Movies

'Cha Cha Real Smooth' is a great calling card for actor-writer-director Cooper Raiff

4:27pm June 17, 2022

by Bob Mondello

Cooper Raiff's Cha Cha Real Smooth had to play at the Sundance Film Festival virtually because of the pandemic, so he hasn't heard the applause critics are showering on his bittersweet dramedy.

Arts

Remembering character actor Philip Baker Hall

1:47pm June 17, 2022

by Terry Gross

Hall, who died June 12, appeared in the Paul Thomas Anderson films Boogie Nights and Magnolia. He also played a cop on the trail of overdue library books on Seinfeld. Originally broadcast in 2003.

Queue Listen Now

Daryl McCormack plays a sex worker, and Emma Thompson is a retired schoolteacher in the Hulu film, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande.

Arts

Age is just a number in Sundance hits 'Leo Grande' and 'Cha Cha Real Smooth'

5:00am June 17, 2022

by Justin Chang

Emma Thompson stars as an older woman who hires a younger sex worker in Good Luck to You, Leo Grande. Dakota Johnson is a single mother who's wooed by a recent college grad in Cha Cha Real Smooth.

(L-R) Curt Flood, Bill White, Bob Gibson

Black baseball players struggled long after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier

5:00am June 17, 2022

After Jackie, a new History Channel documentary, tells the stories of three of the Black baseball players who followed Jackie Robinson into the major leagues.

Estefan and Garcia play parents 'of the Bride' in new adaptation of classic film

5:51pm June 16, 2022

NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with Andy Garcia and Gloria Estefan about their new movie Father of the Bride, which is a fresh take on a familiar story: Dad finds out his daughter is getting married.

A VHS copy of 'Back to the Future' has sold for $75,000 at auction

6:47am June 16, 2022

It's from the collection of actor Tom Wilson, who played Biff Tannen in the movie. Wilson says he saved a copy because he was convinced that the VHS platform would be around forever.

National

Life-lessons abound in 'Lightyear,' an origin story about Buzz from 'Toy Story'

4:52pm June 15, 2022

by Bob Mondello

Buzz Lightyear flies to infinity and beyond in Lightyear, the fifth film in Pixar's Toy Story saga.

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard attending the trial in Fairfax, Va.

Arts

Amber Heard says social media was a factor for her defamation trial jury

7:48am June 15, 2022

Appearing on NBC's Today show, the actress said she stands by the testimony she gave in the trial against former husband Johnny Depp.

This image released by Disney/Pixar shows character Buzz Lightyear, voiced by Chris Evans, in a scene from the animated film "Lightyear," releasing later this week.

Arts

The United Arab Emirates is banning Disney and Pixar's 'Lightyear' spinoff

5:49am June 14, 2022

by Ayana Archie

The movie, which chronicles the adventures of space cadet Buzz Lightyear, is slated to be released June 16.

Prolific character actor Philip Baker Hall dies at 90

6:34pm June 13, 2022

by The Associated Press

Hall's many roles included parts in Midnight Run, Hard Eight, Boogie Nights, Magnolia, and he was known for one of the most powerfully funny guest appearances on Seinfeld.