Entertainment

Up until recently, Joseph R. Gannascoli played mob captain Vito Spatafore on The Sopranos. Then he got whacked. Before that, Gannascoli's character was "outed," having been spotted dancing in leather chaps at a gay bar. Now he moves on to his writing career: His new crime novel, A Meal to Die For, is about a mobster and gourmet chef who has been summoned to prepare a feast for a boss who is about to be sent to jail.

Jeff Goldblum recently returned to his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pa., to star alongside his new girlfriend in a two-week run of The Music Man. Directors Chris Bradley and Kyle LaBrache filmed Goldblum's escape from celebrity, resulting in a genre-bending documentary with appearances by Ed Begley, Jr., Illeana Douglas and Moby. Goldblum talks about Pittsburgh, which he produced.

Actor Seymour Cassel has roles in the new TV series Heist and the film Lonesome Jim. Cassel, who comes from a showbiz family, has been acting in film and TV since 1959. His mother worked in Burlesque, and Cassel grew up backstage, amid chorus girls and sequins.

Actor Andre Braugher stars in the new series Thief, which debuts at 10 p.m. Tuesday on FX. Braugher plays Nick Atwater, leader of a small gang of thieves. Braugher is best known for his work on the TV series Homicide: Life on the Streets.

Singer, musician and folklorist Mick Moloney's new album, McNally's Row of Flats, centers on theater songs by an Irish songwriting team from the late 1800s. In those days, Vaudeville and minstrelsy were giving way to American Musical Theater in New York City.

The new film Thank You for Smoking follows a fictional American tobacco lobbyist as he defends the rights of smokers with double-talk and snappy irony. The satire is based on the novel of the same name by Christopher Buckley.

Actress S. Epatha Merkerson just won the triple crown of television honors: an Emmy, a Golden Globe, and a Screen Actor's Guild award. To many Law and Order viewers, Merkerson will always be Lt. Anita Van Buren.

Brian Walker, son of Hi and Lois creator Mort Walker, has co-edited a new book that traces the history of America's funny pages in the 20th century. Walker now writes the Hi and Lois strip with his brother, editor Greg Walker, and illustrator Chance Browne.

Actor, producer, writer, director George Clooney directed and co-wrote the new film Good Night, and Good Luck, about the showdown between legendary journalist Edward R. Murrow and Sen. Joseph McCarthy that took place in 1954. Clooney also has a role in the film, portraying Murrow's producer Fred Friendly. The film is receiving much critical acclaim.

Actor Luke Wilson's new film The Family Stone depicts the annual holiday gathering of a New England family. Wilson plays Ben Stone, a film editor living on the West Coast.

In time for the holidays, Fresh Air presents an in-studio concert. Singer Rebecca Kilgore, trombonist Dan Barrett and pianist Rossano Sportiello played at the NOLA studios in Manhattan.

In The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, actor Tommy Lee Jones stars as a laconic Texas ranch foreman who sets off on an honor quest to bury his murdered friend in his hometown in Mexico. The film marks Jones' directorial debut and has garnered the Oscar-winning actor accolades for his work behind and in front of the camera. Jones also produced Burials, which was written by Guillermo Arriaga, the screenwriter for Amores Perros.

Actor Dennis Quaid's new film is a family comedy called Yours, Mine, and Ours. He first became famous for Breaking Away in 1979; he has starred in a slew of hit films since then. Quaid's resume includes The Right Stuff, The Big Easy, Innerspace, Great Balls Of Fire, Any Given Sunday, The Day After Tomorrow, and Far From Heaven.

Jimmie Dale Gilmore's new album — his seventh — is called Come on Back and it's a memorial to his late father. He died of ALS in 2000. The album includes version of his dad's favorite songs like Pick Me Up on Your Way Down and Walkin' The Floor Over You. Gilmore was born, raised and lives in Texas. He has been recording solo albums since 1988, when he released Fair and Square.

Actor Neil Patrick Harris is starring in the new CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother -- but most people know him as a teenage doctor in the early 1990s TV series Doogie Howser, MD, which is now available on DVD. Harris also played a parody of himself in the film Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle.

Actor and singer Tab Hunter's new book, Tab Hunter Confidential: The Making of a Movie Star, reveals his secret status as a homosexual in Hollywood. Hunter was a teen heartthrob in the 1950s and 1960s, starring in over 50 films including Damn Yankees, That Kind of Woman, and more recently, John Waters' Polyester.

Singer and pianist Shirley Horn died last week on October 21st at the age of 71. In 1992, Horn took part in a concert and interview with Fresh Air. Playing with her was her long time drummer Steve Williams and bassist Charles Ables (who died in 2002).

Actor Adam Goldberg wrote and directed the new movie I Love Your Work, a meditation on the culture of celebrity.

From 1950 to 1956, the team of Martin and Lewis were America's favorite entertainers. A new memoir from Jerry Lewis details how their 10-year partnership was destroyed. Dean and Me: A Love Story details life behind the scenes of 16 films and numerous TV and club shows.