Named for the original model — an employee of Kodak — the portraits were used by photo labs to calibrate printers. But until the 1970s, that model was always white.
The Pulitzer Prize-winning writer's new book centers on Frank Bascombe, a 68-year-old man dealing with his aging body, a dying friend and his ex-wife, who has Parkinson's.
Chinese sci-fi author Cixin Liu bridges the gap between East and West in his new novel, a tale of alien first contact influenced by Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke and Chinese history and mythology.
In medieval art, Virgin Mary was cloaked in blue. In Colonial America "blue laws" made it illegal to buy alcohol on Sunday. And more recently, irreverent blue humor made blue the most off-color color.
Iran and Israel are sworn enemies, but Germany is neutral ground where people from those countries can collaborate musically. Sistanagila, an Israeli-Iranian ensemble, is doing just that.
As founding judge Randy Jackson announces his departure from American Idol, NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says he embodies all that's wrong with a pioneering show that's become a pop culture cliche.
It's literary awards season. The Nobel, the National Book Awards shortlists, and the Man Booker Prize were all recently announced. Author Jason Sheehan recommends some reading on all this reading.
Robert Siegel talks with The Philadelphia Inquirer's Peter Dobrin about a dispute between a Philadelphia Museum and the estate of Maurice Sendak, over the late author's rare book collection.
Shigeru Mizuki's Showa 1944-1953 is the third volume of his massive, autobiographical history of Japan and WWII, packed with anger at generals who ordered him to die, and gratitude for his survival.
Unlike novelists and musicians, visual artists don't get royalties for their work. New legislation aims to fix this by taxing public sales, but auction houses Christie's and Sotheby's oppose the idea.