. >> hi, my name is ray lincoln. >> for inmate ray lincoln, doing time at san quentin is much more emotionalust a true life story about being in here. you know what i'm talking about? ♪ i close my eyes and see the things ♪ ♪ that no one else can see ♪ and no matter how far apart we are ♪ ♪ your heart's in tune with me all around me ♪ ♪ i feel all the stress because i'm dealing with insecurity ♪ ♪ and i lay all my thoughts in the night i cry ♪ ♪ because i wonder where i went wrong ♪ ♪ and by the time they let me go ♪ ♪ i know that you will all be gone ♪ ♪ because i'm doing time >> free us. free us. free us. >> it's clear that san quentin, california's oldest prison, is decrepit and in serious need of an overhaul. after years of debate, state officials say they are planning a nearly quarter of a billion renovation of the death row facility. the plan has numerous critics who argue the expensive renovation is only a temporary solution and that the new facility would be at capacity within a year of opening. but with an appeals process that averages 20 years and about 30 inmates added yearly to a

so ray makes one more trip to lincoln to amend his will and name don bailey as his executor.xecutor he had previously named because those were the attorneys that had irritated by talking to other family members. jamie: were you surprised? >> it seemed to me, even though ray was odd, he knew his relatives didn't like him. jamie: but don knows full well that's not always the end of it especially in situations like this, where a hermit described as weird eccentric bequeaths a family fortune to strangers. >> you have to give relatives a chance to come forward. >> yeah, relatives have the chance to contest the will. they had six months to do that. >> how did that go? that's next and more. do you feel guilty taking an inheritance from a stranger? >> here's another quiz question for you. which of these pampered pets was willed the largest inheritance. fashion designer alexander mcqueen's terrier or the maltese of leona. the answer in a m can a business have a mind? a subconscious. a knack for predicting the future. reflexes faster than the speed of thought. can a business have a spi

and to show them that everett dirksen and lincoln were close enough to have a conversation on television. brian: what was your reaction? rayi love everett dirksen number one. when i came from illinois, he was my congressman. the first time i visited the capital to get a pass to visit the gallery and the senate and go to the senator's office and got that. i loved to listen to his voice for he was one of the great orators. he was a real smooth talker. and there was a story that george told, the great photographer for "the new york times" about a group that came to visit with everett dirksen. he was on the floor of the senate and came out. his style which i cannot imitate but i will do a semi-imitation. he said, ladies, i have phone -- thrown off the mantle of the cloak of the senate to come out to speak with you. what is it that you could possibly have in your mind that i can help you with? one of the ladies popped up and said, nothing, senator, we just want to hear you talk. [laughter] brian: who else can you think of that people want to hear talk? don: when daniel webster sometime the entire house would go to the senate to

lincoln's first congress was one of the most productive in history largely because the membership change dramatically when the war started. brian: don ritchie, and historian and the united states senate. ray smart -- ray smock, a historian. we thank you for coming and winging it with these clips. thank you to the producer, who helped us find all of those clips. we appreciate that very much. thank you. >> for free transcripts, or to give us your comments, visit us at q&a.org. "q&a" programs are available as c-span podcasts. >> if you liked tonight's "q&a" author fred kaplan discusses john quincy adams. the author on a book that describes how the 1856 speech on slavery and a vicious assault on the senate floor contributed to the civil war. pulitzer prize-winning biographer talks about his multivolume series on president lyndon johnson from his early political career to his first days of the presidency after the assassination of jfk. you can find those online at c-span.org. >> like many of us, first families take vacation time. and like presidents and first ladies, a good read can be the perfect companion for your summer journey. what better book than one that appears -- then one that peers