Arts

Are you playing 'Whamageddon'? It's the Christmas game you've probably already lost

3:03pm December 15, 2023

by Alejandra Marquez Janse

Last weekend, a DJ caused a stir in Britain after playing the hit Wham! song "Last Christmas" at a soccer game in front of about 60,000 people. Here's why.

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Arts

Remembering Norman Lear, creator of 'All in the Family' and 'The Jeffersons'

1:55pm December 15, 2023

Lear, who died Dec. 5, used humor to address racism and politics. Terry Gross spoke with Lear in 2014; Good Times actor Esther Rolle in 1983; and All in the Family director John Rich in 2006.

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If you find yourself in Hanukkah withdrawal, take Round and Round for a spin: This time-loop romance embraces the holiday in a way that feels complete and thoughtful. Above, Paula Shaw and Vic Michaelis in Round and Round.

One last Hanukkah gift from Hallmark: 'Round and Round' is a really fun romcom

12:13pm December 15, 2023

by Linda Holmes

If you find yourself in Hanukkah withdrawal, take Round and Round for a spin: This time-loop romance embraces the holiday in a way that feels complete and thoughtful.

Podcast tile art for The 13th Step, from NHPR; The Trump's Trials, from NPR; Violation, from WBUR; White Lies, from NPR; 50 Years of Hip Hop, from KEXP; Taking Cover, from NPR.

Arts

From Trump's trials to the history of hip-hop, NPR's can't-miss podcasts from 2023

6:01am December 15, 2023

by The NPR One Team

Catch up on a few of our favorite shows and seasons of the year.

Sophia Smith of USA during the FIFA Women's World Cup, August 06, 2023 in Melbourne, Australia.

Arts

Weird, wild and wonderful stories of joy from 2023

5:00am December 15, 2023

Let's face it: the news in 2023 was often a grind, confronting us with war, tragedy and controversies. But there were also incredible moments of hope, kindness and joy.

How Mideast scholars are censoring themselves amid the Hamas-Israel war

6:13pm December 14, 2023

Shibley Telhami, director of the University of Maryland Critical Issues poll talks about the survey of middle east scholars about self-censoring themselves during the war between Hamas and Israel.

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This is 'Whamageddon' — the game where you avoid a certain Christmas song

5:57pm December 14, 2023

Whamaggedon is a popular game this time of year. As soon as you hear the original "Last Christmas" by 1980s pop duo Wham, you're out. A DJ has apologized after playing the song at a soccer match.

Actor Jonathan Majors arrives at court for his domestic abuse trial, on Dec. 5, 2023, in New York.

Jury deliberations begin in the trial of actor Jonathan Majors

4:28pm December 14, 2023

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

Majors is on trial for assault and harassment in a domestic violence incident involving a former girlfriend. If convicted, he faces up to a year in prison.

Ballet Hispánico was one of 25 companies that performed at the American Dance Festival in Durham, N.C. in 2023. The pandemic forced the Festival to cancel the event two years in a row.

Arts

Pandemic relief funding for the arts was 'staggering'

4:16pm December 14, 2023

by Elizabeth Blair

A new study finds that the government had a rare moment of generosity toward the arts during the pandemic. Out of over $4 trillion, $53 billion went to arts and entertainment across the U.S.

Clockwise from top left: Past Lives, Showing Up, All of Us Strangers, De Humani Corporis Fabrica, Afire, Poor Things.

Arts

2023 was a great year for moviegoing — here are 10 of Justin Chang's favorites

1:39pm December 14, 2023

by Justin Chang

Film critics like to argue, but Chang says that he and his colleagues agree that this was a really good year on screen. Beyond the Barbie and Oppenheimer blockbuster, here's what you shouldn't miss.

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