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Debut Director David Russell on His Dark Family Drama

Russell is the writer and director of the movie “Spanking the Monkey." It's about Raymond, who returns after his freshman year at MIT to find he has to spend the summer caring for his mother, who’s broken her leg. His loneliness, combined with his mother’s depression, results in a dark comedy about mother-son incest. “Spanking the Monkey” won the Audience Award for the most popular dramatic film at the Sundance Film Festival in January.

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Other segments from the episode on July 13, 1994

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, July 13, 1994: Interview with John Heylar; Interview with David O. Russell; Review of Shari Benstock's book "No Gifts from Chance."
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22:33

Salary Negotiations in Professional Baseball

John Helyar's new book, “Lords of the Realm,” looks at the corporate world of baseball. Instead of tracing the history of the game through its players, Helyar focuses on the behind the scenes people-- the agents, owners, and general managers-- who shaped baseball. He's is a reporter for The Wall Street Journal and co-author of the New York Times bestseller, Barbarians at the Gate.

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