Mary Roach talks about her latest book, “Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law,” which examines the way mankind interacts with animals living in nature, from bear burglary to how to avoid hitting a camel. Hosted by Richard Wolinsky.
Radio Wolinsky
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.
Frank Herbert (1920-1986), in a recently unearthed interview from 1981 for the “Probabilities” radio program, discusses his early career, his work with pulp magazine editors, the original publication story of “Dune” as well as some of the concepts in the story.
Stephen Greenblatt discusses “Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare” with host Richard Wolinsky, from 2005.
Mick LaSalle, author of Dream State: California in the Movies, and film critic for the San Francisco Chronicle, in conversation with host Richard Wolinsky. Recorded as a Zoom event for KPFA, edited for audio. A wide-ranging discussion that includes a look at the work of French director Eric Rohmer, movie viewing during the pandemic, the rise of long-form television, and the real reason why Dorothy should never have gone back to Kansas.
Third in a series of interviews recorded for an abandoned documentary on George Gershwin. Kitty Carlisle Hart (1910-2007) dated George Gershwin for three years in the mid-1930s. In this brief phone interview from 2001, she discusses her relationship with the composer, as well as her work with the Marx brothers and in the early days of television. Hosted by Richard Wolinsky.
Margaret Atwood, in conversation with Richard Wolinsky, discussing her books, Moral Disorder, Writing with Intent and The Penelopiad, recorded in December, 2006 in the KPFA studios. Fifth in a series of seven interviews with the legendary writer.
Isaac Asimov, who died in 1992 at the age of 72, was one of science fiction’s greatest writers. The author of the Foundation Trilogy, “I Robot,” “The Gods Themselves,” and several other novels, along with over a hundred other books, he is widely recognized as a writer for the ages. This interview with host Richard Wolinsky was conducted on August 10, 1983 for KPFA’s Probabilities radio series. Photo/Illustration: Creative Commons
W.P. Kinsella, author of the now classic novel Shoeless Joe, which became the film Field of Dreams, died on September 16, 2016 at the age of 81. In this archive interview recorded April 19, 1988, he talks about the book and his career with Richard A Lupoff and Richard Wolinsky.
Tony Horwitz (1958-2019) discussing his book, “Midnight Rising: John Brown and the Raid That Sparked the Civil War,” with host Richard Wolinsky, recorded November 12, 2011.
Jack Arnold was the most important director of science fiction films in the 1950s, including “It Came From Outer Space,” “Creature from the Black Lagoon” and “The Incredible Shrinking Man,” among others. He also directed the Peter Sellers classic “The Mouse That Roared.” In 1980, the Probabilities crew, Richard A. Lupoff, Lawrence Davidson and Richard Wolinsky interviewed Jack Arnold in his office at Universal Pictures in Hollywood. This in-depth interview has never been presented in its entirety, and has not been available for nearly forty years. Digitized and re-edited by Richard Wolinsky in July, 2021.