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Fresh Air features daily reports and reviews from critics and commentators on music, books, movies, and other cultural phenomena that invade the national psyche.
Last Updated: January 16, 2009 05:43 pm
Robert Schimmel, Laughing Through A Cancer Fight
January 16, 2009 04:36 pm
Comedy Central named him one of its 100 best comics, but life hasn't been all laughs for Robert Schimmel. Still, it was his sense of humor that kept him sane when cancer killed his sitcom deal — and threatened to kill him.
'Notorious': Hip-Hop History, Sweetened A Bit
January 16, 2009 11:07 am
Director George Tillman Jr.'s Notorious, which follows the life and death of the rapper Biggie Smalls, opens in theaters this weekend. David Edelstein has a review.
Fresh Episodes, New Series: A Weekend-TV Sampler
January 16, 2009 11:02 am
What's new on TV? A slew of new television episodes and series are premiering this weekend. David Bianculli reviews a sampling, including Friday Night Lights, The L Word, Big Love, Flight of the Conchords and the premiere of The United States of Tara.
Daniel Sperling: A Billion Cars And Counting
January 15, 2009 06:00 pm
Transportation expert Daniel Sperling estimates that the world's car population — which currently stands at 1 billion vehicles — is likely to double in the next 20 years. Sperling is the co-author (with Deborah Gordon) of Two Billion Cars: Driving Toward Sustainability.
Cars In Crisis? A View From The Detroit Auto Show
January 15, 2009 03:54 pm
Paul Eisenstein reports from the Detroit Auto Show on the state of the auto industry. Eisenstein has covered cars for over 30 years; he currently reports for the independent news service The Detroit Bureau.
The Sounds Of Memphis: Ardent Pop
January 15, 2009 11:37 am
Rock historian Ed Ward considers pop music produced at Ardent Studios in Memphis in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Much of the music wasn't heard any farther than the city limits.
The Rise And Fall Of The Music Industry
January 14, 2009 04:03 pm
Rolling Stone contributing editor Steve Knopper chronicles the rise of the record industry — and its subsequent digital-age collapse — in his new book, Appetite For Self-Destruction.
Jeb Loy Nichols Mixes It Up In 'Parish Bar'
January 14, 2009 11:18 am
Jeb Loy Nichols has recorded a half-dozen albums since the late 1990s and before that, fronted the band The Fellow Travelers. Rock critic Ken Tucker says Nichols' new album, called Parish Bar, coheres as one of his more adventurous musical experiments.
A Critical View Of Increased Government Spending
January 13, 2009 04:25 pm
N. Gregory Mankiw is skeptical that a stimulus plan centered around a large up-tick in government spending will effectively bolster the economy.
Healthcare: The Key To Economic Stimulus?
January 13, 2009 03:40 pm
Macroeconomist Dean Baker sees opportunity in the current economic crisis. In a recent editorial for The Guardian, Baker recommended that President-elect Barack Obama boost the economy by spending on national health insurance.
Former 'Post' Editor Details The 'Rules Of The Game'
January 12, 2009 03:29 pm
After 44 years as a newspaper man, former Washington Post executive editor Leonard Downie Jr. makes his debut as a fiction writer. His new novel, Rules Of The Game, features an investigative reporter on the beat of a hotly contested presidential election.
'Christian Science Monitor' Shifts Focus To Web
January 12, 2009 10:18 am
John Yemma, editor of The Christian Science Monitor, discusses the paper's new publication model: It's moving the daily operation to the Web and converting its print paper to a weekly.
The Polygamous Stylings Of 'Big Love'
January 09, 2009 04:52 pm
Mark Olsen and Will Scheffer are writers and producers for Big Love, the HBO series that follows the complicated family dynamics of a man and his three wives.
New Clocks, New Challenges As '24' Returns
January 09, 2009 11:26 am
The seventh season of 24 premieres this Sunday. Critic David Bianculli assesses the four-hour, two-night return of counterterrorist Jack Bauer — who's got some new allies, and some new enemies.
Erin McCarley And The New Economy Of Pop
January 09, 2009 10:48 am
Ken Tucker reviews Erin McCarley's new album, Love, Save The Empty, and considers the changing economics of pop music.