Fresh Air

The 82-year-old British actor is currently playing Shakespeare's famed tragic figure on Broadway. "Doors have opened for women that were firmly locked many decades ago," she says.

The New Orleans drummer produces jazz with its own distinct character on his new album. Critic Kevin Whitehead says Perpetual Optimism is marked by Riley's upbeat nature and attention to detail.

ProPublica journalist T. Christian Miller says outdated equipment and a shortage of sailors contributed to two separate collisions involving Navy destroyers in 2017, in which 17 sailors were killed.

Caro began writing biographies in order to better understand political power. Ken Tucker reviews The Mekons' album, Deserted. After 12 seasons on Law & Order: SVU, Meloni plays a hit man on Happy!

Chinese writer-director Bi Gan's new film centers on a former casino owner haunted by the memory of a woman from his past. It features a 59-minute sequence, shot in a single take and converted to 3-D.

David Blight's Pulitzer Prize-winning biography details Douglass' passionate leadership in the abolitionist movement and his gift as a writer and orator. Originally broadcast Dec. 17 2018.

The Pulitzer Prize Board recently awarded Franklin, who died in 2018, with a special citation for her "indelible contribution" to American music and culture. Originally broadcast in 1999.

Nell Freudenberger's gorgeous new novel tells the story of a middle-aged woman who receives messages sent from her college friend's cell phone — even after her friend has died.

NY Times baseball writer Tyler Kepner spoke to 22 hall-of-fame pitchers about what they throw, and how they get a mental edge over hitters. His new book is K: A History of Baseball in Ten Pitches.

Woods' recent Masters title follows a 10-year drought of major tournament victories. Jeff Benedict, co-author of Tiger Woods, says: "What we're seeing now is someone who loves what he's doing."

After 12 seasons on Law & Order: SVU, Christopher Meloni plays a disgraced policeman-turned-hit man (who collaborates with an imaginary unicorn) in the second season of the Syfi Channel series Happy!.

Bill McKibben, who first warned of climate change 30 years ago, says its effects are now upon us: "The idea that anybody's going to be immune from this anywhere is untrue." His new book is Falter.