The Oscars are two days away, and I know exactly where I’ll be: seated in my living room, popcorn in hand. I’ve caught almost all the nominees for Best Picture, mainly because it’s the perfect indoor activity for an especially cold winter. The only one I’ve missed is F1, The Movie. Sorry Brad Pitt.
If you need help filling out your awards bracket, here’s a list of predictions from Pop Culture Happy Hour that you can use as a cheat sheet. Pair it with their episode on what makes a great cast, in honor of the newest category added by the Academy.
Or do you tune in to The Oscars for the spectacle? KCRW’s The Sam Sanders Show gets into what it takes to write a joke that’ll land with The Academy, and NPR Music critics cruelly rank the Oscar-nominated songs. Good luck trying to get the tune of “Golden” out of your head (again).
If you want to know more about the contenders themselves, Fresh Air’s Terry Gross talks to Jessie Buckley about loving the ‘shadowy bits’ of her character in Hamnet. Plus, Wild Card’s Rachel Martin chats with the lead in The Secret Agent, Wagner Moura (my personal pick for Best Actor).
Round out your fix of cultural commentary with Code Switch’s episode on Sinners, where host Gene Demby reckons with the movie’s reception and its place in the film pantheon: “These movies end up carrying this implicit and explicit weight of the future of Black cinema.”
And now…. the Oscar for ‘Most In The Know’ goes to: YOU.
🤌 “I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse”
Move over, Brando – there’s a new boss in town. Catching the Codfather is a new podcast from GBH News that explores the rise and fall of New Bedford’s King of Cod, Carlos Rafael. Was Rafael a superhero fighting government regulation, or just an ordinary crook?
🕵️ Most likely to... stay on the case
A Seattle journalist revisits a cold case that consumed her during her high-school reporting days. Did her teacher prey on the students of Garfield High, or did she publish an investigation based on a lie? KUOW’s new series, Adults in the Room, gets to the truth, two decades later.
⁉️ I’m over the question mark. Period.
The hosts of How to Do Everything are back at it with their kooky antics. This time, they get in touch with the Unicode Consortium, you know, the official body that approves the creation of new punctuation. The kicker? The founding committee member’s name is… Mark.
➕ A seat at the big kids’ (boardroom) table Did you know that TikTok has a Youth Advisory Council? On this bonus episode of TED Radio Hour, host Manoush Zomorodi chats with one of the teenage committee members who is working to make online spaces safer. Get access to this episode (and sponsor-free listening) by signing up for NPR+.
One to Watch
Comedian Chris Fleming had A LOT to say about NPR in his latest special on HBO. Leave it to Wild Card’s Rachel Martin to clear the air...
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