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The Leonard Lopate Show

Thursday, February 07, 2008
  • Tiger (Steve Winter/National Geographic Image Collection)
    (Steve Winter/National Geographic Image Collection)

    Thoughts Into Action

    Playwright Edward Albee and artist James Rosenquist explain how they channel their creativity into action. Also: a new novel about the great inventor Nikola Tesla. A new film set in 1970, during the military dictatorship in Brazil. And on Underreported: an important tiger conservation effort stretching from Bhutan to Malaysia.

    Write your own funny news headline - and editors from The Onion may evaluate it on The Leonard Lopate Show on Wed. Feb. 13! Submit your headline here.

Edward Albee and James Rosenquist: Turning Creativity into Action

Playwright Edward Albee and artist James Rosenquist explain how they channel their creativity into action. They’re featured in the new book, Creativity: Unconventional Wisdom from 20 Accomplished Minds, co-edited by Richard Gerstman.

Weigh in: Do you ever have a hard time turning your creativity into action? Tell us what your creative blocks are, and how you’ve overcome them.

Tesla

Imagining Nikola Tesla

Samantha Hunt spent 4 years researching Nikola Tesla, one of the greatest scientists of all time. Her novel The Invention of Everything Else imagines an unlikely friendship between Tesla and a young chambermaid in the Hotel New Yorker, where he lived out his last days.

Event: Samantha Hunt will be speaking and signing books
Thursday, February 7 at 7 pm
McNally Robinson Booksellers
52 Prince Street (between Lafayette and Mulberry Streets)

Explore Tesla through our Interactive Map

Weigh in: Tesla was known for his fantastic inventions. If you could invent an object that would do anything you wanted, what would it be?

Read an excerpt of The Invention of Everything Else
WNYC Culture Blog: Samantha Hunt guest blogs for two weeks
Tesla Interactive map

Mitt Romney Drops Out of Race

WNYC's political director Andrea Bernstein joins Leonard to discuss Mitt Romney's announcement that he's dropping out of the race for the Republican nomination.

The Year My Parents Went on Vacation

Cao Hamburger’s film, "The Year My Parents Went on Vacation," is set in a Jewish neighborhood in Brazil in 1970, a year where Brazil was caught up in a military dictatorship and winning the World Cup in soccer. The film opens Friday, February 15 at Landmark's Sunshine Cinema (143 East Houston Street).

Official website for "The Year My Parents Went on Vacation"

Underreported: Tiger Corridor from Bhutan to Malaysia

Dr. Alan Rabinowitz of the Wildlife Conservation Society is helping to create a multi-national tiger conservation effort stretching from Bhutan to Malaysia. It’s a very complex undertaking, requiring the cooperation of businesses, NGOs, and governments – including the repressive military regime of Myanmar. Dr. Rabinowitz’s recent book is Life in the Valley of Death: The Fight to Save Tigers in a Land of Guns, Gold, and Greed.

Event: Dr. Alan Rabinowitz will be in conversation with Robert Krulwich
Thursday, Feb. 7 at 8:15 pm
92nd Street Y
Lexington Avenue at 92nd Street
Tickets and info here or call (212) 415-5500

Wildlife Conservation Society website
SLIDESHOW: tigers

Patrick Swayze

The Leonard Lopate Show

Patrick Swayze mixed grace with athleticism in his movies – and rose to stardom with roles in “Dirty Dancing” and “Ghost.” He died just recently after a battle with pancreatic cancer. And you can hear his interview with Leonard Lopate from July 16, 2002, when he came by to discuss appearing in the film, “Green Dragon.”

The Silver Anniversary of the Silver Palate

The Leonard Lopate Show

Sheila Lukins was one half of a partnership that helped popularize gourmet cooking throughout America – first, through their gourmet food shop in New York City and then with the cookbook, The Silver Palate, which remains one of the top-selling cookbooks of all time. She collaborated on 2 other cookbooks that simplified gourmet cooking for the home cook. She died recently from brain cancer at the age of 66, and you can listen to her 2007 conversation with Leonard Lopate and her business partner Julee Rosso about the 25th Anniversary of the publication of The Silver Palate.

Dominick Dunne

The Leonard Lopate Show

Dominick Dunne was a famous novelist and Hollywood producer. But he may be best remembered for covering trials of the rich and famous – from Claus von Bulow to O. J. Simpson. He died just recently at the age of 83. But you can still hear his interview with Leonard from November 23, 2001, when he was discussing crimes, trials, and punishments.

Let’s Go Swimming!

The Leonard Lopate Show

According to the Centers for Disease Control, bacterial, viral, and parasitic organisms found in recreational water in the United States sicken thousands of people every year, and even result in deaths. We’ll speak with chemist and industrial hygienist Monona Rossol about the protozoa, amoebas and other things that love to go swimming with us. Monona is also founder and President of Arts, Crafts and Theater Safety.

Frank McCourt

The Leonard Lopate Show

Frank McCourt has been a guest many times on this show over the years, starting in 1996 for the memoir, Angela’s Ashes, that would earn him a Pulitzer Prize. Fame came to him late in life, after he’d retired at the age of 65 from teaching English and creative writing at public schools here in New York. He was a sweet, eloquent man who spoke with grace and humility; he just died at the age of 78 after a battle with cancer. You can hear him speaking with Leonard Lopate for his Survival Kit in 2000, and in 2005, for his memoir, Teacher Man.

Science and Faith

The Leonard Lopate Show

Earlier this week, Pres. Obama announced that he plans to nominate geneticist Dr. Francis Collins to lead the National Institutes of Health. You can listen to Leonard’s 2006 conversation with Dr. Collins about how he reconciles his personal faith with his professional scientific knowledge.

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.

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?