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Fresh Air Weekend: Max Brooks On COVID-19 Preparedness; Playwright Terrence McNally

A reporter wearing a latex glove raises his hand to ask President Trump a question during a coronavirus briefing at the White House on March 16.
Win McNamee
/
Getty Images
A reporter wearing a latex glove raises his hand to ask President Trump a question during a coronavirus briefing at the White House on March 16.

Fresh Air Weekend highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks, and new program elements specially paced for weekends. Our weekend show emphasizes interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors and musicians, and often includes excerpts from live in-studio concerts. This week:

'All Of This Panic Could Have Been Prevented': Author Max Brooks On COVID-19: Brooks became an expert on disaster preparedness — from pandemics to nuclear war — while researching his books, World War Z, Germ Warfare and the forthcoming Devolution.

Ella Fitzgerald And Louis Armstrong Go 'Cheek To Cheek' On A 4-Disc Set: Fitzgerald's warm, yet ultra-cool voice was at the opposite pole of jazz singing from Armstrong's gravelly growl. There's absolutely no reason their voices should blend so effortlessly — but they do.

'Fresh Air' Remembers Broadway Playwright Terrence McNally: McNally, who died March 24 due to complications related to COVID-19, won Tony awards for Love! Valour! Compassion!, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Ragtime and Master Class. Originally broadcast June 1993.

You can listen to the original interviews and review here:

'All Of This Panic Could Have Been Prevented': Author Max Brooks On COVID-19

Ella Fitzgerald And Louis Armstrong Go 'Cheek To Cheek' On A New 4-Disc Set

'Fresh Air' Remembers Broadway Playwright Terrence McNally

Copyright 2021 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air.

Terry Gross is the host and executive producer of NPR's Fresh Air.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.