Arts

During World War II, Potato Pete, a dapper cartoon spud with a jaunty cap and spats, instructed U.K. consumers on the humble tuber's many uses – not just in standards like scalloped potatoes and savory pies but also in more surprising options, like pota

Save The Fleet, Eat Less Wheat: The Patriotic History Of Ditching Bread

6:00pm February 23, 2016

by Jessica Leigh Hester

Finding bread alternatives may seem like a thoroughly modern obsession. But during both world wars, consumers were urged to give up their white bread habit for the national good.

Visitor Services Associate Sacha Baumann talks with two visitors about Mark Bradford's 2006 work Scorched Earth.

Arts

Avant Guard: At LA's Broad Museum, A New Approach To Protecting Art

2:09pm February 23, 2016

by Susan Stamberg

Contemporary art isn't easy, and the new museum's creators wanted first-time visitors to feel welcome. So The Broad's guards act as friendly ambassadors — ready to engage with visitors about the art.

Queue Listen Now

Arts

Maggie Smith On The Pressures Of Acting: 'You Want So Much To Get It Right'

1:55pm February 23, 2016

Known for her recent work in Downton Abbey and the Harry Potter films, the Oscar-winning actress now stars in The Lady in the Van, a film about an elderly woman who lived in a van for 15 years.

Queue Listen Now

Six of Damine's 10 remaining children perform in the finale of the village's annual kabuki festival.

As A Japanese Mountain Village Shrinks, So Do Its Prospects For Kabuki

12:17pm February 23, 2016

by Elise Hu

For more than 300 years, children have performed kabuki, Japan's classical theater, in the village of Damine. But as residents age or leave for cities, Damine is running out of young performers.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

'Doubter's Almanac' Is A Family Saga, Plus Algebraic Equations

10:14am February 23, 2016

by Maureen Corrigan

Ethan Canin traces the complicated lives of two generations of mathematical geniuses in his new novel. Critic Maureen Corrigan calls it an "elegant and devastating novel."

Queue Listen Now

Screenwriter Meg LeFauve attends The Hollywood Reporter's Nominees Night on Feb. 8. LeFauve co-wrote two 2015 Pixar films: Inside Out and The Good Dinosaur.

Arts

This Oscar Nominee Could've Been An Executive. Instead, She's A Screenwriter

6:37pm February 22, 2016

by Elizabeth Blair

At one point, Meg LeFauve was getting multiple studio executive job offers. But as her mentor says, "She knew she had a different path." Now her screenplay for Inside Out is up for an Oscar.

Queue Listen Now

Sonia Shah is also the author of The Fever and The Body Hunters.

'Pandemic' Asks: Is A Disease That Will Kill Tens Of Millions Coming?

5:40pm February 22, 2016

Author Sonia Shah says that urbanization and air travel put the global population at an increased risk for disease. "Zika is a great example of how new pathogens are emerging today," she says.

Queue Listen Now

Arts

Hey, Sci-Fi And Comics Fans: It's Time To Embrace The Dark Side

3:23pm February 22, 2016

by Jeff Yang

Why fans have nothing to fear — and everything to gain — from diversity in science fiction and fantasy.

Books
Arts

The 'Girl' In The Title: More Than A Marketing Trend

3:02pm February 22, 2016

by NPR Staff

Lately it seems as if every thriller written by a woman gets compared to two recent blockbusters: Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train. So what makes those two books so appealing and influential?

Queue Listen Now

Chefs at work in the kitchen of a restaurant in New York's Chinatown, circa 1940. For many Chinese, opening up restaurants became a way to bypass U.S. immigration laws designed to keep them out of the country.

Lo Mein Loophole: How U.S. Immigration Law Fueled A Chinese Restaurant Boom

2:44pm February 22, 2016

by Maria Godoy

In the early 20th century, the Chinese faced draconian immigration rules. But owners of a few types of businesses could get special visas. In 1915, restaurants got on that list. The rest is history.