Leonard Lopate at Large on WBAI Radio in New York

Michael Patrick MacDonald is the author of the New York Times best-selling memoir, "All Souls: A Family Story From Southie" and the acclaimed "Easter Rising: A Memoir of Roots and Rebellion." He has been awarded an American Book Award, A New England Literary Lights Award and a fellowship at the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Study Center. Michael is also a regular contributor to The Boston Globe’s opinion page. In this installment of “Leonard Lopate at Large” on WBAI, Michael Patrick MacDonald discusses the latest political developments in England and Ireland including Brexit and beyond.

From Abby Ellin's first date with the Commander, she was caught up in a whirlwind. Within six months he'd proposed, and they'd moved in together. But soon, his exotic stories of international espionage began to unravel. Finally, it all became clear: he was lying about who he was. In her book “Duped: Double Lives, False Identities, and the Con Man I Almost Married,” Abby Ellin studies the art and science of lying, talks to people who've had their worlds upended by duplicitous partners and writes with great openness about her own mistakes. In this installment of “Leonard Lopate at Large,” she talks about writing “Duped” and shares her unbelievable story.

The recipient of seven Emmys and five Tony Awards, Ed Asner is beloved for roles ranging from Lou Grant in “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” Santa Claus in the Will Farrell-comedy Elf and his starring role as Carl Fredrickson in the smash animated feature “Up.” Tovah Feldshuh, the recipient of the Eleanor Roosevelt Award and the Israel Peace Medal, is adored for her portrayal of such roles as Israel Prime Minister Golda Meir in “Golda’s Balcony,” the longest running one-woman play in Broadway history, and her portrayal of Danielle Melnick on NBC’s “Law & Order.” Starting January 20, the duo will star in an East Coast tour of concert readings of Jeff Cohen’s play “The Soap Myth.” Join us on “Leonard Lopate at Large” on WBAI for a conversation with Ed Asner and Tovah Feldshuh about their celebrated past performances and what it’s like working together in this current production.

Few world leaders have had the steely reserve of Winston Churchill. Impervious to the consensus of the day, the iconic British Prime Minister is known for standing firmly on his beliefs when nearly everyone else doubted him. But how did young Winston become the Churchill the world came to know? What gave him the strength to take on the superior force of Nazi Germany when bombs rained on London and so many others had caved? In this installment of “Leonard Lopate at Large,” Andrew Roberts, author of the comprehensive biography “Churchill: Walking with Destiny” explains what drove this towering figure figure of global politics in the 20th century.

Trumpeter, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and improviser Wadada Leo Smith has been a member of Chicago's legendary AACM collective for the past five decades. A finalist for the 2013 Pulitzer Prize in Music, he received the 2016 Doris Duke Artist Award and earned an honorary doctorate from CalArts, where he was also celebrated as Faculty Emeritus. A regular selection of the DownBeat International Critics Poll, In 2017 he topped three categories: Best Jazz Artist, Trumpeter of the Year and Jazz Album of the Year. Smith has released more than 50 albums as a leader on labels including ECM, Moers, Black Saint, Tzadik, Pi Recordings, TUM, Leo and Cuneiform. His diverse discography reveals a recorded history exploring the social, natural and political environment of his times with passion and fierce intelligence. His 2016 recording “America’s National Parks” earned the trumpeter-composer rave reviews and a place on numerous best-of-the-year lists including the New York Times and NPR Music. Join us for a special in-studio performance from Wadada Leo Smith in this installment of “Leonard Lopate at Large” on WBAI and a conversation about his storied career.

The Forbidden Bookshelf is a series of formerly banned books with the stated aim of “filling in the blanks of America’s repressed history by resurrecting books that focused on issues and events that are too often left in the dark, including abortion, organized crime, the CIA and financial inequality.” In this installment of “Leonard Lopate at Large,” Leonard talks to NYU professor of media studies Mark Crispin Miller who curates the series, about why he chose the works he did and discusses the complicated history behind some of the selections.

Dr. Gabrielle Bendiner-Viani is an urbanist, curator and artist known for her pioneering work in public arts and urban research for community engagement. Her recent public art and dialogue project, Intersection | Prospect Heights, in partnership with the Brooklyn Public Library, engaged thousands of New Yorkers on the critical subjects of displacement and development. In this installment of “Leonard Lopate at Large” on WBAI, Dr. Gabrielle Bendiner-Viani talks about her book “Contested City: Art and Public History as Mediation at New York's Seward Park Urban Renewal Area” and some recent local projects she’s been involved in.

Judith Weinraub is a former reporter and section editor for the Washington Post and the winner of two James Beard Awards. Andrew F. Smith is editor of the Edible Series of books. He teaches culinary history at the New School and is the author of The Encyclopedia of Junk Food and Fast Food. Ken Albala is Professor of History at the Ken Albala is Professor of History at the University of the Pacific and founder of the Food Studies MA program in San Francisco. In this “Food Friday” installment of Leonard Lopate at Large, Judith, Andrew and Ken discuss the origin of some of their favorite foods.

On today’s “Leonard Lopate at Large” on WBAI, Leonard talks biographer Arlene Corsano about Rose Marie McCoy, one of the only African-American women to be part of the legendary Brill Building songwriting scene. Tune into to hear about this songwriter who composed hits for legendary artists like Big Maybelle, James Brown, Ruth Brown, Nat King Cole, Aretha Franklin, Johnny Mathis, Bette Midler, Elvis Presley and Ike and Tina Turner.

Scientists predict that depression will be the largest cause of disability worldwide in the next 20 years. But treatment for it hasn’t changed much in the last three decades. In his new book “The Inflamed Mind: A Radical New Approach to Depression” released on December 31 on Picador, University of Cambridge Professor of Psychiatry Edward Bullmore reveals the link between depression and the inflammation of the body and brain. “The Inflamed Mind” goes beyond the clinic and the lab to examine how mind, brain and body all work together in an often-misguided effort to help us survive in a hostile world. In this installment of “Leonard Lopate at Large” on WBAI, Edward Bullmore discusses the science behind the methodology he outlined in the book.