October 27, 2023

400 Best Interviews from the Fresh Air Archive

In 2019, the popular radio talk show Fresh Air put up the Fresh Air Archive, featuring over 22,000 segments from their show, which has been airing for over 40 years since 1975. Terry Gross has been conducting interviews on the show since then, and in 1987, they started broadcasting the show on National Public Radio all across the United States. Fresh Air was also an early adopter of the podcast medium and their popular Fresh Air Podcast offers about the last 500 episodes that they have broadcast.

The Fresh Air Archive goes much deeper, featuring 22,000 segments of reviews, commentary, and many interviews. It took us a while, but we went through all 11,000 interviews in the archive and picked out over 400 of the best interviews of notable people from the past 40 years. Many interviews cover the news and politics of the time, and we highlight some of those segments in our list for major historical news events. Mostly, though, we feature interviews with the authors, artists, filmmakers, actors, musicians, and other leading thinkers that continue to be relevant to this day. While some books, movies, and music have faded from memory, we tried to pick out interviews with people whose works have stood the test of time.

In general, we picked out only one interview from each person, although there are some people that Terry Gross turned to many times for interviews. Some of the notable figures with many interviews that you may want to check out include filmmaker John Waters, storyteller Spalding Gray, author John Updike, comedian-turned-politician Al Franken, comedian and radio host Harry Shearer, psychiatrist and author Robert Jay Lifton, political commentator Thomas Friedman, author and radio personality Garrison Keillor, and humorist and author David Sedaris.

The Fresh Air archive is also very well organized by Topic. In the early days of the show, they covered the topic of jazz a lot, and they feature over 1,300 segments on Jazz. They also extensively covered the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, and the many news stories surrounding the Trump era. Browsing the Fresh Air Archive by Topic is well worth doing if you’re looking for a specific category of interviews. The archive is also organized by Collections, Guests, and By Date.

We went through the entire archive of Fresh Air interviews by date, starting with the oldest interviews in 1975 and going up to interviews in the current year of 2023. So that is how we’ll present this list. We’ll list the year alongside each interview and the runtime of the interview (the ones we picked usually range from 20 to 50 minutes in length). And we’ll link directly to the interview on the Fresh Air Archive website. So without further ado, here are the 400 Best Interviews from the Fresh Air Archive:

1. Legendary Film Director Frank Capra (1978) – 47 Min.

2. Vincent Canby On Film (1979) – 45 Min.

3. Cab Calloway Discusses The Life Of A Big Band Leader (1979) – 39 Min.

4. Linda Lovelace Reveals the Dark Side of Pornography (1980) – 53 Min.

5. Back from Self-Exile, Nina Simone Discusses Her Career (1980) – 24 Min.

6. Rock Critic Lester Bangs (1980) – 48 Min.

7. Leonard Maltin On Film, Television, and Animation (1980) – 55 Min.

8. Kenneth Anger On Independent Filmmaking and Paganism (1981) – 50 Min.

9. Louis L’Amour’s West (1981) – 47 Min.

10. Commencement Speech by Martin Scorsese (1981) – 46 Min.

11. A Director’s Pursuit of Shock Value with John Waters (1981) – 39 Min.

12. A Prairie Home Companion Host Garrison Keillor (1981) – 59 Min.

13. Maya Angelou Gets to the Heart of her Past (1981) – 52 Min.

14. Betty Friedan on Feminism’s Future (1981) – 34 Min.

15. The Legacy of the Black Panthers with Bobby Seale (1981) – 57 Min.

16. Late-Night Legend Steve Allen and the Funny People Who Inspire Him (1981) – 52 Min.

17. Dian Fossey on Getting to Know the Gorilla (1982) – 31 Min.

18. Comedian and Political Activist Dick Gregory (1982) – 57 Min.

19. The Future of Feminism and the ERA with Gloria Steinem and Pat Carbine (1982) – 58 Min.

20. The Future According to Isaac Asimov (1982) – 1 Hr. 5 Min.

21. Noam Chomsky On Zionism, Journalism, and Radical Politics (1982) – 54 Min.

22. At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert (1982) – 55 Min.

23. Larry King on Larry King (1982) – 54 Min.

24. Alan Dershowitz’s Philosophy of Law (1982) – 54 Min.

25. Oskar Schindler’s List with Thomas Keneally (1982) – 28 Min.

26. Peter Bogdanovitch on Hollywood and Film (1983) – 44 Min.

27. Norman Mailer Speaks about The Problem of Writing (1983) – 54 Min.

28. The Father of the Psychedelic Movement, Timothy Leary Shares Flashbacks (1983) – 34 Min.

29. Seymour Hersh Discusses The Price of Power: Kissinger in the Nixon White House (1983) – 56 Min.

30. Actors and Civil Rights Workers Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee (1983) – 54 Min.

31. Bishop Desmond Tutu’s Struggle Against South African Apartheid (1984) – 56 Min.

32. James Baldwin Analyzes Racism (1984) – 55 Min.

33. Film’s Early Pioneer, D. W. Griffith with Richard Schickel (1984) – 56 Min.

34. Welcoming All Children to the Neighborhood with Fred Rogers (1984) – 48 Min.

35. A Film Critic’s Career with Roger Ebert (1984) – 57 Min.

36. Oral History and the Art of the Interview with Studs Terkel (1984) – 55 Min.

37. Film Critic Judith Crist (1984) – 42 Min.

38. Writing the Oral Histories of Black America with Alex Haley (1985) – 59 Min.

39. Getting to Know The Mick with Mickey Mantle (1985) – 27 Min.

40. Pauline Kael on Film in the Eighties (1986) – 27 Min.

41. Novelist Kurt Vonnegut on Writing, Science, and Being an Atheist in a Foxhole (1986) – 1 Hr. 5 Min.

42. Women, Control, and The Handmaid’s Tale with Margaret Atwood (1986) – 56 Min.

43. Jerry Falwell on the Moral Majority (1986) – 58 Min.

44. Singer-Songwriter Leonard Cohen (1986) – 27 Min.

45. Spalding Gray and The Terrors of Pleasure (1986) – 59 Min.

46. An Actor’s Evolution with Sir Alec Guiness (1986) – 27 Min.

47. A Quarterback on His Career with Joe Namath (1986) – 56 Min.

48. The Director of She’s Gotta Have It Spike Lee (1986) – 40 Min.

49. Joyce Carol Oates On Boxing (1987) – 28 Min.

50. A Self-Described Republican Humorist with P.J. O’Rourke (1987) – 28 Min.

51. Finding a Voice to Sing With with Joan Baez (1987) – 27 Min.

52. Dutch Director Paul Verhoeven on RoboCop (1987) – 9 Min.

53. Reality, Dreams, and Nightmares in Film with Wes Craven (1987) – 27 Min.

54. Portraying Female Independence on the Page with Erica Jong (1987) – 27 Min.

55. Carrie Fisher on Postcards from the Edge (1987) – 26 Min.

56. The History of LSD with Jay Stevens (1987) – 27 Min.

57. Toni Morrison on Writing Beloved (1987) – 27 Min.

58. Shirley MacLaine on Movies and Spirituality (1987) – 27 Min.

59. Oliver Sacks Discusses The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat (1987) – 27 Min.

60. John Kenneth Galbraith on the Economies of Yesterday and Today (1987) – 27 Min.

61. The Ins and Outs of Elliot Gould’s Career (1987) – 27 Min.

62. Tom Wolfe on His First Novel The Bonfire of the Vanities (1987) – 27 Min.

63. Henry Mancini’s Long Career Making Music for Movies and T.V. (1987) – 28 Min.

64. Arthur Miller Writes His Memoirs (1987) – 27 Min.

65. The Making of the Atomic Bomb with Richard Rhodes (1988) – 26 Min.

66. Martial Artist and Actor Chuck Norris (1988) – 27 Min.

67. Novelist Joseph Heller (1988) – 27 Min.

68. Buddhist Monk and Tibetan Activist Dr. Robert Thurman (1988) – 26 Min.

69. John Updike Discusses His Writing and Influences (1988) – 27 Min.

70. Film Legend and Humanitarian Audrey Hepburn (1988) – 27 Min.

71. Nan Robertson Discusses the History of Alcoholics Anonymous (1988) – 27 Min.

72. J.G. Ballard Discusses his Life and Career (1988) – 27 Min.

73. Elia Kazan Discusses His Life and Career (1988) – 27 Min.

74. W.S. Merwin Shares His Poems (1988) – 27 Min.

75. William Friedkin on the Thin Line Between Police and Criminals (1988) – 27 Min.

76. Baseball Great Willie Mays (1988) – 26 Min.

77. Madness and Mysticism in Elie Weisel’s Twilight (1988) – 26 Min.

78. Humanity’s Coming of Age in the Milky Way with Timothy Ferris (1988) – 27 Min.

79. Ray Bradbury’s Visions of the Future (1988) – 27 Min.

80. Prolific Film Director Sidney Lumet (1988) – 27 Min.

81. A Beach Boy’s Comeback with Brian Wilson (1988) – 27 Min.

82. Temptations Singer Otis Williams (1988) – 27 Min.

83. David Cronenberg Makes Movies About What Disturbs Him the Most (1988) – 27 Min.

84. Novelist Jay McInerney on Bright Lights, Big City (1988) – 27 Min.

85. How an Actress Built Her Career with Sally Field (1988) – 27 Min.

86. Tom Waits: The Fresh Air Interview (1988) – 27 Min.

87. Movie Actor Tom Hanks (1988) – 27 Min.

88. DEVOlving through the 80s (1988) – 9 Min.

89. Good Movies Never Make You Feel Virtuous with Pauline Kael (1988) – 27 Min.

90. Neal Gabler on How the Jews Invented Hollywood (1988) – 27 Min.

91. Country Singer and Songwriter Willie Nelson (1988) – 27 Min.

92. Film Director John Carpenter (1988) – 27 Min.

93. Composer and Lyricist Stephen Sondheim (1988) – 28 Min.

94. Writer Gore Vidal (1988) – 28 Min.

95. How Martin Luther King, Jr. Lit Up the World with Taylor Branch (1988) – 27 Min.

96. Arthur Ashe: The Fresh Air Interview (1989) – 27 Min.

97. Comedy Actor Martin Short (1989) – 27 Min.

98. Susan Sontag on Disease and Metaphor (1989) – 26 Min.

99. Film Director Joe Dante (1989) – 28 Min.

100. Comedy Writer and Film Director Carl Reiner (1989) – 27 Min.

101. John Updike Reveals His Self-Consciousness (1989) – 27 Min.

102. Yoko Ono Looks Back on Her Early Life and Work (1989) – 27 Min.

103. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Alice Walker (1989) – 27 Min.

104. Conservative Icon William F. Buckley (1989) – 27 Min.

105. Do the Right Thing Leaves Critics Confused with Spike Lee (1989) – 9 Min.

106. George Clinton On His Musical Inspirations (1989) – 22 Min.

107. James Cameron Discusses Underwater Directing (1989) – 22 Min.

108. Trying to Forget About Remembering with Saul Bellow (1989) – 22 Min.

109. Stephen Jay Gould Discusses the History of Life an Myths about Evolution (1989) – 22 Min.

110. Nancy Reagan Writes Her Memoirs (1989) – 22 Min.

111. Julia Child Discusses Essential Knowledge for Modern Home Cooks (1989) – 22 Min.

112. Eric Clapton Discusses His Early Career (1989) – 23 Min.

113. Matt Groening Introduces The Simpsons (1989) – 11 Min.

114. Ken Kesey Discusses His Life and Career (1989) – 22 Min.

115. Michael Moore Discusses His Documentary Film Hit Roger & Me (1990) – 22 Min.

116. Actor Jamie Lee Curtis Discusses Her Life and Career (1990) – 22 Min.

117. Vietnam Vet Tim O’Brien Explores Brutal Truths of War Through Fiction (1990) – 18 Min.

118. Batman Creator Bob Kane (1990) – 23 Min.

119. Basketball Legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1990) – 22 Min.

120. Ram Dass Discusses Spirituality and Ecology (1990) – 22 Min.

121. Newest Member of the Saturday Night Live Team, Mike Myers (1990) – 18 Min.

122. Andrew Weil Discusses Complementary Medicine (1990) – 22 Min.

123. Actress Pam Grier (1990) – 22 Min.

124. Comedian George Carlin and the Absurdity of Language (1990) – 22 Min.

125. The Longterm Consequences of the Greenhouse Effect with Michael Oppenheimer (1990) – 22 Min.

126. Poet Maya Angelou Shall Not Be Moved (1990) – 22 Min.

127. Weird Al Yankovic on Writing His Musical Spoofs (1990) – 11 Min.

128. Film Actor Nicholas Cage on Wild at Heart (1990) – 24 Min.

129. King of the B’s Film Producer and Director Roger Corman (1990) – 23 Min.

130. Film Critic and Scholar Andrew Sarris (1990) – 24 Min.

131. Novelist William Styron and His New Memoir of Madness (1990) – 24 Min.

132. Jane Goodall’s 30 Years with Chimpanzees (1990) – 24 Min.

133. Journalist Bill Moyers on LBJ, Television, and Cultural Complexity (1990) – 24 Min.

134. Veteran Actor Charlton Heston (1990) – 23 Min.

135. Charles Schulz Grows Older While His Peanuts Characters Never Age (1990) – 24 Min.

136. Filmmaker Robert Altman on His New Biopic Vincent and Theo (1990) – 24 Min.

137. Director Tim Burton’s Fairy Tale Edward Scissorhands (1990) – 24 Min.

138. Carl Sagan on Preventing Nuclear Winter (1991) – 24 Min.

139. Actor Harvey Keitel Discusses his Early Career (1991) – 17 Min.

140. Foreign Correspondent Thomas Friedman on the Gulf War (1991) – 21 Min.

141. Journalist David Halberstam on The Next Century (1991) – 21 Min.

142. Actor Anthony Hopkins on Silence of the Lambs (1991) – 21 Min.

143. Brett Easton Ellis Addresses the American Psycho Controversy (1991) – 12 Min.

144. Comedian and Actor Bill Murray (1991) – 22 Min.

145. Soul-Turned-Gospel Singer Al Green (1991) – 20 Min.

146. Singer Tony Bennett Discusses his Life and Career (1991) – 23 Min.

147. Actor Gary Busey on Point Break (1991) – 22 Min.

148. Filmmaker Richard Linklater on Slacker (1991) – 16 Min.

149. First-Time Film Director John Singleton on Boyz N the Hood (1991) – 16 Min.

150. Comedian and Filmmaker Mel Brooks (1991) – 23 Min.

151. Bad Films with the Wisecracks of Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1991) – 11 Min.

152. Photographer Annie Leibovitz (1991) – 22 Min.

153. Film Critic Pauline Kael Retires (1991) – 16 Min.

154. James B. Stewart Discusses the Insider Trading Scandal (1991) – 22 Min.

155. Stan Lee Discusses Marvel Comics (1991) – 19 Min.

156. Basketball Great Wilt Chamberlain (1991) – 22 Min.

157. Comedian Chris Rock (1991) – 14 Min.

158. Larry David Discusses Seinfeld (1992) – 21 Min.

159. Musician and Inventor Les Paul (1992) – 21 Min.

160. The Real Story of Donald Trump with Wayne Barrett (1992) – 22 Min.

161. Ron Shelton Returns to Sports in White Men Can’t Jump (1992) – 16 Min.

162. Actress and Producer Shelley Duvall (1992) – 15 Min.

163. Men’s Rights Activists with Robert Bly (1992) – 22 Min.

164. Salman Rushdie Discusses Fighting the Fatwa Against Him (1992) – 22 Min.

165. Writer Garry Wills on Lincoln and the Gettysburg Address (1992) – 43 Min.

166. Talking Heads Founder and Solo Artist David Byrne (1992) – 22 Min.

167. Walter Isaacson’s Comprehensive Look at Henry Kissinger (1992) – 46 Min.

168. Actor Ben Stiller on His New Comedy Show (1992) – 23 Min.

169. Conservative Columnist George Will on How to Improve Government (1992) – 45 Min.

170. Rock Musician Neil Young Softens His Sound on Harvest Moon (1992) – 22 Min.

171. British Film Actor Michael Caine (1992) – 46 Min.

172. Former President Jimmy Carter (1993) – 46 Min.

173. Punk Rock Singer Henry Rollins Turns to the Spoken Word (1993) – 22 Min.

174. Comedy Writer, Actor, and Director Harold Ramis (1993) – 22 Min.

175. Author Philip Roth (1993) – 22 Min.

176. TV and Film Actor John Goodman (1993) – 53 Min.

177. The Early Years of Actor Peter O’Toole (1993) – 22 Min.

178. How Psychiatric Drugs Affect Personality with Peter D. Kramer (1993) – 44 Min.

179. Director Martin Scorcese (1993) – 44 Min.

180. The Information Highway with Mitch Kapor (1993) – 22 Min.

181. Preventing Heart Disease with Diet with Dr. Dean Ornish (1993) – 21 Min.

182. Actor and Singer Harry Belafonte (1993) – 22 Min.

183. James Earl Jones Discusses his Life and Career (1993) – 22 Min.

184. Actor Michael J. Fox (1993) – 22 Min.

185. American Artist Roy Lichtenstein (1993) – 16 Min.

186. Director Brian De Palma (1993) – 22 Min.

187. Musician Pete Townsend (1993) – 22 Min.

188. French Film Legend Jeanne Moreau (1993) – 22 Min.

189. The History of God with Karen Armstrong (1993) – 23 Min.

190. Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn Discusses Meditation and Mindfulness (1994) – 16 Min.

191. How Did the U. S. Get So Gun Crazy? With Erik Larson (1994) – 22 Min.

192. The Myth of Death with Dignity with Dr. Sherwin Nuland (1994) – 22 Min.

193. Rapper and Actor Ice-T (1994) – 51 Min.

194. Comedienne Roseanne Discusses Her Life and Career (1994) – 22 Min.

195. Jeffrey Dahmer’s Father Shares His Story with Lionel Dahmer (1994) – 53 Min.

196. Milos Forman Discusses His Life and Career (1994) – 45 Min.

197. Film Director Bernardo Bertolucci (1994) – 23 Min.

198. Beck Discusses His Music and Influences (1994) – 17 Min.

199. The Roe of Roe v. Wade with Norma McCorvey (1994) – 22 Min.

200. Continuing Lessons from the Civil War with Shelby Foote (1994) – 22 Min.

201. Soul Musician Isaac Hayes (1994) – 44 Min.

202. Former First Lady Barbara Bush (1994) – 43 Min.

203. Playwright David Mamet on the Rhythm of Language (1994) – 15 Min.

204. Poet and Countercultural Activist Allen Ginsberg (1994) – 22 Min.

205. Motown Founder Berry Gordy (1994) – 21 Min.

206. Dr. J on Playing Ball with the Big Boys (1994) – 22 Min.

207. Director David Lynch on His Fascination with the Body (1994) – 22 Min.

208. Anne Lamott’s Instructions on Writing and Life (1995) – 15 Min.

209. How Computers Are Shaping Our Digital Future with Nicholas Negroponte (1995) – 22 Min.

210. Cult Film Director Sam Raimi (1995) – 22 Min.

211. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara Reconsiders the Vietnam War (1995) – 22 Min.

212. Comedian Richard Pryor on His Health and Career (1995) – 15 Min.

213. Heavyweight Champion George Foreman on What Boxing Taught Him (1995) – 40 Min.

214. Ex-Beatle and Current All Star Ringo Starr (1995) – 39 Min.

215. Dr. Andrew Weil Discusses Working With the Body in Medicine (1995) – 38 Min.

216. Father Thomas Keating Defines Contemplative Prayer (1995) – 16 Min.

217. Larry Clark’s Frightening Vision of Teenagers in the Film Kids (1995) – 21 Min.

218. Kay Redfield Jamison Discusses Mood and Madness (1995) – 31 Min.

219. Soros on Soros (1995) – 44 Min.

220. Writer and Nobel Peace Prize Recipient Elie Wiesel (1995) – 44 Min.

221. Bill Gates on the Future of the Information Highway (1995) – 21 Min.

222. The Year of the Internet with Jerry Yang of Yahoo (1995) – 21 Min.

223. Hillary Clinton Discusses It Takes a Village (1996) – 21 Min.

224. Jon Krakauer Discusses the Story of Ill-Fated Adventurer Christopher McCandless (1996) – 22 Min.

225. Actor, Director, and Writer Sean Penn (1996) – 47 Min.

226. The Creator of the World Wide Web Tim Berners-Lee (1996) – 32 Min.

227. The World’s Wisdom Traditions with Huston Smith (1996) – 50 Min.

228. Steve Jobs on the Future of the Web (1996) – 35 Min.

229. Sting Discusses His Life and Career (1996) – 39 Min.

230. A Conversation with Siskel and Ebert (1996) – 51 Min.

231. Al Sharpton Discusses His Life and Career (1996) – 21 Min.

232. Actress Frances McDormand Discusses Her Role in Fargo (1996) – 21 Min.

233. Jon Krakauer Discusses the Death of Eight on Mount Everest (1996) – 46 Min.

234. Bill Maher Discusses His Politics and Career (1996) – 21 Min.

235. Cher on Growing Up and Growing Older (1996) – 29 Min.

236. A Buddhist Perspective on Psychotherapy with Mark Epstein (1996) – 19 Min.

237. Shedding Light on the O.J. Simpson Trial with Jeffrey Toobin (1996) – 45 Min.

238. Steve Martin: Comic, Actor, and Playwright (1996) – 34 Min.

239. Chicago Bulls Head Coach Phil Jackson (1996) – 46 Min.

240. Playwright Neil Simon Looks Back at His Career (1996) – 37 Min.

241. Debut Memoirst Frank McCourt on His Early Life (1996) – 27 Min.

242. Late-Night Talk Show Host Conan O’Brien Gets Comfortable on Camera (1996) – 29 Min.

243. Actor Clint Eastwood Looks Back on His Film Career (1996) – 38 Min.

244. World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov (1996) – 30 Min.

245. Actress Glenn Close on Finding Her Place in Hollywood (1996) – 21 Min.

246. Pornographer, Pundit, and Social Outcast Larry Flynt (1996) – 34 Min.

247. Writer David Foster Wallace on Pursuing Supposedly Fun Things (1997) – 21 Min.

248. Film Director on David Cronenberg on Sex, Technology, and Death (1997) – 45 Min.

249. Martin Scorsese: The Best Director of Every Decade (1997) – 52 Min.

250. Author J.G. Ballard on His Inspirations for Crash (1997) – 21 Min.

251. DMC on the Changing Landscape of Rap Music and Culture (1997) – 44 Min.

252. Comedian George Carlin at 60 (1997) – 21 Min.

253. Martin Short On Playing Lovable Klutzes (1997) – 44 Min.

254. What Ice Mummies Might Reveal about the Spanish Flu with Malcolm Gladwell (1997) – 33 Min.

255. Francis Ford Coppola on Film, Wine, and Literature (1997) – 44 Min.

256. Public Enemy’s Chuck D Discusses His Memoir (1997) – 31 Min.

257. Boogie Nights Director Paul Thomas Anderson (1997) – 34 Min.

258. Johnny Cash: In His Own Words (1997) – 47 Min.

259. Writer and Peace Activist Thich Nhat Hanh (1997) – 18 Min.

260. Bill Nye Discusses Being The Science Guy (1997) – 26 Min.

261. Transgressive Rocker Marilyn Manson (1998) – 37 Min.

262. The Simpsons Airs Its 200th Episode with Matt Groening (1998) – 30 Min.

263. Cinema in the 1970s with Peter Biskind (1998) – 22 Min.

264. How Long-Term Stress Affects Health with Robert Sapolsky (1998) – 43 Min.

265. The United States Faces a New Kind of Threat from Islamic Militants (1998) – 21 Min.

266. Filmmaker Ethan Coen Reflects on His Career So Far (1998) – 13 Min.

267. German Filmmaker Werner Herzog (1998) – 45 Min.

268. Author Neal Gabler on Starring in Life: The Movie (1998) – 16 Min.

269. ABC News Anchor Peter Jennings Looks Back on this Century (1998) – 43 Min.

270. Sam Walton and the Rise of Wal-Mart with Bob Ortega (1998) – 33 Min.

271. Singer and Songwriter Randy Newman Looks Back at His Three Decades in Music (1998) – 26 Min.

272. Michael Jordan’s Impact on Basketball and Culture with David Halberstam (1999) – 33 Min.

273. Film Director and Writer Wes Anderson on Rushmore (1999) – 22 Min.

274. Fresh Air Covers Cancer: What is Cancer? (1999) – 42 Min.

275. Tribute to Hitchcock: Janet Leigh Discusses Psycho (1999) – 30 Min.

276. Composer John Barry (1999) – 44 Min.

277. Understanding Globalization with Thomas Friedman (1999) – 43 Min.

278. Monica Lewinsky Shares Her Side of the Story (1999) – 16 Min.

279. Exploring Different Views of Jesus with Marcus J. Borg and N.T. Wright (1999) – 21 Min.

280. Ira Glass and This American Life (1999) – 51 Min.

281. Governor of Minnesota Jesse Ventura (1999) – 45 Min.

282. From The Onion Editor-in-Chief Scott Dikkers (1999) – 21 Min.

283. Bob Zmuda on Andy Kaufman (1999) – 40 Min.

284. Ira Glass Interviews Philip Glass (1999) – 50 Min.

285. Playboy Hugh Hefner (1999) – 50 Min.

286. David O. Russell Discusses Three Kings (1999) – 17 Min.

287. The Best Rock Music of the Year and the Century (1999) – 27 Min.

288. The Best Films of the Year and of the Century (1999) – 20 Min.

289. Paul Thomas Anderson Discusses Magnolia (2000) – 40 Min.

290. Sigourney Weaver: The Fresh Air Interview (2000) – 50 Min.

291. Synthesizer Inventor Robert Moog (2000) – 42 Min.

292. Bringing Clarity to Food and Nutrition with Dr. Andrew Weil (2000) – 43 Min.

293. Film Director Mary Harron Discusses American Psycho (2000) – 21 Min.

294. Actor Sidney Poitier (2000) – 43 Min.

295. The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart (2000) – 21 Min.

296. Davis Sedaris Discusses Me Talk Pretty One Day (2000) – 34 Min.

297. Roger Ebert and Willem Dafoe in Conversation (2000) – 21 Min.

298. Actor, Singer and, Drag Queen Ru Paul (2000) – 30 Min.

299. Comedian Marc Maron (2000) – 21 Min.

300. Stephen King On Writing (2000) – 44 Min.

301. Comedian Bill Maher Discusses the 2000 Election (2000) – 26 Min.

302. Paul Simon Discusses His Long Career (2000) – 42 Min.

303. Filmmaker Steven Soderbergh (2001) – 43 Min.

304. Country Music Hall of Famer Dolly Parton (2001) – 44 Min.

305. Director Mike Nichols (2001) – 43 Min.

306. Screenwriter and Director Christopher Nolan on Memento (2001) – 20 Min.

307. Tom and Ray Magliozzi on Car Talk (2001) – 46 Min.

308. Paul McCartney: From Pop To The Printed Page (2001) – 50 Min.

309. Historian David Mccullough on John Adams (2001) – 20 Min.

310. Writer Michael Pollan on The Botany of Desire (2001) – 44 Min.

311. Writer Andrew Solomon on The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression (2001) – 40 Min.

312. Ebert & Coppola, Live from Cannes (2001) – 30 Min.

313. New York Times Columnist Thomas Friedman on September 11th (2001) – 21 Min.

314. Onion Editors Regroup Following September 11th (2001) – 14 Min.

315. Novelist Jonathan Franzen on The Corrections (2001) – 38 Min.

316. Quincy Jones (2001) – 51 Min.

317. Actor and Rapper Will Smith (2001) – 43 Min.

318. Author Sylvia Nasar on A Beautiful Mind (2002) – 20 Min.

319. Gene Simmons (2002) – 31 Min.

320. British Journalist Jon Ronson on Adventures with Extremists (2002) – 19 Min.

321. Actor Matt Damon (2002) – 44 Min.

322. DJ and Hip Hop forefather Grandmaster Flash (2002) – 26 Min.

323. David Bowie on the Ziggy Stardust Years (2002) – 41 Min.

324. Novelist Tim LaHaye on Left Behind (2002) – 21 Min.

325. Stand-up Comic David Cross (2003) – 16 Min.

326. Filmmaker Alexander Payne on About Schmidt (2003) – 20 Min.

327. Writer Michael Lewis on Moneyball (2003) – 44 Min.

328. Religious Scholar Elaine Pagels on the Gospel of Thomas (2003) – 21 Min.

329. Bill O’Reilly on Who’s Looking Out for You? (2003) – 44 Min.

330. Google Founders Larry Page And Sergey Brin (2003) – 17 Min.

331. Queen of Disco Donna Summer (2003) – 33 Min.

332. Theologian Bart D. Ehrman on Lost Christianities (2003) – 43 Min.

333. Singer Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin (2004) – 51 Min.

334. Baseball Legend Pete Rose (2004) – 42 Min.

335. The Sopranos Writer and Director David Chase (2004) – 37 Min.

336. The Fabric of the Cosmos with Brian Greene (2004) – 45 Min.

337. Journalist Bob Woodward on Plan of Attack (2004) – 43 Min.

338. Actor Macaulay Culkin (2004) – 34 Min.

339. Former President Bill Clinton on My Life (2004) – 45 Min.

340. Comedian Rodney Dangerfield (2004) – 19 Min.

341. Columnist Maureen Dowd on Bushworld (2004) – 44 Min.

342. Barack Obama on His U.S. Senate Bid (2004) – 21 Min.

343. Comedian Dave Chappelle (2004) – 33 Min.

344. Investigative Reporter Seymour Hersh on Abu Ghraib (2004) – 44 Min.

345. Peter Jennings, Tom Brokaw, and Dan Rather (2004) – 51 Min.

346. Joni Mitchell on a Life in Music (2004) – 44 Min.

347. Metallica Guitarist and Vocalist James Hetfield (2004) – 44 Min.

348. Madonna: Pop Icon, Children’s Writer (2004) – 31 Min.

349. Actor Paul Reubens on Pee-Wee Herman (2004) – 32 Min.

350. A Fake Newsman’s Fake Newsman: Stephen Colbert (2005) – 45 Min.

351. James Brown: Feeling Good (2005) – 44 Min.

352. Actor Gene Wilder on Kiss Me Like a Stranger (2005) – 51 Min.

353. Jane Fonda’s Life So Far (2005) – 52 Min.

354. A Handbook to Robert Crumb (2005) – 49 Min.

355. Brooke Shields, on Birth and Depression (2005) – 43 Min.

356. Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon (2005) – 44 Min.

357. The Godfather of Punk: Iggy Pop (2005) – 49 Min.

358. Khaled Hosseini and Kite Runner (2005) – 35 Min.

359. Hip-Hop Renaissance Man: Ice Cube (2005) – 21 Min.

360. Joan Didion, Writing a Story After an Ending (2005) – 33 Min.

361. Jerry Lewis on Dean Martin: A Love Story (2005) – 50 Min.

362. Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin: Political Genius (2005) – 21 Min.

363. Bruce Springsteen: 30 Years of Born to Run (2005) – 50 Min.

364. Willie Nelson’s Guide to Happiness (2006) – 41 Min.

365. Al Gore Screens His Global Warming Message (2006) – 42 Min.

366. Thom Yorke, Going Solo (2006) – 39 Min.

367. Tom Petty Packs 30 Years of Rock for the Road (2006) – 42 Min.

368. Lawrence Wright on Building a Terror Network (2006) – 45 Min.

369. Ed Burns on Creating The Wire (2006) – 50 Min.

370. Meet the Real Sacha Baron Cohen (2007) – 52 Min.

371. Ken Burns Series Relives The War (2007) – 37 Min.

372. Richard Dawkins Explains The God Delusion (2007) – 45 Min.

373. Jimmy Wales on the User-Generated Generation and Wikipedia (2007) – 21 Min.

374. Arcade Fire: Art-Rock Fueled by Eclecticism and Pain (2007) – 22 Min.

375. Elyn Saks: A Scholar’s Memoir of Schizophrenia (2007) – 20 Min.

376. J. Craig Venter Decodes Genome Project Controversy (2007) – 21 Min.

377. There Will Be Blood Director Paul Thomas Anderson (2007) – 35 Min.

378. Oscar Winner Denzel Washington (2008) – 41 Min.

379. Breaking into Character with Bryan Cranston (2008) – 19 Min.

380. Edward Lucas on The New Cold War with Russia (2008) – 18 Min.

381. Paul Krugman On The Financial Crisis And Public Spending (2008) – 44 Min.

382. Steve Martin On Being Born Standing Up (2008) – 44 Min.

383. Tina Fey: Sarah Palin And Saturday Night Satire (2008) – 42 Min.

384. Danny Boyle, From Trainspotting to Slumdog (2008) – 21 Min.

385. Lawrence Lessig’s Remix For The Hybrid Economy (2008) – 42 Min.

386. Woody Allen On Life, Films, and Whatever Works (2009) – 44 Min.

387. The New Price Point? Free! With Chris Anderson (2009) – 36 Min.

388. Pulp and Circumstance: Tarantino Rewrites History in Inglourious Basterds (2009) – 49 Min.

389. LeBron James Shoots for the Stars (2009) – 21 Min.

390. Sacha Baron Cohen And Larry Charles Talk Bruno (2009) – 44 Min.

391. Lucas Looks Back on Movie-Making (2010) – 33 Min.

392. James Cameron: Pushing the Limits of Imagination in Avatar (2010) – 36 Min.

393. How a Few Made Millions Betting Against The Market with Michael Lewis (2010) – 45 Min.

394. South Park Celebrates 14 Years of Fart Jokes (2010) – 44 Min.

395. Comedian Louis C.K.: Finding Laughs Post-Divorce (2010) – 43 Min.

396. Timberlake on ‘N Sync, Acting, and Bringing Sexy Back (2010) – 59 Min.

397. The Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards Looks Back at Life (2010) – 49 Min.

398. Look, He Made a Hat: Sondheim Talks Sondheim (2010) – 50 Min.

399. Ed Norton Interviews Bruce Springsteen on Darkness on the Edge of Town (2010) – 50 Min.

400. Jay-Z: The Fresh Air Interview (2010) – 50 Min.

401. Twitter’s Biz Stone on Starting a Revolution (2011) – 43 Min.

402. An Oncologist’s Pulitzer-Winning Cancer Biography with Siddhartha Mukherjee (2011) – 37 Min.

403. Jobs’ Biography: Thoughts on Life, Death, and Apple with Walter Isaacson (2011) – 43 Min.

404. Trent Reznor: The Fresh Air Interview (2011) – 42 Min.

405. Meryl Streep: The Fresh Air Interview (2012) – 50 Min.

406. Putin Biography Chronicles Rise of a Street Thug with Masha Gessen (2012) – 44 Min.

407. Habits: How They Form and How to Break Them with Charles Duhigg (2012) – 43 Min.

408. Sissy Spacek’s Extraordinary Ordinary Life (2012) – 44 Min.

409. The Manhunt to Capture Osama Bin Laden with Peter Bergen (2012) – 44 Min.

410. Fresh Air Remembers Author Maurice Sendak (2012) – 51 Min.

411. Tyler Perry Transforms: From Madea to Family Man (2012) – 43 Min.

412. Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained and Unruly (2013) – 42 Min.

413. Going Clear: Lawrence Wright’s Book Delves Into Scientology (2013) – 51 Min.

414. Spacey and Fincher Make a House of Cards (2013) – 43 Min.

415. Maria Bamford: A Seriously Funny Comedian (2013) – 43 Min.

416. Bob Odenkirk Brings Some Laughs to Breaking Bad (2013) – 44 Min.

417. From Child Actor to Artist: Daniel Radcliffe Reflects on Post-Potter Life (2013) – 37 Min.

418. The Coen Brothers on Writing, Lebowski, and Literally Herding Cats (2013) – 43 Min.

419. Joaquin Phoenix on Her (2014) – 49 Min.

420. Neil DeGrasse Tyson Explains Why The Cosmos Shouldn’t Make You Feel Small (2014) – 44 Min.

421. John Oliver is No One’s Friend on His New HBO Show (2014) – 47 Min.

422. From Batman to Birdman, Michael Keaton Knows Suits and Superheroes (2015) – 50 Min.

423. Terry Gross to Marc Maron: Life is Harder Than Radio (2015) – 51 Min.

424. Pandemic Book Asks: Is A Disease That Will Kill Tens Of Millions Coming (2016) – 42 Min.

425. Doonesbury Creator Has Great Fun Putting Trump in a Comic Setting (2016) – 31 Min.

426. How Trump Broke Campaign Norms But Still Won the Election (2016) – 50 Min.

427. Francis Ford Coppola: Making The Godfather Was a Frightening Experience (2016) – 49 Min.

428. Megyn Kelly on Trump and the Media: We’re in a Dangerous Phase Right Now (2016) – 50 Min.

429. Samantha Bee on Trump’s Win: I Could Feel This Seismic Shift (2017) – 42 Min.

430. Get Out Sprang from an Effort to Master Fear, Says Director Jordan Peele (2017) – 51 Min.

431. Lin-Manuel Miranda on Disney, Mixtapes, and Why He Won’t Try to Top Hamilton (2017) – 50 Min.

432. Biden Talks Trump, Faith, And Fate In Front of a Live Fresh Air Audience (2017) – 43 Min.

433. Reluctant Psychonaut Michael Pollan Embraces the New Science of Psychedelics (2018) – 50 Min.

434. Dispatches From a Dopesick America with Beth Macy (2018) – 43 Min.

435. Biographer Robert Caro on Fame, Power, and Working to Uncover the Truth (2019) – 43 Min.

436. Howard Stern Tells Terry Gross His Pure Id Days Are Behind Him (2019) – 50 Min.

437. Edward Snowden Speaks Out: I Haven’t and I Won’t Cooperate with Russia (2019) – 50 Min.

438. Elton John on Music, Addiction, and Family (2019) – 44 Min.

439. New Coronavirus Won’t Be The Last Outbreak to Move From Animal to Human (2020) – 43 Min.

440. Stephen King is Sorry You Feel Like You’re Stuck in a Stephen King Novel (2020) – 50 Min.

441. From Freddie Gray to George Floyd: Wes Moore Says It’s Time to Change the Systems (2020) – 52 Min.

442. Democracy is Strained But Not Broken, Former President Obama Tells Fresh Air (2020) – 52 Min.

443. Michael J. Fox Reflects on Life with Parkinson’s (2020) – 42 Min.

444. The Age Of Automation is Now: Here’s How to Futureproof Yourself with Kevin Roose (2021) – 42 Min.

445. It Was Just Thrilling: 2 NPR Founders Remember the First Days, 50 Years Ago (2021) – 52 Min.

446. Tennis Legend Billie Jean King Puts it All in Her New Autobiography (2021) – 41 Min.

447. Succession Actor Brian Cox Can’t Defend Logan Roy, But He Can Relate to Him (2022) – 44 Min.

448. Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine Has Already Changed the World as We Know It Says Anne Applebaum (2022) – 52 Min.

449. Fresh Air’s Summer Music Interviews: Lizzo (2022) – 29 Min.

450. John McEnroe Grapples Wth His Legacy as Tennis’ Bad Boy (2022) – 52 Min.

451. Steven Spielberg Was a Fearful Kid Who Found Solace in Storytelling (2022) – 52 Min.

452. Weird Al Yankovic Wants to Bring Sexy Back to the Accordion (2022) – 52 Min.

453. Judy Blume Was Banned From the Beginning, But Says ‘It Never Stopped Me from Writing’ (2023) – 52 Min.

A little more than 400 interviews, but plenty to listen to. Enjoy this generous offering of interviews from Fresh Air!