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California Characters California is a place that looms large not only in the national economy, but also in our collective imagination. As part of a summer series, NPR is talking to people who embody an aspect of California and have a unique insight on what the Golden State is all about.
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California Characters

Richard Montoya: 25 Years Of Laughing About Race

In the mid-1980s in California, at a time when few people wanted to talk about race, Richard Montoya was laughing about it. His thought-provoking performances with the group Culture Clash over the past 25 years have cracked up audiences, and changed some minds.

Richard Montoya: 25 Years Of Laughing About Race

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Call Of The Wild: How Ranger Became 'Yosemite Bob'

Bob Roney first fell in love with Yosemite National Park as a senior in high school. More than 40 years later, he uses technology — like Twitter and a tape recorder — to document the wonders that have kept him enchanted with the place.

Call Of The Wild: How Ranger Became 'Yosemite Bob'

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For Hollywood's Middle Class, 'Cut' Has New Meaning

Beth Broderick, who plays Aunt Zelda on the TV series Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, has been in the business for 20 years and says wages for Hollywood's professional class have plummeted in the past decade. Now there is less work for actors, and it's much harder to make a living.

For Hollywood's Middle Class, 'Cut' Has New Meaning

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A Veteran Lawmaker's Advice For California's Crisis

Willie Brown, former San Francisco mayor and California State Assembly speaker, tells NPR the state should get rid of term limits, because they contribute to stalemates in the legislature. He also says a requirement that two-thirds of the legislature approve a budget should be scrapped.

A Veteran Lawmaker's Advice For California's Crisis

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Searching For The Soul Of L.A. Through Kitsch

The self-professed historian Charles Phoenix gives tours of places locals often overlook in Los Angeles. And he says he finds beauty in just about everything — even an income tax office shaped like a tamale.

Searching For The Soul Of L.A. Through Kitsch

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A Writer Who Can Fit Your Entire Life On A Postcard

All Things Considered

A Writer Who Can Fit Your Entire Life On A Postcard

Michael Kimball has been writing people's life stories in 600 words or less since April 2008. The writer, who lives in Baltimore, says he was inspired to start the postcard project on his blog by a friend who was curating a performance art festival. Kimball tells NPR the exercise has changed him.

A Writer Who Can Fit Your Entire Life On A Postcard

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