Fishko Files from WNYC

Some of the major struggles and victories of the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s coincided with a most active period for jazz music. WNYC's Sara Fishko looks at a few cases where the movement and the music came together, in this edition of Fishko Files. Featuring music by Max Roach, Duke Ellington, and Dave Brubeck, among others. Max Roach's We Insist! Freedom Now Duke Ellington's My People Dave Brubeck's The Gates of Justice Louis Armstrong, Dave Lambert, Jon Henricks, and others' The Real Ambassadors

A documentary film about the late, infamous lawyer Roy Cohn premieres tonight. As WNYC's Sara Fishko tells us, the variety of films and dramatic portrayals of Cohn reveal a figure both fascinating and repellent. More in this episode of Fishko Files. Bully. Coward. Victim. The Story of Roy Cohn premieres tonight at 9pm on HBO. Where's My Roy Cohn?, Point of Order, Citizen Cohn, and the HBO miniseries Angels in America are available to stream or buy online.

The Depression-era novel Miss Lonelyhearts, by Nathanael West, has been called "the purest expression of despair that American literature has produced, in any era." As WNYC's Sara Fishko tells us in this Fishko Files, 80 years after the author's death the book - about the descent into darkness of an advice columnist - still rings true. Miss Lonelyhearts is available to order online. Jonathan Lethem's upcoming novel, The Arrest, will be published this November. You can find more Lethem on West in "The American Vicarious" (The Believer, 2009). For more on Lowell Liebermann, visit his website. Thanks to Rex Doane for lending his voice to our excerpts from Miss Lonelyhearts.

20 years ago, a book by David Margolick reminded us of the power of a historic song about lynching, Strange Fruit - made famous by the great Billie Holiday. As Americans march against systemic racism, this archival Fishko Files with Lena Horne and others on the song that some say changed the world. (Produced in 2000)

After the opening of the September 11th Memorial and Museum, record-breaking crowds traveled to Ground Zero, to the exact spot where the tragedy happened. In this archival edition of Fishko Files, WNYC's Sara Fishko asks - why?

New York-born master filmmaker Alan Pakula produced To Kill a Mockingbird and directed Sophie's Choice, but, as WNYC's Sara Fishko and guests tell us, he's also known for a trio of dark and urgent thrillers which are not getting old - they're getting new. (Produced in 2018)

In the 1940s, author James Agee's film criticism revealed his unusually artful take on Hollywood movies. 65 years after his death, WNYC's Sara Fishko and guests explore Agee's lifelong passion for cinema. (Produced in 2005)

In this crisis, we're all looking at things a little differently, including movies both new and old. Are we losing ourselves in culture, or are we finding ourselves? A little of both, says WNYC's Sara Fishko, in this episode of Fishko Files. The Best Years of Our Lives, Rear Window, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Gold Diggers of 1933, and Follow the Fleet are all streaming now on Amazon.

This Monday is May 4th, otherwise known as 5/4 - which has become an unofficial "Dave Brubeck Day" over the years, in tribute to the jazz pianist and composer's most celebrated tune, "Take Five" (1959), written in 5/4 time. WNYC's Sara Fishko talked to Brubeck [b. 1920, d. 2012] in 2004.

Charlie Chaplin entertained his way through the crises of the 20th century: his first appearance on the screen coincided with the start of World War I. During the Great Depression, audiences flocked to his Modern Times, a memorably satirical take on the era. He lampooned Hitler in The Great Dictator in 1940. Later on, he had a run-in with McCarthyism. A look back at the dramatic life of Chaplin's "Tramp" character in this episode of Fishko Files. (Produced in 2014)

Joel Meyerowitz's new book is called "How I Make Photographs." But nearly 20 years ago he became known for another book, one that documented the armies of workers turning chaos into order after the 9/11 attacks. WNYC's Sara Fishko has more in this Fishko Files. Joel Meyerowitz's photographs of Ground Zero can be seen in the Phaidon book Aftermath. His latest book, How I Make Photographs, is out now. For more books and photographs, visit joelmeyerowitz.com.

We learned earlier this week of the death of the remarkable and absolutely irreplaceable music producer Hal Willner, whom Sara Fishko interviewed at length and profiled for a Fishko Files in 2018. Willner died of complications from coronavirus. His knowledge and love of music - and sense of fun - gave an indelible, personal slant to everything he produced.

During the last presidential campaign season, Elia Kazan's film A Face in the Crowd caught on for the way its story mirrored, to some degree, that of our current president's rise to power. As we watch the official, increasingly self-promotional daily briefings on our current crisis, Face comes to mind again. Though WNYC's Sara Fishko recommends here that it be seen with others, "in the dark," it might be even more effective to see it alone, in your place of isolation. (Produced in 2016)

In the '60s, says WNYC’s Sara Fishko, the very eccentric Marshall McLuhan educated us all about the power of television and, ultimately, computers - and how they would someday connect us. He’s the subject of this edition of Fishko Files. (Produced in 2011)

With the world in crisis, in a scattered, work-from-home mode, we’re also watching from home. Years ago, in challenging times, late night TV became our "cultural glue," as WNYC's Sara Fishko tells us in this archival Fishko Files. (Produced in 2001)