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The Leonard Lopate Show

Tuesday, November 13, 2007
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    On Ugliness

    If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, then ugliness is too. Umberto Eco explores human fascination and disgust towards ugliness. Also, find out how the oil industry benefited from the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1992. We hear about the drawings of French pointillist Georges Seurat. Plus: the far-reaching scandal involving former Louisiana Congressman William Jefferson.

Umberto Eco on Ugliness

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder….and ugliness may be too. Umberto Eco explores why humans are both attracted to and repelled by the monstrous in his new book On Ugliness.

Events: Umberto Eco will be speaking and signing books
Tuesday, November 13 at 7 pm
Union Square Barnes & Noble

Pierre Bayard will be in conversation with Umberto Eco and Paul Holdengraber
Saturday, November 17 at 6 pm
New York Public Library
South Court Auditorium
42nd Street (at 5th Avenue)
To purchase tickets, call SmartTix at (212) 868-4444 or go online

On Ugliness is available for purchase at amazon.com

Georges Seurat’s Drawings at MoMA

French painter Georges Seurat is famous for his pointillist paintings, but his drawings were once described as "the most beautiful painter's drawings in existence." Jodi Hauptman has curated a new exhibit at Seurat’s drawings at MoMA.

MoMA’s Seurat exhibit website

The Convict and the Congressman: A Major Scandal

When the FBI searched the home of Louisiana Congressman William Jefferson in 2005, they found tens of thousands of dollars in his freezer. We look into where the money came from, and how far the related corruption scandal spread. Andrew Rice’s article about the scandal in the November issue of Conde Nast Portfolio is called “The Convict and the Congressman.”

Read Andrew Rice’s article

How the Oil Industry Changed After the Cold War

Find out how the oil industry benefited from the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1992…and what that means for Central Asia today. Wall Street Journal correspondent Steven LeVine’s new book is The Oil and the Glory: The Pursuit of Empire and Fortune on the Caspian Sea.

The Oil and the Glory is available for purchase at amazon.com

FDA to Regulate Tobacco?

The Leonard Lopate Show

May 14, 2009
Congress is getting ready to a vote on whether to make tobacco subject to FDA regulation. You can listen to a segment we did in May about the bill and what it would mean for the cigarette companies.

Video Pick: Elizabeth Edwards

The Leonard Lopate Show

Elizabeth Edwards discusses how to best cope with lifes difficulties in her book Resilience: Reflections on the Burdens and Gifts of Facing Life's Adversities.

Recent Videos:
- Joy Behar Discusses her Favorite Things.
- Michael Pollan on Food Rules
- David Hare on Director Stephen Daldry
- Tyne Daly on the Debut of her Cabaret Act
- Actors Roger Robinson and Chad Coleman on Joe Turner's Come and Gone

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.

Leonard is on Facebook

Now Leonard is on Facebook! We’re posting photos, status updates, links to notable interviews, and lots more. Check it out.

Barack Obama, Circa 2004

The Leonard Lopate Show

Listen to President-Elect Barack Obama on the Leonard Lopate Show in November 2004. He had recently won a seat in the U.S. Senate, and only a few months before, his rousing speech during the 2004 Democratic National Convention catapulted him into the national spotlight.

Guest Picks

The Leonard Lopate Show

Find out surprising facts about some recent guests on the Leonard Lopate Show. Check out our Guest Picks section! Did you know that football star Herschel Walker loves Judge Judy, Laurie Anderson is a big fan of agility training for dogs, and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi likes Johnny Depp?