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On Demand

The Leonard Lopate Show

Friday, May 11, 2007
  • Joni Mitchell
    Joni Mitchell

    Engaging and Experimental

    Bob Hurwitz, president of Nonesuch Records, talks about putting together A Tribute to Joni Mitchell--an eclectic collection featuring artists ranging from Prince to Emmylou Harris. An on today's Please Explain, we’ll examine the history of playgrounds, and ask what role they play in child and community development.

A Tribute to Joni Mitchell

Bob Hurwitz, president of Nonesuch Records, talks about the wide-ranging musical influence of Joni Mitchell. And he tells us about a new tribute album, featuring recordings from an eclectic group of artists ranging from Prince to Emmylou Harris, and Bjork to James Taylor.

View track list for A Tribute to Joni Mitchell CD

Playground

Please Explain: Playgrounds

Are contemporary playgrounds too safe? Are innovative new play spaces needed to help engage children, and challenge them to grow and explore? On today’s Please Explain, we examine the history of playgrounds, and the current issues facing their planning and construction. Susan G. Solomon, the author of American Playgrounds: Revitalizing Community Space, and Roger A. Hart, a psychologist from the Children's Environments Research Group at the Graduate Center of CUNY, discuss how playgrounds affect community and child development. And they tell us about their work on the Imagination Playground, planned for the South Street Seaport. Call 212-433-9692 with your questions.

American Playgrounds is available for purchase at amazon.com

National Book Award Winners

The Leonard Lopate Show

A number of this year’s National Book Award winners have appeared on The Leonard Lopate Show. Click here to see the list!

Tributes: Jeanne-Claude

The Leonard Lopate Show

Jeanne-Claude created environmental works of art with her husband and fellow-conspirator/collaborator Christo. Together, they wrapped the Reichstag in Berlin, the Pont-Neuf in Paris, and created The Gates, with billowy orange drapes, in Central Park. Jeanne-Claude just died at the age of 74. You can hear Leonard Lopate’s last interview with them both, from July 19, 1999.

Please Explain: Eco-Labels

The Leonard Lopate Show

Your broccoli, shampoo, and air conditioner might bear labels declaring them to be organic, cruelty-free, or energy efficient, but what do those labels mean and are they true? Dr. Urvashi Rangan, Project Director for Consumer Reports' GreenerChoices.org and Consumers Union’s Senior Scientist for Policy Initiatives, and Dara O'Rourke, founder and CEO of GoodGuide.com, took a look at what eco-labels indicate, how standards are set, and what they mean for consumers and manufacturers around the world.

Our 3-ingredient Challenge wins a James Beard Award

The Leonard Lopate Show

On May 3, the Lopate Show won its third James Beard Award for our 3-ingredient challenge. In August, we asked our listeners to call in and name 3 ingredients and then challenged New York chef and 3-ingredient expert Rozanne Gold to whip up a recipe! You can listen to the 3-ingredient challenge and get some inspiration for simple, delicious, and unexpected dishes.