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Saturday

Damian Lewis On The Conflicts And Complexities Of 'Homeland'

Damian Lewis as Nicholas Brody in Showtime's Homeland. Bob Leverone/Showtime hide caption

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Bob Leverone/Showtime

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Damian Lewis On The Conflicts And Complexities Of 'Homeland'

Damian Lewis is a newly minted Emmy winner for his role as Nicholas Brody on Showtime's tense spy thriller Homeland.

Damian Lewis On The Conflicts And Complexities Of 'Homeland'

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Friday

Fall TV's Returning Series: A Cause To Rejoice

A phone call from her former boss, Saul (Mandy Patinkin), delivers Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) back into the action of Homeland's second season. Ronen Akerman/Showtime hide caption

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Ronen Akerman/Showtime

Fall TV's Returning Series: A Cause To Rejoice

Fresh Air

Showtime's Homeland, which swept this year's Emmy Awards, returns this weekend — as does another Showtime drama, Dexter. Critic David Bianculli says there's a rich bounty of returning series — and Homeland is the "most topical and meaningful drama on television."

Fall TV's Returning Series: A Cause To Rejoice

Listen · 7:39
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Thursday

A Woman As Sherlock's Dr. Watson is 'Elementary'

Lucy Liu and Jonny Lee Miller star as modern versions of Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes on the CBS drama Elementary. David M. Russell/CBS hide caption

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David M. Russell/CBS

A Woman As Sherlock's Dr. Watson is 'Elementary'

There have been a lot of different Sherlock Holmes adaptations over the years, but Lucy Liu is probably the first woman to play Dr. Watson. In the CBS drama Elementary, Holmes and Watson solve crimes in modern-day New York City. Liu says a female Watson is a "wonderful concept."

A Woman As Sherlock's Dr. Watson is 'Elementary'

Listen · 7:20
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Tuesday

Mindy Kaling Loves Rom Coms (And Being The Boss)

Dr. Mindy Lahiri (Mindy Kaling) must juggle a variety of responsibilities as an obstetrician-gynecologist in the new comedy The Mindy Project. Jordin Althaus/Fox hide caption

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Jordin Althaus/Fox

Mindy Kaling Loves Rom Coms (And Being The Boss)

Fresh Air

The actress played Kelly Kapoor on The Office, a role she also wrote and produced. Now she runs a new Fox comedy, The Mindy Project, in which she stars as an obstetrician whose personal life is a mess. Kaling tells Fresh Air that her late mother inspired her character's career.

Mindy Kaling Loves Rom Coms (And Being The Boss)

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Monday

Opinion

The Opinion Page

Op-Ed: Emmys Play It Too Safe With Comedies

The big winners at the 2012 Emmy Awards included Homeland and the ABC comedy, Modern Family. Albert Ching points to the dominance of Modern Family at the Emmys as proof that the award show plays it too safe when it comes to comedy by repeatedly rewarding the same programs.

Op-Ed: Emmys Play It Too Safe With Comedies

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In a 2001 photo, actress Debra Messing and director James Burrows pose together after Burrows won a Directors Guild of America award for directing the pilot of Will & Grace.

In a 2001 photo, actress Debra Messing and director James Burrows pose together after Burrows won a Directors Guild of America award for directing the pilot of Will & Grace. Chris Weeks/Getty Images hide caption

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Chris Weeks/Getty Images

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Making A Comedy Pilot? You Might Want To Call James Burrows

James Burrows has directed more than 50 pilots, including Cheers, Friends, Taxi, and Frasier.

Making A Comedy Pilot? You Might Want To Call James Burrows

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Sunday

On Television's Biggest Night, It's Antiheroes And Maggie Smith

Maggie Smith as Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham on Downton Abbey. Nick Briggs/PBS hide caption

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Nick Briggs/PBS

Pop Culture Happy Hour

On Television's Biggest Night, It's Antiheroes And Maggie Smith

On Sunday's Weekend Edition, we'll talk to Linda Wertheimer about Emmy night, antiheroes, and family shows.

On Television's Biggest Night, It's Antiheroes And Maggie Smith

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Friday

Pop Culture Happy Hour: Breakup Culture And Fall Television Predictions
NPR

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: Breakup Culture And Fall Television Predictions

On this week's show, we jump into fall television and make some doomed predictions, and then we roll around in the agony of great breakup songs and scenes.

Listen to Pop Culture Happy Hour

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Thursday

Kelly Macdonald: Strong Woman On The 'Boardwalk'

In Boardwalk Empire, Margaret Schroeder (Kelly Macdonald) is married to corrupt political boss "Nucky" Thompson (Steve Buscemi.) Macall B. Polay/HBO hide caption

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Macall B. Polay/HBO

Kelly Macdonald: Strong Woman On The 'Boardwalk'

Fresh Air

The Scottish actress plays Margaret Thompson, a young Irish widow who marries a corrupt politician on HBO's Boardwalk Empire. Macdonald, who got her start in Trainspotting, tells Fresh Air that she enjoys playing a "strong character" for a change.

Kelly Macdonald: Strong Woman On The 'Boardwalk'

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Wednesday

Claire Danes: Playing Bipolar Is Serious Business

Claire Danes plays Carrie Mathison in Showtime's Homeland. The second season premieres on Sept. 30. Kent Smith/Showtime hide caption

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Kent Smith/Showtime

Claire Danes: Playing Bipolar Is Serious Business

The actor says she researched her Emmy-nominated role as bipolar CIA agent Carrie Mathison by watching YouTube videos of people in manic states. She returns to television in the second season of Showtime's Homeland on Sept. 30.

Claire Danes: Playing Bipolar Is Serious Business

Listen · 7:46
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Monday

Thursday

New Shows Hit Average In Fall TV Lineup

Mamie Gummer stars as the title character in Emily Owens, M.D., the best new show on broadcast television this fall. Jack Rowand/The CW hide caption

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Jack Rowand/The CW

New Shows Hit Average In Fall TV Lineup

Fresh Air

Critic David Bianculli says of all the new programs premiering this fall, there isn't one you have to add to your weekly viewing list. The best new show, he says, is Emily Owens, M.D., which is just like Ally McBeal if she were a doctor instead of a lawyer — but it's graded on a curve.

New Shows Hit Average In Fall TV Lineup

Listen · 7:59
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