Escaping Medusa: The Secret of Lightness

By: Sunday January 16, 2011 9:30 am

There was a frightening heaviness to the days following the Tucson shootings. Some years ago, Italo Calvino perfectly described the feeling I had last week: At certain moments I felt that the entire world was turning into stone: a slow petrification, more or less advanced depending on people and places but one that spared no [...]

FDL Movie Night: Phil Ochs: There But For Fortune

By: Monday January 3, 2011 5:00 pm

Set against the backdrop of the 1960s through the end of the Vietnam War, Phil Ochs: There but for Fortune traces the life and music of singer songwriter Phil Ochs, who committed suicide in 1976. Ochs was a driven artist and activist who sense of social justice was at times in conflict with his desire for recognition, a tragic American hero with a history of bipolar disorder whose life and work was deeply enmeshed with the cultural and political tapestry of his time.

Evangeline, the Oil Spill and Highway 61

By: Sunday June 13, 2010 9:30 am

I was 18, skinny, out of money and in New Orleans for the first time after some Appalachian adventures and a visit to Nixon’s D.C. I faked a cocky walk into a French Quarter piano bar and stayed until closing time when the brunette singer in a sequined costume gown took pity on me. We [...]

Late Night: Hank Williams and the Pulitzer

By: Tuesday April 13, 2010 8:00 pm

On Monday, the Pulitzer Prize Board awarded Hank Williams a Pulitzer Special Citation for his lifetime achievement as a songwriter, praising his craftsmanship as a songwriter who expressed universal feelings with poignant simplicity and played a pivotal role in transforming country music into a major musical and cultural force in American life.

When First Unto This Country

By: Sunday March 14, 2010 9:30 am

You could see it coming. Somewhere, a young boy in a dinosaur t-shirt holds his dying mother’s hand and remembers that the distant voice on the phone, the Insurance Voice, said simply, “No.” He could be forgiven for fearing he’d spoken to someone he shouldn’t have.

You could see it coming. Wall Street banks are too big to fail, and the black-souled ghouls of hate radio and FoxNews tell us our neighbors’ lives are too small to save.

FDL Movie Night: The People Speak

By: Monday March 8, 2010 5:00 pm

Howard Zinn’s monumental book, A People’s History of the United States lifted the curtain on the traditional American narrative, revealing class struggles, dissent and the efforts of everyday Americans, people of color, women, day laborers, migrant workers to gain and live with the rights promised in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

In The People Speak, Zinn is joined by a group of talented actors and musicians in bringing these people’s stories to life. Morgan Freeman, Viggo Mortensen, Marisa Tomei, Sean Penn, Rosario Dawson, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, David Starthairn, Danny Glover, Kerry Washington, Benjamin Bratt, Sandra Oh, Jasmine Guy, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Pink, Eddie Vedder, John Legend, DMC, Chris Robinson and Rich Robinson are among the stars lending their voices to The People Speak, a documentary based on A People’s History of the United States and Voices of a People’s History of the United States, the companion volume of 200 primary sources, co-created with Anthony Arnove.

Late Late Night FDL: Tweet Me When The Revolution Begins

By: Wednesday March 3, 2010 10:00 pm

It’s been nearly two years since I posted what may be my favorite Late Late Night youtube of all time. I’ve been listening to it quite a bit as of late and had to share it once again.

Protect Social Security
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Upcoming FDL Book Salons

Saturday, May 18, 2013
2:00 pm Pacific
Little Red: Three Passionate Lives Through the Sixties and Beyond [Angela Davis, Tom Hurwitz, Elliott Abrams]
Chat with Dina Hampton about her new book. Hosted by David Farber.

Sunday, May 19, 2013
2:00 pm Pacific
Fighting for the Press: The Inside Story of the Pentagon Papers and Other Battles
Chat with James C. Goodale about his new book. Hosted by Kevin Gosztola.


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