A podcast posted every Sunday featuring extended interviews and discussions from Bookwaves, Art-Waves, and Bookwaves Artwaves Hour programs on KPFA, and newly digitized and edited archive interviews from the pre-digital Probabilities series dating back to 1977. Literature, theater, film, the visual arts: in-depth interviews from a progressive and artistic viewpoint, with long-time KPFA/Pacifica host Richard Wolinsky.
Dennis Lim, film critic and Artistic Director of the New York Film Festival and author of “Tale of Cinema,” an examination of the work of South Korean film-maker Hong Sang-soo, in conversation with host Richard Wolinsky. A retrospective of Hong Sangsoo’s work can be seen at BAM/PFA from February 3 -18. Photo: scene from “Tale of Cinema,” courtesy BAMPFA
Jack O’Brien, theatre director and author of Jack in the Box, or How to Goddamn Direct, in conversation with Richard Wolinsky. Jack O’Brien has won three Tony Awards and has been nominated seven times. The former artistic director of The Old Globe in San Diego, from 1981 to 2007, he’s one of the premier directors working in America today. Among his Broadway shows are The Full Monty, Hairspray, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Catch Me If You Can and The Coast of Utopia. He directed the much lauded 2018 revival of Carousel on Broadway. Most recently, in 2021, he directed Hairspray in London.
Suzy McKee Charnas (1939-2023), who died on January 2nd, 2023 at the age of 83, in conversation with Richard Wolinsky, recorded over Halloween Weekend, 1981. A novelist and short story writer focusing on fantasy and science fiction, and a groundbreaking feminist writer in the field, her career began in 1974 with her first novel, Walk to the End of the World. All told, she wrote eleven novels and several short stories, winning both the Hugo and Nebula Awards for Best Short Story in different years. She is best known for her tetralogy, The Holdfast Chronicles, and for her stand-alone novel, The Vampire Tapestry.
Frank Galati (1943-2023), who died on January 2, 2023 at the age of 79, was a giant in American theatre. in this interview recorded in May 2019 while he was directing Ionesco’s “Rhinoceros” at ACT in San Francisco, he discusses not only the play in depth, but also some of his history as a director, librettist and screenwriter. Hosted by Richard Wolinsky. First posted as a Bay Area Theater podcast on June 2, 2019.
Richard Adams (1920-2016) interviewed in 1978 by Richard Wolinsky. Richard Adams, the author of “Watership Down,” “Plague Dogs” “Shardik” and other novels, died on Christmas Eve, 2016 at the age of 96. It was on tour for “The Plague Dogs” upon its American publication in the spring of 1978 that Richard Wolinsky interviewed Richard Adams. Though he’d conducted a handful of interviews with a co-host, this was Richard Wolinsky’s first solo shot in what would be a long career as literary interviewer. First posted as a podcast on January 1, 2017, shortly after Adams’ death.
Douglas Preston, author of “The Lost City of the Monkey God” is interviewed by Richard Wolinsky. Douglas Preston has written several works of fiction and non-fiction, including a best-selling series of thrillers co-written with Lincoln Child (the Agent Pendergast series). In his latest work of non-fiction, Preston delves into the story of a lost city in Honduras, in Mosquitia, and a civilization that vanished after the Spanish came to the Americas. Encore podcast first posted March 12, 2017.
Shelley Singer (1930-November 10, 2022), wrote ten mysteries and two science fiction novels over a forty plus year career. She also served as book reviewer at one time on KPFA’s Probabilities radio program. The interview was recorded on November 19, 1986 with co-hosts Richard A. Lupoff and Richard Wolinsky. Hosted by Richard Wolinsky.
William Gibson is best known as the father of the Cyberpunk movement in science fiction, beginning with “Neuromancer” in 1984 and continuing to his most recent novel, “Agency,” published in 2020. Its prequel in the Jackpot series from 2014, “Peripheral” is now an Amazon Prime TV series. On February 4, 2003, he was in the KPFA studios on the book tour for his novel, “Pattern Recognition” and was interviewed by Richard Wolinsky
Derek Goldman, co-playwright (with Clark Young) and director of “Remember This: The Lesson of Jan Karski,” starring David Straithairn, playing at Berkeley Rep’s Peets Theatre through December 18th, in conversation with host Richard Wolinsky.
Julie Powell (1973-2022) was the best-selling author of “Julie & Julia,” which was based on her blog posts in which she duplicated all of Julia Child’s recipes in the classic Mastering the Art of French Cooking. She was interviewed by Richard Wolinsky on December 16, 2009 while she was on tour for her second (and it turned out, her last) book, Cleaving: A Story of Marriage, Meat and Obsession.
