Author: Bill Thompson

How We Misunderstand And Undervalue The Human Breast

Bill Thompson

The popular actress Suzanne Somers recently became the latest high profile victim of breast cancer.

The CDC estimates that 42,000 women will die from the disease this year. So will a few hundred men.

October is, of course, Breast Cancer Awareness month. But a book that was written several years ago reminds us of how little we actually know about the human breast.

In 2012, acclaimed author and journalist Florence Williams researched and wrote a definitive volume called Breasts. A Natural And Unnatural History

And you’re going to be startled by how much we don’t know about the human breast.

So here now from 2012. Florence Williams

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Red Auerbach Reveals Secrets of Building a Celtics Dynasty

Bill Thompson
Photo by Steve Lipofsky Basketballphoto.com}

Perhaps no one in modern North American sports history was as successful at building a dynasty as the legendary Red Auerbach.

First as head coach, then as president and general manager of the Boston Celtics, Auerbach racked up16 championships over a 29-year span.

A brilliant strategist on the court, Auerbach was just as brilliant in the front office as he built a franchise that not only attracted and kept the top talent in the league, but also attracted and kept millions of fans all over the world.

In 1991 Auerbach wrote a book called MBA: Management by Auerbach. And that’s when I had a few minutes with the man. So here now from 1991 Red Auerbach.

Red Auerbach died in 2006, at age 89.

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Wilt Chamberlain

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Ariel Sharon And The Burden of Leadership

Bill Thompson

Israel and Hamas are at war. It’s the latest chapter in a long history of cconflict and struggle for the Jewish state

One who participated in many of those struggles and conflicts was Ariel Sharon.

I met him in the fall of 1989, when he published his autobiography, called Warrior.
So here now, from 1989, Ariel Sharon.

He was there in 1948 at the formation of the Israeli army,and rose steadily in the ranks in the years that followed.

Among the battles he saw: the 1956 Suez Crisis, the 1967 Six-Day War, the War of Attrition, and the Yom-Kippur War of 1973.

In the 1982 Lebanon War Sharon was Israel’s Minister of Defense.

And he served as prime minister of Israel from 2001 to 2006

Ariel Sharon died in 2014 just days before his 86th birthday.

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From the White House to the Teenage House: Liz Carpenter’s Unplanned Parenthood

Bill Thompson
Jenkins Garrett with Liz Carpenter in UTA Library’s Special Collections, 1987

Imagine this scenario: you have lived a full life as a war correspondent, an aide to a president, a press secretary to a First Lady, and a leader in important social movements.

And just as you have retired to what should have been a comfortable life you are suddenly thrust into being a parent again.

That is what really happened to Liz Carpenter, once a key figure in the Lyndon Johnson administration in the 1960s.

But when her brother died in 1993, his three unruly teenagers came to live with Liz Carpenter. And she found herself, at age 73, a mother once again.

In her 1994 book Unplanned Parenthood Carpenter describes the unique challenges she faced. But she also had some wise and insightful thoughts about those Generation X people she was raising, and their peers.

So here now, from 1994, Liz Carpenter.

Liz Carpenter died in 2010. She was 89.

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Leslie Nielsen: The Doctor of Comedy Who Made “Airplane!” Fly

Bill Thompson

Do you remember the very first time you saw the movie “Airplane”?

Even if you have never seen it, however, everyone knows its most famous lines.

At the time the movie was released in 1980, Leslie Nielsen had already been an established dramatic actor for decades.

But “Airplane” literally changed the entire course of his career, propelling him into comedy. The television series “Police Squad” was followed by the movie “Naked Gun”| and its sequels.

And by 1993, Nielsen had a book called Leslie Nielsen’s The Naked Truth. And that’s when I first met him.

So here now, from 19933, Leslie Nielsen:

Leslie Nielsen died in 2010. He was 84.

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Sister Souljah’s Tale of Urban Life

Bill Thompson

From her earliest days growing up in New York City and later in New Jersey, Sister Souljah was an activist.

Surrounded by the poverty and despair of an urban neighborhood, Sister Souljah made it her mission to try to change things.

She became a strong voice for change, through writing, film, and music.

In 1999,she wrote her first novel, a book called The Coldest Winter Ever. And that’s when I met her.

So here now, from 1999. Sister Souljah.

Sister Souljah will be 60 next month.

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From Drummer to Author: Jacob Slichter’s Rock & Roll Journey/

Bill Thompson

If you really want to know what it’s like to be a rock star, just ask one. But you are not likely to get a more honest answer then you will from Jacob Slichter, drummer for the band Semisonic.

Slichter’s 2004 book So You Wanna Be a Rock & Roll Star was widely praised for its frank – some would say brutally honest – assessment of the music industry.

Semisonic was formed in 1995, and over the next decade saw the good, the bad, and the really, really ugly of the music business.

Jacob and I talked about his book one fine midsummer day. So here now from 2004 Jacob Slichter.

Jacob Slichter is 62 now. He and Semisonic still perform publicly.

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Richard Dawkins on Evolution, Creationism, and the Blind Watchmaker

Bill Thompson
Photo by Steve Jurvetson

Were Adam and Eve real? Or is the story of creation found in Genesis just a myth?

British evolutionary biology professor Richard Dawkins is a prominent figure in the worlds of science and atheism, known for his eloquent writings on evolution and his critique of religious beliefs.

In early 1988 I had the chance to interview Dawkins about his bestselling book The Blind Watchmaker and how it challenged the traditional view of a divine creator.

So here now, from 1988. Richard Dawkins.

Richard Dawkins is now 82.

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Sidney Sheldon’s Secrets to Writing Page-Turning Novels

Bill Thompson

On just about any list of the best selling novelists of all time you’ll find the name Sidney Sheldon.

In a nearly 40 year writing career – which followed a nearly 30 year television, movie and Broadway career – Sheldon sold over 300 million copies of his books worldwide.

Oh, and about that earlier career? Sidney Sheldon is the one who created The Patty Duke Show, I Dream of Jeannie, and Hart To Hart.

He started writing novels at age 50.

And if you’re a Sidney Sheldon fan, you know that once you start reading one of his novels, it’s really hard to put it down.

And he made it look so easy! If you ever wondered what makes his books so captivating, well, it may be a once in a generation confluence of skill, talent, and luck.

In my several interviews with him, I tried to draw out his secrets of writing. In 1988, for example, we talked about his novel The Sands of Time. And I got some fascinating insights.

So here now, from 1988, Sidney Sheldon.

Sidney Sheldon died in 2007, just days before his 90th birthday./

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Kathleen Willey’s Accusations Against the Clintons

Bill Thompson

Kathleen Willey was a White House volunteer in the Clinton administration in its first year, 1993. And it was in November of that year that Willey says Bill Clinton sexually assaulted her in the Oval Office.

Mr. Clinton denied her allegations. And Willey’s detractors, including Linda Tripp, questioned her veracity.

Willey then claims that she was subjected to threats and intimidation from the Clintons and their supporters, charges that she elaborated on in a 2007 book period that’s when I had the chance to speak with her.

In November 2007, Hillary Clinton’s campaign for president was gathering steam, and I questioned Willey about the timing of her book.

So here now, from 2007, Kathleen Willey.

Kathleen Willey is now 77, and lives in Virginia.

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