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Friday Forum: George Crile, author, ''Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History. The untold story of how the Central Intelligence Agency, CIA, armed the Afghan Mujahideen in what became the Agency's largest and most successful campaign in history.'' The Annual Cyrus Eaton Memorial Forum. See Further Reading for citation.

George Crile III, CBS producer, journalist, and author of ''Charlie Wilson's war: The extraordinary story of the largest covert operation in history,'' 2003. The book details the partnership of Charlie Wilson, a Texas congressman, and a CIA agent. The pair worked out and executed a secret plan to supply weapons to Afghan rebels used to defeat the Soviets. This victory was a catalyst that contributed to the end Soviet communism and eventually put the fundamentalist Muslim militants of the Taliban in control of Afghanistan.

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., (1.) Author and TV news producer GEORGE CRILE ('CRY-el'). His book, Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History, is about the former Texas congressman Charlie Wilson, who died Wednesday. In the 1980s, from his seat on the House Appropriations Committee, Wilson masterminded a covert effort to arm the Afghan mujahideen as they fought the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. Charlie Wilson's War became a film starring Tom Hanks. CRILE is a veteran producer for CBS's 60 Minutes. (REBROADCAST from 5/13/03) (2.) Congressman CHARLIE WILSON. He died Wednesday at the age of 76 from apparent cardiopulmonary arrest. Wilson was nicknamed Good Time Charlie for his playboy ways; later he became well known for his efforts in the 1980s helping covertly fund and arm the Afghan mujahideen who were fighting the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. He was the subject of the book Charlie Wilson's War which was later made into a film starring Tom Hanks. WILSON left office in 1996 after 24 years in office. (REBROADCAST from 5/13/03) (3.) Stand-up comic, writer, producer CAROL LEIFER ('LEAF-er'). LEIFER's memoir, When You Lie About Your Age, the Terrorists Win: Reflections on Looking in the Mirror, is now out in paperback. LEIFER writes about growing up with a father who loved to tell jokes, her early days in standup, and her surprise at meeting the love of her life at age 40, the first woman she ever dated. Leifer got started in standup in the 1970s with cohorts Paul Reiser and Jerry Seinfeld. She went on to write and produce for Seinfeld and The Ellen Show. And she wrote for several Academy Awards shows. (REBROADCAST from 4/23/09) (4.) Music critic MILO MILES presents Francophonic: A Retrospective Vol. 1 1953-1980 and Francophonic: A Retrospective Vol. 2 1980-1989, from the African guitarist, singer and bandleader Franco.

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., (1.) GEORGE CRILE (CRY-l) was a producer for 60 Minutes and 60 minutes II. He died in 2006. We'll listen back to an interview with Crile about his book 'Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History.' A film based on the back will be released this month. During the 1980s billions of rounds of ammunition and hundreds of thousands of weapons were smuggled into Afghanistan for the Afghan mujahideen in their fight against the invading Soviet Union. Charlie Wilson was the congressman from east Texas who took up the cause of the Afghan fighters, funneling money their way thru his position on the House Appropriations Committee and with the help of a CIA operative. In the second half of the show, we'll hear from CHARLIE WILSON himself. He has since retired from congress and is now a lobbyist.(Original airdate: 5/13/03)(2.) R & B musician IKE TURNER died this week. He was 76. Turner was responsible for shaping early rock n' roll, co-writing and playing piano on the 1951 song 'Rocket 88' with his band Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats. Turner's legacy as a songwriter and bandleader was tarnished when his ex-wife TINA TURNER revealed that their thirteen year marriage was marred with drug abuse and domestic violence. IKE TURNER discovered singer Anna Mae Bullock in 1958 and renamed her TINA TURNER. Soon after, she joined his renamed band, the Ike and Tina Turner Revue. (Original airdate: 8/22/96)

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., (1.) GEORGE CRILE ('CRY-el')is a veteran producer for CBS's 60 Minutes and 60 Minutes II. He's the author of the new book, 'Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History' (Atlantic Monthly Press). It's about the CIA's secret war in Afghanistan, and their support of the Afghan mujahideen against the Soviet Union. Ammunitions and weapons were smuggled across the border and at one point over 300,000 fundamentalist Afghan warriors carried weapons provided by the CIA. Charlie Wilson was a congressman from east Texas, who sat on the House Appropriations Committee. Along with Gust Avrakotos, a CIA operative, they armed the Mujahideen. (THIS INTERVIEW CONTINUES INTO THE SECOND HALF OF THE SHOW). (2.) CHARLIE WILSON is a retired congressman and the subject of the book, 'Charlie Wilson's War' about the secret CIA operation arming the Afghan Mujahideen against the Soviet Union. He left office in 1996 after 24 years in office. He is now a lobbyist. One of his main clients is Pakistan.