The interview begins with Wright Morris reading from a essay he had presented at a conference on Arts in Public. Wright Morris, an American novelist and essayist , discusses how society no longer participates in consuming the arts, only skimming the surface by reading a review. Mr Morris argues that the bulk of society does not embrace or learn from the past mostly due to the fact there is no knowledge and a lack of curiosity to gain that knowledge.

Discussing the book "Blue highways: a journey into America" with William Least Heat Moon.

Discussing the book "Very Old Bones" (published by Viking Press) with the author William Kennedy.

Discussing the book "The Flaming Corsage" (published by Viking) with the author William Kennedy.

Author William Kennedy, explains how he came up with the title for his book, "Riding the Yellow Trolley Car: Selected Nonfiction." Also in the interview, Kennedy talks about other writers: Patrick Kavanagh, James Joyce, Bernard Malamud and J.P. Donleavy.

Selections from the poetry anthology, The Portable Walter, are discussed.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

Journalist and writer Tom Wolfe discusses his controversial writings and his time spent as a celebrity figure.

The poet and journalist talks about abandoning his family's butter business to pursue a writing life in Paris where he became friendly with other writers, like Henry Miller and Ford Maddox Ford.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

Sontag reads from "Illness as Metaphor" and discusses differences between diseases, particularly tuberculosis and cancer, regarding historic understanding and cultural representation.

Studs Terkel and Jerzy Kosinski express their own views on the morality of protagonist George Levanter from Blind Date. Terkel sees him as a vigilante whereas Kosinski sees him as a responsible social reformer. Kosinski states that ethics are viewed differently by Europeans based upon their history of invasions and betrayal which lends itself to an individual code of ethics as exemplified by George Levanter.