LeVar Burton has been blessed with enough intelligence, curiosity, and talent to be a pop-culture triple threat. When most actors would be happy to have one iconic role, he's been Kunta Kinte in "Roots," Geordi in "Star Trek: The Next Generation," and the host of "Reading Rainbow." When we talked in 2012, we covered all that and a lot more ... like his favorite saint, and what it was like having Richard Burton as a father. (Kidding!)

And, since we're dropping this episode just before Juneteenth, we're including LeVar's readings of the Preamble to the US Constitution, plus the 13th and 15th Amendments.

(Note: Burton cites Bill Cosby's work in children's educational TV ... this interview was conducted two years before the allegations that would eventually lead to Cosby's prison sentence.)

Support for this podcast is made possible by Gordon and Dona Crawford, who believe that quality journalism makes Los Angeles a better place to live; and bythe Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.

(Off-Ramp theme music by Fesliyan Studios.)

Nowadays, Steven Cuevas is a classy public radio veteran. But back when Metallica was just starting to find fame, he was one of the sweaty kids who formed the band's first real fanbase. And when he wanted to tell the story on Off-Ramp in 2009, when Metallica was being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, he got ahold of never-before-heard tape to take us back to those early days in San Francisco.

Support for this podcast is made possible by Gordon and Dona Crawford, who believe that quality journalism makes Los Angeles a better place to live; and bythe Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.

(Off-Ramp theme music by Fesliyan Studios.)

Off-Ramp TemperaTour(TM); This Old Thing?; The Best Milkshake in Riverside; Belmont Fiasco; Gronk's Takes on Film; Senator Craig Finds Sympathy with Older Gay Men; Domanick on Pelicano; MacArthur Park is Alive with the Sound of Music; Listener Call

Some Pig; Bob Baker's Marionette Theater; Mid-Century Chimes; Cattle Call; Deep Beef; The ABC's of BBQ; Domanick on Spector; Songs of Protest; The Big Picture; Letters

L.A. Appetites; Sushi Zen; Hot Ramen; I Eat Ramen, Hear Me Roar!; El Pollo Chino; Would You Eat Granny?; Some botanas, por favor; Urban Survivalist; Tree of Life

A Last Goodbye; Hello Tiki-Ti ; Tiki Tribute; Ghost in the Machine; It's Not a Knack; Dad's in Jail; Santee Alley; Eden's Edge; Bahooka; Web Extra

Phantograms; Keystone-Mast Collection; Projecting 3-D Ain't Free; Leaves of Photographs; Humble Art; D.I.Y. 3-D; Reel-D; LA's First Family Of Photography; Julius Shulman; Take My Picture; Shooting History

Kinky in Los Angeles; The Unsung Pelon; Armenian Melodies; Re-Gifting Sound; Cello Fellow; A Little Night Music; Rock En Spanglish; These Kids are Alright; Harper Woods

Doo Dah Surf

Armenian Melodies; Deep Beef; Safer Cities Initiative: One Year Later; Mimislist; Craigslist Considered; Strings Theory; The Mayor of Gladys Park; Skid Row Redux; Sex Abuse; Sapphic Poet