Al Franken is a writer and actor on "Saturday Night Live." His characters have included the one-man mobile uplink unit, Pat Robertson, Paul Tsongas, and Stuart Smalley, host of "Daily Affirmations with Stuart Smalley." In 1992, Franken published a book under Stuart's name; Stuart's new project is an upcoming movie called "Stuart Saves His Family."
Thupten Jinpa was a refugee in India as a child, became a monk at a Tibetan monastery, and is the translator, editor and annotator of "The World of Tibetan Buddhism," written by the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama is the spiritual and political leader of the Tibetan people, and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.
Professor John Dominic Crossan is a native of Ireland, ordained as a priest in the U.S. (he left the priesthood in 1969), and now teaches biblical studies at DePaul University. He is a founding member of the Jesus Seminar, a group of scholars who meet to determine the authenticity of Jesus' sayings in the Gospels. Crossan's latest book is Who Killed Jesus: Exposing the Roots of Anti-Semitism in the Gospel Story of The Death of Jesus.
Rock historian Ed Ward looks at Specialty Records, a label in the 1950s that promoted the music of African American musicians who laid the groundwork for rock and roll.
We continue our conversation with Professor John Dominic Crossan, whose new book "Who Killed Jesus" has just been released. In this half, he talks about the historical significance of crucifixion, as well as how Crossan has practiced his faith since leaving the priesthood.
Commentator Gerald Early reflects on saxophonist Charlie Parker and the nature of African American genius on the occasion of the release of "Charlie Parker with Strings: The Master Takes."
Dr. Thomas J. Moore is Senior Fellow at George Washington's Center for Health Policy Research and author of the new book, Deadly Medicine: Why Tens of Thousands of Heart Patients died in America's Worst Drug Disaster. He tells the story of a certain line of drugs that prevented irregular heartbeats but were consequently shown to be dangerous and even fatal. Yet the drug remained on the market due in large part to the giant pharmaceuticals power over the FDA.
Dr. Robert Temple, Director of the FDA's Office of Drug Evaluation. He's a large figure in Thomas Moore's new book, Dangerous Medicine. Moore says Temple let harmful drugs remain on the market virtually unrestricted, even though the risks were known. Temple gives the reason why the FDA let the drugs remain on the market.
Maxwell has a new collection of short stories All the Days and Nights. He was fiction editor of the New Yorker from 1936-1976. He worked with such authors as J.D. Salinger, Jon Cheever, Jon Updike, Eudora Welty and scores of others. Jon Updike has said Maxwell's voice is "one of the wisest in American fiction. It is, as well, one of the kindest.
Defense analyst and professor Michael Klare, author of Rogue States and Nuclear Outlaws: America's Search for a New Foreign Policy. The book explores the current tendency of the Pentagon to focus on Third World countries as the new threat to U.S. national security. Klare is defense correspondent for The Nation, a frequent commentator on National Public Radio, and Professor of Peace and World Security Studies at Hampshire College.
Writer Jan L. Waldron was 17 when she gave her baby daughter, Simone, up for adoption. Waldron's own mother was adopted, and in turn left her children when Waldron was eleven. In Giving Away Simone: A Memoir, Waldron tells of the parting and then meeting again with her eleven-year-old daughter, now renamed Rebecca. Rebecca is the fifth generation of women in the family to be abandoned by their mothers; in reuniting with her, Waldron is determined to break that cycle of leaving.
Book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews "Wonder Boys," by Michael Chabon. His first novel, a best seller, "The Mysteries of Pittsburgh" was originally written as his Master's Thesis in college.
In 1989, Lau became a best-selling author with her first book: Runaway: Diary of a Street Kid, a memoir of her years on the streets as a suicidal drug addicted teenage prostitute. She also wrote two books of her poetry: You Are Not Who You Claim and Oedipal Dreams. Her latest is a collection of short stories titled Fresh Girls and Other Stories. The 23 year old writer lives in Vancouver, Canada.
South African journalist Allister Sparks has written about secret negotiations that started in 1986 between South African leaders and then-jailed political prisoner Nelson Mandela. The meetings ultimately led to the dismantling of Apartheid. Sparks' new book is Tomorrow is Another Country. He served as South African Correspondent for The Observer and for The Washington Post from 1981-1992. He lives in Johannesburg, South Africa.
