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Fresh Air Weekend: Robert Redford, Ella Fitzgerald, Michael Sheen

Published December 14, 2013 at 9:00 AM EST

Fresh Air Weekend highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks, and new program elements specially paced for weekends. Our weekend show emphasizes interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors, and musicians, and often includes excerpts from live in-studio concerts. This week:

At 77, Robert Redford Goes Back To His Roots:Redford says filming All Is Lost was a "pure cinematic experience — the way films used to be." He talks with Fresh Air's Terry Gross about how it's been "sort of weird" being known for his good looks, and about how he nearly wasn't cast in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Ella Fitzgerald's Early Years Collected In A Chick Webb Box Set: "This is it," Webb said of Fitzgerald. "I have a real singer now. That's what the public wants."

Michael Sheen On The 'Accuracy And Invention' Of Real-Life Roles: Sheen has made a name for himself playing real historical figures, including Mozart, Caligula, Prime Minister Tony Blair and British TV host David Frost. Now, in the Showtime drama Masters of Sex, he plays the part of groundbreaking sex researcher William Masters.

You can listen to the original interviews here:

  • At 77, Robert Redford Goes Back To His Roots

  • Ella Fitzgerald's Early Years Collected In A Chick Webb Box Set

  • Michael Sheen On The 'Accuracy And Invention' Of Real-Life Roles

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