Fox Rolls Out Its New Fall Shows, Including One From Mindy Kaling
()Fox doesn't have as many holes to fill as the other networks, but they've still got a handful of new fall shows.
Book Reviews
'Home': Toni Morrison's Taut, Triumphant New Novel()
May 15, 2012 Toni Morrison's latest novel revisits the story of the prodigal son, as a Korean War veteran returns to his hometown in the pre-civil rights era South. Critic Heller McAlpin says Home is as accessible and visceral as anything Morrison has written.
Monkey See
Long-Term Investments On Shaky Stocks: 'New Girl' And 'Smash' End Their Seasons()
May 14, 2012 Commentator Marc Hirsh considers the viewer investment required to let an uneven pilot develop as a series, and how that process went very differently for two of this season's most hyped shows.
Your Health
Pounding Away At America's Obesity Epidemic()
May 14, 2012 One-third of Americans today are obese, and another third are overweight. A new HBO documentary series, The Weight of the Nation, explores how our country got this way and what can be done to tackle the growing national health crisis.
Television
Johnny Carson Gets The 'Masters' Treatment()
May 14, 2012 Monday night on PBS, American Masters presents a two-hour biography of Johnny Carson. Carson retired 20 years ago this month, and vacated a throne that TV critic David Bianculli says no one has managed to claim since.
Fine Art
Even Under Threat, Syrian Artists Paint In Protest()
May 14, 2012 In Syria, anyone who speaks out against the regime of President Bashar Assad risks harassment, detention or worse. A gallery in Beirut recently featured artwork smuggled out of the country — much of it inspired by the Arab uprisings.
Monkey See
NBC Upfronts: Six New Shows, And 'Community' On Fridays()
May 14, 2012 We look at what's ahead on NBC this fall, including another attempt to reboot Matthew Perry and a show taking the position that men raising kids is inherently hilarious.
Books
Exclusive First Read: 'Gone Girl' By Gillian Flynn()
May 14, 2012 Darkly funny, suspenseful and cunningly plotted, Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl will be published June 5. In this exclusive selection from the book's opening, we meet Nick and Amy, the seemingly perfect couple whose alternating chapters soon reveal them to be unreliable narrators — and spouses.
Television
Johnny Carson: 'King Of Late Night,' A Man Unknown()
May 13, 2012 This year marks the 50th anniversary of when Johnny Carson took over The Tonight Show. For 30 years, Carson reached a nightly audience 15 million people, but he was also intensely private. Guy Raz talks with Peter Jones, director of a documentary looking at the Carson's public and personal lives.
You Must Read This
Mamma Mia! A Mother Tougher Than The Godfather()
May 14, 2012 Mario Puzo isn't known for his strong female characters — but if you've read his pre-Godfather work, The Fortunate Pilgrim, you might think otherwise. Author Zoe Ferraris recommends this book, which is based on Puzo's own mother. Do you have a favorite literary matriarch? Tell us in the comments.
Author Interviews
Three Pilgrimages To Gain 'A Sense Of Direction'()
May 13, 2012 Gideon Lewis-Kraus didn't know what to do with his life, so he took three very long walks. In his new memoir, he describes his journeys in Spain, Japan and Ukraine. "The whole idea of pilgrimage is that you're hoping that you're going to rise to the occasion in some way," he says.
Author Interviews
History, Heartbreak And 'The Chemistry Of Tears'()
May 13, 2012 The hero and the heroine of Peter Carey's new novel are separated by 150 years — and are brought together by an enormous, 19th-century, mechanical duck. The Chemistry of Tears is the 12th novel by the Australian-born, two-time Booker Prize-winning author.
Art & Design
Steve Jobs Didn't Invent Design, But He Patented It()
May 13, 2012 The late Apple co-founder had his name on more than 300 patents for the devices and apps that changed our lives. It wasn't just to keep company property safe; Jobs intended to make design as valuable as function.
The Salt
Bring On The 'Yabbies': Australia Ditches The Bad British Food()
May 13, 2012 On a recent trip, Weekend Food Commentator Bonny Wolf was taken by surprise by Australia's stunningly diverse cuisine, especially the dizzying array of exotic seafood like yabbies and marron at the Sydney Fish Market.
Television
How TV Brought Gay People Into Our Homes()
May 12, 2012 From Will and Grace to Modern Family, studies show getting to know gay characters on television has changed Americans' attitudes toward homosexuality. One researcher says it's an effect that could snowball.
Author Interviews
The 12 Days Of Disaster That Made Modern Chicago()
May 12, 2012 In 1919, Chicago was called the "youngest great city in the world." World War I had just come to a close, troops were coming home, industry was booming and crime was down. But in mid-July, just about everything that could go wrong in Chicago did.
Movie Reviews
When Mystery Writer Meets Pinup Girl (Who's Dead)()
May 10, 2012 When the body of a Marilyn Monroe-look-alike is found after an apparent suicide in a sleepy French town, a Paris-based mystery novelist decides to investigate. Critic Mark Jenkins says the film is a smart if outlandish whodunit.
