"Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher" by TImothy Egan

Edward Curtis, armed only with a camera and a sixth-grade education, managed to make an invaluable contribution to American history and photography. As a child in the late 1800s he built his own camera, and in his teenage years he was already working as an apprentice photographer in Minnesota. He then moved to Seattle, where he bought a new camera and quickly became the country’s premier portrait photographer—the Annie Leibovitz of his time.

He was so successful at his profession that he earned the respect and attention of President Theodore Roosevelt and J.P. Morgan, who both went on to become his biggest backers artistically and financially. In fact, Roosevelt hired Curtis to shoot the wedding of his daughter, Alice.

But Curtis had bigger plans than being a celebrity photographer, he wanted to document the life and culture of American Indians all across the continent. He spent three decades traveling the country, living with tribes and gaining their trust. As a sign of the artist’s patience and fortitude, he waited for ten years until the Hopi allowed him into their sacred Snake Dance ceremony.

By the end of his efforts, Curtis had compiled over 40,000 photographs, captured 10,000 audio recordings, and earned the credit of creating the world’s first documentary film. Pulitizer Prize-winning writer Timothy Egan tackles this man and his life in “Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis.”

Timothy Egan, author of “Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis,” Pulitzer Prize-winning writer for the New York Times and winner of the National Book Award for “The Worst Hard Time”

LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 16: Director Ang Lee (L) and actor Suraj Sharma attend the Special Screening for 20th Century Fox and Fox 2000's "Life Of Pi" at the Zanuck Theater, 20th Century Fox Lot on November 16, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images) Credit: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images

Larry is joined by KPCC film critics Tim Cogshell, Peter Rainer and Charles Solomon to review the week’s new film releases including Life of Pi, Hitchcock, Price Check and more. TGI-FilmWeek!

Life of Pi:

Hitchcock:

Rise of the Guardians:

Price Check:  

Chasing Ice:   

Red Dawn:

Tim Cogshell, film critic for KPCC and Box Office Magazine

Peter Rainer, film critic for KPCC and for the Christian Science Monitor

Charles Solomon, animation critic for KPCC, author and historian for amazon.com

Screenshot from Nicole Westbrook's "It's Thanksgiving."

For many people, yesterday’s meal is the most highly anticipated and/or dreaded one of the year.  Perhaps that depends on whether you’re in charge of a houseful of relatives and a kitchen full of pots and pans, or one of the “orphans” who shows up with a bottle of wine, chows down on turkey and stuffing, then falls asleep in front of the football game. 

Or maybe you prefer to skip out on the dinnertime drama altogether by getting a jump on Black Friday sales or spending the day volunteering at a charity.

It’s time for the Friday-morning quarterbacking session – how was your holiday?  Were there any surprises – a long-lost relative, frozen-solid bird or an unexpected change in travel plans?  Did the red and blue factions of your family come to blows?  What about vegans vs. meat-eaters? Did Aunt Sally get drunk and blurt out a buried family secret?  Were there WAY too many kinds of kale salad at the potluck?  What will you do differently next year?

Jacom Tomsky's "Heads in Beds"

Have you ever wondered what the hotel concierge says about you behind your back? Does the hotel staff taste your room service food? Now you can find out what goes on behind the scenes of the hospitality industry from a new confessional “Heads in Beds: A Reckless Memoir of Hotels, Hustles, and So-Called Hospitality” written by veteran luxury hotel employee Jacob Tomsky.

As a hotel insider, Tomsky was privy to the industry secrets and tricks exploited by bellhops, valet attendants and housekeepers for years and he’s not shy about revealing them to readers. In addition to workplace antics, the author offers advice to travelers about how to navigate the sometimes-intimidating world of industrial luxury hospitality including who, how, and when to tip.

Tomsky explains how working at hotels has impacted his personal life as well as all there is to know about what really goes into profiting from putting heads in beds.

Jacob Tomsky, veteran of the hospitality business and author ofHeads in Beds: A Reckless Memoir of Hotels, Hustles, and So-Called Hospitality (Doubleday)

"Maynard L. Parking Modern Photography and the American Dream"

The work of prolific photographer Maynard L. Parker (1900-1976) exemplifies modern photography at its most quintessential. His work can now be enjoyed in a new collection called “Maynard L. Parker: Modern Photography and the American Dream” compiled by curator Jennifer A. Watts. Many of Parker’s photographs focused on domestic life in the new consumer age in a postwar America.

Parker captured American homes, gardens and suburban lifestyles from the 1930s through the 1960s that embodied the American dream at the time. Parker also explored the homes of celebrities including Judy Garland, Clark Gable and Bing Crosby.  Watts’ book is the first to define Parker and his influential career and features essays written by leading scholars about the photographer himself as well as the period of American history.

Jenny Watts, editor, “Maynard L. Parker: Modern Photography and the American Dream;”curator of photographs at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens; and editor of “Edward Weston: A Legacy.”

Christopher Hawthorne, contributor, “Maynard L. Parker: Modern Photography and the American Dream;”architecture critic for the Los Angeles Times

A volunteer helps young voters outside the Boston Public Library November 6, 2012 in Boston, Massachusetts. Credit: Darren McCollester/Getty Images

In 2008, two-thirds of Americans ages 18 to 30 cast their votes for Barack Obama.  This year, 60 percent of the Millennial Generation were eligible to vote, and again they threw the bulk of their considerable voting weight to Obama.  

In California, college-based get-out-the-vote efforts and vote-by-mail options succeeded in getting Millennials to the polls, not to mention youth-specific causes like Proposition 30, on which funding for California’s higher education system hinged. There can be no doubt that Millenials are a game-changing addition to the 21st century electorate.  And despite their ethnic, social and educational diversity – 40% of Millennials are non-white -- they show a surprising unity in their choices, skewing in favor of social causes and Democratic candidates.  

Over the next two presidential election cycles, the entire cohort will reach voting age, representing 95 million votes up for grabs.  How will their choices shape Congress?  What decisions will they make regarding same-sex marriage, reproductive choice, voters’ rights?  Looking ahead to likely presidential candidates, who will appeal to them the most? What does the Millennial vote mean for 2016, and beyond?

Morley Winograd

Michael D. Hais

Winograd and Hais are the co-authors of  “Millenial Momentum: How a New Generation is Remaking America” and “Millenial Make-over: MySpace, YouTube and the Future of American Politics”

Egypt's Islamist President Mohamed Morsi addresses his supporters in front of the presidential palace in Cairo on November 23, 2012. Credit: -/AFP/Getty Images

Yesterday, Mohammed Morsi of Egypt made vast expansions to the power and scope of the presidency. Through a series of constitutional amendments, President Morsi vaulted himself above and beyond the reproach of Egypt’s legislative and judicial branches of government. Critics are calling him out for barring any of his decisions from appeal in court, as well as providing shelter to the panel drafting Egypt’s new constitution, which is dominated by Muslims.

This concerns liberals and Christians in Egypt, who foresee the new constitution as demeaning to women, indifferent to other religions and greatly limiting to personal freedoms. Beyond those changes, Morsi also ordered a retrial for former President Hosni Mubarak, mostly as a symbolic gesture towards citizens who are still frustrated with the lack of punishment for the government’s role in the death of protesters.

However, Morsi has not made any new efforts to bring punishment to the members of the Egyptian police force who directly killed protesters. This upsets the average Egyptian, but it guarantees that the new leader will have the loyalty of his primary law enforcement agency. All of this comes on the heels of Morsi brokering the peace talks between Israel and Hamas to bring an end to the recent conflict in Gaza, which earned him high praise from President Barack Obama and Secretary Hillary Clinton.

Is Morsi setting himself up to become the new dictator of Egypt? What other changes has he made thus far? What is the reaction amongst different groups in Egypt and in the international community?

Sherine Tadros, Al Jazeera correspondent in Egypt

Father Gregory Bishay, Priest with the Coptic Orthodox Christian Center in Orange

Dr. Maher Hathout,  M.D. senior advisor, Muslim Public Affairs Council

David Thomson's "The Big Screen: The Story of the Movies" Credit: /AP

David Thomson, film historian and author of  “The Big Screen: The Story of the Movies,” didn’t want to write just any history of cinema. “The Big Screen” is a narrative about what the movies have meant to people, an account of their impact on culture and their transformation as film became a predominant part of mainstream storytelling. Thomson’s book is not film history only for film historians – “The Big Screen” considers questions that movie-lovers of all walks ask themselves: What’s special about film? How does what we watch reflect back on us?

David Thomson, film historian and author of “The Big Screen: The Story of the Movies” (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

Should mannequins be used as surveillance equipment? Credit: Fahni/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

If you’re one of those people who finds mannequins creepy, well, you might want to start cutting down on your shopping. That’s because some retailers, particularly luxury fashion brands, are starting to use mannequins equipped with cameras in their stores.

The mannequins look normal (or as normal as a mannequin can appear, at least), but have a camera located in one of their eyes which draws upon technology currently used at airports to identify criminals. The mannequins can thus determine the race, age and ethnicity of shoppers, and that information would then be used by companies to better tailor their in-store experiences to customers. The dummies are already being used in Europe and America and seem to be paying off, but some retailers are taking a stand against the specialized mannequins. Nordstrom, citing customer boundaries, refuses to install such technology in its stores, although they have set up WiFi and introduced iPads for shopping engagement.

Where is the line exactly on this issue? Would you shop at a location if you thought a mannequin was watching? What’s the difference between this and a security camera? How are the issues of privacy and legality addressed by the manufacturer and retailers which use this technology?

Max Catanese, CEO of Almax Italy, which manufactures the smart mannequins as well as standard store displays.

Superintendent John Deasy walks through an economics classroom at Los Angeles High School during a surprise visit. Credit: Tami Abdollah/KPCC

As students across LA head back to school from their Thanksgiving break, LAUSD’s John Deasy will head back to his office with a lot of decisions to make after Proposition 30 passed on the November ballot.

With the state receiving an additional $6 billion in revenue, LAUSD has voted to restore its classroom calendar to the standard 180 days for the first time in five years of budget cutting, which Deasy publicly supported. The district will also rescind 10 furlough days teachers had agreed to, and will talk to other, much smaller employee unions about rescinding their furlough days.

The LAUSD school board also voted ot keep John Deasy in his role as superintendent through 2015. The LAUSD is also applying for high profile “Race to the Top” grants that the federal government will distribute, but the LA teachers’ union is opposed to the grant on the grounds that it could overextend the district financially.

John Deasy, Superintendent of Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD)

Alan Eisenstock's "Raider's! The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made"

Alan Eisenstock’s "Raiders! The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made" follows how two kids, 12-year-old Eric Zala and 11-year-old Chris Strompolos, from Ocean Springs, Mississippi decided to remake the Indiana Jones film ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark.’ Over the next seven years, the two made a complete remake of the movie, with every scene and every stunt.

The final product was considered an undisputed fan film masterpiece. The story of how the movie was made serves as a backdrop for Eisenstock, who chronicles the maturation of Zala and Strompolos during the movie’s making: how the two kids grew up and dealt with their own respective hardships, and how their boyhood friendship eventually dissolved. The film was the center of their youth, but it was also the biggest, and eventually unbearable, burden on their friendship.

From their devotion to their film, to their ruined friendship, to the eventual redemption of their relationship and current directing cooperation, Eisenstock writes of youth, maturation, and the boundless energy and hope contained in a young person’s dream.

Guests:

Alan Eisenstock, author, Raiders! The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made (Thomas Dunne Books)

Eric Zala, co-author, Raiders! The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made (Thomas Dunne Books), director of the film remake, ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation,’ chronicled in the book, and portrays Dr. Rene Belloq in the remake

Chris Strompolos, acted as Indiana Jones in the film remake 'Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation'

Pigeons perch on the window sills and wooden struts on a traditional building. Credit:

It’s the stuff of wartime spy thrillers like “Casablanca” and “The 39 Steps” — the body of a secret agent is found under mysterious circumstances, with a coded message that defies cracking by experts.  

This courier was no stool pigeon ... but it was a pigeon, one of some 250,000 enlisted during World War II by the U.K.’s National Pigeon Service to carry messages from behind enemy lines in Germany, France and elsewhere.  

Around 30 of the brave birds were awarded the Dickin Medal for Bravery in Battle, the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross. The skeleton of this particular pigeon was found in 1982 in the chimney of a home in Surrey, England, on an estate that was used by decryption experts during the war.

Strapped to its leg was a tiny red canister containing a handwritten message: 27 five-letter codes lists:

The bird and its secret message recently came to the attention of code breakers at Britain’s super-secret communications intelligence agency, GCHQ.  But despite weeks of poring over the missive, these and other cryptology experts have been unable to crack the code.

Where was this avian agent headed?  What was his mission?  Was it ever accomplished?

Colin Hill, volunteer at the Pigeon Museum at Bletchley Park in Surrey, England

During the 2011-2012 school year, 63 of the 1,952 students who were enrolled in CADRE tested positive, Hunter told the newspaper. The most common drug found was marijuana, but other drugs were detected. Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

The Santa Clarita Valley school district has implemented a drug testing program in their junior and senior high schools. The program allows parents to opt their child in for random, free, on-campus drug tests.

So far, more than 2,000 students participate, about one tenth of the districts middle and high school students – and the program administrators are looking to expand. While random drug testing for student athletes and participants in certain extra-curricular activities is not uncommon, Santa Clarita’s Comprehensive Alcohol and Drug Reduction and Education (CADRE) program is believed to be the only one of its kind in the U.S.

The ACLU and other civil rights activists are skeptical though, questioning how it could be truly voluntary, and whether the program violates children’s privacy rights. If a student were to refuse testing, even with their parent’s consent, the district could face legal challenges.

Should students be subjected to drug-testing programs their parents opt into? Do programs like CADRE violate children’s privacy rights? Is random drug testing the best way to prevent drug use in teens?

Email on a computer screen. Credit: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images

The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) was a statue enacted in 1986 as a means to set privacy parameters on new and growing technologies. As one might imagine, any phone, computer or other device from 1986 would be woefully out-of-date in today’s society. Some politicians and many technological experts feel the same way about the ECPA itself.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Patrick Leahy (D-VT), has taken it upon himself to tackle this issue, and has drafted an amended version of the ECPA. Leahy’s version specifically alters the rules of access law enforcement agencies have over private e-mail accounts, requiring them to obtain a court-approved warrant as opposed to an administrative subpoena. Unsurprisingly, groups such as the National Sheriffs’ Association, the National District Attorneys’ Association and the U.S. Department of Justice voiced their displeasure of Leahy’s changes.

After this, tech website CNET made a report that Leahy again altered the bill, allowing for searches without a warrant. With an air of confusion now surrounding Leahy’s proposal and stark opponents on both sides of the issue, it is clearer than ever than some substantial changes must be made to bring this old law kicking and screaming into the 21st century.

What are the concerns for those who want the ECPA to stay as is? What about those calling for reform? How will Leahy be able to navigate this thorny topic in a particularly contentious political environment?

Declan McCullagh, Chief political correspondent and senior writer for CNET

Joseph Cassily, past President of the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA); current State's Attorney for Hartford County, Maryland

A view of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington DC. Credit: Alex Brandon/AP

This week, the U.S. Supreme Court will evaluate workplace harassment in the context of supervision and determine who qualifies as a supervisor. The specific case before the court began with Maetta Vance, who was allegedly racially targeted by one of her immediate “supervisors,” Sandra Davis.

The question of supervision is an important one because it frequently determines liability. In cases where an employee is harassed by a supervisor, the employer is automatically responsible for damages, while if the perpetrator is a co-worker, the victim has to prove that the employer was negligent in following up on complaints.

What makes someone a supervisor? Is it, as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission states, anyone with the authority to manage daily work activities? Is it someone with hiring and firing power? Should employers be responsible for all workplace harassment, or just that carried out by their management?

Greg Stohr, Bloomberg News Supreme Court reporter

Anne K. Richardson, Partner, Hadsell Stormer Richardson & Renick law firm in Pasadena; Richardson specializes in employment and civil rights cases.

Newly elected Congressional freshmen of the 113th Congress walk away after a class picture on November 15, 2012 in Washington DC. The sitting duck Congress will have to make a decision about the fiscal cliff before they take office. Credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images

With each passing day, the pressure increases on Capitol Hill politicians to reach a compromise on the budget. If they neglect to do so before the December 31, 2012 deadline, then 2013 will kick off with a host of undesirable economic factors. Workers would see their payroll taxes increase, businesses would see tax deductions go out the window, and the Bush tax cuts would expire without being replaced.

Furthermore, spending cuts would go into effect that would deeply slash Medicare and the Pentagon’s defense budget. Without a new budget deal, most economists predict that the country would suffer financially, with the stock market taking a massive hit as investors start to panic about the economy. After President Obama’s reelection, he announced that he was given a mandate by voters to increase taxes on the wealthy as a means to deal with the budget.

As Republicans also failed to secure the Senate majority, it appears as if they are now inclined to budge on some of their previous steadfast positions. However, Democrats could be poised to push hard on cutting defense and raising taxes in lieu of making any changes to entitlement programs. Which side will be the first to buckle? How are negotiations progressing thus far? What lies ahead in the upcoming month before the deadline?

Aaron Blake, Political Reporter, The Washington Post

Paul West, Political Writer, Los Angeles Times

The Plan B pill, also known as the 'morning after' pill, is displayed on a pharmacy shelf February 27, 2006 in Boston, Massachusetts. Many states may have to deal with legislation that would expand or restrict access to the drug since the federal government has not made a decision to make the pill available without a prescription. Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Sexually active teens should have access to emergency contraceptives, said the American Academy of Pediatrics in a new policy statement. The doctors recommend that teens should have a prescription for emergency contraceptives, such as the well-known Plan B brand, before they start having sex.

Currently, the pills are available over the counter for people over 17 – the AAP suggests that if younger teens had access to ‘Plan B,’ there would be fewer unplanned pregnancies. The rate of teen pregnancy has fallen significantly during the past 20 years, but the U.S. still has the highest number in the developed world.

Emergency contraceptives can prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, or when a condom breaks, but they are most effective when taken within 24 hours. The AAP suggests that if the ‘morning after’ pills were available to teens, they could be used quickly and effectively, without the logistical hang-ups of a last minute prescription. Opponents of the plan say that providing access to Plan B encourages teen sexual activity, doesn’t reduce pregnancy rates and ignores other negative consequences, such as sexually transmitted diseases.

Should teens have access to emergency contraceptives? How should doctors approach sexual activity and sex education with young patients? Would easier access to birth control and emergency contraceptives help prevent teen pregnancy, or encourage unprotected sex?

Anita L. Nelson, M.D., Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at UCLA’s Geffen School of Medicine; spokeswoman for the American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Donna J. Harrison, M.D., Director of Research and Public Policy, American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists

Job seekers use computers to search the Internet for jobs at the East Bay Career Center in Oakland, California. Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

As U.S.businesses felt the pinch of the recession, downsizing or even closing their doors, many American workers found themselves applying for unemployment benefits. But as temporary layoffs stretched from weeks into months, the ranks of the unemployed swelled, straining the limits of state-funded assistance. This prompted the federal government in 2008 to step in to staunch the bleeding with temporary emergency extensions of up to 73 additional weeks.  

In California, which provides 26 weeks of state assistance, that meant a maximum total of 99 weeks. Some economists say that the extra benefits have contributed to a down economy by keeping people from taking available jobs.  But for many of the over 2 million Americans currently relying on federal unemployment extensions, it’s their only hope for staying afloat as they continue to search for work.

Now, even those extra payments have been exhausted by well over 900,000 Californians.  And if congress doesn’t act to extend the federal lifeline, 400,000 more will see an abrupt end to their benefits on December 29th, even if they haven’t exhausted the current federal maximum.

The job outlook has improved slightly, but millions are still looking. With so many breadwinners dependent on the federal program, how will the cutoff  affect California’s economy?  Has the federal extension helped ease your road back to employment? If you’ve been relying on those checks, how can you avoid your own fiscal cliff?

Jordan Levine, economist and director of economic research, Beacon Economics

Liz Pulliam Weston, personal finance columnist for MSN.com and author of "Easy Money," "Your Credit Score" and "Deal with Your Debt"

Davis Quammen's "Spillover: Animal Infections And The Next Human Pandemic"

Still afraid of bird flu? Black plague? David Quammen explores the history and mysteries of animal infections and human pandemic in his new book “Spillover.” Quammen’s chronicles of the little known relations between animal diseases and human illness is a fascinating (and terrifying) read.

Quammen takes on frightening subject matter -- from the AIDS pandemic that was the result of a spillover from a chimpanzee to a human, to SARS, Ebola, and Lyme disease.

Smart, interesting, and, according to Publisher’s Weekly, “critically important,” “Spillover” gracefully relates humanity to the rest of the natural world by examining the problems that affect us all.

David Quammen, author of “Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic” (W.W. Norton 2012)

Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic by David Quammen

Former Major League Baseball player Barry Bonds (C) is flanked by security guards as he leaves federal court following a sentencing hearing on December 16, 2011 in San Francisco, California. Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Baseball writers of America will have some tough choices this January, when two of the game’s most accomplished and polarizing figures become eligible for entry to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Both Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens should be obvious inductees when you look at the numbers, but the disproven allegations that both lied about using performance enhancing drugs (PED) have still left many questioning whether they belong in Cooperstown.

Bonds, who set the all-time home run record, was cleared of charges last year that he lied to a grand jury about not knowingly taking PED’s. Seven-time Cy Young winner and MVP, Roger Clemens was acquitted this past summer of perjuring himself while testifying in front of Congress about not taking steroids.

But even the acquittals have left many unconvinced. While some insist that any involvement with steroids should be an automatic disqualification from hall of fame consideration, others believe it would be a disservice to the game of baseball and to Cooperstown to not acknowledge the steroid era. They argue that ignoring players involved in steroid use is ignoring a part of baseball’s history, however ugly.

Do you believe Bonds and Clemens should be inducted in to the hall of fame? Why or why not? 

Bill Shaikin, Sports columnist at the Los Angeles Times