Pop Culture : NPR

Essie Davis: On Playing A Sexually Liberated 'Superhero' Without Apology

Essie Davis has read about how Phryne is a "hussy." She doesn't mind. Ben King/Acorn.TV hide caption

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Ben King/Acorn.TV

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Essie Davis: On Playing A Sexually Liberated 'Superhero' Without Apology

March 31, 2014 • Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries is an Australian TV series with a passionate American audience. Davis plays Phryne Fisher, a free-thinking, deeply independent private detective.

It's 'Mother' Time: A Show With One Last Chance To Get It Right

Cristin Milioti joined the cast of How I Met Your Mother to play the mother herself in the final season. Josh Radnor has played Ted for nine years. Tonight, they meet. Ron P. Jaffe/CBS hide caption

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Ron P. Jaffe/CBS

Pop Culture Happy Hour

It's 'Mother' Time: A Show With One Last Chance To Get It Right

March 31, 2014 • How I Met Your Mother comes to an end Monday night, after nine seasons. Kelly Lawler begs for mercy from a show that hasn't always been easy on its ardent fans.

Cesar Millan's Long Walk To Becoming The 'Dog Whisperer'

Cesar Millan's television show Dog Whisperer on National Geographic debuted in 2004, but Millan previously spent years struggling to pursue a career as a dog trainer. Robin Layton/Courtesy of Cesar Millan hide caption

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Robin Layton/Courtesy of Cesar Millan

My Big Break

Cesar Millan's Long Walk To Becoming The 'Dog Whisperer'

March 30, 2014 • Millan is one of the world's most famous dog trainers, with TV shows and best-selling books. But his journey was arduous: He came to the U.S. illegally and was homeless before he got his big break.

Cesar Millan's Long Walk To Becoming The 'Dog Whisperer'

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The New And The Next

Right-Leaning Political Satire Show Shoots Back At Liberals

March 29, 2014 • Ozy deputy editor Eugene Robinson talks with NPR's Kelly McEvers about a new political satire show that aims to poke fun of the left and about the 50th anniversary of the first broadcast of Jeopardy!

Right-Leaning Political Satire Show Shoots Back At Liberals

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Inside 'Regular Show,' Where Every Clip Is A Big Production

J.G. Quintel is the creator of Regular Show and the voice of one of its main characters, Mordecai. Cartoon Network hide caption

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Cartoon Network

Television

Inside 'Regular Show,' Where Every Clip Is A Big Production

March 29, 2014 • The Emmy-winning cartoon is one bizarre and hilarious plot after another. For the show's creators, making each 11-minute episode is its own adventure.

Inside 'Regular Show,' Where Every Clip Is A Big Production

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Sex And The Greater 'Good Wife': Archie Panjabi On Keeping That Big Secret

Archie Panjabi plays Kalinda Sharma on CBS's The Good Wife. Jeffrey Neira/CBS hide caption

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Jeffrey Neira/CBS

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Sex And The Greater 'Good Wife': Archie Panjabi On Keeping That Big Secret

March 29, 2014 • Archie Panjabi plays a crafty investigator on the TV show The Good Wife. She talks with NPR's Scott Simon about her character, and being a South Asian British woman in Hollywood.

Sex And The Greater 'Good Wife': Archie Panjabi On Keeping That Big Secret

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The Tyranny Of Release Dates, Part II: 'The Lunchbox'

Saajan Fernandes (Irrfan Khan) is a widower whose correspondence comes in an unlikely package — a lunchbox. Ritesh Batra/Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics hide caption

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Ritesh Batra/Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

Pop Culture Happy Hour

The Tyranny Of Release Dates, Part II: 'The Lunchbox'

March 28, 2014 • The romantic comedy-drama The Lunchbox, starring Irrfan Khan, presents a challenging case when you consider what's the right moment to talk about a film.

For Actor Michael Peña, A Transformative Role As Cesar Chavez

Michael Pena as Cesar Chavez Pantelion Films hide caption

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Pantelion Films

Movie Interviews

For Actor Michael Peña, A Transformative Role As Cesar Chavez

March 27, 2014 • The new film Cesar Chavez tells the story of the civil rights leader who fought to secure a living wage and better working conditions for farm workers. Michael Peña talks about playing the lead role.

For Actor Michael Peña, A Transformative Role As Cesar Chavez

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From Walter White To LBJ, Bryan Cranston Is A Master Of Transformation

Over the course of Breaking Bad, Walter White (Bryan Cranston) metamorphosed from a high school chemistry teacher to a notorious outlaw. Ursula Coyote/AMC hide caption

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Ursula Coyote/AMC

Performing Arts

From Walter White To LBJ, Bryan Cranston Is A Master Of Transformation

Fresh Air

March 27, 2014 • While Breaking Bad fans were watching him portray Walt in the series' final episodes, Cranston was already reinventing himself — playing Lyndon B. Johnson in the play All the Way.

From Walter White To LBJ, Bryan Cranston Is A Master Of Transformation

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Tell Me Two Things Good': A Happiness Experiment

March 27, 2014 • What happens when you ask Twitter for two good things? Good food, family, sunshine, music, and neonatal kitten rescue.

Fans Of 'The Good Wife' Rocked By [Spoiler Alert]

Matthew Goode (left) as Finn Polmar and Josh Charles (right) as Will Gardner in Sunday night's episode of CBS's The Good Wife. CBS hide caption

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CBS

Television

Fans Of 'The Good Wife' Rocked By [Spoiler Alert]

March 24, 2014 • Fans of the TV program The Good Wife are reeling from a shocking episode — one that saw one of its most beloved characters exit the scene suddenly and with finality.

Fans Of 'The Good Wife' Rocked By [Spoiler Alert]

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Josh Charles as Will Gardner and Archie Panjabi as Kalinda Sherma on The Good Wife. In a word, "Ugh." CBS hide caption

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CBS

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Ugh: 'Good Wife,' Bad Idea

March 24, 2014 • CBS's The Good Wife has been an exemplary piece of entertaining and satisfying television. Sunday night, it went into a ditch.

To Mike Birbiglia's Parents: It's OK If Your Son Sticks To Comedy

Mike Birbiglia started his career as a server and fill-in comic at a comedy club in college. Charles Sykes/Invision/AP hide caption

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Charles Sykes/Invision/AP

My Big Break

To Mike Birbiglia's Parents: It's OK If Your Son Sticks To Comedy

March 23, 2014 • For comic Mike Birbiglia, getting his parents to accept his career choice was the hardest part of getting started. Appearing on the Late Show with David Letterman seemed to signal he wasn't so bad.

To Mike Birbiglia's Parents: It's OK If Your Son Sticks To Comedy

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The Most Powerful Nerd In The Universe Is A Scientific Anomaly

Neil deGrasse Tyson is hosting Cosmos, the science documentary series made popular by Carl Sagan. Tyson is Sagan's successor as America's most famous scientist. Richard Shotwell/Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP hide caption

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Richard Shotwell/Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

Code Switch

The Most Powerful Nerd In The Universe Is A Scientific Anomaly

March 23, 2014 • Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson is everywhere these days. And his current stature is remarkable, in part because he's a black astrophysicist — seemingly as elusive a phenomenon as the Higgs boson.

Why Comedian Hari Kondabolu Is 'Waiting For 2042'

Brooklyn-based comic Hari Kondabolu Courtesy of Hari Kondabolu hide caption

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Courtesy of Hari Kondabolu

Why Comedian Hari Kondabolu Is 'Waiting For 2042'

March 22, 2014 • The Indian-American performer says he's not obsessed with race, but he uses it frequently in his comedy because it's part of his lived experience and something he can't help but pay attention to.

Why Comedian Hari Kondabolu Is 'Waiting For 2042'

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Monday March 31, 2014

Sunday March 30, 2014

Cesar Millan's Long Walk To Becoming The 'Dog Whisperer'

Saturday March 29, 2014

Right-Leaning Political Satire Show Shoots Back At Liberals

Inside 'Regular Show,' Where Every Clip Is A Big Production

Sex And The Greater 'Good Wife': Archie Panjabi On Keeping That Big Secret

Friday March 28, 2014

Thursday March 27, 2014

For Actor Michael Peña, A Transformative Role As Cesar Chavez

Fresh Air

From Walter White To LBJ, Bryan Cranston Is A Master Of Transformation

Monday March 24, 2014

Fans Of 'The Good Wife' Rocked By [Spoiler Alert]

Sunday March 23, 2014

To Mike Birbiglia's Parents: It's OK If Your Son Sticks To Comedy

Saturday March 22, 2014

Why Comedian Hari Kondabolu Is 'Waiting For 2042'