Pop Culture Roundup: Britney, Lohan and Obama December 31, 2008 • It's been a difficult year on many fronts, but that doesn't mean we can't have a little fun. We asked comedy duo Frangela (aka Frances Callier and Angela Shelton) to help us with a year-end wrap up of the fluffier side of life. Pop Culture Roundup: Britney, Lohan and Obama Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98879871/98879853" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Pop Culture Roundup: Britney, Lohan and Obama Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98879871/98879853" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Opinion 'Son, Let's Talk About Drinking' December 30, 2008 • New Year's Eve is just around the corner with extravagant celebrations being planned on many levels. But the decision to consume alcoholic beverages can have serious consequences for many youngsters who are eager to raise a glass or a bottle. Moms discuss teaching kids how to drink responsibly, whether to drink at all and reaction to when youngsters choose not to take their parents' advice. 'Son, Let's Talk About Drinking' Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98810447/98810437" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
'Son, Let's Talk About Drinking' Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98810447/98810437" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Culture Eccentricity? All In A Day's Work For Rainn Wilson Fresh Air December 30, 2008 • Rainn Wilson plays beet-farming, archery-loving middle-management kook Dwight Shrute on NBC's The Office. Eccentricity? All In A Day's Work For Rainn Wilson Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98816039/98816109" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Eccentricity? All In A Day's Work For Rainn Wilson Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98816039/98816109" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Culture 12-Year-Old Fan Of Jazz's Monk Is New 'Dora' December 29, 2008 • Dora the Explorer has a new voice: Twelve-year-old Caitlin Sanchez has taken over the title role of Nickelodeon's bilingual animated adventure series. The Fairview, N.J., resident plays jazz piano and likes John Coltrane and Thelonious Monk. 12-Year-Old Fan Of Jazz's Monk Is New 'Dora' Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98786631/98791757" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
12-Year-Old Fan Of Jazz's Monk Is New 'Dora' Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98786631/98791757" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Culture Stephen Colbert On 'The Greatest Gift Of All' Fresh Air December 29, 2008 • Stephen Colbert, the host of Comedy Central's Colbert Report, got his start as a correspondent on The Daily Show. He discusses the his recent holiday special, A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All! Stephen Colbert On 'The Greatest Gift Of All' Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98785023/98785022" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Stephen Colbert On 'The Greatest Gift Of All' Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98785023/98785022" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Culture Tina Fey's Gubernatorial Turn Fresh Air December 29, 2008 • Comedian Tina Fey created a sensation this fall with her impersonation of Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live. A former head writer for SNL, Fey stars in the NBC comedy 30 Rock. Tina Fey's Gubernatorial Turn Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98784255/98784254" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Tina Fey's Gubernatorial Turn Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98784255/98784254" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Culture Seth Meyers On 'SNL' And Campaign Comedy Fresh Air December 29, 2008 • Comedian and writer Seth Meyers discusses Saturday Night Live's treatment of the recent presidential election. Meyers has been with SNL since 2001, and currently serves as co-anchor of the show's "Weekend Update" segment. Seth Meyers On 'SNL' And Campaign Comedy Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98784014/98784098" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Seth Meyers On 'SNL' And Campaign Comedy Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98784014/98784098" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
All Tech Considered 'Rock Band' Game Amps Up Bar Scene December 29, 2008 • Bars like Whitlow's on Wilson near Washington, D.C., are drawing crowds with an increasingly popular video game called Rock Band. Players can take the stage as rock stars — singing or playing guitar, drums or bass to their favorite hits. 'Rock Band' Game Amps Up Bar Scene Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98784408/98794192" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
'Rock Band' Game Amps Up Bar Scene Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98784408/98794192" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Music Interviews 'Hard Day's Night': A Mathematical Mystery Tour December 27, 2008 • The jangly opening chord of The Beatles' hit has long frustrated amateur guitarists seeking to replicate it. So a Canadian mathematician used sound-wave analysis to figure it out. It appears that the Fab Four got by with a little help. Listen Now: Hear The Interview With Math Guy Keith Devlin Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98743259/98754529" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Listen Now: Hear The Interview With Math Guy Keith Devlin Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98743259/98754529" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Culture 'Sesame Street' Changed Television For Children December 26, 2008 • When Sesame Street made its TV debut in 1969, it was thanks to Joan Ganz Cooney, co-creater of the show and of the Children's Television Workshop. She laid out the vision, hustled the money and assembled the creative team, including Jim Henson, to create one of the most successful television shows in TV history. 'Sesame Street' Changed Television For Children Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98718786/98718765" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
'Sesame Street' Changed Television For Children Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98718786/98718765" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
National Report Criticizes Record Of Sheriff-Turned-TV Star December 26, 2008 • In Fox's new reality show, Smile, You're Under Arrest, "America's toughest sheriff" dishes out the heat. But in reality, Sheriff Joe Arpaio's department in Maricopa County, Ariz., is coming under fire. Report Criticizes Record Of Sheriff-Turned-TV Star Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98747631/98754534" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Report Criticizes Record Of Sheriff-Turned-TV Star Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98747631/98754534" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Review Movies In 'Benjamin Button,' A Curiously Chilly Passion December 25, 2008 • David Fincher's romance — based on a story by F. Scott Fitzgerald — ages Brad Pitt backward until he's the right age to love Cate Blanchett. Kenneth Turan says the peculiar tale is an odd fit for the director's talents. In 'Benjamin Button,' A Curiously Chilly Passion Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98618345/98706006" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
In 'Benjamin Button,' A Curiously Chilly Passion Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98618345/98706006" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Opinion Geoff Nunberg Nominates 2008's Word of The Year Fresh Air December 24, 2008 • Early in January, the American Dialect Society will meet in San Francisco to vote for 2008's Word of the Year. Several dictionaries have already made their own selections. After looking over the field, Fresh Air's resident linguist has a candidate, too. Geoff Nunberg Nominates 2008's Word of The Year Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98683564/98683903" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Geoff Nunberg Nominates 2008's Word of The Year Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98683564/98683903" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Essay The Little Rascals: A Refresher On The Rules Of Life December 24, 2008 • A new DVD box set of the Our Gang series of the '20s and '30s is a refresher course on key life lessons — like never skip school by pretending to be sick; you'll lose out because the teacher has special plans for the day. The Little Rascals: A Refresher On The Rules Of Life Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98453466/98694320" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
The Little Rascals: A Refresher On The Rules Of Life Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/98453466/98694320" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Review Movies 'The Spirit' Is Weak (Which Is Bad In A Superhero) December 24, 2008 • The noir-crime movie revisits a comic-serial world that's more sophisticated than most — but Frank Miller's take on the Central City story is a by-the-numbers superhero story, haphazardly told.