On Demand
The Leonard Lopate Show Archive
November 2005
War Strategies
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
On today's show, Cindy Sheehan tells us how she transformed herself from a grieving mother into an antiwar activist. Plus, a panel discussion on how the war in Iraq got started, and how it might end. Also on the show: a new play about the impact of AIDS on the lives of African and African-American women. And Robert Coover on breathing new life into familiar fairy tales.
Developing Discussions
Tuesday, November 29, 2005
The debate between evolution and creationism is all over the news. On today's show, we'll ask whether or not science and religion can be reconciled. Plus, we'll hear about a new exhibit on Charles Darwin at the American Museum of Natural History. Jed Perl of the New Republic looks back at what made New York such a hotbed of innovative art in the middle of the 20th century. And chef Anthony Bourdain tells us about one of his most disastrous nights in the kitchen.
Look to the Land
Monday, November 28, 2005
The U.S. has a space program, but no land use program. Former Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt thinks we need a clear national vision for land use. Plus: Abraham Lincoln's struggle with depression. Also, the latest from P.D. James, and then a new documentary called "The Boys of Baraka."
Great Ape
Friday, November 25, 2005
Jane Goodall has devoted her life to the well-being of chimps and baboons. Now she's worried about another kind of primate: humans. Plus: the life and work of Henry Adams, who helped revolutionize the study of American history. Also, how to capture the beauty of the wilderness on film, and a visit from Australian novelist Tim Winton.
Art in America
Thursday, November 24, 2005
John Updike is known for his novels, but his real passion is American art. He thinks America speaks through its artists. Plus: how California won the battle between California wines and French wines. Later, novelist Mackenzie Bezos and filmmaker Norman Jewison.
Teetering on the Edge
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
More journalists have been killed in Iraq than during the whole Vietnam War. Combat reporter Walter Rodgers on how he coped with the danger. Plus: modern Jewish life, from the hidden lives of Hasidic rebels to the Israeli military experience. And then a look into why so many scientific breakthroughs happened in the 20th century.
Fine Lines
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
We'll look at the many faces of John F. Kennedy. Also Nobel Laureate Derek Walcott will be here to talk about his poetry and the New York City debut of his oil and watercolor paintings. And we’ll hear about the man who dreamed up the original King Kong. Plus: a psychoanalyst argues that while madness is fascinating, sanity requires more imagination.
Calculating Questions
Monday, November 21, 2005
On today’s show, chefs Joan Nathan and Michael Lomanaco answer your “burning” questions about how to avoid a dry turkey and other Thanksgiving cooking disasters. Also, the story of how one woman figured out how to measure the universe in the early 1900s. And Caryl Phillips' novel about the African-American Vaudeville star Bert Williams. Plus, one of the world's leading experts on autism will be here.
Progressive Thinking
Friday, November 18, 2005
On today’s show, the man President Clinton called the MVP of his economic team: Gene Sperling. Plus, a look at a new movie about the life of Johnny Cash. First, we'll hear from the director and producer of “Walk the Line,” then we'll talk to two country musicians with roles in the film: Shelby Lynne and Waylon Payne. And our regular Please Explain feature is all about corn.
Preparing for the Future
Thursday, November 17, 2005
Trains helped build America. But our railroad infrastructure is aging, and Amtrak is facing some big challenges. It’s underfunded, and just last week, its president was fired. Today, we'll take a look at the future of America’s trains. Plus, two poets talk about the place of poetry in modern society, and the directors of the first-ever Afghan-US Theater collaboration in New York City join us. We’ll also talk to seven-time Grammy winner Eddie Palmieri about his 50 years as a salsa and Latin jazz bandleader.
Admission and Exclusion
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
An Ivy League degree can open many doors. But on today’s show, sociologist Jerome Karabel reveals how admission policies at Harvard, Princeton, and Yale shut out different groups of minorities in the 20th century. Also on the show, wordsmith Patricia T. O’Connor, and Vikram Seth on his memoir of the holocaust. Plus, a new novel about a boy who’s recruited by guerilla fighters in West Africa.
After You
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
New Mexico's Governor Bill Richardson has said that he thinks the US is ready to elect a Hispanic President. On today's show, we'll find out if he intends to be the first. Plus, mother and son duo Sandy Stewart and Bill Charlap share their new album of showtunes. Mary Gaitskill tells us about her shocking new novel. Then: New York City's tough housing market. Why are many New Yorkers willing to pay a lot to live in substandard conditions?
Oil and Paint
Monday, November 14, 2005
The largest urban oil spill is just below Newtown Creek in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. On today’s show, Chief Investigator Basil Seggos and City Council member David Yassky update us on the civil suit residents have initiated against ExxonMobil, BP Amoco, and ChevronTexaco. Then, we'll talk to an industrial hygienist about the environmental and health concerns of exposure to oils and chemicals. Plus, we’ll hear about the wheelings and dealings over artists’ estates, and Siri Hustvedt shares her collection of essays on painting.
Truth and Myth
Friday, November 11, 2005
Last year an independent panel charged CBS with failing to verify documents in a report on President Bush’s dereliction of National Guard duty…and producer Mary Mapes lost her job. On today’s show, she argues that she took the fall for a story that angered the Bush administration. Plus, we’ll get a refresher course on how the national banking system works on Please Explain. Country star Lee Ann Womack stops by, and Margaret Atwood and Karen Armstrong discuss the cultural importance of myths.
Survival Stories
Thursday, November 10, 2005
On today's Underreported feature, we'll find out how fair trade coffee impacts Ethiopia's economy. Plus, previews of the new film version of Pride & Prejudice, and the 3rd annual Arab-American Comedy Festival. And we'll take a look at what life is like for the 2.4 million American children with parents in jail.
Riot
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
Many of the rioters in France are the children of North African immigrants. On today's Leonard Lopate Show, the roots of the rioting, and how European immigration policy may be partly to blame. Also: how has Europe changed since World War II? Plus, the Ubells take your calls on home repair.
The Changing World
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
Regular guest Ruth Reichl looks at the age-old practice of sitting down to a family meal. Then, we'll find out how black market trading is changing the global economy. Plus, independent film legend Gena Rowlands joins us for a look back at her most important roles.
Foreign Relations
Monday, November 07, 2005
Lynne Truss bemoans what she describes as the “utter bloody rudeness of the world today” in Talk to the Hand, her follow up to Eats, Shoots and Leaves. Then, we’ll hear about a new joint biography of Simone de Beauvoir and Jean-Paul Sartre, and an unconventional new memoir: I, Wabenzi. And A.N. Wilson looks at what led to the decline of the British Empire.
Energetic Discussions
Friday, November 04, 2005
On today’s show, two top athletes explain how they get the energy and stamina to run the New York City Marathon. And on our regular Please Explain feature, we’ll take a look at how the rest of us get our energy: coffee! Plus, a new collection of hundreds of letters written by American women, and an off-Broadway musical that depicts the horrors of Cambodia’s killing fields.
By the People, For the People?
Thursday, November 03, 2005
On today’s edition of our regular Underreported feature, we’ll examine the actions of anti-immigration vigilantes on the US-Mexican border. Then, we'll discuss progressive WPA murals, and the attempts to preserve and restore these often underappreciated works. Next, we’ll get a tutorial on how to cheat your friends at poker from Penn Jillette. And historian Sean Wilentz looks at how American democracy was forged in the days between the Revolution and the Civil War.
Tangled Tales
Wednesday, November 02, 2005
New Yorker staff writer Nicholas Lemann looks at the role that New York Times reporter Judith Miller played in the CIA leak scandal that led to the resignation of Lewis "Scooter" Libby, the Vice-President's Chief of Staff. Then, Phillip Lopate looks at the work of the Japanese filmmaker Mikio Naruse. Jonathan Harr tells the story of how a lost Caravaggio painting was tracked down, and Kent Nerburn joins us with his new history of Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce people.
Troubled Histories
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
The North’s dependency on slavery is often overlooked in standard accounts of US history. On today’s show, two journalists look at how the North promoted and profited from slave labor. Then, we’ll hear about a new production of Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale by an all-male acting troupe. Comic actor Chris Elliot tells us about his new novel, and we’ll discuss the legacy of Sam Cooke with his biographer Peter Guralnick.
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