Video gaming is changing, becoming more interactive and realistic. Digital writer David Kushner speaks with host Liane Hansen about these changes and how gaming is starting to remind him of the film Minority Report. Full Story »
For the first time ever, Doctors Without Borders gave a documentary film crew unlimited and uncensored access to its field operations in war-torn Congo and post-conflict Liberia. Host Liane Hansen speaks with Dr. Tom Krueger and director Mark Hopkins about the movie Living In Emergency: Stories of Doctors Without Borders. Full Story »
The first Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim's classic A Little Night Music opens Dec. 13. And alongside its bold-name cast members — Catherine Zeta-Jones, Angela Lansbury — is Broadway newcomer Ramona Mallory. Her debut as the ingenue continues a family legacy: Her mother created the role in 1973, and her father played the character who falls for hers. Full Story »
Every good book begins with good words. Ounce, Dice, Trice is a book for children that is full of words — magnificent, wonderful words like "frangipani," "dimity," "gloaming" and "nunnery." And don't forget "murdo," "drumjargon" and "chumly." Host Scott Simon speaks with Weekend Edition's ambassador to the world of kiddie literature, Daniel Pinkwater, about this new release of an old book. Full Story »
One of the world's great historians has written a biography of the man who is one of the immense figures of the last century. And perhaps surprisingly, the book is short. Just 192 pages. It is pungent, pointed and eloquent, like some gorgeous, highly-distilled liqueur. Host Scott Simon speaks with author Paul Johnson about this revealing biography, titled, Churchill. Full Story »
Second City is what amounts to the Oxford and Cambridge of American comedy. The Chicago improv theater began in an old Chinese laundry but now spans several full-time theaters, training centers, and touring ensembles. This weekend, it's having an all-star blowout for its 50th anniversary. Host Scott Simon talks to alum and comedian Jeff Garlin. Full Story »
Pilot Chesley Sullenberger's wild ride started this year when he landed a US Airways jet plop-solid perfect onto the icy surface of the Hudson River on Jan. 15, saving all 155 passengers on board. He's a hero to the nation, but Sullenberger says his story is really more about a nation in need of a hero. Full Story »
Thucydides: The Reinvention of History, Chapter One Excerpt Full Story »
A Southwest Airlines jet arriving in Chicago on Friday was bound to have been one of the funniest flights ever. Alumni of Chicago's famed Second City theater were onboard, returning to their comedy roots for the weekend's 50th-anniversary celebration of the theater where they honed their acting, writing and performing skills. Full Story »
The Second City this month celebrates 50 years of making improvisational comedy, and Fred Willard, a Second City alumnus, joins NPR's Michele Norris to talk about the famed comedy club. The key to improv, he says, is to just do it. Full Story »
