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Stradivarius stringed instruments are often considered the finest in the world, certainly the most expensive. Renowned cellist Bernard Greenhouse, longtime member of the Beaux Arts Trio, recently went through the painstaking process of allowing his beloved Stradivarius to be disassembled and restored - piece by piece. NPR's Rick Karr has the story.

There's a long tradition of British Shakespearean actors coming to the colonies and wowing the locals with performances of the Bard's greatest hits. British actor Steven Berkoff talks about his one-man show, Shakespeare's Villains: a Master Class in Evil.

For over 30 years the animated television special, A Charlie Brown Christmas, has entertained millions. Lee Mendelson produced that program and the others that followed based on the Charles M. Schulz Peanuts comic strip characters. Mendelson talks to Noah about the making of the popular annual Christmas special.

This month, Morning Edition is exploring the theme of giving. In the first of this series, Susan Stamberg speaks with Adele Simmons, president emeritus of the MacArthur Foundation, one of the country's largest philanthropic organizations. Simmons tells Susan that giving millions in grants, and making sure the dollars do no harm, is more difficult than it may sound.

With President in Hanoi today, Owen Bennett-Jones reports on a new trade agreement between the US and Vietnam installed in July. Foreign investment has declined because of Vietnam's adherence to old, centrally planned economic policies. Vietnam is trying to change and business people on both sides hope the trade agreement will promote development.

Soap Lake, Washington, seeks a tourist attraction, and some townsfolk think a big blast from the psychedelic past might be just the thing to propel the town into the future.

If today's claim of a cloned baby turns out to be a hoax, it won't be the first time. Twenty-four years ago, journalist David Rorvik published a highly publicized book that claimed a reclusive millionaire had assembled a team that cloned a human. NPR's Joanne Silberner reports.

Some people spy for money, some for ideology, and others just for adventure. But no one is sure why former FBI counter-intelligence specialist Robert Hanssen may have volunteered to betray U.S. intelligence secrets to the Russians. NPR's Barbara Bradley reports on his possible motivations.

-- As part of the series, `The End of Life: Exploring Death in America,' NPR's Vertamae Grosvenor tells how she and her eight-year-old grandson, Oscar, tried to come to terms with the loss of his father in a car crash.

The Libertines are Britain's hottest dysfunctional band, and their music is produced by the Clash's Mick Jones. New Musical Express called them the most important band of its generation. Yet theirs is a troubled story — of breakups, break-ins, and drug addiction. From London, Matt Cowan reports.