Steve Fast

Journalist Michael Ware joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss his interview with the Dalai Lama. Ware traveled to India to meet with the Dalai Lama for the National Geographic program "Explorer."

American Museum of Natural History biologist Bill Schutt joins the Steve Fast Show to discuss the history and practice of one of the biggest taboos in human history: eating one's own. Schutt is the author of "Cannibalism: A Perfectly Natural History."

In 2015, best-selling author Douglas Preston joined an expedition to find a long-lost city in the jungles of Honduras. "The Lost City of the Monkey God" held legendary status in folklore. Preston joined The Steve Fast Show to discuss what he found in the jungle... and what he brought back with him.

Social psychologist Adam Alter joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss the latest research that suggests that the use of electronic devices, such as smart phones and tablet devices might be addictive.

Author Renee Rosen joins The Steve Fast Show along with Terry Chess, son of Phil Chess. Rosen's novel "Windy City Blues" is set at Chicago's legendary Chess Records, founded by Phil and Leonard Chess.

American Bar Association Journal editor Kevin Davis joins The Steve Fast Show to talk ab out the "broken brain" defense and the intersection between neuroscience and the courtroom.

The western "High Noon," is considered one of Hollywood's classics. But the production of the film was threatened when screenwriter Carl Foreman was called to "name names" by the House Un-American Activities Committee. Author Glenn Frankel joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss the "High Noon" and the anti-Communist movement of the 50's.

What does it take for the police to root out "bad apples?" From 1996 through 2014 Charles Campisi headed New York City Police Deparment’s Internal Affairs Bureau. Campisi joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss some of the most infamous incidents of police misconduct in the NYPD and also how the Internal Affairs division worked to keep cops in line.

Veteran television producer Peter Engel's biggest hit was the teen sitcom "Saved by the Bell." Engel joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss how creating the show changed his life, and discusses some failed tv efforts, including a talk show hosted by John Lennon.

Author Steve Sheinken joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss the small Native American school that produced one of America's greatest football teams. Carlisle Indian School was led by Jim Thorpe, who had one of the greatest performances in the history of college sports in a game that was the largest upset of the era: Carlisle vs. Harvard. The shocking fact: the Native American Carlisle athletes didn't have the status of U.S. citizenship.

William T. McBride from the Illinois State University department of English discusses the free film series "Alfred Hitchcock - Master of Style" he is hosting at the Normal Theater.

Journalist Michael Ware, formerly of CNN and TIME, joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss two stories on which he's reported: the modern persecution of witchcraft in Papua New Guinea , and the emergence in Russia of a nationalist biker gang, the "Night Woves."

Ray Kroc took the family burger stand of Dick and Mac McDonald and turned the fast food restaurant into a franchise juggernaut. New York Times and MSNBC reporter Lisa Napoli joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss Ray Kroc as well has his wife Joan. Napoli is author of "Ray and Joan: The Man Who Made the McDonald's Fortune and the Woman Who Gave It All Away."

Journalist Mark Sundeen joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss people who have embraced the "off-the-grid" movement, rejecting everything from grocery stores to hospital care in exchange for a self-sustaining lifestyle

Before Edward Snowden’s infamous data breach, the largest theft of government secrets was committed by a U.S. Air Force sergeant whose espionage scheme and complex system of coded messages were made even more baffling by his dyslexia. Journalist Yudhijit Bhattacharjee joins The Steve Fast Show to talk about Brian Patrick Regan, the traitor who came to be known as The Spy Who Couldn’t Spell.

Journalist and author Mark Weston joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss the history of "runner-up" presidencies, where the electoral college supersedes the popular vote. Donald Trump's victory in 2016 was only the fifth time in U.S. history that a president won the electoral vote but lost the popular vote.

Former CIA Senior Analyst John Nixon was the first intelligence agent to interview Saddam Hussein after the Iraqi leader had been captured by coalition forces. Nixon joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss the surprising revelations that came from Hussein's interrogation and the reaction that came from the Bush administration.

Acclaimed biographer and music historian Peter Guralnick discusses the early days of rock 'n' roll and Sun Studios founder Sam Phillips, the man who discovered Elvis Presley.

Hollywood icon Jimmy Stewart served in the Army Air Corps during World War II. His experiences flying bombing missions had a lasting impact on the actor. Biographer Robert Matzen says Stewart made the classic film "It's a Wonderful Life" while working through PTSD. Matzen discusses Jimmy Stewart's war experiences on The Steve Fast Show.

"The Master of the Telecaster," Bill Kirchen is known for his twangy guitar style, exemplified by the hit song "Hot Rod Lincoln." Kirchen joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss his early career with Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen, developing his country-influenced style of music in psychedelic San Francisco, and the time Bob Dylan visited his Michigan high school.

Rubik's Cube frustrated millions in 80's. And the obsession with solving the puzzle has led to a new generation of "speed cubers."Journalist and Cube-enthusiast Ian Scheffler joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss the origins, and resurgence, of Rubik's famous puzzle.

Entrepreneur Elon Musk has announced his company SpaceX has the goal of taking passengers to Mars. Journalist Joel Achenbach has covered this ambitious plan. Achenbach joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss the feasibility of setting up settlements on the Red Planet.

Author Craig Nelson discusses some of the overlooked aspects of the attack on Pearl Harbor, including a mystery warning the origin of which remains unsolved 75 years later.

Former Secretary of State and diplomat Henry Kissinger has been hailed as "indispensable" by some and a war criminal by others. Historian Niall Ferguson discusses Kissinger's unlikely rise to prominence and the roots of the ideology that informed the advice given to multiple U.S. presidents.

Good Morning America advice expert Liz Pryor had a secret she kept from her friends and family for over 30 years. Pryor joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss her teenage pregnancy and her memoir "Look at You Now"

Former presidential candidate and political reform activist Ralph Nader discusses the election of Donald Trump, the impact of third party candidates on the race, and tells Steve Fast the issue he hopes Trump will address right away.

Outspoken former Minnesota governor (and former pro wrestler), Jesse Ventura joins the Steve Fast Show to discuss the need for alternative political parties, his relationship with Vladimir Putin, and his crusade to legalize marijuana.

Will the House flip? Former Salon.com editor David Daley joins the Steve Fast Show to discuss how an effort to redraw Congressional districts in 2010 has protected a number of Republican incumbents in swing states.

He is stung for science. Repeatedly. Entomologist Justin O. Schmidt joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss his mission to catalog the sting of insects, and rate the level of pain.

D. Randall Blythe has no memory of colliding with a stage diver during a 2010 Prague performance by his band Lamb of God. When the band returned to perform in the Czech Republic two years later, however, police arrested him at the airport and charged him in connection with the fan's death. Blythe joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss his trial for the equivalent of manslaughter and his time waiting for trial in a notorious Czech prison.

"Clean desk" policies are common in the working world. Author Tim Harford suggests those policies are a waste of time. Journalist and economist Harford joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss how research shows that messiness can lead to productivity and creativity.

Aviation journalist and crash investigator Christine Negroni joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss the biggest misconceptions about plane crashes and provide her theory of what happened with the mysterious disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.

Edward Conard, founding partner of Bain Capital, says that the problems of wage stagnation and the fading fortunes of the middle class can't be laid at the feet of the one percent who hold most of the country's wealth. Conard, author of "The Upside of Inequality: How Good Intentions Undermine the Middle Class," joins the Steve Fast Show to discuss income inequality and the challenges of slow growth and lower wages.

American University professor Alan J. Lichtman has developed a model for predicting who will win presidential elections. Using his "13 Keys," Lichtman has correctly predicted every presidential race since 1984. Lichtman tells Steve Fast who the model says will be in the Oval Office in 2017, and why he says the current race "totally unprecedented."

Actress and songwriter Linda Thompson chats with Steve Fast about her marriage to Bruce Jenner, her romance with Elvis Presley, and life in and out of the public eye. In her memoir "A Little Thing Called Life," Thompson writes about how then-husband Jenner revealed his transgender identity to his wife years before coming out publicly.

How can Hillary Clinton be unpopular but still lead in the polls? Shawn Parry-Giles, author of "Hillary Clinton in the News" joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss how the media covers Clinton as "inauthentic."

Andrew Matheson, lead singer of "the greatest rock band you've never heard," The Hollywood Brats, chats about the flameout of the group that influenced The Sex Pistols and the UK punk scene.

Music journalist Steve Miller discusses the controversial culture that surrounds the Insane Clown Posse. In his book "Juggalo," Miller details how the FBI investigated the band's fans and labeled them as a dangerous gang.

Why are some fossils famous? Author Lydia Pyne joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss "celebrity skeletons" such as Lucy and the infamous Piltdown Man.

Novelist Megan Abbott chats with Steve Fast about her book "You Will Know Me." The thriller was inspired by a shot of the family members watching their daughter compete in a 2012 Olympic gymnastics competition.

From 2009: Elliot Tiber spoke with Steve Fast about his role in helping organizers of the 1969 Woodstock music festival. Tiber saved the festival from being canceled by providing a permit for the event. His story was turned into the film "Taking Woodstock." Tiber died in August, 2016, just ahead of the 47th anniversary of the Woodstock festival.

The people of Denmark are frequently voted "the happiest in the world" in global surveys. Jessica Alexander joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss how Danes foster happiness from the youngest age. Alexander is the author of "The Danish Way of Parenting."

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Cay Johnston has been covering Donald Trump's business dealings for three decades. Johnston joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss what he has learned about Trump's real estate empire and financial dealings. Johnston is the author of "The Making of Donald Trump."

From firing missiles from drones to catching Pokemon: journalist Greg Milner joins The Steve Fast show to discusses how GPS technology is altering our lives. Milner is the author of "Pinpoint: How GPS Is Changing Technology, Culture, and Our Minds."

Historian Marc Wortman joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss the divided state of American public opinion on the issue of U.S. involvement in World War II before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Wortman is author of "1941: Fighting the Shadow War."

New York Times science reporter Donald J. McNeil Jr. discusses the emergence of the zika virus on The Steve Fast Show.

In 1984 attorney Morris Dees sued the Ku Klux Klan on behalf of the family of murdered a 19-year-old Alabama man Michael Donald. Journalist and author Laurence Leamer discusses the case, and his book "The Lynching: The Epic Courtroom Battle That Brought Down the Klan" on The Steve Fast Show.

Sports psychologist Dr. Jonathan Fader joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss the mental techniques he teaches pro athletes. Fader is the author of the book "Life as Sport."

Activist and author Ron Kovic joins The Steve Fast Show to discuss his personal experiences with veterans' medical care. Kovic is well known for his memoir "Born on the Fourth of July."

Author Nathaniel Philbrick discusses Revolutionary War villain and hero Benedict Arnold on The Steve Fast Show. Philbrick, author of "In the Heart of the Sea" and "Mayflower," writes about Benedict Arnold and George Washington in his book "Valiant Ambition."

Mary Roach talks about stink bombs and hot pepper weapons on The Steve Fast Show. Roach is author of "Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War."