Terry Gross

Historian Edward Larson has written extensively on the intersection of science, politics and religion. In 2004, Larson's Evolution: The Remarkable History of A Scientific Theory traced the contentious path the theory of evolution has followed.

He's been called the King of Venereal Horror. He directed the films M. Butterfly, The Fly, Dead Ringers and Naked Lunch, all of which tell a story of sexually deviant behavior. In the film Crash he continued the theme, combining sex and car wrecks. His new film A History of Violence is a psychological thriller about one man's potential for violence.

Law Professor CASS SUNSTEIN on the nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court. President Bush has nominated Miers, White House Counsel, to replace Sandra Day O’Connor. Sunstein is the Karl N. Llewellyn Distinguished Service Professor of Jurisprudence in the Law School at the University of Chicago. Early in his career, Sunstein clerked for Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. He has also been a visiting professor of law at Columbia and Harvard universities.

In 1966, Neil Young joined L.A. rock band Buffalo Springfield; they split up three albums later due to inter-band fighting and their lack of commercial success. Young's new album is Praire Wind, considered a follow-up to his Harvest records.

New York Times reporter Dexter Filkins has been covering Iraq... thoroughly. In April he received the George Polk Award for War Reporting for his riveting, first-hand account of an eight-day attack on Iraqi insurgents in Fallujah.

Time magazine's Mike Allen has co-authored a new investigative article on how the Bush administration appoints the officials who run vital government agencies. The article, spurred by complaints about ousted FEMA head Mike Brown, is "How Many More Mike Browns Are Out There?"

Writer David Rakoff has a new collection of essays, Now, Don't Get Too Comfortable: The Indignities of Coach Class, the Torments of Low Thread Count, the Never-ending Quest for Artisanal Olive Oil, and Other First World Problems. Rakoff is a regular contributor to public radio's This American Life.

Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Philip Roth has been a favorite of readers since his memoir Goodbye, Columbus emerged to help define the culture of postwar America. Now the Library of America is releasing Roth's books — a rare step for a living author.

Blues singer and guitarist B.B. King celebrated his 80th birthday on Sept. 16, 2005, and also released the new album 80, featuring blues duets with musicians including Elton John and Eric Clapton. This interview originally aired on Oct. 22, 1996.

British actor Tom Wilkinson is starring in two new films: Separate Lies, opposite Emily Watson, and The Exorcism of Emily Rose.