August 14, 1995: Open Lines

Art Bell opens with a wide-ranging news roundup covering Hurricane Felix bearing down on Bermuda, a Hamas terrorist threat targeting Kennedy Airport, and the latest developments in the O.J. Simpson trial where the explosive Mark Furman tapes threaten to dismantle the prosecution's case. He also addresses Ross Perot's Texas confab, Pat Buchanan's fiery speech drawing standing ovations, and the FDA's new classification of nicotine as a drug.

Callers weigh in on the political landscape, with many expressing frustration over the lack of an exciting presidential candidate for 1996. Art shares his own struggle to quit smoking after a nicotine patch made him violently ill, sparking a lively exchange of home remedies and quitting strategies from callers nationwide. The conversation shifts to the V-chip for television violence, the expanding definition of drugs under FDA guidelines, and a spirited debate over cats versus dogs that draws passionate testimony from both sides. One caller raises concerns about the growing Internet and whether it should be regulated.

A quintessential open lines broadcast capturing the cultural anxieties and everyday conversations of mid-1990s America with spontaneity and humor.