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WP Distinguished Lecturer Series presents An Evening with Terry Gross, Host of National Public Radio’s Fresh Air

Thursday, March 13, 2025 @ 7:30pm



William Paterson University - Shea Center for Performing Arts
300 Pompton Rd, Wayne, NJ 07470

Combine an intelligent interviewer with a roster of guests that, according to the Chicago Tribune, would be prized by any talk-show host, and you’re bound to get an interesting conversation. Fresh Air interviews, though, are in a category by themselves, distinguished by the unique approach of host and executive producer Terry Gross. “A remarkable blend of empathy and warmth, genuine curiosity and sharp intelligence,” says the San Francisco Chronicle. Gross, who has been host of Fresh Air since 1975, when it was broadcast only in Greater Philadelphia, isn’t afraid to ask tough questions. Fresh Air not only covers popular culture, it’s become part of it. The program and Gross have been name-checked on Saturday Night Live, Girls, HBO’s Eastbound and Down, and How I Met Your Mother. Gross played herself on an episode of The Simpsons and has been a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

Gross began her radio career in 1973 at public radio station WBFO in Buffalo, New York, where she hosted and produced several arts, women’s and public affairs programs, including This Is Radio, a live, three-hour magazine program that aired daily. Two years later, she joined the staff of WHYY-FM in Philadelphia as producer and host of Fresh Air, then a local, daily interview and music program. In 1985, WHYY-FM launched a weekly half-hour edition of Fresh Air with Terry Gross, which was distributed nationally by NPR. Since 1987, a daily, one- hour national edition of Fresh Air has been produced by WHYY-FM. The program is broadcast on nearly 600 stations and became the first non-drivetime show in public radio history to reach more than 5 million listeners a week.

Fresh Air with Terry Gross received the Peabody Award in 1993 for its “probing questions, revelatory interviews and unusual insight.” In 2022 the show was awarded the Peabody Institutional Award “for their enduring body of work and their iconic impact on both the media landscape and the public imagination.” Terry Gross has received a Gracie Award in the category of Outstanding Radio Personality from American Women in Radio and Television; the Edward R. Murrow Award for her “outstanding contributions to public radio;” the National Book Foundation’s Literarian Award for outstanding service to the American literary community; the 2008 Columbia Journalism Award given in recognition of exceptional journalistic performance; the Modern Language Association’s Phyllis Franklin Award for Public Advocacy of the Humanities; the Authors Guild Award for Distinguished Service to the Literary Community; the National Humanities Medal from the National Endowment for the Humanities; and the Audio Vanguard Award. In 2015, Gross was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2023 she was named the PEN/Faulkner Literary Champion, an award presented by the PEN/Faulkner Foundation; this commendation is presented in recognition of devoted literary advocacy and a commitment to inspiring new generations of readers and writers. Gross is the author of All I Did Was Ask: Conversations with Writers, Actors, Musicians and Artists, published by Hyperion in 2004.




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Blues

Blues People with Special Guest: Jeff Levine

Saturday, July 05, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Lizzie Rose Music Room
217 E. Main Street, Tuckerton, NJ 08087
category: music

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Straight

Straight No Chaser - Summer: The 90’s Part 2

Tuesday, July 08, 2025 @ 7:00pm
Bergen Performing Arts Center (bergenPAC)
30 North Van Brunt Street, Englewood, NJ 07631
category: music

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Frisson

Frisson Winds

Thursday, July 10, 2025 @ 7:30pm
The Morris Museum Back Deck
6 Normandy Heights Road, Morristown, NJ 07960
category: music

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Three

Three American Troubadours: A Tribute to James Taylor, Carly Simon, and Carole King

Thursday, July 10, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Axelrod Performing Arts Center
100 Grant Avenue, Deal Park, NJ 07723
category: music

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Candlelight

Candlelight Concert: Tribute to Queen and The Beatles

Friday, July 11, 2025 @ 7:00pm
Monmouth University - Pollak Theatre
400 Cedar Avenue, West Long Branch, NJ 07764
category: music

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EVENT PREVIEWS

Jazz

Jazz Concert at Trenton City Museum will Feature the Joe Baione Vibraphone Experience

(TRENTON, NJ) -- Trenton City Museum will present a free jazz concert Friday, July 18, 2025 at the museum's Ellarslie Mansion in Cadwalader Park. Featuring world-renowned vibraphonist Joe Baione, the Joe Baione Vibraphone Experience is the first group to perform in a series of jazz events leading up to the museum's 2026 TRENTON MAKES JAZZ exhibition, in collaboration with the City of Trenton.



The

The Newton Theatre presents Tonight's the Night - a tribute to Rod Stewart

(NEWTON, NJ) -- Tonight's the Night - a tribute band that celebrates the music of Rod Stewart - will perform at The Newton Theatre on Saturday, September 27, 2025 at 8:00pm.



Hoboken's

Hoboken's Sinatra Park to Host Concert by Freedy Johnson and Karyn Kuhl and the Gang

(HOBOKEN, NJ) -- Local events organizer, Geri Fallo, who retired last year, is inviting you to celebrate with her, as she embraces new and exciting endeavors. Come enjoy a free evening of music in Hoboken's Sinatra Park (525 Sinatra Drive) on Thursday, July 17, 2025. The evening is presented by Mayor Ravi Bhalla, The Hoboken Division of Cultural Affairs, and Geri Fallo. The event is free, and music starts at 6:30pm. Come early for the best seating.



An

An Interview with Dan Kurtz of The New Deal

Formed in 1999, Toronto, Canada based trio The New Deal, is a pioneer in jam-based electronic music. The group was founded by remaining members Dan Kurtz (bass) and Jamie Shields (keys), along with Darren Shearer (drums) who left tND in 2011. Since its inception, tND has remained committed to its improvisational roots and has served as a model for other jamtronica bands bridging the gap between multiple music genres as well as the border between Canada and the United States.



Two

Two NJ Jazz Musicians Will Play with The Jazz Ambassadors in Morristown

Pianist Anthony Pocetti grew up in Hamilton, NJ, studying piano, "doing sort of traditional piano lessons. I have an uncle who was always encouraging me to get into the jazz thing. He gave me the (Miles Davis) Kind of Blue CD, and he knew that the jazz pianist Jim Ridl was living in Hamilton."




 

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