Blanche Wiesen Cook, historian, professor, and author discusses her book, "The Declassified Eisenhower," and explains Eisenhower's peace and war beliefs. She describes his beliefs at the end of World War II and his relationships with fellow generals and leaders.

Birgit Nilsson talks about her career and her roles with musical interludes.

Studs Terkel interviews Birgit Nilsson about her role Leonore in Fidelio at the Lyric Opera. This is an inverview done in two parts.

Studs Terkel interviews Birgit Nilsson during her time playing Leonore in Fidelio.

Studs interviews Billy Taylor (Jazz pianist and commentator for Jazz Alive radio program), who discusses the creativity of jazz musicians, the Jazz Mobile, and relationships between musicians. Taylor also mentions a large variety of Jazz musician influences. Studs plays various pieces of Jazz from a diverse pool of musicians. Taylor provides details about the Jazz Mobile's traveling show and education of Jazz music. There are no music recordings in this edited version.

Studs interviews Billy Taylor about his performance at the Rick's Cafe at the Holiday Inn in Chicago. They discuss what has influenced Billy Taylor's jazz music. Taylor explains some of his work with various other jazz musicians. This edited version does not include the music recordings.

Studs interviews Billy Taylor about his career in Jazz. Taylor shares stories about other Jazz musicians who influenced him. They discuss the improvisation in Jazz music, drug addiction of musicians, and the work Taylor is doing with the Jazz Mobile. Taylor discusses the different sounds of Jazz and describes the White House Jazz Festival that President Jimmy Carter hosted. This edited version does not include the music that is in the original version.

Content Warning: This conversation has the presence of outdated, biased, offensive language. Rather than remove this content, we present it in the context of twentieth-century social history to acknowledge and learn from its impact and to inspire awareness and discussion. Former Chicago White Sox owner Bill Veeck Jr. reminisces about baseball and the American way of life.

Bill Russo talks about the commedia dell'arte production being staged at the Center for New Music at Columbia College Chicago. The production includes two pieces, "Pedrolino's Revenge" and "Isabella's Fortune".

Bill McKibben, author and environmentalist discusses his book "The End of Nature." McKibben talks about climate and weather, greenhouse gasses, fossil fuels, chlorofluorocarbons, and carbon dioxide. He also explains how climate change could damage the ecosystems including birds. He ends the interview discussing what can be changed such as solar power.

As a teenager growing up, Bill Mauldin thought he’d be an airline pilot or a submarine captain. He didn’t have ambitions to be a cartoonist until he realized that drawing was the one thing he was good at. Mauldin’s book, “The Brass Ring: A Sort of Memoir,” covers his background, his influences, and stories from time spent in the Army.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

The game of baseball today is very different from when Bill Leonard was a young boy. Today, the last names of baseball players are on the backs of their uniforms. When Leonard was a boy, his father would tell him who was up to bat solely by the player's walk or his stance. The selling of players' contracts to other teams is when Leonard believes the business of baseball changed. This recording includes snippets of author Lawrence Ritter's interviews with early 20th century ballplayers Sam Crawford, Goose Goslin, Fred Snodgrass, Rube Marquard, and Chief Meyers.

Studs interview with Irishman, Bill Leahy, on the political complexities surrounding Ireland in the 1960s-1970s. Leahy provides some historical background of the IRA and British colonial occupation of Ireland. They discuss Irish music, the Civil Rights Movement in Ireland, and contemporary myths about Ireland. Several Irish songs were played, but many of the titles were not captured. Planksty's music was played twice.

Bill Cunningham, Jesuit priest and lawyer, discusses some court cases he has participated in. He talks about the Berrigan Brothers who protested against the Vietnam War. Cunnginham also talks about the Rice-Poindexter case, where two Black Panther Party members were charged for murder. He also discussed the Freedom of Information Act and the COINTELPRO the FBI's Counter Intelligence Program. Studs reads poetry from David Rice and plays a song by Hank Ferguson.