Pop Culture

Jeffrey Tambor stars as Maura Pfefferman in Amazon's Transparent. The show's third season comes out on Friday.

Arts

'Transparent' Actor Jeffrey Tambor Says He Found His Dream Role In Maura

5:45pm September 22, 2016

by NPR Staff

Tambor plays a transgender woman in Amazon show. "It's a perfect role," he says. "... I thought I was gonna do Lear, but I'm gonna do Maura." Transparent's third season comes out on Friday.

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Mel Brooks receives the National Medal of Arts during an East Room ceremony at the White House on Thursday.

At White House, A Golden Moment For America's Great Artists And Patrons

3:43pm September 22, 2016

by Colin Dwyer

Two dozen luminaries — from Terry Gross to Mel Brooks, Morgan Freeman to Louise Glück — got laurels Thursday, as President Obama awarded the National Medals of Arts and National Humanities Medals.

Brazilian actor Wagner Moura plays Pablo Escobar in Netflix's Narcos. Executive producer Eric Newman says Escobar was "very likely a sociopath, and certainly a terrorist."

Arts

'Narcos' Producer On The Drug War, Colombia And Escobar's Son's Grievances

2:43pm September 22, 2016

Before making Narcos, Eric Newman spent years researching Pablo Escobar's story. He says, "For us ... it was very important to show the most balanced look at the [drug] war we possibly could."

Kiefer Sutherland stars as Tom Kirkman, a lower-level Cabinet member who suddenly becomes president of the United States, in the ABC series Designated Survivor, which premieres Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET.

Arts

Kiefer Sutherland Takes Over The Oval Office As The 'Designated Survivor'

1:44pm September 21, 2016

by John Powers

Sutherland plays a Cabinet member who becomes president after an explosion takes out the U.S. Capitol — and everyone above him in the pecking order. Critic John Powers has a review.

The main floor at SPX is where independent artists have tables next to larger well-known publishers like Drawn & Quarterly or Fantagraphics Books.

Books
Arts

A Comics Convention For The Unconventional: The Small Press Expo

6:53pm September 20, 2016

by Glen Weldon

Every year the Small Press Expo (SPX) brings creators of independent comics together with passionate fans. Many of those fans make comics themselves and say they're inspired by SPX's "funkier" feel.

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The words of the late writer James Baldwin narrate the award-winning documentary "I Am Not Your Negro"

A Breakthrough Showcase For Black Filmmaking At The Toronto Film Festival

8:07pm September 19, 2016

by Bilal Qureshi

The Toronto International Film Festival's lineup of new movies pushed back against the narrow definition of a "black film" and offered a feast of cinematic stories about black life.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus won the Emmy for outstanding lead actress in a comedy series for Veep.

WATCH: The 4 Best Political Moments From The Emmys

2:51pm September 19, 2016

by Amita Kelly

Julia Louis-Dreyfus issued a personal apology for the political climate and Jeb Bush called Jimmy Kimmel a "godless Hollywood hippie."

The fall TV season isn't entirely a relic, says our critic Eric Deggans.

Arts

Fall TV Channel Flip: 4 Shows To Watch, And Some To Avoid

2:39pm September 19, 2016

by Eric Deggans

Does the fall TV season even matter anymore, in this age of #PeakTV? September is still the beginning of the season for broadcast networks — which still draw the most viewers and the big bucks.

An Emmy statuette stands at a press conference before the 68th annual Emmys.

Juggernauts Repeat At 2016 Emmys, But Fresh Faces Get Their Due

11:37pm September 18, 2016

Game of Thrones, Veep and The People v. O.J. Simpson won for best drama, comedy and limited series — but some new names made splashes, too. NPR's pop culture crew live-tweeted the night's festivities.

Books
Arts

Blogger Luvvie Ajayi Is Judging You With Her New Book

5:21pm September 18, 2016

Blogger Luvvie Ajayi discusses her new book I'm Judging You: The Do-Better Manual, which has her takes on pop culture and more.