Crime

Pat Conroy's abusive father tried to groom him for a career in the Marines. Conroy instead became a novelist who incorporates autobiographical details into his fiction.

For those who missed the theatrical release, critic Ken Tucker recommends watching the suspense film on home video.

Director Tim Hunter's new movie is about a teenage murderer and the impact his actions have on his friends. The movie stars Dennis Hopper, Keanu Reeves, and Crispin Glover.

While some reviewers think River's Edge could become the Blue Valentine of 1987, film critic Stephen Schiff says the film suffers from a weak message and poor casting.

Ann Rule is a former police officer who became a crime writer. Her new book, Small Sacrifices, documents the case of Diane Downs, who shot three of her children, killing one of them.

Irwin Blye is a private investigator who has coauthored a book about his trade. He joins Fresh Air to talk about what his day-to-day work looks like--in contrast to the detectives of novels and films.

Scott Turow received a $200,000 advance for his legal thriller Presumed Innocent. Despite his financial success, Turow, a practicing defense attorney, says that no one in their right mind should believe they can make a career solely as a writer.

Sarah Paretsky's novels feature women detectives who are every bit as tough as their hard-boiled male counterparts. Her work subverts classic tropes of vulnerable virgins and femme fatales. Her newest book is called Bitter Medicine.

After appearing in the hit film The Untouchables, Kevin Costner stars in No Way Out, based on the book The Big Clock. The movie also features the excellent Gene Hackman and Sean Young. Film critic Stephen Schiff says it's one of the best political thrillers--if you ignore the ending.

The jazz musician served time for crimes related to his heroin addiction. He left prison with his chops intact--he was often able to practice sax and perform for his fellow inmates.

Frank Deford, senior writer for Sports Illustrated and a commentator on National Public Radio's "Morning Edition." Some of his best essays from Sports Illustrated have been collected in a book titled The World's Tallest Midget.

Investigative reporter Jonathan Kwitny, author of Vicious Circles, which probed Mafia involvement with legitimate businesses. His new book, The Crimes of Patriots, chronicles the demise of the Nugan Hand Bank in Australia, a story that features many of the characters who figured prominently in the investigation into the sales of arms to Iran, and the diversion of those funds to the Contras.

Film Critic Stephen Schiff reviews "Best Seller," the cop thriller starring James Woods and Brian Dennehy.

CBS News Producer Leslie Cockburn. Since 1984, she has covered the United States' involvement with the Nicaraguan Contras. Her reports have aired on "60 Minutes" and "West 57th Street." Her new book is titled Out of Control: The story of the Reagan Administration's secret war in Nicaragua, the illegal arms pipeline, and the Contra drug connection.

Jan Harold Brunvand will explore the urban legends that have sprung up around computer glitches, the so-called "mystery glitches."

Television Critic David Bianculli previews "The Man Who Shot John Lennon," the "Frontline" documentary on Mark David Chapman. The program relies on audiotaped psychiatric interviews with Chapman, and on a close analysis of the novel The Catcher in the Rye, which Chapman followed as though it were a script for Lennon's murder.

Mike McAlary, a reporter for the New York paper Newsday. His book Buddy Boys reveals the drama behind one of the biggest New York City police corruption scandals since Serpico. Buddy Boys is the story of how two corrupt cops, Harry Winter and Tony Magno, consented to inform on fellow officers who were routinely robbing drug dealers and then selling the drugs.

Film critic Stephen Schiff reviews "Frantic," the new movie by director Roman Polanski and starring Harrison Ford. Ford plays an American cardiologist whose wife is kidnapped by Middle Eastern terrorists in Paris. Polanski's other films include "Chinatown," "Tess," "Repulsion" and "Rosemary's Baby."

George Cadwalader. A former Marine captain who was wounded in Vietnam, Cadwalader founded and ran the Penikese Island School for hard-core delinquent boys on a remote island off the coast of Massachusetts. It was run in a strict manner and used the techniques of survival schools like Outward-Bound, hoping to re-build character. But Cadwalader found that almost all of the boys ended up back in prison when they left the school.

Gene LePere. Her book, Never Pass This Way Again, documents her arrest and month-long detention in Turkey for allegedly smuggling archeological artifacts.