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Culture

'Past Lives' is a story about love and choices

Teo Yoo as Hae Sung and Greta Lee as Nora in Past Lives. Jon Pack/Twenty Years Rights/A24/A24 hide caption

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Jon Pack/Twenty Years Rights/A24/A24

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Past Lives' is a story about love and choices

The new film Past Lives follows Nora (Greta Lee), a writer who lives in New York with her husband, and meets up again with a man she knew long ago as a girl in South Korea. Written and directed by Celine Song, the movie is an emotional study of how Nora tries to understand both the path she took and the many paths she didn't.

'Past Lives' is a story about love and choices

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How the SCOTUS 'Supermajority' is shaping policy on everything from abortion to guns

Demonstrators rally in support of abortion rights at the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on April 15. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

Law

How the SCOTUS 'Supermajority' is shaping policy on everything from abortion to guns

Fresh Air

Constitutional lawyer Michael Waldman says there's a growing divide between the electorate and the Court: "the country is moving in one direction ... the Court is moving fast in another direction."

How the SCOTUS 'Supermajority' is shaping policy on everything from abortion to guns

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Cuba Gooding Jr. settles a civil sex abuse case just as trial was set to begin

Cuba Gooding Jr. appears in court in New York on Jan. 22, 2020. The actor has settled accusations that he raped a woman in a New York City hotel a decade ago, according to court records. Alec Tabak/The Daily News via AP, File, Pool hide caption

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Alec Tabak/The Daily News via AP, File, Pool

Cuba Gooding Jr. settles a civil sex abuse case just as trial was set to begin

The actor has settled accusations that he raped a woman in a New York City hotel a decade ago. Gooding's lawyers had insisted that his encounter with the woman was consensual.

These are the winners of this year's James Beard Awards, the biggest night in food

Rob Rubba, winner of the Outstanding Chef award at the 2023 James Beard Restaurant And Chef Awards. Jeff Schear/Getty Images for The James Beard Foundation hide caption

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Jeff Schear/Getty Images for The James Beard Foundation

Food

These are the winners of this year's James Beard Awards, the biggest night in food

A Washington, D.C., chef won the outstanding category. The Chicago ceremony was hosted by chefs Eric Adjepong, Esther Choi, Andrew Zimmern and Top Chef judge Gail Simmons.

'Lesbian Love Story' unearths a century of queer romance

Lesbian Love Story: A Memoir in Archives by Amelia Possanza Catapult hide caption

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Catapult

Books

'Lesbian Love Story' unearths a century of queer romance

Amelia Possanza's debut book Lesbian Love Story: A Memoir in Archives chronicles the lives of queer couples throughout the 20th century.

'Lesbian Love Story' unearths a century of queer romance

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Books We Love: Love Stories
Beck Harlan/NPR

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Books We Love: Love Stories

Love stories are close to many of our hearts. We want to swoon, maybe laugh and cry, we want that romance. Today we're recommending great books for people who love love stories.

Books We Love: Love Stories

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'The Red Hotel': Trying to cover World War II from a 'gilded cage' in Moscow

This 2019 photo shows the main dining room inside Moscow's iconic Metropol Hotel, just a short distance from the Kremlin. Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP hide caption

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Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP

History

'The Red Hotel': Trying to cover World War II from a 'gilded cage' in Moscow

When Russia's Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, he clamped down on the media. In his new book, author Alan Philps sees parallels to Soviet dictator Josef Stalin who confined reporters in World War II.

'The Red Hotel': Trying to cover World War II from a 'gilded cage' in Moscow

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We ask the creator of 'Succession' everything you wanted to know about the finale

In the final scene of Succession, Kendall (Jeremy Strong) stares out at the Hudson River while his father's bodyguard looks on. In an improvised take during filming (which was not included in the episode) Strong climbed the barrier at the water's edge, as if to jump. HBO hide caption

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HBO

Television

We ask the creator of 'Succession' everything you wanted to know about the finale

Fresh Air

Was Kendall going to jump into the river? Why did we keep seeing Logan in the bathroom? Creator Jesse Armstrong and executive producer Frank Rich answer all in this wide-ranging interview.

We ask the creator of 'Succession' everything you wanted to know about the finale

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These were the most frequently performed plays and musicals in high schools this year

Spring Woods High School in Houston, Texas, is one of the schools that put on a production of The Addams Family. Susan Doremus/Educational Theatre Associaton hide caption

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Susan Doremus/Educational Theatre Associaton

Performing Arts

These were the most frequently performed plays and musicals in high schools this year

The Addams Family, Clue and Frozen JR were among the most popular shows, according to a new survey. But the report also showed that drama teachers are nervous about censorship.

These were the most frequently performed plays and musicals in high schools this year

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Immigrants have helped change how America eats. Now they dominate top culinary awards

"Dumplings are my obsession," says chef "Nok" Chutatip Suntaranon of Kalaya, a Thai restaurant in Philadelphia. Joel Rose/NPR hide caption

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Joel Rose/NPR

Food

Immigrants have helped change how America eats. Now they dominate top culinary awards

Immigrants have long been the backbone of restaurant kitchens. Now they're dominating the industry's top awards for chefs, with a majority of nominations going to immigrants or children of immigrants.

Immigrants have helped change how America eats. Now they dominate top culinary awards

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She writes for a hit Ethiopian soap opera. This year, the plot turns on child marriage

A scene from the popular Ethiopian soap opera Yegna, which sends messages about health and well-being to its teen viewers. Topics range from child marriage to menstrual pads. @yegnaplayer via YouTube/ Screengrab by NPR hide caption

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@yegnaplayer via YouTube/ Screengrab by NPR

Goats and Soda

She writes for a hit Ethiopian soap opera. This year, the plot turns on child marriage

The show is Yegna. Its goal (besides entertainment) is to tackle issues affecting teen girls (and boys, too), from a lack of menstrual pads to why betting is unwise. We talk to one of the writers.

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