|
April 2001 Shows
Click on linked books to
explore buying them from the wgnradio.com/store
MONDAY 2ND APRIL
BAD MEDICINE
 GEORGE
D LUNDBERG M.D. the former Journal of the American Medical Association
editor who left after rushing to publish a study of sexual behavior with
apparent bearing on the Clinton impeachment, joins Milt as he embarks
on yet another controversial endeavor, the publication of his new book
SEVERED
TRUST: WHY AMERICAN MEDICINE HASN'T BEEN FIXED. Lundberg, who is now
Executive Vice President of Medscape, speaks out against American healthcare
and what he sees as its neglect of prevention, research and ultimately
of patient well-being.
TUESDAY 3RD APRIL
CULTURE DEAD AT THE ROOTS
 At
one time the classics were revered as the wellsprings of Western culture
and civilization. Yet now the great intellectual figures of Greek antiquity
are summarily dismissed as dead white European males (as though the citizens
of ancient Athens were somehow at fault for having the affront to die
before the intervening millennia) and therefore emblematic of oppressive
political and intellectual hierarchies . Tonight’s guest, classicist BRUCE
THORNTON, author of GREEK
WAYS: HOW THE GREEKS CREATED WESTERN CIVILIZATION and co-author of
the upcoming BONFIRE
OF THE HUMANITIES: RESCUING THE CLASSICS IN AN IMPOVERISHED AGE, provides
a contrary argument, that he believes demonstrates the foundational nature,
and continued relevance of the classics. Tune in tonight as we rescue
the world of Thucydides, Aristotle, Euripides, Plato and other ‘white
males’ from, to borrow Anthony Flew’s useful term, the fallacy of pseudo-refuting
categorization.
 WEDNESDAY
4TH APRIL
ULTIMATE JOURNEY
Go east, young man! That is exactly
what RICHARD BERNSTEIN of the New York Times did, as he embarked on a
journey retracing the path of an ancient Buddhist monk who crossed Asia
in search of enlightenment. The former Time Magazine Beijing bureau chief
joins Milt to discuss his new book ULTIMATE
JOURNEY, his thoughts on the future of Asia, and the search for enlightenment--and
with it, a necessary side-bar on U.S.-China relations.
THURSDAY 5TH APRIL
EDUCATION IN AMERICA
Though most would agree that the mind
is a terrible thing to waste, much disagreement has arisen in recent days
over the structure of the American education system. Tonight, we evaluate
vouchers, school testing, teaching reform, and a host of other education
issues currently on the table. Milt is joined in the studio by a panel
of Illinois education reform activists and scholars.
FRIDAY 6TH APRIL
THE NEWS IN REVIEW
Since the troubled 2000 Presidential
Campaign, our leaders have finally buckled down to the more serious business
of policymaking. A new administration, tax cuts, campaign finance reform,
education initiatives, debate over the future of American foreign policy,
and much more have been put on the table. Tonight, Milt is joined by an
expert panel which will attempt to sort out the news of the past few months
and its impact. Our guests will be PERI ARNOLD of the University of Notre
Dame, JOHN MC ADAMS of Marquette University, MIKE MC GUIRE of the Chicago
Tribune, and CHARLES WHEELAN of The Economist magazine.
 MONDAY
9TH APRIL
CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS HAS BEEN
TAPED. THE INTERVIEW WILL AIR AT A FUTURE DATE.
Over the course of two presidential
administrations, Henry Kissinger was the central figure in one of the
most important eras of American foreign policy. From negotiating the end
of the War in Vietnam to Cold War diplomacy with the Soviet Union and
China to the Middle East and Africa, Kissinger, along with Presidents
Nixon and Ford, articulated a new diplomacy, and controversy always followed.
Was he a master of Realpolitik, positioning the United States to
win the Cold War, or was he a cold-hearted manipulator? Milt discusses
the career of "Super K" with the noted journalist and author
CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS, whose new book THE
TRIAL OF HENRY KISSINGER reveals his less than stellar opinion of
the former Secretary of State. THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN TAPED AND WILL
AIR AT A LATER DATE. Please check back to wgnradio.com for further updates.
 TUESDAY
10TH APRIL
PHIL JACKSON INTERVIEW POSTPONED
Unfortunately, our interview with PHIL JACKSON about his new book
(co-authored with Charley Rosen ) MORE
THAN A GAME had to be postponed due to a scheduling conflict. We hope
to reschedule Coach Jackson for a later date. Please check back to this
site for more details on tonight's post-baseball show.
WEDNESDAY 11TH APRIL
THE STATE OF TELEVISION
A London news magazine once noted,
"Radio and television...have succeeded in lifting the manufacture
of banality out of the sphere of handicraft and placed it in that of a
major industry." While we at Extension720 disagree with the lumping
of radio into "banality", what of television? Tonight after
a ballgame, our panel discusses the current and future state of TV, ranging
from highs like The Sopranos to lows like...well, let’s have our panel
discuss that. Our guests will be STEVE JOHNSON of the Chicago Tribune,
Professor LAWRENCE LICHTY of Northwestern University, and JOANNE WEINTRAUB
of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
THURSDAY 12TH APRIL
COMICS
Take a break from your worries and join Milt and a panel of local comedians,
including WGN’s own STEVE COCHRAN and local talents BILL LEFF and PATTI
VASQUEZ, for a light-hearted look at the world of standup comedy. No heckling
please, as the stand-ups sit down for a discussion of their odd craft.
FRIDAY 13TH APRIL
MODERN THEOLOGY POSTPONED
 Denis
Diderot wrote, "Wandering in a vast forest at night, I have only
a faint light to guide me. A stranger appears and says to me: ‘My friend,
you should blow out your candle in order to find your way more clearly.’
This stranger is a theologian." Tonight we will try to shed light
on the state of modern theology with a diverse group of theologians representing
a number of faiths. DUE TO SCHEDULING PROBLEMS, THIS PROGRAM HAD TO BE
TEMPORARILY CANCELED. An interview with MALIKA OUFKIR, author of STOLEN
LIVES: TWENTY YEARS IN A DESERT JAIL, a memoir of her aristocratic
youth in Morocco turned upside down by her father's complicity in an assassination
attempt on the king.
 MONDAY
16TH APRIL
ARMED AND DANGEROUS
Ever play ‘Cops and Robbers’ when you were a kid? For our guest GINA GALLO,
being a cop was no game. She has spent a career with the Chicago Police
Department, and experienced just about everything while on the beat over
the years. She appears tonight after baseball to discuss her new book,
ARMED
AND DANGEROUS: MEMOIRS OF A CHICAGO COP.
TUESDAY 17TH APRIL
ISRAEL AND THE MIDDLE EAST
Milt hosts a wide-ranging discussion of Israel with three diverse but
knowledgeable commentators. Of course, we will review the tense situation
in the Middle East and the prospects for a lasting settlement--or a dangerous
downturn. Our guests will be TOM ROSE, the publisher and CEO of the Jerusalem
Post, CHAYA GIL, a Chicago attorney closely tied to Israel and to several
Jewish and Zionist organizations, and DONI REMBA, a political analyst
who served as chief foreign press translator in the Israeli Prime Minister's
office during the Camp David Talks in the 1970s.
WEDNESDAY 18TH APRIL
THE HISTORY OF CHICAGO
POLITICS
DICK SIMPSON, a former Chicago alderman, has recently published a history
of the Chicago City Council titled ROGUES,
REBELS, AND RUBBER STAMPS. He will join us in the studio along with
old Extension720 hands and experts in the tumultuous but always colorful
history of Chicago Politics, DICK CICCONE and MEL HOLLI.
THURSDAY 19TH APRIL
THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
In The Sign of Four, Sir Arthur Conan
Doyle’s famous detective speaks of "the unofficial force—the Baker
Street irregulars." Tonight, Milt is joined in the studio by three
present members of the Baker Street Irregulars, a famous Holmesian Society.
Our expert panel of Holmes aficionados includes TOM JOYCE, ELY LIEBOW,
and ROBERT MANGLER. We will be discussing the true life of Sherlock Holmes
and his adventures in this, the 100th anniversary year of the
publication of The Hound of the Baskervilles.
FRIDAY 20TH APRIL
BEER, OR NECTAR OF THE GODS
When Winter turns to Spring, young
men’s fancies turn to...beer? Yes, tonight on Extension720 after a ball
game, we will look at beers new and old, the best and worst, and where
to find them. Milt is joined in the studio by our expert pair of beer
enthusiasts, MARK DORNAN and ALAN DICHTY.
MONDAY 23RD APRIL
BASEBALL
Ahhh, Spring once again is upon us
and with it another year of Major League Baseball. When Dante wrote, "Abandon
all hope, ye who enter here", we assume he was not addressing Cub
fans at the outset of a new season. We will take a hopeful approach to
the upcoming campaign as Milt is joined by a tried and true panel of journalists
and former major leaguers. Play Ball!
TUESDAY 24TH APRIL
WEDNESDAY 25TH APRIL
Milt is benched for two nights as the
Cubs battle the Colorado Rockies in a late ballgame.
 THURSDAY
26TH APRIL
A REAGAN INSIDER and WALKING THE BIBLE
In a split show, Milt is joined live in the studio by the authors
of two significant books. In the first hour, MICHAEL DEAVER, a close adviser
and friend to President Ronald Reagan for more than three decades, will
discuss his new memoir A
DIFFERENT DRUMMER: MY THIRTY YEARS WITH RONALD REAGAN, providing a
true insider's look at the 40th President and his career. In our second
hour, Milt welcomes BRUCE FEILER, who traveled through three continents,
five countries, and four war zones in search of the true history
of the Bible. He has written a book about the experience, WALKING
THE  BIBLE:
A JOURNEY BY LAND THROUGH THE FIVE BOOKS OF MOSES.
FRIDAY 27TH APRIL
Once again, Milt is on the bench as
the Cubs invade San Francisco to take on the Giants in a late ballgame.
MONDAY 30TH APRIL
GANGSTERS
"As far back as I can remember,
I always wanted to be a gangster," declares Henry Hill at the beginning
of GoodFellas. Perhaps our guests tonight might have echoed this sentiment
by saying, "As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to study
gangsters." We will examine the history and future of "gangsterism"
in Chicago and elsewhere with JOHN DRUMMOND, ART SHAY, and JOHN TUOHY,
all old friends of the show and experts in the fascinating and infamous
history of gangsters.
Archive of previous show topics:
Sweet Home Chicago
Site
Map
|
