Fresh Air on KCCU-HD2

Arctic Records: Drafting A Blueprint For The Philly Sound

Credit Courtesy of the artist

Barbara Mason had had one minor hit on Arctic by the time "Yes I'm Ready" came out in March 1965, and hit the Top 10 on both the R&B and pop charts.

By Ed Ward

Originally published on Mon June 10, 2013 1:24 pm

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Arctic Records opened for business late in 1964. The label was the brainchild of Jimmy Bishop, the program director of WDAS — at the time Philadelphia's No. 1 black radio station. If that sounds like a conflict of interest, you don't know much about the music business in Philadelphia back then. Besides, it didn't help Arctic's first single, "Happiest Girl in the World" by the Tiffanys, three local teenagers who sang backup in various studios.

8:03 am

Sat June 8, 2013

Fresh Air Weekend: Mitch Hurwitz, Jason Isbell And 'Before Midnight'

Credit Netflix

David Cross (left) reprises his role as Dr. Tobias Funke, the sexually ambiguous brother-in-law of Jason Bateman's character, Michael Bluth, in Netflix's new season of Arrested Development.

By editor

Originally published on Sat June 8, 2013 9:52 am

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Fresh Air Weekend highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks, and new program elements specially paced for weekends. Our weekend show emphasizes interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors and musicians, and often includes excerpts from live in-studio concerts. This week:

1:21 pm

Fri June 7, 2013

'Beside Ourselves' Explores Human-Animal Connections

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Credit Brett Hall Jones / Putnam

Karen Joy Fowler, whose new book is We Are Completely Beside Ourselves, became well-known in 2004 with the publication of her best-selling novel The Jane Austen Book Club.

By Maureen Corrigan

Originally published on Fri June 7, 2013 2:47 pm

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Note: The audio and text of this review describe a major plot point that is not revealed until partway into the book.

If you know Karen Joy Fowler's writing only from her clever, 2004 best-seller, The Jane Austen Book Club, you're in for a shock. Fowler's new novel, We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves, is a different literary creature altogether — still witty but emotionally and intellectually riskier, and more indebted to Fowler's other books that toy with the sci-fi genre.

8:16 am

Fri June 7, 2013

'The Life That Follows' Disarming IEDs In Iraq

Credit Joey Campagna / Courtesy of the author

Brian Castner served as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal officer in the U.S. Air Force from 1999 to 2007, deploying to Iraq to command bomb disposal units in Balad and Kirkuk in 2005 and 2006.

By editor

Originally published on Fri June 7, 2013 1:30 pm

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This interview was originally broadcast on July 8, 2012.

Brian Castner arguably had one of the most nerve-wracking jobs in the U.S. military. He commanded two Explosive Ordnance Disposal units in Iraq, where his team disabled roadside IEDs, investigated the aftermath of roadside car bombings and searched door to door to uncover bomb-makers at their homes.

1:51 pm

Thu June 6, 2013

The Patient Who Let Us Peek Inside A Brain In 'Present Tense'

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Credit Basic Books

In her latest book about Henry Molaison, Corkin tells the story of the amnesic man she studied for a half-century, whose brain helped teach neuroscientists about the distinctions between memory and intellect.

Credit Louis Bachrach / Basic Books

Neuroscientist Suzanne Corkin worked with Henry Gustave Molaison, who had severe amnesia, for 50 years — from the 1953 surgery that caused permanent damage to his brain until his death in 2008.

By editor

Originally published on Thu June 6, 2013 4:03 pm

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In 1953, 27-year-old Henry Gustave Molaison underwent an experimental brain surgery in an attempt to alleviate his severe epileptic seizures. The surgery left him with a form of amnesia; he could remember many things from the past, but was unable to form new memories.

"He could tell us about where he was born, [that] his father's family was from Thibodaux, La., his mother came from Ireland," says neuroscientist Suzanne Corkin. "He talked about the towns in Hartford where he lived and about his specific neighbors. He knew the schools he attended, some of his classmates' names."

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Terry Gross

Opening the window on contemporary arts and issues with guests from worlds as diverse as literature and economics.

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12:06 pm

Mon June 10, 2013