Search results for

Songs of longing and despair are a national tradition in Portugal — a music called fado. And a singer named Misia is the reigning queen of the mournful, melancholy musical genre. Misia talks with guest host Jacki Lyden about fado and Portugal's emotional inner life.

While much of the desert Southwest has converted to water-wise landscaping, Phoenix has been slow to come around. NPR's Ketzel Levine, the Doyenne of Dirt, talks to some avant-gardeners who are taking heat for digging up their lawns.

Are you tired of resuscitating limp plants? Is schlepping hoses around the yard getting a little old? Maybe it's time to crib from nature herself and take a more ecological approach to your garden. Join Ketzel Levine and Talking Plants for a look at permaculture.

The government has been trying for years to stop identity thieves from stealing Social Security numbers. But now officials say the problem has taken on new importance as a way to stop terrorists, NPR's Larry Abramson reports on Morning Edition. NPR Online offers tips on protecting yourself from identity theft.

They called him the Splinter and the Kid and Teddy Ballgame. But Ted Williams thought of himself in simpler terms -- as the greatest hitter who ever lived. The baseball Hall of Famer and war hero died Friday at 83. All Things Considered and NPR Online take a look back at a remarkable American life.

Retired Navy Capt. Peter Huchthausen wrote the book K19: The Widowmaker: The Secret Story of the Soviet Nuclear Submarine. This true story of a barely averted catastrophe aboard a nuclear-powered submarine has been adapted into a film of the same name starring Harrison Ford. Huchthausen served as technical director on the film. On July 4, 1961, the sub was taking part in a military exercise in the North Atlantic. A pipeline in a reactor's cooling system ruptured. In a race against time, the crew worked to improvise a repair. Until now, the story has been kept secret. Huchthausen served as naval attaché in Moscow from 1987 to 1990. The movie opens nationwide on July 19.

A song that had America dreaming of California sunshine actually was born on a New York winter's day. As part of the Present at the Creation series, NPR's Susan Stamberg has the story of "California Dreamin'," the Mamas and the Papas' enduring anthem to homesickness.

Actress Catherine Keener was nominated for an Academy Award for her role in Being John Malkovich. She starred in the independent films The Real Blonde, Walking and Talking, Living in Oblivion and Lovely and Amazing.

Weekend Edition Saturday once again features summer readings from the Sunken Garden Poetry Festival, held at the Hill-Stead Museum in Farmington, Conn. The festival's 11th year continues with "Charles by Accident" by Wesley McNair.

Technology has radically changed the sport of surfing. Surfboards have evolved from heavy solid-wood planks -- almost identical to boards used for centuries in Hawaii -- to high-tech tools that rocket skilled surfers across the water. Tom Goldman has the story on surfers and their boards for our continuing Present at the Creation series.