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Their film, About a Boy, is based on the novel by Nick Hornby and has just been released on DVD and video. The Weitz brothers, born to fashion designer John Weitz and Oscar-nominated actress Susan Kohner, first became famous for directing the 1999 teen comedy American Pie. They also wrote the screenplay for the animated movie Antz and directed the Chris Rock movie Down to Earth. They live in New York. This interview first aired June 5, 2002.

Jeff Young of West Virginia Public Broadcasting reports that military reserves called up for a possible war in Iraq are having a disproportionate impact on state police and other law enforcement personnel in the state. That's because residents of West Virginia have a high rate of service in the armed forces, and the state police force is already under-staffed. It could lose up to 10 percent of its force to the armed services. For public safety agencies that are already stretched thin, this means shift juggling, stretched overtime budgets, and strain for those left to fill in the gaps.

Russian television recently broadcast once-secret government files on the trial and execution of Lavrenti Beria, one of Joseph Stalin's more notorious henchmen. The broadcasts feed a public fascination with the bloody Soviet past. NPR's Scott Simon talks with Mark Kramer, director of the Harvard Project on Cold War Studies.

On the weekend following the 30th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, NPR's Brenda Wilson reports on how the Bush administration's policies regarding aid to international family planning have complicated the abortion issue overseas.

Los Angeles Philharmonic conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen will conduct live performances of Mexican composer Silvestre Revueltas' score to Redes during screenings of the film this weekend. Revueltas is considered one of Mexico's greatest composers. NPR's Lynn Neary speaks with Salonen about Revueltas' music.

Commentator Andrei Codrescu tells about his friend's dream of buying a coffee plantation in Costa Rica and making money selling beans on the Web. His friend also wants to use a certain duck that eats raw coffee beans and poops out a better bean. Of course, the friend has no money.

Control of the Senate Judiciary Committee officially switches from Democrats to Republicans, with Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) taking over as chairman. Hatch says the panel will move quickly to consider President Bush's judicial nominees, including controversial candidates recently renominated by the president. NPR's David Welna reports.

People in Mozambique are enthralled by the continuing drama of five men charged with killing Carlos Cardoso, a journalist who exposed deep-rooted corruption. The riveting real-life drama stars the president's son as the evil mastermind behind the murder of a crusading journalist who came too close to the truth. This story of greed, betrayal and AK-47's has supplanted the popular Brazilian soap operas on battered televisions and crackling radios in this sweltering port city. NPR's Jason Beaubien reports.

In case you haven't heard, it's really cold in the Northeast. As temperatures plunge, the need for homeless shelters goes up. In Massachusetts this increase in demand coincides with budget cuts imposed because of a state fiscal crisis. Monica Brady-Myerov of member station WBUR reports.

Smallpox vaccinations begin today for medical workers in several states and Los Angeles County. The government's goal is the inoculation of 450,000 health workers against a bioterrorism attack with smallpox. But some are resisting vaccination out of safety and legal liability fears. NPR's Richard Knox reports.