Terry Gross

His biography of blues legend Muddy Waters, Can't Be Statisfied: The Life and Times of Muddy Waters, is now out in paperback. Waters is credited with inventing electric blues and creating the template for the rock 'n' roll band. Gordon also produced and directed an accompanying documentary of the same name which was broadcast on PBS in April as part of the American Masters series. Gordon's other books are It Came From Memphis, and The King on the Road. He also produced the Al Green box set, Anthology. This interview first aired October 3, 2002.

His recent film Storytelling, inflamed some critics more than his previous two features, Welcome to the Dollhouse and Happiness. Those films won prizes at Sundance and Cannes. Storytelling is two separate stories set in high school and college. In one, we meet three college students and their writing professor. The other is about a filmmaker who wants to make a documentary about a high school senior and his family. This interview first aired February 5, 2002.

He covers the economy for The New York Times. He recently returned from Iraq, where he wrote about a number of things, including the country's economy.

Lead singer for the band the Jayhawks, Gary Louris. The Minneapolis band has seven albums to its credit — the latest is Rainy Day Music. The band is considered pioneers of the alternative-country movement, but have incorporated everything from pop to folk to rock and country.

Singer wrote the new book, Corporate Warriors: The Rise of the Privatized Military Industry. Over the last decade, private companies have provided tactical support, advice, training, security and even intelligence to the military. In the recent war against Iraq, private military employees handled everything from feeding and housing U.S. troops to maintaining sophisticated weapons like the B-2 stealth bomber. The practice raises troubling ethical questions.

Murray has written a new collection of short stories, A Few Short Notes on Tropical Butterflies. Many of his stories are informed by his experiences as a doctor with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's Epidemic Intelligence Service when he traveled to developing countries like Burundi, Ethiopia and Eritrea. Murray is also a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop.

Journalist James Bennet of The New York Times. He's been in the Middle East covering how the crisis there is affecting both Israelis and Palestinians.

He was NASA's first flight director, from the first forays into space in the 1960s to after Neil Armstrong landed on the moon in 1969. Kraft also created Mission Control. He's the author of, Flight: My Life In Mission Control.

General Chuck Yeager, test pilot, war hero and the first man to break the sound barrier. Tom Wolfe called Yeager the "the most righteous of all the possessors of the right stuff." Yeager's autobiography is Yeager. This interview first aired September 13, 1988.

Alan Shepard was America's first man in space in 1961; the voyage covered 302 miles and lasted 15 minutes. Ten years later with Apollo 14, he made it to the moon, playing golf on the moon's surface. Early in his space career, Shepard was diagnosed with an inner ear syndrome which could have ended his career. Shepard grounded himself in 1963 and became Chief of the Astronaut Office. Later, after a risky operation took care of his ear problem, Shepard returned to flight status, becoming commader of the Apollo 14.