Terry Gross appears in the following:
Pamela Adlon says 'Better Things' has been an exaggerated version of her life
Friday, May 06, 2022
Adlon's FX series, which just wrapped up its final season, centers on a single mom of three who's also trying to help her elderly mother and keep her acting career alive. Originally broadcast in 2019.
Journalist says Britain has become a safe deposit box for oligarchs' ill-gotten gains
Thursday, May 05, 2022
Butler to the Word author Oliver Bullough says the UK has developed a system of bankers, lawyers, accountants and PR managers who work to help Russian kleptocrats hide their wealth.
Alexander Skarsgård lost his voice — and found catharsis — as a Viking berserker
Wednesday, May 04, 2022
The Swedish actor describes himself as "quite a mellow guy." Playing a Viking warrior in the film The Northman gave Skarsgård a chance to tap into his animalistic nature.
Republicans suggested invoking the 25th Amendment after Jan. 6 — but failed to act
Tuesday, May 03, 2022
In their book, This Will Not Pass, NYT journalists Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns reveal that GOP leaders, including Rep. Kevin McCarthy, privately discussed removing Trump from office.
How social-emotional learning became a target for Ron DeSantis and conservatives
Thursday, April 28, 2022
Florida officials recently rejected a slew of math textbooks, claiming they included "prohibited topics." Journalist Dana Goldstein theorizes the objections related to social-emotional learning.
Comedy writer Jessi Klein reflects on the disorienting experience of new motherhood
Wednesday, April 27, 2022
Having a baby changes everything: "There's just no way to comprehend how completely your old identity vanishes," Klein says. Her new book is I'll Show Myself Out: Essays on Midlife & Motherhood.
For classical pianist Jeremy Denk, life is like a series of music lessons
Friday, April 22, 2022
Denk talks about what he learned from his teachers, and his failures, frustrations and pivotal moments as an artist. His new memoir is Every Good Boy Does Fine. Originally broadcast March 21, 2022.
In the Murdoch family succession battle, Fox News and democracy hang in the balance
Thursday, April 21, 2022
The new CNN+ docuseries The Murdochs looks inside the Fox media empire and the family's behind-the-scenes in-fighting. Journalist Jim Rutenberg says the real-life drama rivals HBO's Succession.
Fairport Convention band cofounder Richard Thompson looks back on his life in music
Wednesday, April 20, 2022
The British singer/guitarist talks about his formative years, and about pioneering a new musical genre that blended rock with traditional music of the British isles. Thompson's new memoir is Beeswing.
Comic Jerrod Carmichael bares his secrets in 'Rothaniel'
Monday, April 18, 2022
The comic, actor and writer opens up about his name, his family tree and his sexual orientation in a new HBO special. "The more honest I am, the freer I am," Carmichael says.
Fresh Air Weekend: Molly Shannon, Wet Leg and Delia Ephron
Saturday, April 16, 2022
Molly Shannon talks about life after tragedy. Ken Tucker reviews Wet Leg. Delia Ephron remembers how she fell back in love at 72.
Remembering jazz pianist and composer Jessica Williams
Friday, April 15, 2022
Williams was a dazzling player and a favorite at Fresh Air. She died March 10 at 73. We'll listen back to her 1997 performance and interview.
The midterm elections will show if Trump is still a 'kingmaker'
Thursday, April 14, 2022
NYT's Shane Goldmacher says Trump doles out endorsements to Republican candidates to elevate allies, punish enemies and make the 'Big Lie', that the 2020 election was stolen, into a party litmus test.
Remembering comic Gilbert Gottfried
Thursday, April 14, 2022
Gottfried was known for his unusual voice and cranky stage persona — which made him a perfect fit to play the evil parrot Iago in Disney's Aladdin. He spoke with Fresh Air in 1992.
Delia Ephron on surviving cancer and the defiance of falling in love in your 70s
Wednesday, April 13, 2022
In her new memoir Left on Tenth: A Second Chance at Life, Delia Ephron writes about losing her first husband, finding new love, and how surviving cancer has changed her outlook on life.
How 'SNL' alum Molly Shannon found profound healing after childhood tragedy
Monday, April 11, 2022
Shannon's new memoir, Hello, Molly! opens with the car crash that killed her mother and sister when Shannon was 4. She says, for a long time, she was motivated by a desire to make her mom proud.
Kazuo Ishiguro draws on his songwriting past to write novels about the future
Friday, April 08, 2022
The Nobel Prize-winning novelist explains how he honed his craft earlier in his career. His book, Klara and the Sun, is set in the future and has an A.I. narrator. Originally published March 17, 2021.
How the abortion underground is prepping for a post-Roe v. Wade world
Thursday, April 07, 2022
Nomadland author and Atlantic journalist Jessica Bruder explains how health advocates and activists are preparing ways to provide abortions if Roe is either overturned or weakened by the SCOTUS.
Conductor Marin Alsop talks about the joys and challenges of leading an orchestra
Monday, April 04, 2022
Alsop talks about the rejection she faced on the way to becoming the first woman to lead a major American orchestra, the Baltimore Symphony. She's now the subject of a new documentary, The Conductor.
Remembering Madeleine Albright, the first woman to serve as secretary of state
Friday, March 25, 2022
Appointed by President Clinton in 1997, Albright advocated for the expansion of NATO into the former Soviet bloc countries of Eastern Europe. She died March 23. Originally broadcast in 2003 and 2018.