Ralph Ellison, winner of the National Book Award for Fiction for his book "Invisible Man," discusses his early life and education and his life as a writer and lifetime scholar. He speaks on being a musician (trumpet), the joy of music and the Church and how they fit into the lives of African Americans.

Interviewing Dr. Meir Yoeli Israeli poet and physician.

Poet Maya Angelou and journalist Tom Wicker discuss life in the U.S. South and how the region’s history has shaped its culture. Topics of discussion include social dynamics and race in the South, the concept of “home” and what it means to return to one’s roots, and religion in the South. Angelou reads excerpts of her poetry, including “Still I Rise” and “Phenomenal Woman,” and shares spiritual songs from her childhood.

Terkel interviews author Jonathan Yardley on his latest book. This book titled "Ring" is a biography of the sports writer columnist Ring Lardner.

Terkel interviews Jonathan Wordsworth about his great-great uncle William Wordsworth.

Terkel interviews famous playwright Tennessee Williams. Williams gives his own reflections on his 70th birthday.

Poets Gregory Corso, Allen Ginsberg, and Peter Orlovsky, speak with Studs Terkel about their influences and what made them into the poets they are. Terkel reads a preface, written by William Carlos Williams, to Ginsberg’s poem “Howl.”

Terkel interview author Geoffrey Wolff about his latest book. Entitled "Black Sun," it is a biography of Harry Crosby.

Content Warning: This conversation includes racially and/or culturally derogatory language and/or negative depictions of Black and Indigenous people of color, women, and LGBTQI+ individuals. 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. After hearing Martin Luther King, Jr.

Studs Terkel and Allen Ginsberg talk about poetry, meditation, and the shifting of American socio-political consciousness between the 50's and 70's.

Writers Allen Ginsberg and William S. Burroughs discuss life and their writing; passages from their writing are read by the authors and clip is played of interview with Allen Ginsberg, Gregory Corso, and Peter Orlovsky.