Fresh Air with Terry Gross, March 17, 1992: Interview with Joel Blau; Interview with Lawrence Block; Review of the television show 'MGM: When the Lion Roars.'

Since its national debut in 1987, Fresh Air with Terry Gross has been a highly acclaimed and much adored weekday magazine among public radio listeners. Each week, nearly 4.8 million people turn to Peabody Award-winning host Terry Gross for insightful conversations with the leading voices in contemporary arts and issues. The renowned program reaches a global audience, with over 620 public radio stations broadcasting Fresh Air, and 3 million podcast downloads each week. Fresh Air has broken the mold of 'talk show' by weaving together superior journalism and intimate storytelling from modern-day intellectuals, politicians and artists alike. Through probing questions and careful research, Gross's interviews are lauded for revealing a fresh perspective on cultural icons and trends. Her thorough conversations are often complemented by commentary from well-known contributors. Fresh Air is produced at WHYY-FM in Philadelphia and broadcast nationally by NPR.

INT. 1: Homeless expert JOEL BLAU (rhymes with "plow"). Blau spent years as a policy analyst for the city of New York, trying to solve their homeless problem. He eventually became disillusioned with government's approach to dealing with the homeless. He explains the fallacy of some of our basic assumptions about the homeless in his new book, "The Visible Poor: Homelessness in The United States." (It's published by Oxford University Press). REV. 1: Veteran crime novelist LAWRENCE BLOCK. He's written nine novels staring Manhattan private eye Matt Scudder. His latest is called "A Ticket To The Boneyard." REV. 2: Television critic David Bianculli reviews "MGM: When the Lion Roars." It's an eight-hour documentary about the MGM studios. It premieres this Sunday on the TNT cable network (which by the way is owned by the same man who owns MGM, Ted Turner).