Fresh Air
1,418 episodes - English - Latest episode: 11 days ago - ★★★★ - 32.7K ratingsFresh Air from WHYY, the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues, is one of public radio's most popular programs. Hosted by Terry Gross, the show features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries.
Subscribe to Fresh Air Plus! You'll enjoy bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening - all while you support NPR's mission. Learn more at plus.npr.org/freshair
Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
Best Of: Andrew Scott / Women Behind The Wheel
April 13, 2024 07:00 - 45 minutes - 41.8 MBAndrew Scott stars as a con artist with no conscience in the new Netflix series Ripley. It's an adaptation of the Patricia Highsmith novel The Talented Mr. Ripley. He spoke with Terry Gross about tapping into his darker side for the role — and playing the "hot priest" in Fleabag. Also, we hear about how cars became our most gendered technology. Women used to be considered unqualified to drive, or just terrible drivers. Glamorous women were used to advertise cars. And yet cars have been desig...
The History Of King Kong & Godzilla
April 12, 2024 07:00 - 46 minutes - 42.7 MBGodzilla X Kong: The New Empire is the latest film starring two of cinema's biggest monsters. Today we take a look at the first time they were introduced to audiences. Film historian Rudy Behlmer tells us about the 1933 film King Kong. And Steve Ryfle wrote a book about the making of the 1954 Japanese film Godzilla. Also, film critic Justin Chang reviews Civil War. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
The 'Land Grab' Displacing The Maasai People
April 11, 2024 18:47 - 43 minutes - 40.3 MBAtlantic journalist Stephanie McCrummen says foreign interests are acquiring Serengeti territory in Northern Tanzania, effectively displacing indigenous cattle-herders from their traditional grazing lands. McCrummen spoke with Dave Davies about the billionaires, conservation groups, and safari tourism in this story. Also, John Powers reviews the TV adaptation of Viet Thanh Nguyen's Pulitzer Prize-winning book, The Sympathizer. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/ad...
The High Pressure Experiments That Made D-Day
April 10, 2024 19:35 - 44 minutes - 40.8 MBWhat happens to the body in the deep sea? You need oxygen to survive, but too much oxygen can be deadly. Also, if you rise to the surface too quickly, nitrogen bubbles can form in your body and kill you. We'll talk with author and scientist Rachel Lance, who has conducted research for the military, using a hyperbaric chamber in which the air and the pressure can be controlled to mimic what divers and submarines are exposed to. Her new book is about the scientists whose dangerous experiments ...
Internet Brain & The Age Of Overthinking
April 09, 2024 19:28 - 45 minutes - 41.4 MBLinguist Amanda Montell says our brains are overloaded with a constant stream of information that stokes our innate tendency to believe conspiracy theories and mysticism. Her book is The Age of Magical Overthinking. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews Lionel Shriver's new novel, Mania. Subscribe to the Fresh Air newsletter for a peek behind-the-scenes at whyy.org/freshair For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via Apple Pod...
Andrew Scott On 'Ripley,' 'Fleabag' & More
April 08, 2024 20:45 - 44 minutes - 41.1 MBAndrew Scott (best known as "hot priest" from Fleabag) plays con artist Tom Ripley in the Netflix adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley. He says his job is to advocate for his characters, not judge them. He spoke with Terry Gross about finding soul in comedy and lightness in drama. Also, Lloyd Schwartz shares a little-known history of "soundies." Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Best Of: Sue Bird / Sleater-Kinney
April 06, 2024 07:00 - 48 minutes - 44.4 MBNCAA/WNBA star Sue Bird spoke with Terry Gross about her career, coming out publicly, and fighting for equity in women's sports. A new documentary about her last season on the court is Sue Bird: In the Clutch. Also, we hear from Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker, co-founders of the punk band Sleater-Kinney. While they were working on their latest album, Little Rope, Brownstein's mother died in an car accident. They'll talk about how the grief affected the album. Also, Ken Tucker reviews Be...
A 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' Appreciation
April 05, 2024 15:56 - 46 minutes - 42.7 MBHBO's Curb your Enthusiasm comes to an end Sunday night, after 25 years and 12 seasons. We're featuring our interviews with cast members Larry David, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Garlin, Jeff Greene, Susie Essman and more. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Abortion Rights & The Fetal Personhood Movement
April 04, 2024 18:46 - 45 minutes - 41.4 MBThe Guardian's reproductive health reporter Carter Sherman says efforts are underway in a number of states to assign fetuses "some kind of rights that we would generally ascribe to a human person." Also, TV critic David Bianculli reviews Ripley starring Andrew Scott. Film critic Justin Chang reviews Woody Allen's new French-language drama Coup de Chance. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Capt. Cook's Final Voyage
April 03, 2024 19:48 - 46 minutes - 42.7 MB"A lot of things started going wrong from the very beginning," historian Hampton Sides says of Cook's last voyage, which ended in the British explorer's violent death on the island of Hawaii in 1779. His book is The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact, and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook. Ken Tucker reviews Beyoncé's album Cowboy Carter. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
'Kids Are Not OK' Says Mental Health Expert
April 02, 2024 18:55 - 46 minutes - 42.3 MBA global pandemic, school shootings, climate change, war: Children and teenagers are experiencing and being treated for unprecedented levels of anxiety and depression. We talk with founding president of the Child Mind Institute, Dr. Harold Koplewicz, about screen time, suicidal ideation, and testing for ADHD. His latest book is Scaffold Parenting: Raising Resilient, Self-Reliant, and Secure Kids in an Age of Anxiety. Also, Justin Chang reviews the film La Chimera. Learn more about sponsor ...
WNBA Star Sue Bird
April 01, 2024 18:28 - 45 minutes - 41.7 MBRetired point guard Sue Bird holds the record for most career assists in the WNBA, with 3,234 over the course of her 19-season professional career. She's also won four WNBA championships, five Olympic gold medals and two NCAA championships. She spoke with Terry Gross about playing overseas in Russia, staying cool under pressure, and her pump-up song for games. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Best Of: Stories From A Hollywood Insider / Eugene Levy
March 30, 2024 07:00 - 47 minutes - 43.3 MBIf you've ever wondered how directors convince stars to appear in their films, or what they do when an actor committed to a lead role suddenly starts throwing up roadblocks, you can ask Ed Zwick. He's a writer, director and producer who's been making TV and movies for decades. His new memoir is Hits, Flops, and Other Illusions: My Fortysomething Years in Hollywood. Also, we'll hear from Eugene Levy. He's appeared in dozens of films, including four satirical movies by Christopher Guest, whi...
Celebrating Country Music's Black Roots
March 29, 2024 16:20 - 46 minutes - 42.6 MBBeyoncé's highly anticipated country album, Cowboy Carter, is out today. One of the musicians on it is fiddle and banjo player Rhiannon Giddens. We'll listen to our 2010 in-studio performance with the group she was part of then, the Carolina Chocolate Drops. They played string band and jug band music of the '20s and '30s, music most people associate with a white southern tradition. But the members of the Carolina Chocolate Drops are Black. They saw themselves as part of a little known Black s...
How Cars Became A Gendered Technology
March 28, 2024 18:49 - 45 minutes - 41.5 MBAuthor Nancy Nichols says that for men, cars signify adventure, power and strength. For women, they are about performing domestic duties; there was even a minivan prototype with a washer/dryer inside. Her book is Women Behind the Wheel: An Unexpected and Personal History of the Car. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Oregon's Drug Decriminalization Experiment
March 27, 2024 19:06 - 45 minutes - 41.2 MBIn 2020, Oregon voters overwhelmingly approved to decriminalize possession of small amounts of hard drugs, and mandate more spending on drug treatment and social services. But 3.5 years of frustration, with overdose deaths and open air drug use, has turned public opinion around, and lawmakers have restored criminal penalties. We'll speak with New Yorker contributing writer E. Tammy Kim, who traveled through the state speaking with activists, treatment providers, police, lawmakers and drug use...
Climate-Driven Migration In America
March 26, 2024 19:50 - 45 minutes - 41.5 MBProPublica reporter Abrahm Lustgarten says in the coming decades it's likely tens of millions of us will relocate to escape rising seas, punishing heat, floods and wildfires due to global warming. He says nine of the ten fastest growing regions of the country are on the front lines of the most severe and fast-changing climate conditions. His book is On the Move: The Overheating Earth and the Uprooting of America. Ken Tucker has high praise for Tierra Whack's new album, World Wide Whack. Fo...
Sleater-Kinney
March 25, 2024 22:42 - 47 minutes - 43.1 MBCarrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker co-founded the band Sleater-Kinney together 30 years ago, and became an important part of the 1990s feminist punk scene in Olympia, Washington. Rolling Stone once called Sleater-Kinney the best American punk rock band ever. Brownstein and Tucker just released their 11th album, called Little Rope. While they were working on the record, Brownstein's mother died in a car accident. They spoke with Ann Marie Baldonado about how the grief affected the album, and w...
Best Of: The Life Of A Nun / A Foster Parent On Loving & Letting Go
March 23, 2024 07:00 - 48 minutes - 44.6 MBCatherine Coldstream spoke with Terry Gross about her years as nun in a Carmelite monastery. She talks about what drew her to the vocation, what it was like to live a silent and obedient life, and why she ran away. Her memoir is called Cloistered. Maureen Corrigan reviews Percival Everett's new novel, James. It's a reimagining of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. When Mark Daley and his husband became foster parents to two brothers, they fell in love with the children right...
'Tokyo Vice' Journalist On Japan's Criminal Underworld
March 22, 2024 16:44 - 45 minutes - 41.8 MBReporter Jake Adelstein's memoir, Tokyo Vice, is about covering the organized crime beat in Japan. The MAX series (based on the book) is now in its second season. Adelstein spoke with Dave Davies in 2009. Also, Justin Chang reviews the remake of the '80s film Road House. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
The Chinese Mafia & The Illicit Marijuana Trade
March 21, 2024 19:12 - 44 minutes - 40.9 MBMarijuana has been legalized in some states, but ProPublica's Sebastian Rotella says there's still a thriving illicit market in the U.S., dominated by criminals connected to China's authoritarian government. Also, John Powers reviews the Romanian film Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
A Former Nun On Why She 'Cloistered' And Later Ran Away
March 20, 2024 18:13 - 45 minutes - 41.4 MBCatherine Coldstream spoke with Terry Gross about her years as nun in a Carmelite monastery. She talks about what drew her to the vocation, what it was like to live a silent and obedient life, and why she ran away. Her memoir is called Cloistered. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Christine Blasey Ford On Life Before And Since Testifying
March 19, 2024 18:29 - 45 minutes - 41.9 MBChristine Blasey Ford describes what it was like to come forward and testify that Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her in high school. Her 2018 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee threatened to derail his confirmation, but Kavanaugh succeeded in being becoming a supreme court justice. Ford still requires security for protection. After mostly avoiding the media, she's written a memoir. It's called One Way Back. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews Percival Everett's new book, James, w...
An 'Exvangelical' On Loving & Leaving The Church
March 18, 2024 18:53 - 44 minutes - 40.9 MBNPR Politics correspondent Sarah McCammon grew up in a white evangelical church that taught her to never question her faith. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about her upbringing, how her faith was tested, and her decision to leave the church. She now reports on the Christian right and their support of Donald Trump. McCammon's book is The Exvangelicals. Also, Justin Chang reviews The Shadowless Tower. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Best Of: Jenny Slate / Julio Torres
March 16, 2024 07:00 - 48 minutes - 44.8 MBJenny Slate talks about childbirth and motherhood, the subjects of her new comedy special, Seasoned Professional. She'll do the voices of some of her animated characters, including Marcel from her Oscar-nominated film Marcel the Shell with Shoes On. Also, we hear from comic/actor Julio Torres. Growing up in El Salvador as a gay atheist he says he felt like an alien. Then he literally was labeled an "alien" when he came to the U.S. on a student visa. He's drawn on those experiences to write, ...
A Maître D' Dishes On The Restaurant Industry
March 15, 2024 18:00 - 45 minutes - 42 MBMichael Cecchi-Azzolina has worked in several high-end New York City restaurants — adrenaline-fueled workplaces where booze and drugs are plentiful and the health inspector will ruin your day. His memoir is Your Table Is Ready. Also, Terry shares a remembrance of revered magazine editor William Whitworth. David Bianculli reviews Restless Dreams, a documentary about Paul Simon. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
What Makes Propaganda Effective?
March 14, 2024 18:20 - 44 minutes - 40.6 MBWe talk with Peter Pomerantsev, whose new book, How to Win an Information War, is about the man he describes as the "forgotten genius" of propaganda. Throughout WWII, Sefton Delmer ran propaganda campaigns for the British against Hitler's regime. Some of those efforts bordered on pornography. We'll also talk about witnessing Putin's use of disinformation when Pomerantsev worked in Russia, and his work as the co-founder of a project documenting Russian war crimes in Ukraine. Learn more about ...
Eugene Levy Is A 'Reluctant Traveler'
March 13, 2024 21:39 - 46 minutes - 42.6 MBSchitt's Creek star Eugene Levy visits distant lands and tastes exotic foods as the host of the Apple TV+ series The Reluctant Traveler. Levy describes it as a show about "a guy traveling who doesn't love to travel." Also, book critic Maureen Corrigan reviews Adelle Waldman's new novel, Help Wanted, and David Bianculli reviews a TV show about the Lincoln assassination called Manhunt. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Jenny Slate
March 12, 2024 18:15 - 46 minutes - 42.6 MBThe comic/actor returns. Now she has a 3-year-old daughter, who she sings to in the voice of her character Marcel the Shell with Shoes On. Slate spoke with Terry Gross about finding comedy in her feelings, divorce, and growing up in a haunted house. Her new stand-up special on Amazon Prime Video is Seasoned Professional. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Julio Torres Spins Immigration Stress Into Satire
March 11, 2024 19:29 - 46 minutes - 43 MBComic, actor and filmmaker Julio Torres came to the U.S. from El Salvador in his 20s. His new film, Problemista, draws from his personal experience struggling to get a visa. "This movie deals with the problem of immigration, but I think of it as a very silly, happy and joyful movie," he says. Torres talks with Terry Gross about his love of difficult people, collaborating with his mom, and getting started in stand-up. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episod...
Best Of: Biden's Last Campaign / Trans Writer Lucy Sante
March 09, 2024 08:00 - 48 minutes - 44.3 MBNew Yorker staff writer Evan Osnos recently interviewed Biden for his new profile about the president's accomplishments and failures in office, his current face-off with Trump, and the fears of many voters that he is too old for the job. Also, we'll hear from writer Lucy Sante. She's been writing books since the 1980s, exploring everything from photography to urban history. In her latest memoir, I Heard Her Call My Name, she writes about coming out as a trans woman in her 60s. Maureen Co...
Emma Stone / Mark Ruffalo
March 08, 2024 19:10 - 46 minutes - 42.2 MBEmma Stone has two Oscar nominations for Poor Things: One for best actress and one for best picture, as a producer. She spoke with Terry Gross about working with an intimacy coordinator and why she sees her anxiety as a superpower. Mark Ruffalo plays a debauched cad opposite Emma Stone in the movie. The role was a big departure from his previous work playing real people, in dramas like Spotlight or Foxcatcher, or as the Incredible Hulk in the Marvel movies. The Oscar-nominated actor spoke w...
A Veteran Filmmaker Shares Secrets From The Set
March 07, 2024 19:53 - 44 minutes - 40.7 MBWriter, director and producer Ed Zwick has made dozens of films and TV shows including Legends of the Fall, The Last Samurai, and Blood Diamond. In his memoir, Hits, Flops, and Other Illusions, he writes about studios, actors and the frustrations and joys of the business. John Powers reviews the pulpy noir crime film Love Lies Bleeding. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Biden's Last Campaign
March 06, 2024 19:43 - 45 minutes - 41.6 MBIn a wide-ranging conversation with The New Yorker, President Biden proclaimed that he is the best option to beat Donald Trump — despite polls indicating he is falling behind. We talk with Evan Osnos about Biden's outlook. Among the things that Americans are unsure of are Biden's age, his mental agility, his handling of immigration, and the war in Gaza. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
A War Reporter Reckons With A Deadly Cancer Diagnosis
March 05, 2024 19:22 - 45 minutes - 41.3 MBAs a war correspondent, Rod Nordland faced death many times over. But in 2019, Nordland confronted a different type of danger when he was diagnosed with glioblastoma, the most lethal form of brain tumor. "I had to face the reality that my death was within a fairly short timespan, highly probable," he says. "I think it made me a better person." His new memoir is Waiting for the Monsoon. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews Sloane Crosley's new memoir Grief Is For People. And David Bianculli revie...
RuPaul's House Of Hidden Meanings
March 04, 2024 19:33 - 44 minutes - 40.8 MBThe Emmy-winning host of RuPaul's Drag Race describes himself as "an introvert masquerading as an extrovert." In a new memoir, he writes about growing up Black and queer in San Diego. And how he forged a new and glamorous identity in the punk rock and drag scenes of Atlanta and New York City. The memoir is titled The House of Hidden Meanings. Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews a new oral history of the Village Voice. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Pr...
Best Of: The Making Of 'Dune' / Why We Remember
March 02, 2024 08:00 - 48 minutes - 44.6 MBDenis Villeneuve remembers watching the 1984 movie version of Frank Herbert's 1965 sci-fi novel Dune and thinking, "Someday, someone else will do it again" — not realizing he would be that filmmaker. He spoke to Sam Briger about shooting Dune in the desert and his love of silent film. Ken Tucker reviews a new solo album from guitarist Mary Timony. Neuroscientist Dr. Charan Ranganath's book is Why We Remember. We talk about how stress affects memory and what's happening in the brain when so...
Paul Giamatti / Remembering Comic Richard Lewis
March 01, 2024 08:00 - 46 minutes - 42.1 MBPaul Giamatti stars in The Holdovers as a pompous and disliked teacher at a boys boarding school in the '70s. He's now up for an Oscar for best actor. Giamatti spoke with Sam Briger about the role and reuniting with director Alexander Payne, 20 years after Sideways. Also, we remember comic and Curb Your Enthusiasm actor Richard Lewis, who died Feb. 27. The Brooklyn-born comic made his standup debut in 1971. His routines were full of biting takes on love, life, and physical and mental health....
The Impact Of Christian Nationalism On American Democracy
February 29, 2024 19:04 - 45 minutes - 41.3 MBWhy do many Christian nationalists think Trump is chosen by God to lead the country? We talk with Bradley Onishi about the ties between Christian nationalism and political and judicial leaders. Onishi became a Christian nationalist and a youth minister in his teens and then left the church. He is the author of Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism — and What Comes Next, and he cohosts a podcast about religion and politics called Straight White American Jesus....
'Dune' Director Denis Villeneuve
February 28, 2024 19:32 - 46 minutes - 42.2 MBVilleneuve remembers watching the 1984 movie version of Frank Herbert's 1965 sci-fi novel Dune and thinking, "Someday someone else will do it again" — not realizing he would be that filmmaker. He spoke to Sam Briger about shooting Dune in the desert, depicting sandworm surfing, and his love of silent film. Also, David Bianculli reviews the new CBS murder mystery series, Elsbeth. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes, too — subscribe to Fresh Air+ via...
Busy Philipps
February 27, 2024 19:18 - 45 minutes - 41.4 MBBusy Philipps plays Mrs. George, a "cool mom" seeking the approval of her teen daughter in the new movie musical version of Mean Girls. Philipps got her start in acting as a teen on the series Freaks and Geeks. She spoke with Ann Marie Baldonado about sexism in Hollywood, collaborating with Tina Fey, and the best friendship advice her mom gave her. Also, Ken Tucker reviews a new solo album from Mary Timony, and David Biacnulli reviews the series Shōgun. For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh A...
Why We Remember (And Forget)
February 26, 2024 19:55 - 45 minutes - 41.6 MBCharan Ranganath recently wrote an op-ed about President Biden's memory gaffes. He says forgetting is a normal part of aging. We also talk about PTSD, how stress affects memory, and what's happening when something's on the tip of your tongue. His new book is Why We Remember. Also, John Powers reviews Cocktails with George and Martha: Movies, Marriage, and the Making of Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? For sponsor-free episodes of Fresh Air — and exclusive weekly bonus episodes — subscribe t...
Best Of: Mark Ruffalo / Jeffrey Wright
February 24, 2024 12:00 - 48 minutes - 44.4 MBMark Ruffalo is nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actor for his role in Poor Things. He plays a hilarious debauched lawyer who seduces Emma Stone's character. Ruffalo has also appeared in Marvel movies as the Incredible Hulk. For that role he had to act in a motion capture suit. "It's the man-canceling suit. It makes you look big where you want to look small, and small where want to look big," he says. Also, we hear from Jeffrey Wright. He's up for an Oscar for best actor for his...
Bradley Cooper & Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin
February 23, 2024 20:35 - 46 minutes - 42.6 MBIn his Oscar-nominated biopic Maestro, Bradley Cooper was determined not to imitate the legendary Leonard Bernstein. Instead, the actor worked with conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin to find his own rhythm. They spoke with Terry Gross about conducting, Bernstein's legacy, and playing with batons when they were kids. Also, Justin Chang reviews Italy's submission for best foreign film, Io Capitano. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Trump's Legal Challenges, Explained
February 22, 2024 19:37 - 45 minutes - 41.3 MBAs Donald Trump seeks to gain the Republican presidential nomination, he faces 91 felony charges across four states and several lawsuits, many with dates in court that run right up to the election. We talk with reporter Alan Feuer, who is part of the team at the New York Times covering Trump's legal battles. The first of four criminal case trials is expected to start on March 25. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Writer Lucy Sante On Transitioning In Her Late 60s
February 21, 2024 19:47 - 45 minutes - 42 MBLucy Sante has been writing books since the 1980s, exploring everything from photography to urban history. In a new memoir, she shares her story of transition from male to female at 67 years old. "I am lucky to have survived my own repression," Sante says. "I think a lot of people in my position have not." The book is titled I Heard Her Call My Name: A Memoir of Transition. Also, TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new Apple TV+ series Constellation. Learn more about sponsor message choic...
Jeffrey Wright, From 'Basquiat' To 'American Fiction'
February 20, 2024 19:13 - 44 minutes - 41 MBWright is up for an Oscar for best actor this year for the film American Fiction, where he plays a novelist who's frustrated with the publishing industry's expectations of Black authors. He cynically writes a book under a pseudonym that's full of clichés, like drug abuse, violence, and poverty — and it's a hit. Wright's first starring role was in the 1996 film Basquiat. He talks with us about his big break in the play Angels in America, and the time early in his career when he was acting oppo...
The History Of The Oscars
February 19, 2024 08:00 - 44 minutes - 40.9 MBFrom relentless campaigning to snubs and speeches, the Academy Awards have often reflected a cultural conflict zone. Michael Schulman sifts through the controversies in his book, Oscar Wars. Maureen Corrigan reviews The Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Best Of: Molly Ringwald / Busy Philipps
February 17, 2024 08:00 - 48 minutes - 44.6 MBActress Molly Ringwald came to represent '80s teen angst after starring in Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, and Pretty in Pink. She's now in the new series Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, about the high society women that Truman Capote loved and betrayed. Also, we hear from another actor who got her start as a teen — Busy Philipps. In the '90s, she played tough girl Kim Kelly in Freaks and Geeks. Philipps' latest project is the movie musical Mean Girls where she plays a mom trying to be youn...
Sterling K. Brown / Colman Domingo
February 16, 2024 18:38 - 46 minutes - 42.2 MBSterling K. Brown won an Emmy for his portrayal of Christopher Darden in The People v. O.J. Simpson, and another for This Is Us. He's now nominated for an Oscar for his performance in American Fiction. Colman Domingo is also nominated, for his role in the biopic Rustin as Bayard Rustin, the civil rights leader responsible for organizing the 1963 March on Washington. Rustin was forced into the background because he was gay. Justin Chang reviews Drift, starring Cynthia Erivo. Learn more a...