Trying -- and failing -- to install modules from cpan

swampyankee has asked for the wisdom of the Perl Monks concerning the following question:

I'm using Mac OS X (10.7.5), and have been trying to install several modules from cpan, specifically PGPLOT and Chart::Gnuplot. I've gotten similar error messages for both:

Running install for module 'Chart::Gnuplot'
Running make for K/KW/KWMAK/Chart/Gnuplot/Chart-Gnuplot-0.17.tar.gz
Fetching with LWP:
ftp://cpan.erlbaum.net/CPAN/authors/id/K/KW/KWMAK/Chart/Gnuplot/Chart-
+Gnuplot-0.17.tar.gz
Fetching with LWP:
ftp://cpan.erlbaum.net/CPAN/authors/id/K/KW/KWMAK/Chart/Gnuplot/CHECKS
+UMS
Checksum for /Users/emc/.cpan/sources/authors/id/K/KW/KWMAK/Chart/Gnup
+lot/Chart-Gnuplot-0.17.tar.gz ok
Usage:
  List:    tar -tf <archive-filename>
  Extract: tar -xf <archive-filename>
  Create:  tar -cf <archive-filename> [filenames...]
  Help:    tar --help
Uncompressed /Users/emc/.cpan/sources/authors/id/K/KW/KWMAK/Chart/Gnup
+lot/Chart-Gnuplot-0.17.tar.gz successfully
Using Tar:/usr/bin/tar x1f "Chart-Gnuplot-0.17.tar":
Usage:
  List:    tar -tf <archive-filename>
  Extract: tar -xf <archive-filename>
  Create:  tar -cf <archive-filename> [filenames...]
  Help:    tar --help
Couldn't untar Chart-Gnuplot-0.17.tar
Package seems to come without Makefile.PL.
  (The test -f "/Users/emc/.cpan/build/KWMAK-UCpuQy/Makefile.PL" retur
+ned false.)
  Writing one on our own (setting NAME to ChartGnuplot)
  Had problems unarchiving. Please build manually
Running make test
  Make had some problems, won't test
Running make install
  Make had some problems, won't install
Failed during this command:
 KWMAK/Chart/Gnuplot/Chart-Gnuplot-0.17.tar.gz: unwrapped NO -- untar 
+failed
[download]

Any ideas about what I'm doing wrong?

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