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Unpacking the "Satanic Verses" Controversy

Novelist Salman Rushdie's new book has been banned in several countries because of what many see as its blasphemous take on Islam. Book critic John Leonard says the novel is indeed blasphemous, but Rushdie directs his ire ecumenically, critiquing Indian culture and Margaret Thatcher as well. The narrative is messy, but it's the messiness that makes it interesting.

03:54
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Other segments from the episode on February 14, 1989

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, February 14, 1989: Interview with Ellen Willis; Commentary on Charlie Rich; Interview with David Leavitt; Review of Salman Rushdie's novel "The Satanic Verses."
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27:52

Feminist Critic Ellen Willis

Willis is known for taking on diverse topics ranging from rock music, pornography, and domesticity. Now in her 40s, she is raising a child with her partner -- an arrangement, she admits, resembles the nuclear family in all but name. Willis is the senior editor at the Village Voice.

Interview
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06:30

An American Original Struggles for Success

Charlie Rich was a jazz enthusiast who wrote for many legendary country and rock musicians on the Sun Record Label. Rock historian Ed Ward says, for Rich, recording his own, original music was an afterthought. He had a few hits on various Memphis-area labels, but could never break through into the mainstream.

Commentary

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04:46

Four Years On, Salman Rushdie Is Lost to Sectarianism

Book critic John Leonard remarks on the fourth anniversary of the death-sentence that sent writer Salman Rushdie into hiding. He says that, despite support from the literary community, Rushdie has been unfairly mocked by critics and journalists.

Commentary
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27:29

Writer V.S. Naipaul

Naipaul was born to Indian Hindu parents in Trinidad. His international perspective has informed both his fiction and nonfiction, which are often set in post-colonial countries. His newest book, A Turn in the South, explores the culture of the United States' Southern states.

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Daughter of Warhol star looks back on a bohemian childhood in the Chelsea Hotel

Alexandra Auder's mother, Viva, was one of Andy Warhol's muses. Growing up in Warhol's orbit meant Auder's childhood was an unusual one. For several years, Viva, Auder and Auder's younger half-sister, Gaby Hoffmann, lived in the Chelsea Hotel in Manhattan. It was was famous for having been home to Leonard Cohen, Dylan Thomas, Virgil Thomson, and Bob Dylan, among others.

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This fake 'Jury Duty' really put James Marsden's improv chops on trial

In the series Jury Duty, a solar contractor named Ronald Gladden has agreed to participate in what he believes is a documentary about the experience of being a juror--but what Ronald doesn't know is that the whole thing is fake.

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