Search results for

Film director Carl Reiner. He was a writer and appeared in Sid Caesar's Your Show of Shows. He's best-known to baby boomers as the creator and writer of The Dick Van Dyke Show. His film direction credits include The Jerk and Bert Rigby, You're a Fool.

President Clinton today vetoed a bill to repeal the federal estate tax. The veto sets up a confrontation with Congress as early as next week. It also continues the election-year debate over what to do with the federal budget surplus. Pam Fessler reports.

Janet Heimlich reports Texas authorities are taking a "softly, softly" approach to a stand-off with a family at the center of a custody dispute. The family has barricaded itself into a homestead on 47 acres in a remote area of eastern Texas. The family is drawing support from militia groups.

Osteoporosis is fast becoming one of the nation's leading health care problems. NPR's Alison Richards has part two of her series on the disease. She reports on two things that could prevent osteoporosis: increasing calcium intake and increasing vigorous exercise. The calcium issue is tricky, because our bodies are programmed to absorb only a small amount of the calcium we take in. And our more sedentary lifestyles make it hard to get all the weight-bearing exercise we need.

NPR's Michael Sullivan reports that the trial of former Indonesian President Suharto opened today in Jakarta, but Suharto failed to appear. A team of 24 doctors attending the former president told the judge they had examined Suharto earlier in the day and that he was too ill to go to court. The trial now has been postponed for two weeks to allow the court to rule on a prosecution request for an independent medical examination of Suharto. He is charged with illegally siphoning off some 500-million dollars from charities during his three decades in power.

Linda talks with Hod Lipson, a research scientist at Brandeis University about a robot he and computer scientist Jordan Pollack designed, which constructs other robots. He says this is a new step towards the autonomy of artificial life.

The annual Jobs Rated Almanac, by Les Krantz has been released. It rates 250 occupations from the best to the worst based on five criteria. All Things Considered asked some workers where they thought their jobs would place. (2:30) Jobs Rated Almanac 2001, by Les Krantz is published by Griffin, ISBN # 0312260962.

A cheery story by Franz Kafka about an executioner called In the Penal Colony has been turned into a pretty opera by Phillip Glass. It's being directed by Glass' former wife, celebrated theater director Joanne Akalaitis. The work is premiers in Seattle tonight at ACT Theater. It travels to Chicago in November. Marcie Sillman, of member station KUOW, reports.

The cottontail rabbit used to be a common sight among the oak forests and mountain trails of New England. No more. NPR News correspondent John Nielsen reports on a request by conservationists to put what once was thought to be the most procreatively successful American animal on the endangered species list.

Phillip Davis reports on the political battle surrounding rising hurricane insurance rates in Florida. Florida insurers have used a scientific model they commissioned to argue that global warming means that Hurricane strength will continue to increase in the coming years, thus the need for rate increases. State meteorologists are not convinced. But efforts to get money appropriated for an independent state study have been killed by the insurance lobby.