TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new show “Queer as Folk,” which premieres on Showtime this Sunday night. The series is an American version of the controversial British show of the same name.
Actress Eva Marie Saint. She starred opposite Marlon Brando in the 1954 film “On the Waterfront,” and won an academy award for her portrayal of his convent-reared girlfriend. Later she and Cary Grant teamed up for Alfred Hitchcock’s “North by Northwest.” Saint studied at the famed Actors Studio where Brando, Paul Newman, Marilyn Monroe and Dennis Hopper also did. This Sunday she stars in the CBS Sunday Movie, “Papa’s Angels.”
Novelist Jay McInerney (“MAC-in-UR-knee”). He broke onto the literary scene with his bestselling novel “Bright Lights, Big City,” about the excesses of the a Manhattan yuppie in the 1980s. His new book is a collection of essays about the pleasure of wine. It’s called “Bacchus & Me: Adventures in The Wine Cellar” (The Lyons Press).
Historian Alexander Keyssar. In his new book “The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States” (Basic Books), he examines the checkered history of our country’s right to vote, and how this right was not for a time extended to certain groups of people, from propertyless white men, to women, immigrants, and African-Americans. Even now, he argues, that the wealthy and well-educated are for more likely to go to the polls than the poor and under educated. Keyssar is Professor of History and Public Policy at Duke University.
Kim Alexander is President of the California Voter Foundation, organized to pioneer new technologies to improve democracy. The group produces the California Online Voter Guide. Recently Alexander was part of the Task Force for Internet Voting put together by California’s Secretary of State.
Veteran actress Angela Lansbury. This weekend she receives a Kennedy Center Honor. She’s spent over 50 years in the business on stage, and in film and television. When she was 17 she debuted in “Gaslight,” and was nominated for an Oscar for her portrayal of Ingrid Bergman’s Cockney maid.
Voice and acting coach Patsy Rodenburg. (“ROH-den-burg”) She’s worked with some of the world’s leading English-speaking actors, including Judi Dench, Daniel Day-Lewis, Maggie Smith and Nicole Kidman. Her new book is “The Actor Speaks: Voice and the Performer.” (St. Martin’s Press) Rodenburg is the Director of Voice at London’s National Theatre and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. “The Actor Speaks” is a complete vocal workshop for performers of every skill level.
Singer Jerry Butler, aka The Iceman. His 1969 hit, “Only the Strong Survive,” is a rhythm and blues classic, and also the title of his new autobiography: “Only the Strong Survive: Memoirs of a Soul Survivor” (Indiana University Press) Butler founded the vocal group The Impressions as well as having a successful solo career. His awareness of civil rights led him to politics, and he is serving his fourth term on the Cook County Board of Commissioners in Chicago. The book was written with Earl Smith, Butler’s brother-in-law and a journalist.
Film editor Dede Allen. She edited such films as The Hustler, Bonnie And Clyde, Serpico, Dog Day Afternoon, and The Wonder Boys, which has just been re-released. Her Hollywood career began in the 1940’s as an apprentice editor. Today she’s arguably the highest paid and one of the top five film editors in the business. Allen’s been nominated twice for Academy awards.
Jazz clarinetist Andy Biskin. His latest CD is “Dogmental,” (GM Recordings) by the Andy Biskin Quintet. Biskin is also a composer. He grew up in San Antonio, Texas and is now based in Manhattan.
Political scientist Robert Pastor, Ph.D. joins us to talk about possible election reforms in the American system after this presidential vote. Pastor is a professor of Political Science at Emory University, and in his former role as a Carter Center Fellow, he helped create international election monitoring teams. He has monitored 20 foreign elections. Pastor is the author of 10 books on subjects such as U-S foreign policy, international trade and democratization.
Our classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz joins us to talk about his new book of poems, “Cairo Traffic.” (University of Chicago Press) Lloyd is professor of English at the University of Massachusetts Boston and writes about classical music for the Boston Phoenix. In 1994, he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.
