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August 2005

Personal Histories

Wednesday, August 31, 2005

Terry McDermott profiles the 9/11 hijackers in Perfect Soldiers. Then, Jeannette Walls shares her memories of growing up in a very unconventional family. And Andrew Sean Tivoli shares his new novel, The Confessions of Max Tivoli. Finally, drummer Nick Mason gives us his personal history of Pink Floyd.


Positioning Systems

Tuesday, August 30, 2005

Joseph Lelyveld looks at how his father, a Reform rabbi and prominent Civil Rights activist, helped forge his political views. Then, urbanist Joel Kotkin examines how ancient and modern cities reflect and anchor the beliefs of the civilizations that created them. And Meg Wolitzer explores the impact that sex can have on family life in her latest novel, The Position. Finally, gossip columnist Liz Smith dishes up some savory stories on the food habits of celebrities.


Behind the Spectacle

Monday, August 29, 2005

Are the media turning our elections into freak shows? Alexandra Pelosi and Matt Taibbi offer some insight on the real story behind the red state-blue state drama. Then, Johnette Howard considers the unique rivalry and friendship between Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova. Frank Deford revisits baseball in the 1900s with The Old Ball Game. And Steven Levitt uses economics to answer unconventional questions about everyday life in Freakonomics.


Disturbing Leads

Friday, August 26, 2005

David Kirby explores whether the use of vaccines containing mercury can be connected to a surge in the reported cases of autism in America in the 1990s. Next, Michael Showalter tells us about his new romantic comedy “The Baxter.” Then, Joel Lobenthal looks at the raucous life of leading lady Tallulah Bankhead. And finally, Anne Marie Oliver and Paul Steinberg use years of research to reveal the inner world of suicide bombers in The Road to Martyrs' Square.


Dealing with the Aftermath

Thursday, August 25, 2005

Guest host Sarah Crichton fills in today for Leonard. In this week’s Underreported feature, we’ll get an update on Guatemala’s post-civil war peace process. Then, Bret Easton Ellis, author of American Psycho, describes his latest novel, Lunar Park. Next, filmmaker Leslie Woodhead tells us about his documentary about last year’s terrorist attack on a school in Beslan, Russia. Finally, Wall Street Journal reporter Greg Jaffe and Major Peter Kilner, who teaches at West Point, discuss a new move to have the military develop ways to help soldiers deal with guilt and killing.


Care Packages

Wednesday, August 24, 2005

New Yorker staff writer Malcolm Gladwell examines the consequences of what he describes as “America’s health-care mess” with guest host Kenji Jasper. Then, musician Adrienne Young shares her latest recording, The Art of Virtue. Next, Charles Ross tells us about his one-man stage reenactment of the “Star Wars Trilogy.” And on our weekly Please Explain feature, we go behind the scenes at the post office to try to find out how mail gets sorted and delivered.


On the Offensive

Tuesday, August 23, 2005

Guest host Kenji Jasper gets some tips on how to combat rude behavior, without creating a scene, from Harvard attorney Laurie Puhn. Then, singer-songwriter Tracy Bonham tells us about her new album, Blink the Brightest. We’ll talk to the very young, bestselling author Christopher Paolini about the second novel of his fantasy Inheritance trilogy. And Alain Silver tells us about Film Forum’s two-week “Summer Samurai” festival.


Private Concerns

Monday, August 22, 2005

Daniel Bergner explains how the government is using private security companies, and not the US military, to protect Coalition Provisional Authority sites throughout Iraq. Next, Hazel Rowley discusses the life and work of writer Christina Stead as part of our special Summer Reading series. Then, Rosie Perez tells us about being the subject of a two-day tribute at BAM. Finally, we open up the phones to find out what makes a book a bestseller, and how you choose which books to read.


Fear and Happiness

Friday, August 19, 2005

Corey Robin looks at the long relationship between fear and politics in Fear: The History of a Political Idea. Then, journalist Xinran recounts the moving struggles of one Chinese woman’s 30-year journey through Tibet. Next, author Sam Lipsyte discusses the premise of Home Land, a new novel written as an abjectly honest update to a high school alumni newsletter. Finally, economist Richard Layard investigates the root causes of happiness.


Global Impact

Thursday, August 18, 2005

In this week’s Underreported feature, African MCs TY and Oke, and Ben Herson of Nomadic Wax, tell us about a new movement of underground African hip-hop gaining ground in the US. Next, John Irving describes his new novel, the largely autobiographical Until I Find You. Then, John and Janet Pierson tell us about the year they spent screening free movies for the locals of a remote island in Fiji. And geneticist Sean Carroll explains some of the principles and findings of the new science of evolutionary developmental biology, or Evo Devo for short.


Looking Forward

Wednesday, August 17, 2005

Word maven Patricia T. O’Conner helps us make sense of some of the convoluted aspects of the English language. Then, funkmaster Bootsy Collins tells us about working with James Brown and George Clinton. Next, documentary filmmaker Keith Beauchamp investigates the life and death of Emmett Till. And we finish the show with a discussion about what a lack of cheap and abundant oil means for the world with James Howard Kunstler.


Level Questions

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

Peter Waldman of the Wall Street Journal tells us about a new study by the CDC that found surprising levels of trace industrial chemicals in Americans’ bloodstreams. Then, we’ll hear about the revival of the Tony Award-winning musical Two Gentleman of Verona. Johnny Temple of Akashic Books describes the upcoming Fort Greene Park Summer Literary Festival. And in our regular Please Explain feature, we’ll get answers to some of the questions you're too embarrassed to ask your doctor.


Phone Home

Monday, August 15, 2005

Airs weekdays at noon
AT&T was a fixture in American business landscape for over a hundred years, and was consistently at the forefront of communication technology. It seemed infallible - so why has it gone bust? Plus, we continue our summer reading series with Margaret Atwood. Then a look into the new Jewish diaspora. And find out why experts are say that China is home to the world's worst environmental disasters.


Dangerous Subjects

Friday, August 12, 2005

Journalist Sean Naylor shares his eyewitness account of military failures in Afghanistan during Operation Anaconda. Then, filmmaker Werner Herzog discusses his new documentary, “Grizzly Man.” Finally, Philip Short unravels the disturbing events in the life of one of the century's bloodiest dictators--Pol Pot.


Darwin's Nightmare

Thursday, August 11, 2005

Guest host Philip Gourevitch looks into the prospects for peace in Sri Lanka after the Tsunami on our weekly feature Underreported. He is joined by Dayan Jayatilleka, Sinhalese political scientist and newspaper columnist in Sri Lanka. Then: director Hubert Sauper exposes the dark side of globalization and discusses his new documentary Darwin’s Nightmare. It focuses on the lakeside town of Mwanza, Tanzania and why its booming fishing industry is sending the population into a downward social and economic spiral.


!&#@%#!!!

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

Lopate Show regulars Alvin and Larry Ubell, the gurus of “how-to,” take your calls on home repair. Plus, find out why some NYPD officers are studying Vermeer to help their crime solving skills. Then, the science behind shark attacks and why sharks should fear man more than man should fear sharks. And comedian Gilbert Gottfried talks about his role in The Aristocrats, the new film about one very dirty joke. Jeffrey Toobin of the New Yorker guest hosts for Leonard today.


Disturbing Evidence

Tuesday, August 09, 2005

Guest host Kenji Jasper is in today for Leonard. We'll outline evidence of misconduct and illegal actions in Ohio during the 2004 presidential election, as published in Harper’s. And in our weekly Please Explain feature, we’ll take an in-depth look at the the drug crystal methamphetamine.


Investigative Reviews

Monday, August 08, 2005

Guest host Kenji Jasper fills in for Leonard today. He'll talk to David A. Harris, who argues that racial profiling does not prevent crime or help catch criminals. Then, as part of our special Summer Reading Series on underappreciated literature, James Wood looks at the work of Italo Svevo, a man hailed as “the Italian Proust” when his novel Confessions of Zeno was published in 1923. Belgrade native Natasha Radojcic tells us about her new novel, You Don’t Have to Live Here. And Tsuyoshi Hasegawa revisits Japan’s surrender at the end of WWII with a critical look at the roles played by the United States, the Soviet Union, and Japan.


Independent Visions

Friday, August 05, 2005

Former Secretary of the Treasury Robert Rubin looks back at his three decades in Washington and on Wall Street. Next, Tony Leung starred in Wong Kar-Wai’s haunting film, “In the Mood for Love.” He’ll fill us in on new role in the director's latest film: “2046.” Then, Jim Jarmusch joins us for a discussion of his new film, “Broken Flowers,” starring Bill Murray. Finally, professors Peter Taubman and Stanley Fish debate the issues surrounding what some see as a trend of decreasing academic freedom.


Strategies for the Future

Thursday, August 04, 2005

Today on our Underreported feature, we’ll look at the latest news from Colombia. It's been torn by civil war for decades, but there may be new prospects for peace. Then, Gretchen Wayne describes the process of restoring two of her father-in-law’s lost films to DVD: "The High and the Mighty" and "Island in the Sky." David Schwartz, chief film curator of the Museum of the Moving Image, and director Peter Bogdanovich pay tribute to the films of Raoul Walsh. And we’ll take a look into how the U.S. military is reorganizing its foreign bases in the post-Cold War world.


Dread Pirates

Wednesday, August 03, 2005

Journalist Douglas Burgess, Jr. argues that there may be a strong legal connection between pirates and modern-day terrorists. Then, we’ll talk to saxophonist and composer Joe Lovano. Pop vocalist Lesley Gore tells us about her latest album. And Charles Kernaghan, director of the National Labor Committee, describes what his undercover research in Bangladesh reveals about conditions in factories producing for Wal-Mart.


Fresh Ideas

Tuesday, August 02, 2005

Ruth Reichl, editor-in-chief of Gourmet magazine, joins chefs Bill Telepan and Tom Colicchio for a look at the unique offerings of the Union Square Greenmarket. Stephen Walker re-examines the weeks leading up to the bombing of Hiroshima in Shockwave. And in our regular Please Explain feature, we’ll find out how podcasting works.


A Charge to Keep I Have

Monday, August 01, 2005

Gerard Lordahl, the director of the Open Space Greening Program, offers some advice on keeping plants healthy throughout the summer heat. Next, Anthony Heilbut tells us about a new collection he’s put together to highlight the works of gospel legend Marion Williams. Director Phil Morrison describes his new movie, “Junebug.” And Pamela Miller-Macias, deputy editor at In Touch Weekly magazine, and Peter Howe, author of Paparazzi, discuss the huge public demand for celebrity photos.