TV critic David Bianculli reviews recently released DVD compilations of TV series. He reviews the first seasons of Miami Vice from the 1980s, Murder One from the 90s, and Deadwood, which premiered last year.
Ken Tucker's new book is Kissing Bill O'Reilly, Roasting Miss Piggy, a look at television. His new book touches on TV mainstays, from James Garner to Pamela Anderson and David Brinkley.
French composer and conductor Pierre Boulez. He turns 80 years old next month. In celebration of his birthday next month, the record label Deutsche Grammophon is issuing five new recordings of Boulez's work. Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz has a review.
Film critic David Edelstein reviews Inside Deep Throat, a new documentary that explores the 1972 adult film considered the most profitable of all time.
Miller died Thursday night at the age of 89 at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut. Miller was the author of many plays, including the legendary Death of a Salesman, for which he won a Pulitzer. He was married briefly to Marilyn Monroe. This interview was originally broadcast on November, 25, 1987.
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) recently made headlines with her tough questioning of Condoleezza Rice during her confirmation hearings for Secretary of State. Boxer was also the only senator to object to the certification of Ohio's electoral votes.
Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews And now... The Revolutionary Ensemble. The three-man group uses instruments ranging from violin and harmonica to acoustic bass and a wide range of percussion.
The weekly HBO program Real Time with Bill Maher begins its new season Feb. 18. Previously, Bill Maher created and hosted the late night political round-table show Politically Incorrect.
Housekeeping, the first novel from Marilynne Robinson, won a PEN/Hemingway Award. Now 23 years later, she's written a second novel, Gilead. Gilead is written as a letter from a 76-year-old Congregationalist Preacher to his seven-year-old son. Robinson is a Congregationalist, and has served as a deacon in the church.
As half of the comedy duo Cheech and Chong, Tommy Chong made a career out of making jokes about being stoned. Along with Cheech Marin, Chong recorded six gold comedy albums and starred in seven films. He currently has a recurring role on FOX TV's That '70s Show.
U.S Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan prosecuted Tommy Chong. We talk with her about Operation Pipe Dreams and how it applied to Chong, as well as the investigation that led to the charges against him.
Film critic David Edelstein reviews the new German film Head-On about a marriage of convenience in Hamburg between two troubled Turks. It won the Golden Bear award at the Berlin International Film Festival
Cake has five albums to their credit. The band includes trumpeter Vincent DiFiore, bassist Gabriel Nelson, and guitarist Xan McCurdy. The popular alt-rock group combines caustic lyrics with pulsing guitar music and is influenced by many different styles: rock, funk, synth-pop, mariachi and cuban. Sometimes they shoot for a cheap, lo-fi sound, says McCrea. Their new CD is Pressure Chief.
Robert O'Harrow, Jr. is a reporter for The Washington Post and an associate of the Center for Investigative Reporting. His new book is about how the government is creating a national intelligence infrastructure with the help of private companies as part of homeland security. Huge data-mining operations are contracted by the government to gather information on our daily lives. Information technology has enabled retailers, marketers, and financial institutions to gather and store data about us.
James Brown is also known as the Godfather of Soul and the Hardest Working Man in Show Business, among other titles. The 71-year-old singer is still touring, despite having prostate surgery in December. He's written a new memoir, James Brown: I Feel Good.
Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Bury the Chains: Prophets and Rebels in the Fight to Free an Empire's Slaves by Adam Hochschild. It's about the 18th century anti-slavery movement in the British Empire.
Essie Mae Washington-Williams is the daughter of the late Sen. Strom Thurmond. While her mother, who was black, served as the maid for the Thurmonds, she had an affair with the future senator, at the age of 15. Thurmond was a long-time senator from South Carolina and an opponent of integration. Washington-Williams did not reveal her true identity as Thurmond's daughter until after his death at 100 a little more than a year ago. Now 78, she has written a new memoir, Dear Senator: A Memoir by the Daughter of Strom Thurmond.
