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Actress and singer Nell Carter, the star of the 1980s TV sitcom Gimme A Break and of the Broadway smash Ain't Misbehavin', dies of complications from diabetes. She was 54. NPR's Bob Mondello has an appreciation.

NPR's Robert Siegel and NPR's Lynn Neary read some of this week's listener letters.

Jeff Young of West Virginia Public Broadcasting reports that military reserves called up for a possible war in Iraq are having a disproportionate impact on state police and other law enforcement personnel in the state. That's because residents of West Virginia have a high rate of service in the armed forces, and the state police force is already under-staffed. It could lose up to 10 percent of its force to the armed services. For public safety agencies that are already stretched thin, this means shift juggling, stretched overtime budgets, and strain for those left to fill in the gaps.

NPR's Mandalit Del Barco reports that in California this month, Spanish-speaking radio listeners are tuning in to a daily soap opera about the lives of Mexican immigrants in Los Angeles. The radio drama -- known as a radionovela -- is based on a novel by Enrique Romero Moreno, a Mexican consulate official. He warns of the perils and frustrations of living in the United States.

Los Angeles Philharmonic conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen will conduct live performances of Mexican composer Silvestre Revueltas' score to Redes during screenings of the film this weekend. Revueltas is considered one of Mexico's greatest composers. NPR's Lynn Neary speaks with Salonen about Revueltas' music.

Last month, Morning Edition invited listeners to share stories about "good deeds" they had witnessed or heard about. NPR's Susan Stamberg reports on some of the many responses that came in. And npr.org offers a few stories that did not make it on the air.

External efforts to end a nearly two-month-old strike in Venezuela gain momentum. Former President Jimmy Carter's plan to address the crisis is embraced by U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell. The strike has crippled oil production in one of the world's major exporters. NPR's Michele Kelemen reports.

Russian television recently broadcast once-secret government files on the trial and execution of Lavrenti Beria, one of Joseph Stalin's more notorious henchmen. The broadcasts feed a public fascination with the bloody Soviet past. NPR's Scott Simon talks with Mark Kramer, director of the Harvard Project on Cold War Studies.

Control of the Senate Judiciary Committee officially switches from Democrats to Republicans, with Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) taking over as chairman. Hatch says the panel will move quickly to consider President Bush's judicial nominees, including controversial candidates recently renominated by the president. NPR's David Welna reports.

The Senate puts limits on the military's "total information awareness" program, pending a review of the program's impact on individual privacy. The program's goal is to analyze huge amounts of information -- including Internet communication -- to identify terrorists before they strike. NPR's Larry Abramson reports.