Aug 28 Fans mourn Aretha Franklin at public viewing in Detroit By Jeff Karoub, Associated Press DETROIT — Mourners began pouring into Detroit's Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History on Tuesday to pay their final respects to Aretha Franklin. They approached her gold-plated casket to the sounds of her gospel recordings. She was in… Continue reading
Aug 26 Neil Simon, comedy master and prolific playwright, dies at 91 By Corinne Segal Neil Simon, whose comedic mastery dominated American stages for decades, died Sunday at 91 of complications from pneumonia, his family said in a statement. Continue reading
Aug 24 Watch 7:27 In rural Oregon, regional theater sparks a creative revival By Jeffrey Brown A remote area of the Pacific Northwest might not sound like a top theater destination. But as Jeffrey Brown reports, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival has sparked a wave of creative and economic growth in rural Ashland. One of the country’s… Continue watching
Aug 23 Watch 4:15 Author Jenny Han on the 'abundance' of an all-Asian movie cast It's one of the hits of the summer, a romantic comedy set in Singapore--but it's generating special attention for its casting. “Crazy Rich Asians” is the first major studio film with an all-Asian cast since “The Joy Luck Club,” released… Continue watching
Aug 23 Ed King, former Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist and songwriter, dies at age 68 By Kristin M. Hall, Associated Press "Ed was our brother, and a great songwriter and guitar player," said Gary Rossington, a founding member of the band. "I know he will be reunited with the rest of the boys in Rock and Roll Heaven."… Continue reading
Aug 22 Lost Jagger-Simon duet found after more than 45 years By Chris Lehourites, Associated Press Believed to be named "Fragile," at least according to Rolling Stones fan websites, the song is a slow love ballad that has Mick Jagger and Carly Simon seemingly sitting together at a piano and singing. Continue reading
Aug 21 A poet grows up in the post-Columbine world By Jennifer Hijazi Kelly Forsythe's latest collection “Perennial” imagines a different kind of narrative in the wake of the Columbine High School shooting -- a “coming-of-age” story about what it means when feeling safe has drastically changed. Continue reading
Aug 20 Watch 2:52 Why our culture is a seed, not a treasure Our culture and heritage is part of who we are. But if we treat it as something that can't change, if we feel threatened by other cultures, says award-winning children's books author Grace Lin, "we make our lives smaller." Lin… Continue watching
Aug 18 Watch 9:25 Documentary reveals struggles and triumphs of world champion surfer Andy Irons By Megan Thompson, Melanie Saltzman Andy Irons, a three-time world champion surfer, died in 2010 at the age of 32 after battling bipolar disorder and opioid addiction. A new documentary, "Andy Irons: Kissed By God," explores Irons' experiences and how they resonate in a larger… Continue watching
Aug 17 An annotated page from 'What It Means When A Man Falls From The Sky' By Elizabeth Flock Lesley Nneka Arimah annotates a page of "Glory," explaining where she got the opening scene, how she sees Glory, and the challenge of writing unlikeable characters. Continue reading