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The Leonard Lopate Show
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Surveying the Damage
Kerry Nolan guest hosts for Leonard. On today’s show: Alex Kotlowitz and George Packer talk about the foreclosure crisis. Then, Suzie Gilbert relates her time rehabilitating injured birds of prey. And, actress Mary Stuart Masterson on her directorial debut “The Cake Eaters.” Plus, this weeks Please Explain is all about superstition.
State of Foreclosure
Home foreclosure rates nationwide surged 30% last month. But the next phase of the crisis is already starting in places Cleveland, where at least 10,000 foreclosed houses sit abandoned. Journalist Alex Kotlowitz wrote about this part of the crisis in his article "All Boarded Up" for the New York Times Sunday Magazine recently. He’ll be joined by New Yorker staff writer George Packer who looked at the foreclosure disaster in Florida—a state where, until recently, felons couldn’t vote but could sell mortgages—in his artlce “The Ponzi State.”
"The Cake Eaters"
Actress Mary Stuart Masterson’s directorial debut "The Cake Eaters" is a romantic drama set in a small town where the intimate secrets and tensions of two families force them to come to terms with life, love, and death.
"The Cake Eaters" is playing March 13-19
Cinema Village
22 East 12th Street
More information here.
"The Cake Eaters" is playing March 13-19
265 Court Street, Brooklyn
More information here.
There will be a Q&A with Mary Stewart Masterson after the 7:30 pm screening on March 14.
Rehabilitation
In college and the long succession of office jobs that followed Suzie Gilbert had a hard time finding her passion. Then she landed a job at an animal hospital in the Hudson Valley caring for injured birds and through that process, found herself. Her memoir is called Flyaway.

Please Explain: Superstition
Friday the 13th is a date that makes some people cringe. Where does superstition come from and why are people all over the world prone to superstitious beliefs? We’ll be joined by Dr. Edmund Kern, Associate Professor of History at Lawrence University and by Stuart Vyse, Professor of Psychology at Connecticut College.
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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.
Video Pick: David Chang on Momofuku
The Leonard Lopate Show
Recent Videos:
- Arthur Schwartz on The Southern Italian Table
- David Plouffe on The Audacity to Win: The Inside Story and Lessons of Barack Obama’s Historic Victory
- Ken Auletta on Googled: The End of the World as We Know It
- Paul Shaffer on We’ll Be Here for the Rest of Our Lives: A Swingin' Show-Biz Saga
- George Steel on the New York City Opera’s new season
- Gail Collins on When Everything Changed: The Amazing Journey of Women from 1960 to the Present
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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