Marriage

TV critic David Bianculli says that the new CBS drama, about a couple's marriage and divorce, reminds him of the Wonder Years, Moonlighting, and Thirtysomething. The flashbacks to past decades are novel, but replete with unrealistic dialogue and stilted references to pop culture of the time.

Roseanne was created by the same producers who pitched The Cosby Show to networks. The new sitcom is also helmed by a standup comedian. But instead of an upper class black family, Roseanne Barr's show features a working class white family. TV critic David Bianculli says Barr's jokes hit home, bolstered by costar John Goodman, who plays Roseanne's husband.

Anna Quindlen writes the syndicated column "Life in the 30's," which originates in The New York Times. Her work focuses on the ordinary, everyday aspects of day-to-day life. Her columns are collected in a new book called Living Out Loud. She joins Fresh Air to talk about her career, motherhood, and her controversial column about amniocentesis.

Director Jonathan Demme's newest movie is called Married to the Mob. Film critic Stephen Schiff says the characters become more likable as the film goes on; the slapstick elements not withstanding, the movie is jumpy, romantic, and very funny.

Bobbie Ann Mason's new, Spence and Lila, is about a couple who copes with the wife's breast cancer. Her previous novel, In Country, is being made into a film. She joins Fresh Air to talk about her approach to writing and the clowder of farm cats she raised.

The writer published her first story she was 35; her first novel came out nine years later. Her latest book, Silver, is about marriage, domesticity and suburban life.

Actress Patricia Neal. A star of stage and film, Neal is almost as well known for her private life - her love affair with the married Gary Cooper, the tragedies that befell several of her children, the breakup of her 30-year marriage to the British writer Roald Dahl, and the stroke that almost took away her speech. Her films include "The Breaking Point," "The Fountainhead," "A Face in the Crowd," and "Hud," for which she won the Oscar.

Television critic David Bianculli reviews the new A&E miniseries The Life and Loves of a She-Devil, which he says surprises at every turn with its tales of sex and betrayal.

Writers Michael Dorris and Louise Erdrich work together to complete their acclaimed books; however, whoever writes the first draft gets their name on the cover. The couple joins Fresh Air to discuss their marriage and upbringing in Native American communities.

John Phillips, who led The Mamas and the Papas, has a new autobiography, which details the tensions, drug use, and affairs that ultimately led to the band's demise.

The married couple joins Fresh Air's Terry Gross to discuss their experiences a black actors, the need for strong African American writers for theater and television, and their work to promote new works by and about marginalized groups.

Part one of Terry Gross's interview with Linda and Conrad Bishop, a married couple who write and perform theater pieces for a variety of different settings and audiences.