Television

Season 2 of Marvel's 'What if...?' includes episode mostly in Mohawk language

10:27am December 28, 2023

by Ava Pukatch

Season Two of Marvel's animated series What If...? introduces us to Kahhori, a Mohawk woman who goes on a quest to discover her power. The episode takes place almost entirely in the Mohawk language.

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Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider (right) interviews comedian Tig Notaro about drawing humor from her breast cancer diagnosis. Ungerleider is the founder of End Well, a nonprofit focused on shifting the American conversation around death. Their discussion took place in November at End Well's 2023 conference held in Los Angeles.

Doctors are pushing Hollywood for more realistic depictions of death and dying on TV

5:00am December 28, 2023

by April Dembosky

Clinicians who work with people at the end of life say the most common television depictions of death aren't representative of what happens in the real world. They want to flip the script.

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Tom Smothers does yo-yo tricks during arrivals at CBS' 75th anniversary celebration on Nov. 2, 2003, in New York. Smothers, half of the Smothers Brothers and the co-host of one of the most socially conscious and groundbreaking television shows in the history of the medium, has died at age 86.

Arts

Tom Smothers, one half of TV comedy legends the Smothers Brothers, dies at 86

6:06pm December 27, 2023

by The Associated Press

Tom Smothers was the co-host of one of the most socially conscious and groundbreaking television shows in the history of the medium.

Clockwise from left: Cocaine Bear, Luke Macfarlane in Platonic, Danielle Brooks and Fantasia Barrino in The Color Purple, Bryce Harper of the Philadelphia Phillies, the cover of the book Starter Villain, Jessica Williams in Shrinking.

Books
Arts

The year in review: 50 wonderful things from 2023

2:21pm December 27, 2023

by Linda Holmes

Pop culture critic Linda Holmes has been making this annual list since 2010. Big, small, inspirational, silly — what these items have in common is that they are all wonderful and brought her joy.

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Arts

'Pretty Baby' chronicles Brooke Shields' career and the sexualization of young girls

1:36pm December 27, 2023

by Tonya Mosley

Shields has worked as a model and an actor. A two-part Hulu documentary looks at her childhood roles and the toxic culture that perpetuates misogyny. Originally broadcast April 4, 2023.

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Actor Lee Sun-kyun of Oscar-winning film 'Parasite' is found dead in Seoul

10:21am December 27, 2023

by Se Eun Gong

South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun, who played a rich entrepreneur in the Oscar-winning film Parasite, was found dead on Wednesday. Police suspect he died by suicide.

Arts

Timothy Olyphant on 'Justified,' 'Deadwood' and marshals who interpret the law

2:07pm December 22, 2023

by Dave Davies

Olyphant is best known for portraying lawmen in cowboy hats. He reprises the role of deputy U.S. marshal Raylan Givens in the sequel Justified: City Primeval. Originally broadcast July 18, 2023.

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Queen Elizabeth II, as portrayed by Olivia Colman (left) Imelda Staunton (center) and Claire Foy (right).

Arts

As 'The Crown' ends, Imelda Staunton tells NPR that 'the experiment paid off'

5:01am December 20, 2023

Imelda Staunton was the third actress to portray Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown, which is ending its six-season run.

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Arts

Remembering Andre Braugher, star of 'Homicide' and 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine'

2:31pm December 19, 2023

Braugher, who died Dec. 11, trained at Julliard and performed in many Shakespeare productions. He won Emmy Awards for Homicide: Life on the Street and Thief. Originally broadcast in 1995 and 2006.

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Arts

In a year of great TV, 'Succession' went out on top, as the best series of 2023

2:29pm December 19, 2023

by David Bianculli

Critic David Bianculli acknowledges that his year-end list of TV favorites is hardly all-inclusive. Nevertheless, here's what he enjoyed watching, including Beckham, The Bear and Black Mirror.