Fresh Air from WHYY

Schedule

88.5-1

Monday - Thursday

3:00 pm

88.3

Monday - Thursday

3:00 pm

88.5-3

Friday

3:00 pm

Fresh Air opens the window on contemporary arts and issues with guests from worlds as diverse as literature and economics.

Terry Gross hosts this multi-award-winning daily interview and features program. The veteran public radio interviewer is known for her extraordinary ability to engage guests of all dispositions. Every weekday she delights intelligent and curious listeners with revelations on contemporary societal concerns.

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Friday, October 26, 2012

George Cables: A Heartfelt Tribute To His 'Muse'

In the 1970s and '80s, Cables was the pianist of choice for saxophonists Dexter Gordon and Art Pepper; Pepper called him his favorite pianist. Critic Kevin Whitehead says Cables' new trio album, My Muse, is so unassumingly good, you could miss just how good it is.

'Cloud Atlas': You're Better Off Reading The Book

David Mitchell's exquisite novel Cloud Atlas has been adapted for the screen by the Wachowskis and Tom Tykwer. The film is never dull, but critic David Edelstein found that unlike the book, the film fails in its attempt to tie six distinct stories together.

John Cage At 100: Remembering A Revolutionary Composer

September marked the centennial of the birth of composer John Cage and celebrations are being held around the world in his honor. His compositions include spoken texts, radios, toys and the sounds of vegetables being chopped. Cage died in 1992. Fresh Air listens back to an interview with Cage from 1982.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Portis 'Miscellany' Makes A High-'Velocity' Collection

True Grit author Charles Portis is the cult writer for people who hate cult writers. He hasn't published a book since 1991, and reviewer John Powers says the short pieces collected in Escape Velocity have been treasured for decades, passed around like samizdat by Portis fans.

A Journalist Chronicles Lives After Guantanamo Bay

Michelle Shepard has traveled to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba more than two dozen times and has been following the stories of men who've been released from the U.S. detention center. She's the author of Guantanamo's Child and Decade of Fear: Reporting from Terrorism's Grey Zone.

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Stephen Colbert's Most Meaningful Musical Moments

Colbert loves music and loves to sing, so Fresh Air's Terry Gross asked him to bring a few songs that mean a lot to him and tell her why.

Tom Wolfe Takes Miami's Pulse In 'Back To Blood'

Wolfe tells Fresh Air's Dave Davies that what makes Miami exceptional is the story of how an immigrant community rose to dominate its political landscape in just over a generation. His new novel deals with racial and ethnic conflict among the city's diverse inhabitants.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Fresh Air Weekend: Michael Feinstein, Roxy Music, Tyler Perry

Michael Feinstein chronicles his experience working as an archivist and cataloger for legendary songwriter Ira Gershwin. Critic Ed Ward reviews Roxy Music's boxed set, The Complete Studio Recordings 1972-1982. And Tyler Perry talks about his new action thriller, Alex Cross.

Friday, October 19, 2012

'The Sessions': Sex, Comedy And Something More

Writer Mark O'Brien spent most of his life in an iron lung. He was the subject of an Oscar-winning documentary, and now his story is told again in the semi-fictionalized feature The Sessions. Critic David Edelstein reviews the story of how one man lost his virginity — and found out how to love.

Baratunde Thurston Explains 'How To Be Black'

From the comedian and digital director of The Onion, a satirical self-help book for anyone who has a black friend, wants to be the next black president or speak for the black community.

Gary Clark Jr.: A Raucous Blues Shout

On Blak and Blu, you can hear the roar in Clark's blues guitar. But critic Ken Tucker says Clark remains a work in progress.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

'Gershwins And Me' Tells The Stories Behind 12 Songs

Musician Michael Feinstein chronicles his experience working as an archivist and cataloger for legendary songwriter Ira Gershwin. The book is presented through the stories of 12 of the Gershwin brothers' songs, including "Fascinating Rhythm," "The Man I Love" and "I Got Rhythm."

Thursday, October 11, 2012

In Digital War, Patents Are The Weapon Of Choice

New York Times business reporter Charles Duhigg says that consumers and innovation are the big losers in the patent wars. "Patents have become a toll gate on the road of innovation," he says.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Iris DeMent's Emotionally Complex 'Sing The Delta'

Sing the Delta is the roots-folk singer-songwriter's first album of new songs in 16 years.

'Signal' And 'Noise': Prediction As Art And Science

Statistical analyst Nate Silver says humility is key to making accurate predictions. Silver, who writes the New York Times' FiveThirtyEight blog, has just written a new book called The Signal and the Noise.

Pages

Arts & Culture

NPR

Book News: Kim Jong Un Reportedly Gave 'Mein Kampf' As Gifts

Also: The folly of marathon readings; Tom Wolfe has a new book; VICE apologizes for tasteless photo spread.

Food

WAMU 88.5

After Four Years Of Fighting, D.C. Council Approves New Rules For Food Trucks

The new rules create a long-awaited regulatory framework for what has become a popular and industry made up of over 150 food trucks.

Politics

NPR

IRS Staffer: "What I Did Was Not Targeting"

More interview transcripts from the IRS investigation are released but there's still no evidence of a direct connection to the White House.

Technology

NPR

U.S. Automakers Are On A Roll, But Hiring Is Slow And Steady

Profits for the nation's carmakers are on the rise, but after years of doing more with less, higher profits are unlikely to translate into significant numbers of new jobs. There are eight fewer plants and hundreds of thousands fewer workers in the industry than before the Great Recession.

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Fresh Air from WHYY

Arts & Culture

Book News: Kim Jong Un Reportedly Gave 'Mein Kampf' As Gifts

Food

After Four Years Of Fighting, D.C. Council Approves New Rules For Food Trucks

Politics

IRS Staffer: "What I Did Was Not Targeting"

Technology

U.S. Automakers Are On A Roll, But Hiring Is Slow And Steady

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