Arts & Life

Imported from Europe, the custom of leaving gratuities began spreading in the U.S. post-Civil War. It was loathed as a master-serf custom that degraded America's democratic, anti-aristocratic ethic.

When Tipping Was Considered Deeply Un-American

5:29pm November 30, 2015

by Nina Martyris

Imported from Europe, the custom of leaving gratuities began spreading in the U.S. post-Civil War. It was loathed as a master-serf custom that degraded America's democratic, anti-aristocratic ethic.

Kristen Bell hosts a retrospective called It's Your 50th Christmas, Charlie Brown, Monday night on ABC.

Arts

'A Charlie Brown Christmas' At 50

4:52pm November 30, 2015

by Linda Holmes

The Christmas special celebrates 50 years with a retrospective on ABC, and it seems more than ever like something we wouldn't get today.

For decades, astronomers believed there was another planet hiding just out of sight behind the sun. It wasn't until Albert Einstein that this belief was finally debunked.

A Star-Crossed 'Scientific Fact': The Story Of Vulcan, Planet That Never Was

3:20pm November 30, 2015

by NPR Staff

For decades, astronomers believed there was another planet in our solar system, tucked just out of sight. Then Albert Einstein figured out it wasn't there. Author Thomas Levenson explains.

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Tugba Sunguroglu, Ilayda Akdogan, Doga Zeynep Doguslu, Elit Iscan and Günes Sensoy play five orphaned teen sisters who live with their grandmother in the film Mustang.

Arts

5 Sisters Struggle With The Shackles Of A Conservative Culture In 'Mustang'

1:42pm November 30, 2015

by John Powers

Five Turkish teens are censured by a culture threatened by their burgeoning sexuality in Deniz Gamze Ergüven's debut film. Critic John Powers says Mustang brims with "the zing and energy of life."

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No Meekness Here: Meet Rosa Parks, 'Lifelong Freedom Fighter'

2:13am November 30, 2015

by NPR Staff

As the 60th anniversary of the historic Montgomery Bus Boycott approaches, author Jeanne Theoharis says it's time to let go of the image of Rosa Parks as an unassuming accidental activist.

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In Star Wars: Battlefront, gamers can take their pick of customization options for the characters they play.

Arts

Customization Is Key: 'Star Wars: Battlefront' Makes Space For Gamers Of All Stripes

10:29pm November 29, 2015

by NPR Staff

In the video game Star Wars: Battlefront, players can customize characters according to gender, race and age. Producer Sigurlina Ingvarsdottir says inclusivity was a priority "from the get-go."

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Books
Arts

'Not Without My Daughter' Subject Grows Up, Tells Her Own Story

7:47am November 29, 2015

"Not Without My Daughter" told the story of an American mother and daughter fleeing Iran. Now that young girl is telling her own story in her memoir, "My Name is Mahtob."

Books
Arts

Barcelona's Women Make 'The Whispering City' Shine

6:33am November 29, 2015

by Bethanne Patrick

Two academics from Germany, writing as Sara Moliner, have recreated a sepia-toned 1950s Barcelona in this new mystery novel. Critic Bethanne Patrick says City's strength is in its variety of women.

Project Runway host Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn at the Project Runway Spring 2013 fashion show in New York City. Today, Gunn is comfortable before an audience — but it wasn't always that way.

Arts

From Trembling Teacher To Seasoned Mentor: How Tim Gunn Made It Work

6:16pm November 28, 2015

by NPR Staff

Gunn, the mentor to young designers on Project Runway, has been a teacher and educator for decades. But he spent his childhood "absolutely hating, hating, hating, hating school," he says.

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Mdou Moctar is a local star among the Tuareg, based in the city of Agadez. Happily, Prince's iconic purple motorcycle also survived the translation.

'Purple Rain' — As Retold In A Language Without A Word For Purple

5:23pm November 28, 2015

by NPR Staff

Prince's '80s-era classic has gotten a modern update — in Niger. Directed by Christopher Kirkley, starring the nomadic Tuareg people, this Purple Rain remake drops the kissing but keeps the attitude.