Books

Shoes, Romance, And Art: A Reader Walks With The Books She Loves

When a fan of romance novels meets a pair of high heels, much better things ensue than you might expect.

Rudi's shoes.

Awards Season

The Tony Awards: Is This The Greatest Awards Show Opening Ever?

There's nothing like theater people, as host Neil Patrick Harris and an army of performers showed in a barn-burner of a number to kick off Sunday night's Tony Awards.

NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 09: Host Neil Patrick Harris and casts of Broadway shows perform onstage at The 67th Annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall on June 9, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions)

Culture And Criticism

When Your Data Is Currency, What Does Your Privacy Cost?

Revelations about government surveillance have motivated a lot of reactions, some of which take into account that we gain something for some of the data we give up in our day-to-day lives. But the transaction is different when the government is involved.

Hands on a keyboard.

Television

A Lannister Always Pays His Debts — But Do Too Many Of His Fans Watch For Free?

Watching Netflix, Hulu Plus and HBO Go with a friend or family member's password? You're not nearly alone — and that may spell trouble for providers.

Peter Dinklage stars as the cunning, charismatic Tyrion Lannister in HBO's hit drama Game Of Thrones. One security consultant suggests that the number of people watching the popular drama through HBO's streaming service HBO Go without paying for it could be high enough to pose a real challenge for providers of such services.

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: Funny Moms And Funny Pages

This week, we talk about the moms that make sitcoms run, the comic strips that make Sunday mornings more amusing, and what's making us happy this week.

A drawing of two clinking martini glasses.

Jon Stewart Signs Off For The Summer With A Shove From John Oliver

Jon Stewart is gone from The Daily Show for 12 weeks, and last night was his farewell.

John Oliver.

Movies

When 'G' Movies Are For Kids, Do Kids Avoid 'G' Movies?

Bob Mondello says a G rating used to mean "general audiences." Now it means a movie for kids, and that means kids are less likely to be interested in them than they once were.

The 1939 film The Wizard Of Oz was rated G. The 2013 film Oz the Great and Powerful was rated PG. The difference? Maybe a little violence and a womanizing leading man.

Movies

Joss Whedon's 'Much Ado' As Romantic Comedy And Cop Show

Joss Whedon talked to Morning Edition about his new Shakespeare adaptation and its cultural connections.

Amy Acker as Beatrice eavesdrops in a scene from Joss Whedon's new film version of Much Ado About Nothing.

Movies

The Vexing Matter Of The Summer Blockbuster

Why do some movies that are calculated to make huge money succeed while others crash and burn?

In Iron Man 3, Robert Downey Jr. reprises his role as Tony Stark (aka Iron Man), and Gwyneth Paltrow reprises hers as his girlfriend, Pepper Potts.

Nostalgia

'So Much In This World We Can Learn': PBS Remixes Mr. Rogers Again

PBS has produced a second music video "remixing" the sounds of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood.

Portrait of American educator and television personality Fred Rogers.

Entirely Real Photos

Entirely Real Photos: Please Don't Cry On The One Direction Wax Figures

Would you cry all over a wax figure? Apparently, a lot of people would.

Madame Tussauds in London takes delivery of a bulk order of tissues after One Direction fans began to break down.

Television

The Critic, The Viewer And The Episode Dump

When 15 episodes of a television show drop all at once, what's a critic to do? The return of Arrested Development set off interesting internal and external conflicts.

A guy watching television.

Television

Once Again, Elizabeth Taylor And Richard Burton Get A TV Movie

Television isn't through yet with one of Hollywood's most famous romances.

Dominic West and Helena Bonham Carter in BBC America's Burton And Taylor.

Television

Why Yes, I Did Watch A Movie Called 'Deadly Spa'

You're not going to believe this movie is real. But it is. And we watched the whole thing.

Amy Pietz and Tracey Fairaway as Dawn and Kayla.

Television

Foster Families Take Center Stage

Neda Ulaby looks at a new summer drama about foster families, which — perhaps surprisingly — strikes real foster kids as getting a lot of things right.

Cierra Ramirez, Teri Polo, and Jake T. Austin star in ABC Family's The Fosters.