Florida Project.

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Former Inspector General Glenn Fine oversaw investigations of the mishandling of documents in the Oklahoma bombing case, the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo and corruption in the Navy. He spoke with Dave Davies about his work to uncover abuse, waste, and fraud in the Departments of Justice and Defense. His book is Watchdogs.

Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews the bookClean, about a housekeeper who is the primary suspect in the death of a child.

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Legal scholar Mary Ziegler talks about the legal battles shaping reproductive rights across the U.S. — including the scope of abortion access and the fate of IVF. And we look ahead at two very different outcomes with the election. "I don't think in the past 50 years we've had an election where the stakes could be as high, simply because Roe v. Wade isn't there as a floor anymore," Ziegler says.

Also, John Powers controversial French writer Michel Houellebecq's new novel, Annihilation.

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Mosab Abu Toha was able to escape Gaza, along with his wife and three young children. The award-winning poet talks about being detained at a check-point, parenting in war, and the devastation of leaving his family and friends behind. His new book of poetry is Forest of Noise.

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Lisa Marie Presley, the only child of Elvis Presley, was working on a memoir when she died in 2023. In From Here to the Great Unknown, actor Riley Keough details her mother's unusual life in Graceland. She also talks about grief and her own time at Neverland Ranch.

Maureen Corrigan reviews the novel Shred Sisters by Betsy Lerner.

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Jeremy Strong played Kendall Roy on HBO's Succession. He's now starring in The Apprentice, as Donald Trump's unscrupulous lawyer and mentor Roy Cohn. Strong says the film examines the playbook Cohn passed on to Trump: "Always attack, deny everything and never admit defeat."

Also, Will Ferrrell and his friend and former SNL writing partner Harper Steele, talk about the road trip they took after Harper came out as a trans woman. Their trip is the subject of the new Netflix documentary, Will & Harper.

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We remember singer Cissy Houston, who died Oct. 7 at the age of 91. She got her start in gospel and sang backup vocals for Elvis, Dusty Springfield, Wilson Pickett, Van Morrison and Aretha Franklin, most notably on "A Natural Woman." She was also the mother of Whitney Houston. Houston spoke with Terry Gross in 1998.

Also, we remember Major League Baseball's Pete Rose, a legend on the field who was banned from baseball because he bet on the game. He died Sept. 30 at the age of 83. Rose spoke with Dave Davies in 2004.

TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new film Saturday Night, a dramatization of the first episode of SNL.

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Internationally-acclaimed writer Etgar Keret, who lives in Tel Aviv, reflects on the protests in Israel and the U.S. over the hostages and Gaza. The son of Holocaust survivors, he has left- and right-wing political views in his own family.

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Best-known for his role as Kendall Roy in HBO's Succession, Jeremy Strong now stars as lawyer and political hitman Roy Cohn in The Apprentice. The movie, he says, "explores essentially how Trump was made and his philosophical moral framework." Strong talks with Terry Gross about playing Cohn and about some of Kendall's most memorable scenes.

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The animated film Piece By Piece traces Pharrell's early life as a boy growing up in Virginia Beach and follows his trajectory to a Grammy-winning songwriter, performer and producer. He spoke with Tonya Mosley about his synesthesia, the song Prince rejected, and disliking his own voice.

Subscribe to Fresh Air's weekly newsletter and get highlights from the show, gems from the archive, and staff recommendations.

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Will Ferrell and his longtime friend and former SNL writing partner Harper Steele traveled from New York to California, talking along the way about Steele coming out as a trans woman. Their documentary, Will & Harper, is now streaming on Netflix.

Also, classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reflects on "maverick" composer Charles Ives.

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Ta-Nehisi Coates talks about his trip to Senegal and reflects on his ancestors taken from that side of the ocean and sent to their enslavement in America. Coates is best known for his Atlantic magazine cover story "The Case for Reparations" and for his book Between the World and Me, which he wrote as a letter to his son about what he'll face as a Black man.

We'll also hear from actor, comedian, and activist John Leguizamo. His latest project is a docuseries on PBS about the history of Latinos in the Americas, covering thousands of years, from pre-Columbian Inca, Maya, and Aztec civilizations to the fight for Latino civil rights.

Plus, Ken Tucker reviews Bob Dylan's new collection, The 1974 Live Recordings.

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Beloved British actor of stage and screen Maggie Smith died last week at age 89. Though the Oscar-winner had a long and successful career, it wasn't until she was in her 70s that she got approached by scores of fans. "It only happened to me since Downton Abbey, so I blame the whole thing on television." We revisit Dave Davies' 2016 interview with Smith.

Also, we remember singer, songwriter, and actor Kris Kristofferson. He was a Rhodes Scholar, and an Army Ranger before taking a chance at songwriting. "Me and Bobby McGee" is perhaps his most famous song, recorded by Janis Joplin. He told Terry Gross in 1999.

Also, John Powers reviews the new film Wolfs, starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt on Apple TV+.

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David Wessel, a senior fellow in economic studies at the Brookings Institution, compares the candidates' records and campaign promises on taxes, spending, tariffs, housing and more.

TV critic David Bianculli reviews Netflix's rom-com series Nobody Wants This.

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More often than not, U.S. history classes fail to include the contributions of Latino people. Leguizamo's three-part PBS docuseries, VOCES American Historia,is an attempt to set the record straight.

Also, David Bianculli reflects on SNL's season 50 opener.

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In his new book, Coates reflects on his time in Senegal, as well as trips he took to South Carolina and to Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank. "It is about the nationalisms of people who are told that they are nothing, that they are not a nation, that they are not a people ... and the stories that we construct to fight back against that," he says.

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The host of the Food Network's Barefoot Contessatells Tonya Mosley about a disastrous party she threw when she was 21. Garten invited 20 guests, with the intention of making an individual omelet for each person — except she barely knew how to cook an omelet. Her new memoir is Be Ready When Fate Happens.

Ken Tucker reviewsThe 1974 Live Recordings, a newly released recording of some of Bob Dylan's most raucous rock and roll.

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Todd Phillips, the director and co-writer of the new musical sequel to Joker,shares what it was like to direct Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga in a singing, dancing, very dark adaptation of the DC character.

And actor Uzo Aduba, best-known for her role as "Crazy Eyes" on Orange is the New Black and HBO's In Treatment, has written a new memoir that pays homage to her mother, a Nigerian immigrant who raised her family in a nearly all-white Massachusetts suburb.

Also, David Bianculli reviews the new Disney+/Marvel series Agatha All Along, a spinoff of the series WandaVision.


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25 years ago, the TV series The West Wing premiered. It was a behind-the-scenes look at a fictional White House. We revisit our interviews with show creator/writer Aaron Sorkin, and actors Allison Janney, who played C.J., and John Spencer, who played Leo McGarry. They talk about the show's signature walk-and-talk and the quippy, rapid-fire style of dialogue.

Also, Justin Chang reviews Francis Ford Coppola's Megalopolis.

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Mueller deputy Aaron Zebley looks back on the investigation of Trump's ties to Russia and explains why his team didn't indict the president in 2017. Zebley is the co-author of Interference.

David Bianculli reviews WandaVision spin-off, Agatha All Along on Disney+.

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After his 2019 hit Joker, Todd Phillips knew he wanted to do more with the character. Joker: Folie à Deuxpicks up two years after the original, and features singing by Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga. The director spoke with Terry Gross about his collaboration with Phoenix, how he got into filmmaking, and casting Gaga.

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Pioneering television journalist Connie Chung gives us a behind-the-scenes look at what it took for her to climb to the top in the male-dominated field of TV news. Her new memoir isConnie.

Also, we talk with Demi Moore about her new horror film The Substance, in which she plays an aging actress who loses her job hosting a workout show because her boss thinks she's too old and not hot enough.

John Powers reviews the new documentary ¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor!

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Florida's population has quintupled since writer Carl Hiaasen grew up near Fort Lauderdale in the '50s. As a former Miami Herald columnist and novelist, Hiaasen railed against, and made fun of, politicians and developers who he said were covering the state with concrete, and the tourists and retirees who just kept coming. Hiaasen's 2013 novel, Bad Monkey, a wacky murder mystery set in Key West COMMA is now a television series streaming on Apple TV +, starring Vince Vaughn.

Also, we remember revered jazz historian, archivist and critic Dan Morgenstern, who died earlier this month. Critic-at-Large John Powers reviews Kate Atkinson's latest mystery novel, and TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new HBO series, The Penguin.

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TV news journalist Connie Chung has written a new tell-all memoir. It's about breaking into the boys club of her industry, her marriage to Maury Povitch, and the big scoops of her career. The funny and off-the-cuff news icon spoke with Tonya Mosley.

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Pulitzer Prize-winning reporters Susanne Craig and Russ Buettner spent years investigating the former president's finances and various businesses. They dispel Trump's myth of being a self-made billionaire, and trace the missteps he made, squandering his father's fortune. Their book is Lucky Loser.

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In the horror movie The Substance, Demi Moore plays an aging actress who uses a black-market drug to create a younger version of herself. She says the film examines the pressures middle-aged women face to remain youthful. Moore spoke with Tonya Mosley about "compare and despair" in Hollywood, and why she's entered a new chapter of her life.

Also, John Powers reviews the documentary ¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor!, about the South Parkcreators' ill-fated attempt to restore a beloved Colorado landmark.

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Journalists Ryan Mac and Kate Conger talk about the chaos Elon Musk created inside Twitter, how Musk moved further to the political right, and how Trump wants to appoint Musk to head a new efficiency commission. Their book is Character Limit.

Also, we'll hear from comedian Taylor Tomlinson, host of CBS's late-night talk show After Midnight. Tomlinson started doing stand up when she was 16 and took a class with a Christian comedian. Then she started testing her material on the church circuit.

And, Maureen Corrigan reviews Rachel Kushner's new novel, Creation Lake.

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James Earl Jones was the voice of Darth Vader in Star Warsand Mafusa in The Lion King, and once the voice of CNN. But there was a time when he didn't want to be heard. We revisit his 1993 interview with Terry Gross about how he overcame his stutter. Jones died this week at 93.

Also we remember late guitarist Russell Malone. He played with Diana Krall and Harry Connick Jr.

Film critic Justin Chang reviews His Three Daughters.

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Democrats and Republicans learned from the legal fight over the 2020 elections, New York Timesreporter Nick Corasaniti explains how both sides are prepping for 2024 ballot box fight.

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After buying Twitter in 2022, Elon Musk instituted sweeping changes. He laid off or fired about 75% of the staff –including about half the data scientists. He also ended rules banning hate speech and misinformation. Authors Kate Conger and Ryan Mac recount the takeover in Character Limit.

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Investigative journalist Jessica Pishko says that a growing group of "constitutional sheriffs" have become a flashpoint in the current politics of toxic masculinity, guns, white supremacy, and rural resentment. "Constitutional sheriffs would argue that there is no one who can tell them what to do," Pishko says. "Not the president, not the Supreme Court, not the governor, not the legislature. Sometimes constitutional sheriffs will call themselves something like a king." Her book is The Highest Law in the Land.

Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews Creation Lake, by Rachel Kushner.

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The After Midnight host was initially unsure about sharing her bipolar II diagnosis on-stage. But, she tells co-host Tonya Mosley, "I got such amazing feedback from people who had been struggling with their mental health." Her new Netflix comedy special is Have It All.

Also, David Bianculli reviews the new season of Only Murders in the Building.

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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 childhood, marriage and her time as a public defender.

Also, we hear from writer Danzy Senna, who writes about the experiences of being biracial in America and the meaning of race itself. Her new novel Colored Television.

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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 the making of the show, centering on the series creator and executive producer, David Chase. We're using that as an excuse to revisit our interviews with Chase, as well as Lorraine Bracco, who played Tony's psychiatrist, Dr. Melfi, and Michael Imperioli, who played Tony's impetuous nephew.

Film critic Justin Chang reviews Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.

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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 office. Her new memoir is called Lovely One.

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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 a thing. "Just merely existing as a family was a radical statement at that time," she says. Her new book is Colored Television.

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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 Brooklyn and his acting and directorial debut, the 1986 movie She's Gotta Have It. In 2000, Jackson talked about playing tough guys, watching movies in segregated theaters, and nearly dying on the New York subway.

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In 2022, E.T.andJaws 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 revisit our 2016 interview with actor Carrie Fisher about what it was really like to become a sex symbol as Princess Leia.

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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 1997, it wasn't necessarily character driven. "They bombed me with a bunch a lights, and you're outside and it's 90 degrees, and it's hard not to squint."

We'll also hear from Eastwood's co-star inThe Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Eli Wallach, who went on to play a bandit in several Westerns. Cultural historian Christopher Frayling tells us how the Italian director Sergio Leone broke the conventions of the Hollywood Western, and stuntman Hal Needham describes his most daring feats.

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We continue our Classic Films and Movie Icons series and feature archival interviews with Dennis Hopper and Isabella Rossellini. They co-starred in the movie Blue Velvet, and after it became a hit, both of their careers were redefined.

Later, on the centennial of singer Dinah Washington's birth, jazz historian Kevin Whitehead has appreciation.

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Our special series of archival interviews continues with two of the GOATs: Meryl Streep, the actor with the most Oscar nominations in history, spoke with Terry Gross in 2012 about playing Margaret Thatcher. And Sidney Poitier, the first Black man to win best actor, in 2000 talked about how the radio helped him learn an accent for auditions.

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We continue our Classic Films and Movie Icons series with two performers who gained fame as kids: Breakfast Club actor Molly Ringwald and Freaky Friday actor Jodie Foster. We'll also discuss Foster's Oscar-winning role as an FBI agent in The Silence of the Lambsand hear from her co-star who played serial killer Hannibal Lector, Anthony Hopkins.

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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 Godfather films as Tom Hagen, the Corleone family lawyer — and about speaking the most famous line in Apocalypse Now. And we'll get some insights into acting from Michael Caine, including why you don't need to raise your voice to be intimidating, and why he hates doing love scenes.

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We begin our series celebrating classic movies with Terry Gross' 1988 interview with On the Waterfrontdirector Elia Kazan, as well as a 2020 interview with his granddaughter, actor Zoe Kazan. Plus, we'll hear from the film's romantic lead, actor Eva Marie Saint, who told Fresh Airin 2000 that she got the part after improvising with Marlon Brando.

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