Accessibility links
Culture Art and entertainment commentary plus interviews, book reviews, movie reviews, music reviews, comedy, and visual art. Subscribe to podcasts and follow trends in music, painting, art, architecture, photography, and design.

Culture

Horror and comedy collide in a pileup of 'Bodies Bodies Bodies'

Amandla Stenberg, Maria Bakalova, Chase Sui Wonders, and Rachel Sennott in a scene from Bodies Bodies Bodies, directed by Halina Reijn. A24 hide caption

toggle caption
A24

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Horror and comedy collide in a pileup of 'Bodies Bodies Bodies'

Bodies Bodies Bodies starts with a fairly standard horror-movie premise: A group of wealthy and attractive pleasure-seekers gather at a mansion to party and ride out an oncoming hurricane. But things get quickly messy when one of them turns up dead. With a cast that includes Amandla Stenberg, Maria Bakalova, Chase Sui Wonders, Myha'la Herrold, Rachel Sennott, Pete Davidson, and Lee Pace, the movie mixes horror, comedy, Gen-Z satire, and a whodunit-style mystery that will keep you guessing.

Horror and comedy collide in a pileup of 'Bodies Bodies Bodies'

Listen · 20:31
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1116501799/1116964620" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Published 8 years after her death, Mary Rodgers' memoir is a true tell-all book

Mary Rodgers and Jesse Green, co-authors of Shy: The Alarmingly Outspoken Memoirs of Mary Rodgers Courtesy of the Rodgers-Beaty-Guettel family; Earl Wilson/New York Times hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the Rodgers-Beaty-Guettel family; Earl Wilson/New York Times

Theater

Published 8 years after her death, Mary Rodgers' memoir is a true tell-all book

Rodgers, the daughter of theatrical legend Richard Rogers, was a songwriter, children's book author and philanthropist. Her memoir, Shy: The Alarmingly Outspoken Memoirs of Mary Rodgers, is out now.

Published 8 years after her death, Mary Rodgers' memoir is a true tell-all book

Listen · 6:03
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1116318854/1117015500" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
New Peaches, new problems: 'A League of Their Own' makes a successful move to TV

Roberta Colindrez (Lupe), Kate Berlant (Shirley), Abbi Jacobson (Carson), D'Arcy Carden (Greta), Melanie Field (Jo) and Molly Ephraim (Maybelle) Anne Marie Fox/Anne Marie Fox/Prime Video hide caption

toggle caption
Anne Marie Fox/Anne Marie Fox/Prime Video

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

New Peaches, new problems: 'A League of Their Own' makes a successful move to TV

The Amazon Prime series, co-created by Abbi Jacobson and Will Graham, is both a loving descendant of the 1992 film of the same name, and an ambitious effort to address its conspicuous gaps.

'Prey' is set in the past, but takes the 'Predator' franchise forward

Amber Midthunder as Naru in Prey. David Bukach/20th Century Studios hide caption

toggle caption
David Bukach/20th Century Studios

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Prey' is set in the past, but takes the 'Predator' franchise forward

The new film Prey isn't just another installment of the Predator franchise. For one thing, it's a prequel to the original 1987 movie — set more than 300 years ago. More important is who's telling the story this time: Amber Midthunder plays Naru, a tough, smart, young Comanche woman determined to prove herself, as well as to protect her people — and her dog — from a seemingly undefeatable enemy.

'Prey' is set in the past, but takes the 'Predator' franchise forward

Listen · 13:02
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1116813117/1116818327" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Afghanistan: The Center of the World (2021)

Isabel Seliger for NPR Isabel Seliger/Isabel Seliger for NPR hide caption

toggle caption
Isabel Seliger/Isabel Seliger for NPR

Throughline

Afghanistan: The Center of the World (2021)

Afghanistan has, for centuries, been at the center of the world. Long before the U.S. invasion — before the U.S. was even a nation — countless civilizations intersected there, weaving together a colorful tapestry of foods, languages, ethnicities and visions of what Afghanistan was and could be. The story of Afghanistan is too often told from the perspective of outsiders who tried to invade it (and always failed) earning it the nickname "Graveyard of Empires." In this episode, we're shifting the perspective. We'll journey through the centuries alongside Afghan mystical poets. We'll turn the radio dial to hear songs of love and liberation. We'll meet the queen who built the first primary school for girls in the country. And we'll take a closer look at Afghanistan's centuries-long experiment to create a unified nation.

Afghanistan: The Center of the World (2021)

Listen · 55:33
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1107183129/1116085100" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
The story of Steve Jobs and Issey Miyake's friendship (and a nixed Apple uniform)

Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, delivers the keynote address at the Worldwide Developers Conference in 2003 in San Francisco. Jobs created a personal uniform for himself that featured a black turtleneck from Japanese designer Issey Miyake. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Art & Design

The story of Steve Jobs and Issey Miyake's friendship (and a nixed Apple uniform)

Before Jobs adopted his classic black turtleneck, he approached Japanese designer Issey Miyake to see if he could create a uniform for Apple employees. But company employees were not fans.

After a career of cracking cold cases, investigator Paul Holes opens up

A photo of Joseph James DeAngelo Jr. is displayed during a news conference April 24, 2018, in Sacramento, Calif., announcing the arrest of the man suspected to be the so-called Golden State Killer. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Author Interviews

After a career of cracking cold cases, investigator Paul Holes opens up

Fresh Air

Holes spent more than 20 years investigating crimes in California and played a critical role in identifying Joseph James DeAngelo Jr. as the so-called Golden State Killer. His new book is Unmasked.

After a career of cracking cold cases, investigator Paul Holes opens up

Listen · 37:18
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1116304728/1116759542" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Le bon temps continue to roll on Cajun radio in Southern Louisiana

Jackie Miller and Mike Perrone host the KVPI morning show in Cajun French in Ville Platte, La. Emily Kask for NPR hide caption

toggle caption
Emily Kask for NPR

National

Le bon temps continue to roll on Cajun radio in Southern Louisiana

Eight radio stations in Southern Louisiana still broadcast partially in French as they try to keep alive a dying language in the area. French has been spoken there since the mid-1700s.

Le bon temps continue to roll on Cajun radio in Southern Louisiana

Listen · 7:10
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1116386405/1116640612" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Into the glittering neon universe of 'P-Valley' with Katori Hall

The cast of the Starz TV series P-Valley. Pari Dukovic/Courtesy of Starz hide caption

toggle caption
Pari Dukovic/Courtesy of Starz

Code Switch

Into the glittering neon universe of 'P-Valley' with Katori Hall

The Starz hit show P-Valley takes audiences to a strip club in a fictional town in the Mississippi Delta. Part soap opera, part Southern Gothic, the show focuses on the interior lives of the Black women who work at the club — and the complex social dynamics that shape their lives.

Into the glittering neon universe of 'P-Valley' with Katori Hall

Listen · 31:23
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1116600520/1116661602" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Our five favorite moments from Desus and Mero

Desus Nice, Denzel Washington and The Kid Mero on Showtime's Desus & Mero. Greg Endries/Showtime hide caption

toggle caption
Greg Endries/Showtime

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Our five favorite moments from Desus and Mero

For nearly a decade, Desus and Mero cultivated a unique space in media. With popular podcasts and late night talk shows, the comedy duo earned a devoted fanbase and became the destination for any celebrity looking to earn some cultural cache. But, alas, the brand is gone. Recently the pair announced they've parted ways. Today, we offer five favorite Desus and Mero moments, and look back on their legacy and influence.

Our five favorite moments from Desus and Mero

Listen · 25:44
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1116295815/1116575415" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Songwriter Lamont Dozier, who co-wrote hits for the Supremes and Four Tops, has died

Songwriter Lamont Dozier in 2013. He co-wrote songs that helped define the Motown sound. He died Monday at 81. Chelsea Lauren/Getty Images for BMI hide caption

toggle caption
Chelsea Lauren/Getty Images for BMI

Songwriter Lamont Dozier, who co-wrote hits for the Supremes and Four Tops, has died

Dozier died at 81. As part of the songwriting team Holland-Dozier-Holland, he co-wrote dozens of hits, including "Baby Love," "Heat Wave" and "Reflections," helping to define the Motown sound.

Songwriter Lamont Dozier, who co-wrote hits for the Supremes and Four Tops, has died

Listen · 2:14
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/1116472786/1116591080" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Browse archive or search npr.org