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Michael Gambon plays a writer hospitalized with a horrible skin condition in the 1986 BBC miniseries <em>The Singing Detective.</em>

25 Years Later, 'The Singing Detective' Still Shines

The British musical private-eye drama, which first aired in 1986, starred Michael Gambon as a novelist hospitalized with a horrible skin condition who tries to write a Hollywood screenplay in his mind. David Bianculli explains why the miniseries is "TV's most polished, audacious masterpiece."

Outside the state Capitol in Annapolis, Md., last year: Someone who'd had enough of what has been going on.

How Lawmakers Lost Their Sense Of Shame

Today's media environment only encourages outrageous statements. Attacking Girl Scouts, threatening to kill U.S. senators and invoking the Bible to limit teachers' pay have all drawn headlines for lawmakers in recent weeks.

Leonardo DiCaprio plays J. Edgar Hoover in <em>J. Edgar</em>, a biopic written by Dustin Lance Black.

Dustin Lance Black: Telling The Story Of 'J. Edgar'

The recent film portrays former FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover as a man who had to keep his sexual orientation a secret — while collecting other people's secrets to use against them. Screenwriter Dustin Lance Black explains how he researched the film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio.

Weaving Around Web Privacy Controls

Web browser manufactures often market their products to consumers with an emphasis on privacy, assuring users that their products can better control how personal information is used online. Carnegie Mellon privacy researcher Lorrie Cranor explains that many companies have developed quiet ways to step around some of that privacy-protecting code.

Gabe and Peggy Leasure with the late Glen Leasure.

Making Shoes

Gabe and Peggy Leasure of Rockbridge County talk about shoemaking and their late shoemaking father/husband Glen Leasure.Healthy Handmade shoes.…

Reaching For The Limits of Tiny Transistors

Computer chip makers have long struggled to build ever-smaller transistors to allow faster, more powerful computers. Writing in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, a team of scientists describes what may be the ultimate limit of that struggle — a transistor made of a single atom. Michelle Simmons, a physicist at the University of New South Wales in Australia and leader of the project, discusses the work.

Police hold back crowds near The Florida Mall in Orlando, Fla. late Thursday.

In Orlando, Another Melee Caused By Shoes

Police in riot gear were called in to control a crowd waiting to buy a pair of limited edition Nike sneakers in Orlando. The incident is the latest in a string of violent outbreaks connected to shoe releases.

Fred Who? He's Republican, He's Gay, And He's Competing For Michigan Delegates

As better-known candidates hunt for votes in Michigan's Republican primary, the first openly gay GOP presidential hopeful is plotting a minor upset. Fred Karger is focusing on one congressional district in the hopes of winning a few delegates to the national convention.

N.J.: NYPD Crossed The Line In Monitoring Muslims

There's new controversy over the New York Police Department's intelligence-gathering tactics after documents surfaced detailing information on Newark mosques and Muslim-owned businesses. Activists see it as an overly broad investigation of law-abiding Muslims, while local officials are upset by the department's reach outside New York City.

Political Eyes Focus On Michigan

It's probably safe to say that it's been an exhausting week for the Republican hopefuls, vying to win delegates in Michigan's Tuesday primary. Host Scott Simon talks about the political week past and the one to come with NPR's Don Gonyea, who's just returned from Michigan.

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