Poul Anderson (1926-2001), noted science fiction and fantasy author, winner of seven Hugo Awards and three Nebula Awards, in conversation with the late Lawrence Davidson, recorded for the Probabilities radio program on KPFA on June 10, 1978.

The late Poul Anderson, who died on July 31, 2001 at the age of 74, is considered one of the greatest science fiction and fantasy authors of the twentieth century. He even has an asteroid named in his honor. Known for his hard science writing, in particular his Polysotechnic League series as well as his Landry series and his Time Patrol series, he was also a master of fantasy. There were also historical novels and mysteries. His career began in 1947 at the age of 21 with stories in Astounding Science Fiction, and he became a professional writer a year later. One of his novels became a film, the Hugo nominated novel, The High Crusade, in 1994 about an alien spaceship landing in medieval England. It is currently not streaming in the United States though if you search, you can find a DVD copy. As with many of the writers of the pulp and paperback era, Poul Anderson is ripe for rediscovery.

After Probabilities got its start in 1977, it was natural that the Orinda-based writer would become a guest on the show, though his libertarian politics put him at odds with much of the KPFA audience. This conversation with co-host Lawrence Davidson, recorded June 10, 1978, was likely Davidson’s very first solo interview and came before the show’s focus turned to the history of modern science fiction. For some unfathomable reason, Lawrence seemed to keep turning the focus to Anderson’s politics, to which the writer finally explained, a little exasperated, that he was basically a story-teller.

The interview was digitized, remastered and edited on February 22, 2026, using the Adobe Podcast app to remove noise and echo.

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Lady Antonia Fraser, noted writer of English history and biography, discusses her book, “The Six Wives of Henry VIII” with Probabilities hosts Richard Wolinsky and Richard A. Lupoff, recorded November 17,1992 while she was on tour in San Francisco.

With the arrest of the former Prince Andrew, we can look back at other scandals in the history of England, such as the story of Henry the Eighth and his six wives, seen through the eyes of the great historian Antonia Fraser.

Antonia Fraser, now age 93, is best known for her various biographies and non-fiction works, often focusing on women in history and on various members of the British crown. She is also the author of several mysteries featuring her amateur detective, Jemima Share, published between 1977 and 1995, followed by two omnibus collections. At present, there are 17 works of history, plus three memoirs, one of which, Must You Go: My Life with Harold Pinter, about her life married to the late playwright who died in 2008, was published in 2010. Antonia’Fraser’s most recent book, Caroline Lamb: A Free Spirit, was published in 2023.

Along with her discussion of English history, she also talks about her work as a mystery writer and her then most recent Jemima Shore novel, The Cavalier Case.

The interview ends with a look at her next book, The Gunpowder Plot: Terror and Faith in 1605, which would be published in 1996.. She would return on tour for that book, and the second of two Probabilities/Cover to Cover interviews.   This interview was digitized, remastered and edited by Richard Wolinsky on February 20, 2026. An edited for time version aired in 1992, and the complete version has never seen the light of day until now.

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John Fisher, Artistic Director of Theatre Rhino, and writer/dictor/actor in “Left Field,” which runs at Theatre Rhino from February 19th to March 15th , in conversation with Richard Wolinsky. Recorded February 4, 2026.

Theatre Rhino is the longest running LGBTQ+ theatre company in America, and John Fisher has been its Artistic Director since 2002. His latest show, “Left Field” is about a gay man from San Francisco who, through a bizarre series of events, winds up as President of the United States. Written as a response to the Trump regime and its fascist agenda, “Left Field” is a comedy with serious overtones about a man who finds himself in the presidency with a completely opposite series of priorities.

In this interview, John Fisher discusses the process of working on “Left Field,” and goes into detail about what an actor perceives on stage, and the changing Bay Area theatre audience.

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John Sayles, author of the novel “Crucible” and director of eighteen independent films, including “Lone Star,” Eight Men Out” and “The Secret of Roan Inish” in conversation with Richard Wolinsky. They are joined by Maggie Renzi, John Sayles’ producer on fourteen of his eighteen films.

John Sayles is best known for his work as a director, screenwriter and actor, though this is his sixth novel. Among the films he directed are Lone Star, Sunshine State, Eight Men Out, Matewan, The Brother from Another Planet, Baby It’s You and Passion Fish. His acting credits include small roles in several films, and he wrote the screenplay for the films he directed. Maggie Renzi, his wife, produced fourteen of his eighteen films, and acted in several of them. She is currently producing John’s upcoming western film, to be shot in Spain in Summer, 2026.

In the first part of the interview, John Sayles discusses the real-life events behind his novel, “Crucible,” set between the 1920s and 1940s in Detroit  and Brazil and focusing on Henry Ford, and the workers at his plants, and his attempt to create a rubber plantation and city in the jungles of Brazil. In the second part, he and Maggie Renzi talk about the making of his films, from his early days as a screenwriter to some of his later work, including the three films mentioned above and “Matewan,” along with difficulties in streaming rights.

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Delroy Lindo, actor and theatre director, in conversation with Richard Wolinsky in the KPFA studios in November 2008 while directing August Wilson’s play, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone at Berkeley Rep.

Actor and director Delroy Lindo was born in London and moved to the United States at the age of 16, eventually coming to San Francisco where he studied acting at ACT at the age of 24. In his early career, he focused on the stage, winning a Tony nomination in 1988 his role in the original Broadway production of August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. From there, he moved toward television and film, and performed in three Spike Lee films, including Do The Right Thing  and Malcolm X, along with Get Shorty, Romeo Must Die and other films.

More recently, he received acclaim for his role in Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods in 2018 and has been nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Delta Slim in the Ryan Coogler film, Sinners. In the interview, he discusses his work directing Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, as well as his views on directing and acting, and the work of August Wilson. First posted September 27, 2020.

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Hershey Felder discusses his world premiere stage show, “The PIano and Me,” playing at TheatreWorks Mountain View through February 8, 2026, with host Richard Wolinsky.

Over the past three decades, Hershey Felder has been performing one-person plays with his piano accompaniment, focusing on a variety of different composers, including George Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein, Tschaikovsky, Beethoven, Chopin and others. He has also created film versions of these and others, which can be found at his website, hersheyfelder.net.

“The Piano and Me” focuses on Hershey Felder’s own life, looking at his immigrant family who came to Canada after surviving the Holocaust, and his own education at the piano, from his first teachers to his more formal schooling, to the advent of his very first show, “George Gershwin Alone.”

In the interview, Hershey Felder talks about how this show came into being, his preparation for each performance, his work in film, and his view of live theatre today.

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John Varley (1947-2025), Hugo and Nebula Award winning science fiction novelist, who died on December 10, 2025 at the age of 78, in conversation with Richard Wolinsky, recorded in the KPFA studios July 17, 1992 while on tour for the novel “Steel Beach.”

John Varley hit the ground running with his first short story, “Picnic on Nearside,” published in 1974 in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. He was already considered the logical heir to Robert Heinlein by the time his novel, The Ophiuchi Hotline was published in 1977 and his short story collection, The Persistence of Vision a year later. He followed those books with a trilogy that included Titan, Wizard and Demon, then went to Hollywood for seven years. This Probabilities interview was recorded on July 17, 1992 when he returned to the field with his novel, Steel Dreams, first of two novels set in the Eight Worlds universe of his earlier work; the sequel, The Golden Globe, was published in 1998..

By the time of this interview, John Varley’s history with Hollywood would be over. You can find a PBS version of Overdrawn at the Memory Bank on Pluto TV, and two episodes from the TV show Paradox on You Tube. The film Millennium is not streaming. After The Golden Globe, John Varley wrote seven novels, most in a new series titled Thunder and Lightning. He returned to the Eight Worlds for his final novel, Irontown Blues, published in 2018. There would also be The John Varley Reader in 2004 and another collection in 2013.

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Laura Truffaut, daughter of the great French New Wave film-maker Francois Truffaut (1932-1984) in conversation with host Richard Wolinsky, discussing her father’s films and her memories of his film shoots.

Berkeley Art Museum & Pacifc Film Archive is presenting a retrospective of nine films of Francois Truffaut, beginning with his first film, “The 400 Blows” and continuing to his final film, “Confidentially Yours,” from January 17 to February 28th, all introduced by Laura Truffaut.

Francois Truffaut began his career as a critic for the influential French film magazine, “Cahiers du Cinema”, but within four years, following his article in the publication discussing his auteur theory of film criticism, he moved on to his first film, “The 400 Blows,” which blew everyone away at the Cannes Film Festival. Twenty-one films followed, until his untimely death from a brain tumor at the age of 52. Along the way he made several masterpieces, including Jules et Jim, Day for Night, Small Change, The Wild Child, and The Soft Skin, to name a handful which will be at BAMPFA.

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Alan Furst, historical spy novelist, in conversation with Richard Wolinsky, recorded in the KPFA studios during the book tour for “Blood of Victory, September 26, 2002. This is a first-time podcast.

In this interview, he discusses his early career, resistance during World War II, and creating the unique atmosphere and characters in his books.His latest novel, Under Occupation, was published in 2019.

Alan Furst’s career took off with his novel Kingdom of Shadows in 2000, the sixth book in his series of stand-alone novels about heros and villains in Europe in the years leading up to, and including World War II.  Suffused with atmosphere, his books feel as if you’re living with the characters in those haunted times. Of course, there is added resonance as we live through what might be similar times today.

This is the second of five Bookwaves interviews with Alan Furst.

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Azar Nafisi,author of the best-selling memoir, “Reading Lolita in Tehran,”  in conversation with host Richard Wolinsky, recorded in the KPFA studios on January 12, 2009 while on tour for the memoir, “Things I’ve Been Silent About.”

Azar Nafisi burst on the literary scene in 2003 with her memoir, Reading Lolita in Tehran in 2003, which remained on the New York Times best seller list for 117 weeks. Born in Tehran, Iran, she came to the United States in 1997 and became an American citizen in 2008. A professor of literature, she’d previously written a critical study of the works of Vladimir Nabokov.

There would be a second interview with Azar Nafisi  in 2015 for her book about the importance of literature, The Republic of the Imagination.

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