What is your idea of perfect happiness?

The company of family and good friends—all in good health.

What is your greatest fear?

The loss of a son or daughter.

Which historical figure do you most identify with?

Edward R. Murrow.

Which living person do you most admire?

Bill Moyers.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

The inability to suffer fools.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?

Sycophancy.

What is your greatest extravagance?

I've never been accused of extravagance.

What do you dislike most about your appearance?

I'm five feet seven inches—take your pick.

Which living person do you most despise?

Osama bin Laden.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

"Is there a smoking section here?"

When and where were you happiest?

Cincinnati, 1958, entering a major-league baseball park for the first time.

Which talent would you most like to have?

The ability to recall the names of people I met two minutes ago.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

See five questions above.

What is your most treasured possession?

American citizenship.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

Financial dependence.

Where would you like to live?

Above my current means.

What do you most value in your friends?

Consistently strong character, intelligence, and wit.

Who are your favorite writers?

Bobbie Ann Mason, Richard Bausch, Edna St. Vincent Millay.

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?

Atticus Finch.

Who are your heroes in real life?

D-day veterans.

What is it that you most dislike?

Anti-labor laws.

How would you like to die?

In the arms of a loved one.

What is your motto?

"Solidarity."