Arts & Life

Arts

'Dark Crystal' Prequel Expands Jim Henson's Vision Of 'Incredible Handmade Artistry'

1:39pm November 21, 2019

by Sam Briger

Executive producer Lisa Henson (daughter of legendary puppeteer Jim Henson) and design supervisor Toby Froud talk about their Netflix fantasy series and creating a cast of handmade, sculpted puppets.

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"The way the public feels about Tom Hanks has a similar quality to how we feel about Mister Rogers," says director Marielle Heller. But she found that Hanks and Rogers had a very different energy. At the beginning, she tried to "rein Tom's natural buoyanc

Arts

'Beautiful Day' Director On Mister Rogers' 'Radical Notion': Telling Kids The Truth

12:20pm November 21, 2019

by Terry Gross

"He wasn't afraid of any of the hardest parts of childhood," Marielle Heller says. Her film A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood centers on Rogers' unlikely friendship with a cynical journalist.

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Books
Arts

'Crying Laughing' Will Have You Doing Both

10:00am November 21, 2019

by Alethea Kontis

Lance Rubin's new novel follows an aspiring young comedian as she navigates the rough waters of romance, improv and her father's failing health, with plenty of laughs to light the darker moments.

Mary Toft; or, The Rabbit Queen, by Dexter Palmer

Books
Arts

'Mary Toft; Or, The Rabbit Queen' Asks Big Questions About Small Animals

7:00am November 21, 2019

by Jason Heller

Dexter Palmer's new novel is based on the strange true story of a woman who confounded the medical and scientific establishments of 18th century England by claiming she'd given birth to rabbits.

Winners of this year's National Book Awards each receive $10,000 along with their prize.

Books
Arts

National Book Awards Handed To Susan Choi, Arthur Sze And More

10:04pm November 20, 2019

by Colin Dwyer

The novelist and poet joined Sarah M. Broom, László Krasznahorkai, Ottilie Mulzet, and Martin W. Sandler as winners Wednesday night — receiving $10,000 and a medallion for their front covers.

Canyon Dreams: A Basketball Season on the Navajo Nation, by Michael Powell

In 'Canyon Dreams,' A Navajo Town Struggles To Survive In An Often Hostile World

12:33pm November 20, 2019

by Michael Schaub

Journalist Michael Powell's book is about basketball the same way that Buzz Bissinger's Friday Night Lights is about football — sports are the ostensible focus, but the real interest is the community.

Elsa (voiced by Idina Menzel) is headed for a fall in Frozen II.

Arts

'Frozen II' Lets It Go ... Darker

11:52am November 20, 2019

by Glen Weldon

Yes, there's another earworm-ballad, but the sequel at least attempts to course-correct for the pernicious princess obsession that Disney unleashed on the world in the first place.

Books
Arts

'They Will Drown' Isn't A Whodunit, It's A Who-Is-It?

7:10am November 20, 2019

by Bethanne Patrick

Johannes Anyuru's unusual speculative mystery They Will Drown in Their Mothers' Tears follows two seemingly ordinary (at first) Swedish citizens dealing with the aftermath of a shooting.

Baltimore Museum Of Art Will Only Buy Works By Women Next Year

6:33pm November 19, 2019

by Laurel Wamsley

A 2019 study of major U.S. art museums found that 87% of artists in their collections are men. The Baltimore museum's chief curator calls the initiative "re-correcting the canon."

Russian President Vladimir Putin participates in the G-20 Leaders' Summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 2018.

In New Book, Journalist Alleges Russian Links To Mysterious Deaths Abroad

3:40pm November 19, 2019

by Dave Davies

BuzzFeed News editor Heidi Blake says Russian agents in Britain killed exiled Russian oligarchs, security officials and others critical of the Kremlin. Her new book is From Russia with Blood.

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