Terry Gross

Tapper's new novel, The Hellfire Club, takes place in 1954 during Sen. Joseph McCarthy's Communist "witch hunt" — a time he describes as "very resonant" with the current political climate.

Author Kathleen Belew says that as America's disparate racist groups came together in the 1970s and '80s, the movement's goal shifted from one of "vigilante activism" to something more wide-reaching.

Pius IX became head of the Catholic church in 1846 and instituted the doctrine of Papal infallibility. Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Kertzer says his exile led to the emergence of modern Italy.

Gregory Pardlo's new memoir, Air Traffic, chronicles his complicated relationship with his father, a labor organizer who lost his job following the air traffic controllers' 1981 strike.

Anderson, who died April 16, began his career as a street performer specializing in elaborate pranks. He spoke to Fresh Air in 1989 about an illusion in which he pretended to chop off his own hand.

The Academy Award-winning filmmaker, who died on April 13, spoke to Fresh Air in 1994 about growing up in the former Czechoslovakia, first under the Gestapo, then under communist rule.

Journalist Robert Draper says "no one understands Trump's base" better than White House social media director (and former caddie) Dan Scavino.

Henry plays Alfred, aka the rapper "Paper Boi'," on the FX series Atlanta. As his character becomes more successful, Henry says, he's getting "a little further away from the essence of who [he] is."

The former first lady, who died Tuesday, told Terry Gross in 1994 that she grew up thinking she'd be a nurse. "But then I met that marvelous George [H.W.] Bush and the nursing went out the window."

The former FBI director tells Terry Gross that he wants to sound the alarm about the "forest fire" of the Trump presidency — and also to defend the FBI against charges of partisanship.

Former FBI Director James Comey's book, A Higher Loyalty, comes out Tuesday. Terry Gross of WHYY's Fresh Air talked to Comey about his tell-all memoir a day before it published.

Bon Jovi spoke to Fresh Air in '09 about growing up, getting his first single on the radio and having group therapy with his bandmates. He'll be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on Saturday.

Matthew Desmond estimates that 2.3 million evictions were filed in the U.S. in 2016 — a rate of four every minute. "Eviction isn't just a condition of poverty; it's a cause of poverty," he says.

Author Robert Kuttner says the decline of social contracts in Western democracies has led to the rise of right-wing populism. His new book is Can Democracy Survive Global Capitalism?

A harrowing accident left Brady Jandreau with a skull and brain injury — but he refused to quit riding. He plays himself in director Chloé Zhao's slightly fictionalized retelling of his story.

Todd Purdum's new book, Something Wonderful, is about the creative partnership and strained personal relationship behind such hit shows as Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific and The Sound of Music.

During a recent hiatus from music, Eels founder Mark Oliver Everett got married, got divorced and, at the age of 54, had a son. His latest album, The Deconstruction, is a reflection of it all.

The former secretary of state describes President Trump as "the most anti-democratic leader that I have studied in American history." Albright's new book is Fascism: A Warning.

Bochco, who died Sunday, created numerous series, including Hill Street Blues and NYPD Blue. TV Critic David Bianculli looks back on Bochco's impact, then we listen to his 1989 Fresh Air interview.

Alyssa Mastromonaco worked in the West Wing for six exhilarating and exhausting years, which she describes in her memoir, Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? She spoke to Fresh Air in 2017.