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The band Modest Mouse has released their first album in four years. The group often referred to as the perfect indie-rock band suddenly finds itself enjoying pop success that had eluded it for 10 years. Mikel Jollett has a review of their new CD, Good News for People who Love Bad News.

After disappointing returns from The Alamo and The Punisher, Hollywood awaits next weekend's opening of Van Helsing. It's a traditionally slow time of year for movie theaters. Los Angeles Times critic Ken Turan speaks with NPR's Bob Edwards about why that is.

Day to Day technology expert Xeni Jardin reports about the impact that digital camera technology has had on the war in Iraq.

Michael Moore's documentary about President Bush's war on terror -- Fahrenheit 9/11 -- has won the Palme d'Or, top prize at the Cannes Film Festival. The politically charged film explores the links between the Bush family and Saudi Arabia. Hear NPR's Linda Wertheimer and Los Angeles Times film critic Ken Turan.

We remember actor, producer, author and comedian Alan King, who died Sunday. He was 76. King died in Manhattan's Sloan-Kettering Medical Center of lung cancer. He was known for his wry observations on suburbia and life at large.

The 1906 San Francisco earthquake was a horrific disaster -- and the full story was far worse than corrupt politicians of the time made known. Now author James Dalessandro uses fiction to set the record straight in his new novel 1906. He speaks with NPR's Cheryl Corley.

Evangelical protestant Gospel music is surprisingly popular in traditionally Catholic France. Winning converts and inspiring new trends, it's a hit both in churches and in stores. NPR's Nick Spicer reports.

Cities (and school districts) across Florida have committed to getting 100% of their power from renewable energy sources in recent years but found themselves stymied by the monopoly utilities that provide all of their energy.

T.C. Boyle is the author of 15 books, including Drop City, nominated for a National Book Award last year. Boyle's fiction is known for its wit, biting satire, historical sweep and verbal pyrotechnics. For Intersections, a Morning Edition series on artists and their influences, Boyle says his literary reputation owes much to rock 'n' roll.

Bruce Edwards, the longtime caddie of former Masters champion Tom Watson, died Thursday following a year-long battle against Lou Gehrig's disease. He was 49. Edwards helped make caddies an indispensable part of professional golf. His life is chronicled in the new book Caddy for Life. NPR's Bob Edwards speaks with author John Feinstein.

What began as a modest effort to ease racial tension in rural Kentucky coal country produced an unexpected musical result: Hick-hop is a compelling mix of uniquely American musical genres: bluegrass and rap. NPR's Howard Berkes reports.

The new jazz opera Forgotten: The Murder at the Ford Rouge Plant chronicles the unionization of the Ford Motor Company. The story centers on the questionable 1937 death of union organizer and Methodist minister Lewis Bradford, a distant relative of the opera's composer, Steve Jones. NPR's Bob Edwards speaks with Jones.

The Return of the King, the final installment in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, wins all 11 Oscars for which it was nominated, including best picture and best director. Best acting honors go to Charlize Theron for her transformation into a serial killer in Monster, and Sean Penn for his performance as the troubled father of a murdered child in Mystic River. Hear NPR's Renee Montagne.

Americans are some of the fattest people in the world -- and McDonald's often serves as the fast-food scapegoat for the country's super-sized bodies. One filmmaker decided to eat nothing but McDonald's for 30 days -- and film it all. The result is Super Size Me. NPR's Michele Norris talks with Morgan Spurlock, the star, director and producer of the film.

Music critic Chris Nickson has a review of the new "best-of" collection from the Ukranians. The band is best known for its quirky covers -- many of which are on Istoriya: The Best Of The Ukrainians. Nickson says their more traditional songs are worth hearing, as well.

Edward R. Murrow brought rooftop reports of the Blitz of London into America's living rooms before this country entered World War II. After the war, Murrow and his team of reporters brought news to the new medium of television. NPR's Bob Edwards discusses his new book on the broadcasting legend. Hear NPR's Renee Montagne's extended interview with Edwards, and read an excerpt from Edward R. Murrow and the Birth of Broadcast Journalism.

Paul Winfield, the third African American nominated for a best actor Oscar, died Sunday of a heart attack. He was 62. Winfield earned his Academy Award nomination for his turn in the 1972 film Sounder. In 1995, he won an Emmy for his portrayal of a federal judge in the TV show Picket Fences. NPR's Bob Edwards has a remembrance.

Before there was "the Passion," there was "the Life" -- The Life of Brian. The Monty Python classic is being re-released on its 25th anniversary; its producers say the film offers an alternative to Mel Gibson's epic. The Passion of the Christ phenomenon is also being poked fun at by the TV series South Park. David D'Arcy reports.

Classically trained piano player Regina Spektor grew up in Moscow during the 1980s, but when she moved to the U.S. as a teenager, she began to sing and write pop music. Mikel Jollett reviews her third and latest pop CD, Soviet Kitsch, as well as her previous CD Songs.

Actor and writer Spalding Gray is confirmed to be dead, two months after he was first reported missing. His body was pulled out of New York's East River Sunday. Gray, best known for Swimming to Cambodia, was 62. NPR's Neda Ulaby recounts Gray's career.

Day to Day television critic Andrew Wallenstein shares his thoughts on network TV's latest scandal: the alleged theft of ideas for new reality shows.

The new movie I'll Sleep When I'm Dead untangles a violent mystery. Los Angeles Times film critic Kenneth Turan thinks the story is anything but straightforward film noir.

Late-night veterans Jay Leno, David Letterman and even Johnny Carson all owe a debt of gratitude to Jack Paar, who first made late-night television safe for insomniacs. NPR's Bob Mondello reviews a new three-DVD "best of" collection of Paar's finest moments.

A new science fiction museum has opened in Seattle as part of Paul Allen's high-tech Experience Music Project. The Microsoft billionaire, whose personal collection inspired the idea for a museum, hopes the facility attracts droves of sci-fi fans from around the galaxy. Jeremy Richards of member station KPLU reports.

NPR's Cheryl Corley reports on the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's search for a new musical director who doesn't mind the broad range of duties. Conductor Daniel Barenboim is leaving the job, saying it involved too many non-artistic demands.