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Monkey See

Pop-Culture News And Analysis From NPR

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Chris Evans as Captain America in Marvel's Captain America: Civil War.

Chris Evans as Captain America in Marvel's Captain America: Civil War. Zade Rosenthal/Marvel hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Captain America' And The Russo Brothers

We're going all-Cap for this episode, in which a panel discussion about Captain America: Civil War is followed by an excerpt from Linda Holmes' talk with the film's directors.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Captain America' And The Russo Brothers
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Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele in Keanu.

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: Comics, More Comics, Free Comics And Keanu

This week's show takes us on a tour of what's on offer for Free Comic Book Day and also finds us watching Key & Peele's kitten-driven action comedy.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: Comics, More Comics, Free Comics And Keanu
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Bob's Burgers.

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Silicon Valley' And 'Bob's Burgers'

This week, the roundtable discusses the HBO comedy Silicon Valley and Stephen Thompson sits down with Bob's Burgers creator Loren Bouchard.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Silicon Valley' And 'Bob's Burgers'
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Left to right: Melissa McCarthy in Ghostbusters, Chris Evans in Captain America: Civil War, Ellen DeGeneres in Finding Dory, Will Smith and Jai Courtney in Suicide Squad.

Left to right: Melissa McCarthy in Ghostbusters, Chris Evans in Captain America: Civil War, Ellen DeGeneres in Finding Dory, Will Smith and Jai Courtney in Suicide Squad. Hopper Stone/Sony Pictures; Zade Rosenthal/Marvel; Courtesy of Pixar; Courtesy of Warner Bros./Raptac-Dune hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: Our 2016 Summer Movie Preview

The panel discusses its most anticipated summer blockbusters and makes some bold predictions. And, as always, we take a look at What's Making Us Happy this week.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: Our 2016 Summer Movie Preview
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Prince in 2011.

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour Small Batch: Remembering Prince

Linda Holmes and Stephen Thompson discuss the way Prince changed music, supported other artists, defied creative constraints and challenged the notion of what it means for a pop singer to rebel.

Pop Culture Happy Hour Small Batch: Remembering Prince
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Mindy Kaling as Dr. Mindy Lahiri in The Mindy Project.

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'The Mindy Project' And Romantic Comedies

This week's show brings in Audie Cornish and Margaret Willison to talk about Mindy Kaling's just-returning OB/GYN comedy and about the state and ways of romantic comedy in general.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'The Mindy Project' And Romantic Comedies
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Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton star in Twister.

Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton star in Twister. AMBLIN/UNIVERSAL/WARNERS/THE KOBAL COLLECTION hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: Best Bad Movies And A Punishing Quiz

On this week's show, original PCHH panelist Trey Graham returns to chat about bad movies and to be less humiliated than the rest of us by a quiz about pop culture returns.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: Best Bad Movies And A Punishing Quiz
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Henry Cavill as Superman in Batman v. Superman: Dawn Of Justice.

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Batman V. Superman' And The Objects We Desire

We look at a big new movie and discuss what we want from our blockbusters. Then it's on to a discussion of the pop-culture objects we covet, plus What's Making Us Happy this week.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Batman V. Superman' And The Objects We Desire
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All Things Considered's Audie Cornish and NPR Music's Stephen Thompson.

All Things Considered's Audie Cornish and NPR Music's Stephen Thompson. Adam Kissick/NPR hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: SXSW And Life-Changing Songs

On this week's show, we talk through the Austin experience and air some stories of songs that made big differences in our lives.

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Marquis de Lafayette (Daveed Diggs), Hercules Mulligan (Okieriete Onaodowan), John Laurens (Anthony Ramos), and Alexander Hamilton (Lin-Manuel Miranda) in the acclaimed Broadway musical Hamilton.

Marquis de Lafayette (Daveed Diggs), Hercules Mulligan (Okieriete Onaodowan), John Laurens (Anthony Ramos), and Alexander Hamilton (Lin-Manuel Miranda) in the acclaimed Broadway musical Hamilton. Joan Marcus/Sam Rudy Media Relations hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Hamilton'

It's Broadway's current phenomenon, so we went to see it and report back on what it is, how it works, and whether we loved it as much as we wanted to. It's our Hamilton show.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Hamilton'
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Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr in the Broadway musical Hamilton.

Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr in the Broadway musical Hamilton. Joan Marcus/Sam Rudy Media Relations hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Hamilton,' Kanye And 'Gilmore Girls'

With the panel on pause this week, we bring you three great conversations about theater, music and TV.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Hamilton,' Kanye And 'Gilmore Girls'
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The series finale of Downton Abbey airs this Sunday.
Nick Briggs/Nick Briggs/Carnival Film

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: A Fond Farewell To 'Downton Abbey'

Barrie Hardymon and Audie Cornish sit in for a chat about saying farewell to the Crawleys, and about the general pleasures and challenges of entertainment that lives in the past.

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Leonardo DiCaprio is considered a frontrunner for an Oscar for his lead role in The Revenant.

Leonardo DiCaprio is considered a frontrunner for an Oscar for his lead role in The Revenant. Kimberley French/Regency Entertainment/20th Century Fox hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: Our 2016 Oscars Preview

It's time once again for our annual Oscars Omnibus: a roundup of every Best Picture nominee, many notable performances, and the movies we'd have nominated to improve the awards' diversity.

George Clooney as Baird Whitlock in the new film Hail, Caesar!

George Clooney as Baird Whitlock in the new film Hail, Caesar! Universal Pictures hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Hail, Caesar!' And Backstage Stories

On this week's show, the Coen Brothers' 17th feature, the appeal of tales of filmmaking and other creative pursuits, and what's making us happy this week.

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Kendrick Lamar performs "The Blacker The Berry" at the 2016 Grammy Awards, held Monday night.

Kendrick Lamar performs "The Blacker The Berry" at the 2016 Grammy Awards, held Monday night. Larry Busacca/Getty Images hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

For 20 Minutes, The Grammys Transcend The Awards-Show Blahs

The awards themselves went more or less as expected. But two performances, one from Broadway's Hamilton and one an extended medley by Kendrick Lamar, overwhelmed everything that surrounded them.

For 20 Minutes, The Grammys Transcend The Awards-Show Blahs
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Singer-songwriter Sam Smith, winner of Record of the Year and Song of the Year, Best Pop Vocal Album and Best New Artist, poses in the press room during the Grammy Awards in 2015.

Singer-songwriter Sam Smith, winner of Record of the Year and Song of the Year, Best Pop Vocal Album and Best New Artist, poses in the press room during the Grammy Awards in 2015. Frazer Harrison/Getty Images hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: The Awards Show Problem And Product Placement

On this week's show, we break down what entertainment industry awards are for (if anything) and consider the highs and lows of product placement.

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Beyoncé, Coldplay singer Chris Martin and Bruno Mars perform during halftime of the NFL Super Bowl 50 football game Sunday, Feb. 7, 2016, in Santa Clara, Calif.

Beyoncé, Coldplay singer Chris Martin and Bruno Mars perform during halftime of the NFL Super Bowl 50 football game Sunday, Feb. 7, 2016, in Santa Clara, Calif. Julio Cortez/AP hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Small Batch: The Super Bowl, From Peyton vs. Cam To Twitter vs. Coldplay

We talk about the game, the quarterbacks, the halftime show in which Coldplay was hopelessly outshined, and lots more.

Small Batch: The Super Bowl, From Peyton vs. Cam To Twitter vs. Coldplay
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Tortilla chips with guacamole and salsa.

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Small Batch: How To Eat The Super Bowl

Dan Pashman from The Sporkful podcast joins us for a talk about the eternal question: If you're watching the Super Bowl, what are you eating while you do?

Small Batch: How To Eat The Super Bowl
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Tovah Feldshuh and Rachel Bloom in the CW's Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.

Tovah Feldshuh and Rachel Bloom in the CW's Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. Scott Everett White/The CW hide caption

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,' 'Grease,' TV Musicals

It's a show full of good tunes as we visit with the CW's Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and take a tour of the recent spate of televised live musicals (with more to come).

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,' 'Grease,' TV Musicals
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Fred Armisen.

Fred Armisen. Charles Sykes//Invision/AP hide caption

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Television 2015

Pop Culture Happy Hour: In Conversation With Fred Armisen And 'Welcome To Night Vale'

The gang's been snowed in, but there's still a new episode of the show, thanks to Linda Holmes' onstage discussions — one with Armisen and one with Night Vale creators Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: In Conversation With Fred Armisen And 'Welcome To Night Vale'
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