Terry Gross

Writer Jay Stevens has a new book about the creation of LSD in the 1940s, research into its therapeutic and weaponized potential in the 1950s, and its role in the 1960s counterculture--fueled in part by the influence of people like Timothy Leary, Ken Kesey and Aldous Huxley.

Phil Tippett worked on TV ads before creating stop-motion animation for feature films. He says there was no demand for his skills in the industry until recently, in part because the technique was associated with B-movies. His credits include Return of the Jedi, Dragonslayer and RoboCop.

Poet Mark Halliday is inspired as much by popular culture and music as he is by the work of other poets. His latest collection is called Little Star.

Painter and sculptor Red Grooms joins Fresh Air to discuss how he made it as an artist in New York City, and how movies and urban landscapes inform his work. A retrospective of his art is being shown at the Whitney Museum.

Surf guitar legend Dick Dale joins Fresh Air to talk about how he developed his signature style. He's featured in the new Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon movie Back to the Beach.

The musical theater actress walked away from Broadway, only to return to the stage as a cabaret singer. Cook was recently featured in a concert version of Follies and stars in a new musical revue.

Jazz critic Francis Davis says John Carter's new album, Dance of the Love Ghosts, is both experimental and structurally sound; each "electrifying" track needs to be heard in its entirety.

Folk musician Michael Cooney returns to Fresh Air to perform two classic love songs.

Critic-at-large Laurie Stone considers the contradictions of the up-and-coming comedian, and how she defends herself against hostile male critics.

Singer Dion, from Dion and the Belmonts, is making a comeback singing Christian songs. He joins Fresh Air's Terry Gross to talk about his early career, growing older, and getting sober.