Plus: American Girl, 'Quiz Lady' and 'The Marvels'

View this email online by Linda Holmes Welcome! It was the week when Tracy Chapman was still the best. It was the week when Jared Leto wanted attention. And it was the week when apparently Patrick Dempsey is sexier than anyone else on the planet? (Lots more at the news quiz.) Let's get to it. The SAG-AFTRA strike (we hope!) is over. Now what? Final votes still need to be taken, but SAG-AFTRA has reached a tentative agreement with the AMPTP to end the strike that's been going on for nearly four months. Since the WGA (the writers) ended that strike in late September, for the time being, this allows television and film production to resume after being at least partially disrupted since the beginning of May. (We should note that many NPR News staffers, myself included, are represented by SAG-AFTRA, but we are in a different bargaining unit and weren't involved in this strike.) SAG-AFTRA picket signs pictured earlier this summer. Mandalit del Barco/NPR It sounds odd, but one of the most immediate effects of the end of the strike (actors were cleared to go back to work on a provisional basis this week when the tentative agreement happened) is actors going back to promotional work, particularly as the end-of-year movie season ramps up. Brie Larson is on Jimmy Fallon's show tonight (Friday) promoting The Marvels; the early part of next week's lineup includes Colman Domingo (Rustin), Taika Waititi (Next Goal Wins), and Rachel Zegler (the new Hunger Games movie). This holiday movie season is going to be pretty jam-packed, despite the fact that work stoppages have roiled the industry for much of the year. I've been seeing a good run of released and soon-to-be-released movies I have liked. I liked The Holdovers, from Alexander Payne; I liked Quiz Lady on Hulu; I liked The Marvels; I liked Next Goal Wins; and I really liked Emerald Fennell's wild Saltburn. There is much to be happy about this season, and there's much more to come, depending on what you're into: Bradley Cooper in Maestro; Joaquin Phoenix in Napoleon; Disney's Wish; Beyoncé's Renaissance; musical The Color Purple; Emma Stone in Poor Things; Cord Jefferson's buzzy American Fiction; and lots more. You'll likely see the slowdown more in 2024 than you did this year, simply because of the long lead time for production. Obviously, fall television that runs on a regular yearly schedule didn't return on time -- your Law & Orders and Young Sheldons and NCISs and so forth. They'll be back eventually, but it will take some time. It's easier to put aside the delays in streaming shows that have had production stopped, like The Bear and Stranger Things, simply because they've always had irregular release schedules, and people got used to long delays after production shut down in the early part of COVID. (Although Stranger Things continues to risk that with every postponement, it's more likely that the "kids" will look like full-grown adults by the time the story concludes.) Vulture has done a tremendous service rounding up a list of reported delays, including Deadpool 3 moving from early May 2024 to late July to Disney's Snow White sliding from March 2024 all the way to March 2025. So it's still going to be a little bit rocky. There are also a lot of issues in TV and film that will persist despite the strike ending. The diversity of voices on and off screen still needs serious work. The unsettling practice of shelving projects that are already completed and simply never releasing them continues at Warner Bros., which will doubtless frustrate cast and crew who wasted months of work on something that will never see the light of day. So "back to work" is good news -- for actors and writers, for the rest of the crew, and for the rest of the economy that is supported by TV and film production. But as with any invocation of "back to work," this one recognizes that there is plenty of work yet to do. Newsletter continues after sponsor message We Recommend I can't decide how I feel about 007: Race to a Million, a Prime Video reality show that just debuted. The idea is that it jumps off of the James Bond franchise to send people on a trip around the world doing various ... tasks? I'm not even sure I understand how it works, having seen a couple of episodes, and I'm definitely not sure what it has to do with James Bond. What it does have is Succession's Brian Cox, sitting at a bank of terminals in a dark room, talking in a grave voiceover about what the contestants are doing, crossing their names off on a pad when they're eliminated, and giving them creepy instructions by phone. I'm torn: It might be bad, it might be so bad it's good, and it might simply be so cheesy it's ready to be melted onto some nachos. While I'm not an American Girl doll person, I enjoyed reading about the people who are, and the history of this really remarkable phenomenon. (I worked briefly near Rockefeller Center, and the most common request for directions I got was "Do you know which way to the American Girl store?") It seems important to point out that Barbra Streisand was on Fresh Air this week. Listen to the Podcast Sponsor-Free Support your favorite pop culture junkies AND listen without sponsor interruptions with a subscription to Pop Culture Happy Hour+! Learn more and sign up at plus.npr.org/happy. Learn More What We Did This Week Awkwafina and Sandra Oh in Quiz Lady. 20th Century Studios We revisited a conversation Aisha had with Sidney Madden on the occasion of the second season of Rap Sh!t. Aisha, Margaret H. Willison, Kristen Meinzer and Tobin Low all enjoyed (to varying degrees) Quiz Lady, starring Sandra Oh and Awkwafina. Glen talked to our friend Roxana Hadadi about the Nicolas Cage film Dream Scenario. The Marvels has gotten a very mixed response, but the four of us on our Friday panel -- that's Glen, Daisy Rosario, Ronald Young, Jr. and me -- all liked it. What's Making Us Happy Every week on the show, we talk about some other things out in the world that have been giving us joy lately. Here they are: Ronald Young, Jr.: Long Shot, on Netflix Daisy Rosario: True True, by Don P. Hooper Glen Weldon: Fingernails, on Apple TV+ Linda Holmes: Start Here, by Sohla El-Waylly Stream your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour+. Your support helps make our show possible and unlocks access to our sponsor-free episodes. What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: pchh@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Music, Books, Daily News and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Pop Culture Happy Hour emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy

🧺 Laundry tips to save time and extend the life of your clothing

Plus: Reduce the trash you produce at home

View this email online This week’s newsletter is brought to you by Life Kit digital editor Malaka Gharib  I am really bad at doing laundry. I threw a new pair of black jeans into the wash knowing that the colors would bleed (they sure did, and now my husband’s gray-ish undershirts are an even duller shade of gray). I wash my bras without putting them into a mesh bag. And I put everything in the dryer — even wool sweaters! 💀 But recently, I’ve changed my ways thanks to this brilliant Life Kit episode on laundry. In the piece, we talk to Patric Richardson, a household cleaning pro and the host of the TV show The Laundry Guy on Discovery+ and HGTV.  Read the story here HUIZENG HU/Getty Images Here are some of my favorite tips that I learned from the episode — with notes about how they turned out when I tried them at home.  🏃 Embrace the express cycle. The technology behind washing machines has improved over the last three decades and includes more custom settings, like an express cycle. This option offers a shorter wash cycle and a high-speed spin cycle, which helps quicken drying time. If your washing machine has this setting, take advantage of it. Anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes in warm water will sufficiently cleanse most clothes, says Richardson. Note from Malaka: I tried this setting for the first time a couple of weeks ago. It works great — especially on smaller loads of laundry!  🧼 Use less soap. "With almost every commercial detergent, you can use two tablespoons for a very large load of laundry and that's plenty," says Richardson. When you use more detergent and soap than is necessary, it doesn't thoroughly rinse out of your clothes. As a result, your clothes can feel sticky. Note from Malaka: I started doing this and realized I don’t even notice the difference when I use less detergent. The clothes still smell and feel clean.  👖 Air dry your yoga pants. When it comes to clothing made with Lycra, spandex or elastane, which includes many athleisure items like yoga pants, you want to reduce the time they spend tumbling around with other clothes as much as possible. Heat, when applied to these materials, can dry out the fabric and reduce the stretch of the clothes. So, air drying is best for workout items.  "If you love your yoga pants because of how they fit and you start throwing them in the dryer, it breaks down the Lycra pretty quickly and they will lose the ability to maintain that shape," says Richardson. Note from Malaka: This was an easy enough step to incorporate into my routine. All I had to do was pull my yoga pants and sports bra from the wet load and throw them over the washing machine door to dry. Get more great laundry tips here A soup tip from our audience  Last week, we shared an episode on soups. Chef Sohla El-Waylly explained how to make a flavorful broth and shared a recipe for a good fall soup. Life Kit listener Megan Ostuni emailed us with some advice of her own.  “Keep a bag of [meat] scraps and bones in the freezer. When the bag is full, use [the scraps] to make a batch of bone broth in the Instant Pot. I put the broth that I don’t use into an ice cube tray to freeze and use later.”  Newsletter continues after sponsor message Listen Sponsor-Free Support public media while getting expert advice on health, finance, relationships and more with Life Kit+. You'll get sponsor-free listening AND that warm fuzzy feeling that comes with making a difference. You can also check out loads of other NPR+ podcasts with benefits at plus.npr.org. Explore Life Kit+ Health Daniel Hertzberg 👁️ How screens are changing our eyes. Myopia, or nearsightedness, is on the rise in children as a result of reduced time outside and screen usage. TED Radio Hour host Manoush Zomorodi talks to optometrist Dr. Maria Liu about how to slow down this progression — and how adults can protect their eyes too. Listen to the episode here.  💩 What to do when you're constipated. We've got a step-by-step guide for that SOS moment when you haven't pooped in days and days. Read the story here. Life skills Kaz Fantone/NPR 🗑️ A 'trash audit' can help you cut down waste at home. Here's how to do it. The average American generates five pounds of trash per day, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Reduce your household trash by listing your output and taking these simple actions. Read the story here.  🥸 8 simple things you can do to protect yourself from getting scammed. Scams can happen to anyone. Experts explain how to safeguard your data and money from being exploited or stolen by fraudsters. Read the story here.  Relationships Jasenka Arbanas/Getty Images 😘 How to ditch the apps and date offline. Tired of swiping through dating profiles on your phone? Maybe it's time to get out there and meet people in real life. A sexuality and relationship educator shares advice about how to meet new people, strike up conversations and move on from a love interest if the vibe isn't there. Listen to the episode here. 👿 Dear Life Kit: My 10-year-old bullies my 8-year-old. How do I make it stop? ​A sister relentlessly picks on her brother despite their mom's best attempt to make peace between them. Psychologist Becky Kennedy shares advice with a parent who feels out of ideas — and patience. Read the story here. Stream your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Daily News, Code Switch, Health and more! What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: LifeKit@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. You received this message because you're subscribed to Life Kit emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy

Plus: Fake Twitter accounts, Britney Spears, and The Golden Bachelor

View this email online by Linda Holmes Welcome! It was the week when there was sort of one last Beatles song. It was the week when, again, somebody made a very horrible decision about a Halloween costume and instantly regretted it. And it was the week when, yes, the actors strike continued. (Lots more at the news quiz.) Let's get to it. Reading is all about finding the perfect spot I was unable to resist a recent headline over at Wirecutter on a piece by Kase Wickman: "How I Customized My Kindle for the Coziest Reading Sessions of My Life." I have been an e-reader fan since the very earliest Kindles. I love having a ton of books with me at all times, I love being able to switch between them on a whim, I love not accumulating physical books I don't have room for, and with some books, I love being able to search for a passage I remember. A reader relaxes in London. Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images I do not, however, always love the physical reading experience, particularly when lying in bed. Even if you find the right case, it's easy to end up sort of crooking your elbow funny, or having your hand in a weird position, or suddenly realizing you've got your wrist pulled back like a claw. What the Wirecutter piece suggests is a two-part solution: You put your Kindle on a stand, like the kind of bendy contraption you'd use for a lamp, so you don't have to hold it. Then, you buy a remote consisting of a clip that attaches to the edge of the Kindle and the actual remote (about the size of a pack of gum) that you hold in your hand. What this means is that you can lie in bed with the little remote in your hand but nothing else, press the button to advance pages, and read without moving. Now, when I duplicated this setup for myself (because of course I did), I rather gleefully told people I had discovered a new level of being lazy. And I still believe it. It took a little fiddling to get it all working, but when I did, I could indeed lie still, hold almost nothing in my hands, and read a book that hovered in front of my face. I am not necessarily endorsing this setup; it is the understatement of the century to say that I do not need it. If I lived with someone else, there is an excellent chance they would giggle at me, and I would have no defense. (By the way, setups similar to this can be very important for people with disabilities; I am speaking only about my experience as a person doing it because I feel like it, sheerly for the comfort.) But I do think there's something about reading. On the one hand, you can do it almost anywhere: in line at the bank, on a plane, in the back of a car, on a desert island. But on the other, it is such a profound pleasure to get your setup exactly how you want it. The chair, the light, the ambient temperature, the sound or lack of sound. (Some people can listen to music while they read; I mostly can't.) Nothing should take you out of the book. Nothing should disturb you. Nothing should bug you. You should be responsible only to the book; that's the dream. Reading is personal. You do it at your own pace and on your own schedule (book readers were debating the binge versus the little-bit-at-a-time long before Netflix). It is for you and nobody else; it is not even available to people who are in the room with you. It is the mental activity I find closest to meditation. And so, yes, I lie in bed now, my little remote in my hand, my dog asleep at my feet, my Kindle hovering in front of my eyes like a robot on The Jetsons is presenting it to me, and I read. The colder it gets this winter, the more glad I will be that the only thing that has to peek out from under the covers will be the remote hand. I have no regrets, just lots and lots of books to read. Newsletter continues after sponsor message We Recommend It's hard to believe HBO executives could spend their free time coming up with fake Twitter accounts to attack critics whose reviews they didn't agree with, but we learned this week that that's exactly what they did. I was so incredibly sad to hear about the death of Matthew Perry this week. He was such an enormously important comedic presence for me, and I admired the work he did to try to share his experiences with addiction to help other people. There was a lot of good writing about him and about Friends this week; you can start here and here. And don't miss this interview. I was fascinated by this story about "undead brands," which, among other things, answers the question, "What ever happened to Juicy Couture?" Listen to the Podcast Sponsor-Free Support your favorite pop culture junkies AND listen without sponsor interruptions with a subscription to Pop Culture Happy Hour+! Learn more and sign up at plus.npr.org/happy. Learn More What We Did This Week Cailee Spaeny and Jacob Elordi in Priscilla. A24 Glen and I had a great time talking to Andrew Limbong about the Alexander Payne film The Holdovers, which we all liked. We shared a special episode of It's Been A Minute in which Brittany Luse talks to her guests about Britney Spears. Stephen and Reanna Cruz went deep on Five Nights at Freddy's, the big hit of the week. Stephen and I were thrilled to be joined by Karen Grigsby Bates to talk about The Golden Bachelor, a surprisingly charming (?) spin on the franchise. And Stephen and Aisha were joined by Reanna Cruz and Kristen Meinzer to talk about Sofia Coppola's Priscilla. There's great news on the "reading Aisha's reviews" front this week, because she has both a review of Priscilla and a piece about Martin Scorsese and Killers of the Flower Moon. What's Making Us Happy Every week on the show, we talk about some other things out in the world that have been giving us joy lately. Here they are: Kristen Meinzer: The official Gilded Age podcast from HBO Reanna Cruz: TikTok food critic Keith Lee Aisha Harris: Bargain, on Paramount+ Stephen Thompson: Madi Diaz's new song "Same Risk" from her upcoming album Weird Faith Stream your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour+. Your support helps make our show possible and unlocks access to our sponsor-free episodes. What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: pchh@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Music, Books, Daily News and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Pop Culture Happy Hour emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy