Arts & Life

Ron Perlman played Clay Morrow on FX's Sons of Anarchy.

Books
Arts

Ron Perlman On 'Sons Of Anarchy' And His Many On-Screen Transformations

3:47pm September 22, 2014

Perlman played the ruthless leader of a motorcycle gang on the FX series. In his new book, Easy Street (The Hard Way), he talks about having a face "that was not ugly but surely one of its kind."

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Arts

Fall TV Preview: 'Gotham,' 'Scorpion' And 'Black-ish'

2:39pm September 22, 2014

by David Bianculli

For major broadcast networks, Monday is the official start of the 2014-15 TV season. Fresh Air's critic has a not-very-long list of new shows you should make an effort to sample.

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Shonda Rhimes speaks onstage at the How to Get Away with Murder panel during the Television Critics Association summer press tour.

Arts

The Only One: A Talk With Shonda Rhimes

2:02pm September 22, 2014

by Linda Holmes

On Friday night, Shonda Rhimes spoke about her hugely successful television career, her love of the National Spelling Bee, and the New York Times article that called her an "angry black woman."

Books
Arts

'Sally Heathcote' Rescues Women's Suffrage From The Doldrums

10:36am September 22, 2014

by Etelka Lehoczky

A working-class activist anchors this graphic novel portrayal of British suffrage. Sally Heathcote is a compelling mix of visual ingenuity and historical accuracy.

Michael Emberley's illustrations, like this one showing an egg traveling through a fallopian tube, make sexual health information accessible to an elementary and middle school audience. But elements of the art, including naked bodies, make some parents un

It May Be 'Perfectly Normal', But It's Also Frequently Banned

7:48am September 22, 2014

by Rebecca Hersher

It's Perfectly Normal, a 20-year-old illustrated sex-ed book for kids, is meant to teach children about sexual health, puberty and relationships. It's one of the most banned books in America.

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As Friday's panel chatted on, a lively, honest and engaging conversation was also happening on Twitter. Check out #NPRBroadway for more.

Adding Color To 'The Great White Way'

11:15am September 21, 2014

by Michel Martin

NPR's Michel Martin asks a panel of award-winning playwrights how diverse artists are challenging Broadway's landscape, and whether it matters.

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The Cosby Show starred Bill Cosby and Phylicia Rashad as Cliff and Clair Huxtable, an upper-middle-class couple in New York. Tempestt Bledsoe, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Lisa Bonet and Keshia Knight Pulliam played four of their five children.

Arts

Examining Bill Cosby's Legacy As 'The Cosby Show' Turns 30

6:59pm September 19, 2014

by Eric Deggans

On the anniversary of the iconic series, NPR's Eric Deggans talks with the author of a new Bill Cosby biography about how the show and the comedian have shaped perceptions of black families.

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Books
Arts

For The Autumnal Equinox, A Poem As Chilling As The Fall Weather

6:08pm September 19, 2014

by Abigail Deutsch

Tuesday is the first day of fall. This time of year reminds critic Abigail Deutsch of Stephen Dobyns' "How to Like It" — a poem about a man who ponders his lost summers and fleeting dreams.

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Author Jacqueline Woodson reads from her newest novel, Sept. 15.

Jacqueline Woodson On Being A 'Brown Girl' Who Dreams

2:37pm September 19, 2014

by Kat Chow

In her new memoir for young adults, Woodson uses free verse to tell the story of growing up in the 1960s and 1970s. Her work for young readers often touches on themes of race and identity.

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This human-scale lab rat cage is parked near a skate park in Denver, Colo., to make a point about the lack of science on marijuana.

Colorado Tries Hard To Convince Teens That Pot Is Bad For You

10:29am September 19, 2014

by Maanvi Singh

Do you want to be a lab rat? That's what teenagers are doing when they smoke marijuana, the state of Colorado says. But since hard evidence of marijuana's harms is scanty, it may be a tough sell.