Larry Mantle broadcasts live from outside the Mohn Broadcast Center as the Great American Eclipse moves through Southern California, hearing from listeners all over the country as they watched the eclipse. We also parse through the week’s news in politics; explore why Jerry Lewis was such a polarizing comedian; and more.
AirTalk’s live coverage of the Great North American Eclipse
Nearly a century has passed since North America witnessed a total solar eclipse.
Not sure exactly how to define an eclipse? An eclipse, which lasts a handful of minutes, occurs when the sun, Earth and moon move in alignment with each other, according to NASA. In fact, that kind of rare celestial occurrence from coast to coast hasn’t been seen in the continental U.S. since 1918. But in California, the moon is expected to block around 70 percent during peak eclipse.
A total solar eclipse, where the moon will completely obscure the sun, will occur across a 70-mile-wide path across 14 states from Salem, Oregon to Charleston, South Carolina. In this path of totality, the sun’s corona will be visible to viewers.
Whether you’re an eclipse chaser or eclipse newbie, it’s worth noting to avoid looking directly at the sun unless you’re wearing solar eclipse glasses. And take a cue from Popular Science’s guide to photographing an eclipse. The next solar eclipse is scheduled to take place in 2024 and 2045.
Comment below to share your experience of watching the solar eclipse of the century.
Guests:
Sanden Totten, host of “Brains On!,” a science podcast for kids, and a science writer for “Bill Nye Saves The World," which airs on Netflix
Leo Duran, KPCC reporter and producer and Take Two, who is at the Griffith Observatory
Mike Roe, digital news producer for KPCC; he and his family are traveling to to the “Solar Port” at the Madras Municipal Airport Madras in Oregon
John Horn, host of KPCC's The Frame; he and his family are in Madras, Oregon
Alex Cohen, KPCC's Morning Edition host, who is at Kidspace Children's Museum in Pasadena
Alisha Roemeling, K-12 education reporter at The Register-Guard, a daily newspaper for Eugene, Springfield and Lane County, Oregon; she’s been following the story and tweets
Angelica Carpenter, community news and sports reporter for the Blue Mountain Eagle, a weekly newspaper covering Grant County in Eastern Oregon; she’s been following the story
Rylan Boggs, reporter for the Blue Mountain Eagle, a weekly newspaper covering Grant County in Eastern Oregon; he tweets
Week in politics: What Bannon’s departure means for White House policy and Breitbart
As the Trump administration begins its first week without its chief strategist Steve Bannon, we ask what effect his removal has on White House policy and Breitbart News.
Bannon, who shared the president’s nationalist tendencies, departed the White House last week after serving for seven months.
His exit is the latest in a string of high-profile West Wing departures and controversies. It came amid deadly protests in Charlottesville, Virginia during which Trump equated white supremacists and neo-Nazis with left-wing protesters who stood against them.
Trump said both sides were to blame for the violence in Charlottesville during a press conference intended to review his new infrastructure plan. On the show today, we’ll circle back to the shakeups in the federal permitting process for new bridges and highways.
We’ll look into an article published in The Guardian on Monday about Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his efforts to bring back the tough policies in effect during the United States’ war on drugs. Trump is also expected to deliver a prime-time speech on Afghanistan and updates to the country’s military presence there Monday night.
We have a preview of his anticipated remarks.
Over the weekend, Trump also tweeted about Boston’s “free speech” rally.
I want to applaud the many protestors in Boston who are speaking out against bigotry and hate. Our country will soon come together as one!
On Saturday, tens of thousands of counter protesters attempted to quell the Boston rally, which they feared would be attended by white-supremacist groups. In Laguna Beach, a regular monthly pro-Trump “America First!” vigil also attracted a sizable group of counter-protesters. We have details from both events.
Guests:
Charles Kesler, professor of government at Claremont McKenna College and editor of the Claremont Review of Books
Caroline Heldman, associate professor of politics at Occidental College and author of the forthcoming book, “Protest Politics in the Marketplace: Consumer Activism in the Corporate Age” (Cornell University Press, 2017); she tweets
RIP Jerry Lewis: What made the comedy legend so polarizing?
Comedy legend Jerry Lewis, 91, died in his Las Vegas home on Sunday from natural causes, according to his publicist.
As reported by the Associated Press, Lewis suffered from lung disease pulmonary fibrosis, back problems and had a pain killer addiction. He was best known for his outlandish slapstick comedy and annual muscular dystrophy telethons. For those not familiar with his loud, physical comedic style, he is referenced as being an influence on Jim Carrey.
Lewis began his career at age five, performing in his parents’ vaudeville act. He went on as part of a duo with Dean Martin, which gave Lewis international fame and put his mark on radio, theater, television and film.
His most notable films include “The Bellboy” and “The Nutty Professor.” The French famously loved Lewis’ comedy, and he was awarded the Chevalier of the Legion of Honor in 1983 by the French government. Throughout his career, it was also reported that Lewis was so into his work that he would sometimes forget to eat. Even at 90, the comedian said he still woke up at 4:30 or 5am to work on his writing.
But as acclaimed as Lewis was, there were those who felt his comedy was more obnoxious than funny. Larry looks back with a former film critic, to talk about Lewis' life, work and the polarizing feelings behind his comedy.
Guest:
Shawn Levy, former film critic for The Oregonian (1997 to 2012) and author of “King of Comedy: The Life and Art of Jerry Lewis” (St. Martins Press, 1997); his latest book is “Dolce Vita Confidential: Fellini, Loren, Pucci, Paparazzi, and the Swinging High Life of 1950s Rome” (W.W. Norton & Company, 2016); he tweets