Home 2011 shows 2010 shows 2009 shows 2008 shows 2007 shows 2006 shows 2005 shows About Contact KOOP 91.7 FM	• Simply click on the date of the show you'd like to hear • December 2007 December 5 Ben Serrato In his 20s, Ben had the opportunity to travel with Jimmy Carter in 1990 to Nicaragua just before that country's first free elections since the Sandanistas had come to power. Though Ben was a gofer on the trip, he was privy to every meeting that took place between Carter and various Nicaraguans. December 12 Richard Lord The owner of Lord's Boxing Gym in north central Austin, Lord has trained a number of world championship boxers, including Jesus "el matador" Chavez, Anissa "the Assassin" Zamarron, and his own wife Lori Lord. Lord is also distinguished for having been a pioneer in women's boxing in Texas. December 19 Ardys Kellerman Ardys is a 75-year-old great grandmother who won the BMW motorcycle high mileage contest last year with 80,000+ miles over a 6 month period! She routinely rides long distances, thinking nothing of riding 1,000 miles in a day, and prefers to ride alone. You can see a picture of her here. Due to a technical glitch, the first few minutes of the interview were cut off. Here is a copy of the introduction. At the beginning of the interview, I noted that she only rides BMW motorcycles and we discussed why (she was ignored at a Honda dealership); then I asked her how many BMWs she owns. December 26 Clarence Swensen with his wife, Myrna Swensen Clarence was one of the munchkins in the Wizard of Oz! He came to my attention because the surviving munchkins were honored last month with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Clarence had a stroke, so his speech is occasionally hard to understand, but he is upbeat and delightful. You can see Clarence here. November 2007 November 7 Jim Worth At age 21, Jim was in a car accident that left him in the hospital for a year, and ultimately ended in the loss of one leg. That didn't stop him though—he went on to compete in wheelchair sports: basketball, bowling and tennis. He competed in national tournaments and traveled around the world. He was in Austin promoting the publishing of his first novel, Final Audit. November 14 L'Angelus L'Angelus is the name of a wonderful cajun band from Louisiana. All 4 members of the band are siblings. They all live at home together along with their parents . . . and 4 other siblings! Somehow they make it all work and perform beautifully, too. The gorgeous live performance at the end is well worth the wait. November 21 Janet Hancock Janet was on just last month (see October 24 below), talking about her huge family. Her mother was severely abused as a child and swore she would not let it happen to her own children. And, yet, she wasn't able to control what Janet went through, including anorexia, obsessive compulsive disorder, and molestation by her pastor. October 2007 October 3 Amy Wright The former executive director of KOOP, Amy spent 6 months hiking the Appalachian trail. She shares lots of great stories from the trail. October 17 Tim Borland When I talked to Tim, he was halfway through running 63 marathons in 63 days, and doing great. He ran to raise awareness about a degenerative disease known as A-T. October 24 Janet Hancock Coming from a family of 5, I thought my family was big. Well, Janet is one of 8 children, but there were always many, many foster children coming and going, with sometimes as many as 17 children in the house. Janet describes how these children came to her family, and what daily living was like. October 31 Ron Burzese & Val Hargrove Ron is an excellent cyclist, but he is functionally blind. So, he rides on a tandem and competes in all sorts of races . . . and wins. Val, one of Ron's tandem riding partners, joins us in the studio as well. September 2007 September 5 Tom Mahnke The host of Fais Do Do on KOOP (and my husband to boot) was attacked by a serial killer at the age of 19. He obviously lived to tell the tale. You can also hear another, longer version of this story on July 6, 2005. September 26 Mikail Davenport Mikail may be in a wheelchair due to polio, but it has not stopped him from racing in marathons or trekking through Alaska (among other amazing things). August 2007 August 1 Melanie Mahoney Growing up in Abilene, a conservative Christian town, being in touch with yourself and going your own way was not exactly encouraged. Melanie was the seeming perfect girl—good student, cheerleader—but inside she was extremely unhappy without quite knowing why. She turned to bulimia for many years. She also got married at age 19—only to discover a few years later that she is a lesbian. What a story! August 8 Darcy Madsen This is one of those stories you can't believe. Darcy was stabbed by her own husband while in bed. She remembers the experience in incredible detail, from the stabbing to the medical procedures to being on a ventilator, and she shares it all. August 15 Donald Mohr Donald has Asperger's Syndrome, a high-functioning form of autism. He has amazing insight into himself—what he can do and why, as well as what he can't do (e.g., read non-verbal cues). August 22 Lissa Arceneaux Lissa is the manager of Aphrodite's, a couple's club, also known as a swinger's club. She talks about who can join, the demographics of her clientele, and what happens inside. August 29 Dorothy Chandler I had Dorothy on yet again to share another phase of her life. (See July 4 below.) Today we talk about an unintended pregnancy at age 15 that leads to her giving her daughter up for adoption. Much later, she meets her daughter and learns, much to her chagrin, that her daughter was abused by her adopted parents.  July 2007 July 4 Dorothy Chandler Dorothy has led such a fascinating life that I had her on Inner Views for the 3rd time. (See December 27, 2006 and August 3, 2005) This time we talk about a year-long phase of Dorothy's life where she lives with her real father (meeting him for the first time as a teenager)—but he is no saint. He's a career criminal who proceeds to teach Dorothy how to be a criminal, too. June 2007 June 6 Jesse Griffith Jesse spent 3 years in prison for DWI. We learn what led him down this path, hear about time in prison, and focus on life after prison, such as finding a home and job. June 13 Steve Holman & Steve Isaacs Steve & Steve are a gay couple with a 5-year-old son. How they chose to have a son is intriguing: The sperm came from one of the Steves; the egg came from a donor; and the child was carried to term by a surrogate. The Steves share what it's like to be gay parents in Texas. June 20 Dillon McKinsey If you're an avid KOOP listener, you may already know Dillon—he's one of the hosts of Writing on the Air. What you may not know about Dillon is that he has only one arm. Dillon talks about growing up this way and how he manages the tasks of everyday living.  June 27 RadioActive & Melicious of The Texas Rollergirls I'm a huge fan of women's roller derby, which was reincarnated right here in Austin. Rollergirls RadioActive and Melicious share the good, the bad, and the dangerous (and the fun) about being in the Texas Rollergirls. May 2007 May 2 Sharon Heller 30 years ago, Sharon had a near-death experience, which she still remembers in great detail. The experience was so significant to her that she thinks of her life in 2 phases: before near-death experience and after near-death experience. May 9 Nina Diamond Nina has become a regular guest, having appeared on Inner Views on February 28 (see below) and December 20, 2005. Today we learn that Nina does not own a computer and, though a writer, doesn't use a computer word processor to write! She feels very strongly about her typewriter and defends it to the end.  May 16 Penny de los Santos Penny caught my eye through the powerful photos she took for an article in Texas Monthly (December 2006) about Houston gangs. She shares the experience of gaining the gang members' trust so she can photograph them, along with other meaningful projects she is working on.  May 23 Gary Hallock & Arthur Simone Last year (see January 24, 2006), I interviewed Chris Caillouet about winning the O. Henry Pun-Off. This year, I talk to Gary about the Pun-Off again—he was the 1989 champ, and has been a Pun-Off emcee ever since. Arthur Simone, one of this year's contestants and winner in a category, came on the show as well.  May 30 Tommy McIntosh On January 3rd of this year (see below), I interview Tommy about being a chaplain in the county jail system. We also discussed the fact that he is a little person (dwarf) and how that affects his job. Today we focus entirely on Tommy being a little person—with  his wife, his children, and out and about in his everyday life. Tommy is candid and delightful.  April 2007 April 11 Sheri Soltes of Texas Hearing & Service Dogs Sheri came on Inner Views with her dog, Pearl, who she is currently training to be a service dog. The dogs she trains are for people who can't hear or are mobility-impaired (as opposed to being blind), and they perform all sorts of everyday tasks for their owners. The method of training is positive and loving, and the work the dogs do is very, very cool. April 18 Greg LaKomski An avid bicycle racer, Greg lost one of his legs in a car accident when he was 42 years old. Now 51, Greg is still a very active and skilled cyclist. April 25 Seth Margolies In 2003, Seth had gastric bypass surgery, after reaching a top weight of 406 lbs. Today he weighs just half that, at 200 lbs. Though he lives in California, he was in Austin after cycling here as part of a solo cross-country bicycle ride to promote a healthy lifestyle. You can read his full story and see before and after photos here. March 2007 March 7 Ismael Cavazos Ismael creates delightful art: sculptures carved out of individual peanuts! You've got to see these sculptures! March 21 Troy Oskerson of The Fugitive Post Troy used to be a bounty hunter and private investigator. Now, he publishes The Fugitive Post, a monthly magazine about crime. He lists registered sex offenders, includes photos of missing children, and offers articles about unsolved cases, forensic technology, and so on. Troy's interest in this came about from shocking events from his own childhood. March 28 Leslie Cochran Leslie was on Inner Views just last month (see February 21 below) where we learned a thing or two about this Austin homeless icon. I had him back on so he could talk about what was foremost on his mind: how he believes he and the homeless are treated by the Austin police. He has been arrested 86 times, most of which he believes are trumped up charges to get him off the street. February 2007 February 7 John Erler & Joe Parsons of Master Pancake Theater The guys of Master Pancake Theater here in Austin offer a classic formula: play bad movies and talk over them. You will laugh your butt off. John & Joe come on Inner Views to promote the kickoff of this latest comedic incarnation. (John used to be part of the now-defunct Sinus Show.) You may also know John Erler as the fabulous host of The Elk Mating Ritual Show here on KOOP every Thursday. Due to a technical glitch, the first few minutes of the interview are missing. February 14 Ivan Doyle Ivan grew up believing he was stupid—to the point where he dropped out of high school. Little did he know until he took an online I.Q. test that he is actually a genius. Today he's a member of the International High I.Q. Society, which means his I.Q. is in the top 5% of the population. Ivan's life changed when he discovered his mental prowess. February 21 Leslie Cochran If you live in Austin, you know who Leslie is. He's a much beloved local icon. He is essentially homeless but he is most known for the very skimpy women's clothing he wears. Many an Austinite has seen his rear end, sticking out from thong underwear (and not much else); and he is of course known for the lovely tiaras he wears on his head! February 28 Nina Diamond This is Nina's second visit to Inner Views (see December 20, 2005). As a published author herself, she shares the secrets of how to get a book published. The information is provided step by step, and is genuinely useful. Nina gives a great interview. The first few seconds of the introduction are missing. January 2007 January 3 Tommy McIntosh Tommy is a chaplain in the county jail system. We'll learn why he chose to work with a criminal population, what it's like inside, and how he helps. Tommy is a little person (a dwarf), which adds an additional, interesting dynamic to his work. January 10 Liz Carpenter A woman of many accomplishments, Liz came on today to promote her funny book, Presidential Humor. For President Johnson, Liz served as executive assistant to the vice president and later as White House staff director and press secretary to Lady Bird Johnson. She was also part of the administrations of Ford and Carter. January 24 David Morehouse David practices and teaches something known as Remote Viewing, which he was taught while in the military and performed as part of a secret program. Remote Viewing enables you to view people, places and things remote in time and space, all without leaving your chair. David wrote the book Psychic Warrior about his experience.  January 31 Pattie Epps Pursuing linguistic fieldwork, Pattie spent a year in the Amazon jungle with the Hupda tribe. She lived like the Hupda, ate what they ate (including grubs!), and did what they did. Pattie describes the Hupda people and gives an enchanting account of her experience.
Copyright © 2009 Abigail Mahnke