Szulc, Tad, Simms, Paul, Early, Gerald Lyn, WHYY Public Media, Miller, Danny, Gross, Terry, Szulc, Tad, Simms, Paul, Early, Gerald Lyn, WHYY Public Media, Miller, Danny, and Gross, Terry
Since its national debut in 1987, Fresh Air with Terry Gross has been a highly acclaimed and much adored weekday magazine among public radio listeners. Each week, nearly 4.8 million people turn to Peabody Award-winning host Terry Gross for insightful conversations with the leading voices in contemporary arts and issues. The renowned program reaches a global audience, with over 620 public radio stations broadcasting Fresh Air, and 3 million podcast downloads each week. Fresh Air has broken the mold of 'talk show' by weaving together superior journalism and intimate storytelling from modern-day intellectuals, politicians and artists alike. Through probing questions and careful research, Gross's interviews are lauded for revealing a fresh perspective on cultural icons and trends. Her thorough conversations are often complemented by commentary from well-known contributors. Fresh Air is produced at WHYY-FM in Philadelphia and broadcast nationally by NPR., INT. 1: Biographer TAD SZULC (Schultz) has a new book, Pope John Paul II: The Biography. (Scribner) The book details the Pope's early years in Poland through his climb to the papacy after being elevated to archbishop in 1963. Szulc traveled with the Pope extensively, had access to many of his private papers and interviewed many of the Pope's old schoolmates, friends and fellow priests. Szulc is a former New York Times bureau chief. INT. 2: PAUL SIMMS, creator of the new NBC sit-com "News Radio." This is SIMMS' first entry into the world of sit-coms but SIMMS previously worked as writer for both the "The Larry Sanders Show," and "Late Night with David Letterman." He also wrote for Spy Magazine. REV. :Commentator GERALD EARLY looks back at the legacy of Jackie Robinson.