Elizabeth Blair

Elizabeth Blair appears in the following:

The Academy of American Poets names its first Latino head

Wednesday, June 21, 2023

Ricardo Alberto Maldonado will become the almost-90-year-old academy's executive director and president.

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In 'The Fight for Midnight,' a teen boy confronts the abortion debate

Wednesday, June 21, 2023

Dan Solomon's YA novel The Fight for Midnight takes place during former Texas state lawmaker Wendy Davis' filibuster of a bill that would restrict access to abortion. The protagonist is a teen boy.

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'Elemental' director draws inspiration from his childhood

Sunday, June 18, 2023

Pixar's new movie "Elemental" is directed and co-written by Peter Sohn. It is partly an homage to his childhood growing up in a Korean family in the Bronx.

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Earth, air, fire, water — and family — are all 'Elemental' for Pixar's Peter Sohn

Thursday, June 15, 2023

In science class, Sohn saw the periodic table as an apartment building. The son of Korean immigrants, he felt the elements were a "beautiful metaphor" for cultures mixing in his New York hometown.

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Astrud Gilberto, 'The Girl from Ipanema' singer, dies at 83

Tuesday, June 06, 2023

One of the shining voices of bossa nova, the Brazilian artist made both herself and the song world famous with her beguiling rendition, kicking off an illustrious career.

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High school theater attendance is up — as are concerns about censorship, survey finds

Monday, June 05, 2023

The annual survey of the most popular high school musicals and plays is out. In addition to top ten lists, the report finds attendance is up 13% but theatre teachers are worried about censorship.

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These were the most frequently performed plays and musicals in high schools this year

Monday, June 05, 2023

The Addams Family, Clue and Frozen JR were among the most popular shows, according to a new survey. But the report also showed that drama teachers are nervous about censorship.

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Remembering Doc Todd, a rapper who helped other veterans

Sunday, May 28, 2023

George Michael Todd, a combat medic in Afghanistan, helped grapple with his own PTSD and that of other vets by making a rap album called Combat Medicine. "Doc Todd" died earlier this month.

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Doc Todd, a rapper who helped other veterans feel 'Not Alone,' dies at 38

Sunday, May 28, 2023

George Michael Todd — a generous, "gentle giant" — died of sudden cardiac death. He served in Afghanistan and returned home with PTSD. In 2017 he released an album called Combat Medicine.

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Georgi Gospodinov and Angela Rodel win International Booker Prize for 'Time Shelter'

Tuesday, May 23, 2023

This win is a first for a Bulgarian novel — the author and translator will split the prize money. Time Shelter imagines a clinic for Alzheimer's patients where each floor reproduces a past decade.

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Disney's Q2 earnings: increased profits but a mixed picture

Wednesday, May 10, 2023

The Walt Disney Company reported a 13% increase in quarterly earnings on Wednesday.

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MTV News shut down as Paramount Global cuts 25% of its staff

Tuesday, May 09, 2023

Paramount Global, the parent company of networks including Showtime, CBS and Nickelodeon is cutting some 25% of its staff. Among the units being shutdown as a result of the downsizing is MTV News.

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This Tiger Lily is a warrior who speaks Cree

Sunday, May 07, 2023

After decades of offensive portrayals of Native people in Peter Pan — both the original and the remakes — the new Disney+ movie Peter Pan & Wendy, cast Cree actor Alyssa Wapanatâhk as Tiger Lily.

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How Judy Blume's 'Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret' remains so timeless

Friday, April 28, 2023

Judy Blume's Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret centers around adolescent girls' angst about puberty. Blume's 50-year-old tragicomedy of that awkward, in between stage seems to be timeless.

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Remembing groundbreaking singer, actor and lifelong activist Harry Belafonte

Tuesday, April 25, 2023

Singer, actor and human rights activist Harry Belafonte died Tuesday. He was 96. He broke racial barriers and balanced his activism with his artistry in ways that made people around the world listen.

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Singer, actor and human rights activist Harry Belafonte dies at 96

Tuesday, April 25, 2023

Artist and activist Harry Belafonte has died. Throughout his life, Belafonte used his stature to speak out for human rights.

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Harry Belafonte, singer, actor and activist, has died at age 96

Tuesday, April 25, 2023

The iconic and barrier-breaking performer died Tuesday of congestive heart failure.

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Indigenous author explores the power of hair for Native Americans in children's book

Wednesday, April 12, 2023

My Powerful Hair is Indigenous author Carole Lindstrom's new children's book. It is inspired by her grandmother, who was forced to cut off her hair to try to remove her from Native culture.

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'Mad Magazine' cartoonist Al Jaffee has died at 102

Tuesday, April 11, 2023

Al Jaffee, the award-winning cartoonist, has died. He was 102. Jaffee developed some of Mad Magazine's most influential features, including the Fold-In and "Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions."

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'Black is Beautiful' photographer Kwame Brathwaite has died at 85

Tuesday, April 04, 2023

Kwame Brathwaite spent some six decades chronicling Black life, culture and activism. He's credited with helping found the "Black is Beautiful" movement.

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