Arts & Life

Mark Rothko, Panel Four (Harvard Mural), 1962

Arts

After Decades In Storage, Damaged Rothko Murals Get High-Tech Restoration

8:15am August 11, 2014

by Andrea Shea

In the early 1960s, abstract artist Mark Rothko created five murals for a penthouse dining room at Harvard University. By the late '70s they were trashed — sun-faded and splattered with cocktails.

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Brothers and aviation pioneers Orville and Wilbur Wright walk together in 1910.

Books
Arts

When It Comes To Creativity, Are Two Heads Better Than One?

8:14am August 11, 2014

by NPR Staff

Joshua Wolf Shenk says it's time to debunk the myth of the lone genius. His new book explores creative partnerships — and explains how Emily Dickinson wasn't actually as much of a loner as we think.

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Visitors look at an exhibit at the National Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, Mass.

Effort To Preserve Yiddish Works Not 'Bupkes'

11:40am August 09, 2014

by Jon Kalish

The preservation of Yiddish as a spoken language gets more attention, but Yiddish once had a vibrant written tradition as well, filled with plays, poetry, novels and political tracts.

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Arts

As Film Stocks Dwindle, Movie-Makers Weigh What May Soon Be Lost

6:57pm August 08, 2014

by Neda Ulaby

Film isn't dead — not yet, at least. Kodak recently announced that it will keep making film stock for motion pictures despite a dramatic drop in sales, after a handful of high-profile directors advocated for it. But, since the medium's days may yet be numbered, it's worth asking what film can offer that digital media can't.

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Books
Arts

For Novelist Jonathan Lethem, Radicalism Runs In The Family

2:44pm August 08, 2014

His new book, Dissident Gardens, follows three generations of an activist family. The book is fiction, but its characters were inspired by Lethem's own story. Originally broadcast Sept. 9, 2013.

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On The Knick, the graphic scenes are riveting, says David Bianculli, though at times you may want to look away. Here, Clive Owen's character administers a shot.

Arts

Stick With 'The Knick,' A Medical Drama With Amazing Inventions

4:37pm August 07, 2014

by David Bianculli

The new Cinemax show stars Clive Owen as a rude doctor in a New York City hospital in 1900. It may take a few episodes, but you'll care about the characters and their inventions.

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Arts

Sandra Beasley Reads Her Summer Poem 'Ukulele'

8:09am August 07, 2014

This month, we'll be hearing from poets about what summer evokes for them. Our first poet is Sandra Beasley, whose latest collection is: I Was the Jukebox: Poems.

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Books
Arts

With Magic And Fables, 'Angel Of Losses' Breathes Life Into History

9:47am August 06, 2014

by Ellah Allfrey

Stephanie Feldman's debut novel is about Jewish folk tales and family history. It's also an exploration of the inheritance of loss and the guilt of survival as it is passed down through generations.

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Author Rick Perlstein also wrote the well-regarded books Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus and Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America.

How Ronald Reagan Used An 'Invisible Bridge' To Win Over Americans

4:50pm August 05, 2014

Rick Perlstein's new book describes how Reagan emerged as the leader of a potent political movement during the turbulent mid-'70s. He says the soul of Reagan's appeal was how he made people feel good.

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On Masters of Sex, Allison Janney plays Margaret Scully. Janney was nominated for an Emmy as outstanding guest actress in a drama series for her performance.

Arts

Allison Janney On Sex, Sorkin And Being The Tallest Woman In The Room

7:11pm August 04, 2014

Allison Janney has been nominated for Emmys for her roles on Masters of Sex and Mom. She says her relationships with her mother and her brother, who was an addict, helped inform her characters.

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