Arts

Nearly 80 "leaplings" of all ages celebrated their leap day birthday on a Caribbean cruise in 2020. Organizers expect a similar turnout this year.

How can you make the most of leap day? NPR listeners have a few ideas

10:00am February 28, 2024

by Rachel Treisman

We get a leap day only every four years. How will you spend it? Here's some inspiration from people celebrating all sorts of personal milestones — and those who just want to enjoy their extra day.

Arts

Have you ever wanted to smell like 'Donkey Kong?' Imagine your answer was yes

5:48am February 28, 2024

The company Elevated Perceptions released an accessory called GameScent. The device attaches to gaming consoles, PCs — even VR goggles, and releases a scent that corresponds with sounds of the game.

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Dorothea Lange, Human Erosion in California (Migrant Mother), March 1936, gelatin silver print

Arts

In today's global migrant crisis, echoes of Dorothea Lange's American photos

5:18am February 28, 2024

by Susan Stamberg

Nearly 100 years ago, Lange chronicled the destitution and desperation of The Great Depression. An exhibition of her work at the National Gallery of Art speaks to the present day migrant crisis.

Books
Arts

Sloane Crosley mourns her best friend in 'Grief Is for People'

5:00am February 28, 2024

by Heller McAlpin

Russell Perreault hired Crosley when she was 25 and the two became very close. He died by suicide in 2019. Her first full-length book of nonfiction is a noteworthy addition to the literature of grief.

The idea that sentences can end with a preposition has become a point of contention in the replies to a tongue-in-cheek social media post from dictionary publisher Merriam-Webster.

Arts
Books

Merriam-Webster says you can end a sentence with a preposition. The internet goes off

7:53pm February 27, 2024

by Emma Bowman

The dictionary publisher's guidance on the practice has people riled up. Grammarians say the made-up rule is one big waste of time. Not everyone is ready to let it go.

Grammy winner SZA performs onstage at Spotify's Night of Music party at Anaheim Convention Center on June 25, 2022. SZA's Kill Bill is among the new round of songs to be removed from TikTok.

SZA, Doja Cat songs now also being removed on TikTok

6:17pm February 27, 2024

by Elizabeth Blair

TikTok and Universal Music Group still haven't come to an agreement about artists' compensation and AI-generated recordings. Now TikTok must start removing songs from UMPG, Universal's publishing arm.

Enzo Vogrincic as Numa in Society of the Snow, one of five films nominated for the Academy Award for Best International Feature.

Arts

Oscars guide: We map out the 5 films nominated for best international feature

4:01pm February 27, 2024

by Glen Weldon

They range in themes, languages and political urgency, but this year's stellar five nominees for the Best International Feature Film Oscar are each deserving of your time for their distinct pleasures.

Anna Sawai plays translator Toda Mariko in the new FX series Shōgun.

Arts

Sex, violence, 'Game of Thrones'-style power grabs — the new 'Shōgun' has it all

1:24pm February 27, 2024

by David Bianculli

In 1980, NBC's Shōgun miniseries told the story of an English sea pilot's adventures in Japan in the year 1600. Now, FX's remake is even more thought-provoking and stunning than the original.

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Busy Philipps attends the Mean Girls premiere in New York City on Jan. 8, 2024.

Arts

She missed out on 'Mean Girls' 20 years ago — but Busy Philipps got a second chance

1:24pm February 27, 2024

by Ann Marie Baldonado

Philipps plays Mrs. George, a "cool mom" seeking the approval of her teen daughter in the new movie musical version of the 2004 film. Philipps got her start as a teen on the series Freaks and Geeks.

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Delbert Anderson is a jazz musician from northern New Mexico.

This Navajo musician's song lasts four-and-a-half years

5:42am February 27, 2024

by Clark Adomaitis

A Navajo musician has begun performing a song that will last as long as the Navajo Long Walk, the forced removal of the tribe from their desert homelands in the 1860s.