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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop culture in high spirits

Samara Weaving as Olivia and Eugenio Derbez as Antonio in the new Hulu film The Valet. Dan McFadden/Hulu hide caption

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Dan McFadden/Hulu

What's Making Us Happy: Recommendations From 'Pop Culture Happy Hour'

What's making us happy: A guide to your weekend reading, listening and viewing

Each week, the guests and hosts on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour share what's bringing them joy. This week: The Valet on Hulu, watching wrestling, and a playlist crafted for the perfect summer vibe.

Minions: The Rise of Gru is the latest movie in the Despicable Me film franchise. Universal Pictures hide caption

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Universal Pictures

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Those chaotic tater tots return in 'Minions: The Rise of Gru'

Minions: The Rise Of Gru is the fifth film in the animated Despicable Me series. Set in the late 1970s, the new movie chronicles the early days of the supervillain Gru (voiced again by Steve Carell) and his relationship with the silly yellow babbling banana-loving henchmen who do his bidding.

Those chaotic tater tots return in 'Minions: The Rise of Gru'

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If you like to fall asleep to a soundtrack, we have three great recommendations to help you doze away. Angela Hsieh/NPR hide caption

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Angela Hsieh/NPR

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Can't sleep? Catch some zzzs with these songs

There are songs you want to groove to, and songs you want to pump up to. But sometimes, you just want something for the come down at the end of a long day. If you're having trouble sleeping in silence, or are just looking for some new songs to throw into your bedtime rotation, we've got you covered.

Can't sleep? Catch some zzzs with these songs

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Ethan Hawke stars in The Black Phone the latest film fromScott Derrickson. Universal Pictures hide caption

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Universal Pictures

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Should you pick up 'The Black Phone'?

In the supernatural horror film The Black Phone, Ethan Hawke plays the Grabber, a sinister masked figure who abducts a series of teenage boys in a Colorado suburb. When 13-year-old Finney (Mason Thames) gets grabbed, he's locked in a dank basement, waiting to be murdered, when suddenly a disconnected telephone on the wall starts to ring.

Should you pick up 'The Black Phone'?

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Jack Harlow and Brandy perform onstage during the 2022 BET Awards. Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images for BET hide caption

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Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images for BET

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

We recap the 2022 BET Awards

Sunday's BET Awards were a four-hour celebration of Black culture, with a heavy emphasis on music. The night was packed with live performances from Latto and Jack Harlow, and surprise guests Mariah Carey and Brandy, and featured a lavish tribute to Lifetime Achievement Award winner Sean "Diddy" Combs.

We recap the 2022 BET Awards

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Jenny Slate voices Marcel in the new film Marcel The Shell With Shoes On. A24 hide caption

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A24

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Let's get small with 'Marcel The Shell With Shoes On'

The new film Marcel The Shell With Shoes On tells the story of a tiny shell who searches for his long-lost family. He's voiced by Jenny Slate and rendered using stop-motion animation. Based on a series of viral YouTube shorts, the feature-length movie is directed by Dean Fleischer Camp, who also appears on-screen as a filmmaker who discovers and interviews Marcel while living in an Airbnb.

Let's get small with 'Marcel The Shell With Shoes On'

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Austin Butler stars as Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann's Elvis. Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures hide caption

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Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Elvis' is a hunk-a hunk-a burnin' excess

The legacy of Elvis Presley is often reduced to gaudy iconography and tales of excess: the white jumpsuit, Las Vegas, drugs. So what happens when director Baz Luhrmann takes on the man, the myth, the legend? You get the dizzying biopic Elvis. Austin Butler stars as "the King of Rock and Roll," and Tom Hanks plays Elvis' shady longtime manager Colonel Tom Parker.

'Elvis' is a hunk-a hunk-a burnin' excess

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Anson Mount and Ethan Peck star on the Paramount+ series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. Marni Grossman/Paramount+ hide caption

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Marni Grossman/Paramount+

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Does 'Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' attain warp speed?

In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, USS Enterprise Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), Spock (Ethan Peck) and their diverse crew boldly go exploring the galaxy. The Paramount+ series takes place a few years before the original series from the '60s, and new show's tone and narrative certainly feel like a return to old-school Star Trek.

Does 'Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' attain warp speed?

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Cooper Raiff and Dakota Johnson star in Cha Cha Real Smooth. Apple TV+ hide caption

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Apple TV+

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

In 'Cha Cha Real Smooth,' coming of age takes a little while

In Cha Cha Real Smooth, Andrew (Cooper Raiff), an aimless 22-year-old, finds a new direction when he becomes a party motivator at bar and bat mitzvahs in his hometown. He develops a bond with Domino (Dakota Johnson), who's at her own crossroads in life. The film was a breakout hit at Sundance earlier this year and is now streaming on Apple TV+.

In 'Cha Cha Real Smooth,' coming of age takes a little while

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The Starz drama P-Valley recently returned for a second season. Erika Doss/Starz hide caption

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Erika Doss/Starz

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

'P-Valley' shines a spotlight on strip club culture

The Starz drama P-Valley is set in a Black strip club in the Mississippi Delta. The dancers are acrobatic, artistic and independent. The show is about their labor, but also about a wide variety of stories about power, money, and a community's identity. It recently returned for a second season, so in this encore episode, we revisit our discussion about the show's first season.

'P-Valley' shines a spotlight on strip club culture

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Sox (voiced by Pete Sohn) and Buzz Lightyear (voiced by Chris Evans) star in the film Lightyear. Pixar hide caption

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Pixar

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

In the Pixar prequel 'Lightyear,' Buzz gets his own swashbuckling space epic

If you've seen any of the Toy Story movies, you know about Buzz Lightyear, the heroic space ranger immortalized in a line of action figures. Now, the character is getting a Disney and Pixar prequel — an origin story starring Chris Evans as the space ranger who started it all. (Take our annual survey at npr.org/podcastsurvey)

In the Pixar prequel 'Lightyear,' Buzz gets his own swashbuckling space epic

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Clockwise from top left: David Archuleta, Carrie Underwood, Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, Adam Lambert, Jordin Sparks. AP, Getty hide caption

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AP, Getty

The best 'American Idol' contestants of all time, ranked — according to your votes

NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour asked listeners to vote on their favorite American Idol contestants of all time.

The best 'American Idol' contestants of all time, ranked — according to your votes

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Daryl McCormack and Emma Thompson star in Good Luck To You, Leo Grande. Nick Wall/Searchlight Pictures hide caption

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Nick Wall/Searchlight Pictures

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Emma Thompson finds herself, and pleasure, in 'Good Luck To You, Leo Grande'

In Good Luck to You, Leo Grande, Emma Thompson plays a widow yearning to fulfill a desire that's somehow eluded her her entire life: an orgasm. She sets about achieving her goal by hiring a much younger, highly attractive sex worker (Daryl McCormack). But their time spent together turns out to be much more than transactional. Good Luck To You, Leo Grande will stream on Hulu starting June 17th.

Emma Thompson finds herself, and pleasure, in 'Good Luck To You, Leo Grande'

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Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman play Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein in 1976's All The President's Men. Snap/Shutterstock hide caption

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Snap/Shutterstock

Pop Culture Happy Hour

50 years of Watergate in pop culture

This summer marks the 50th anniversary of the break-in at the Watergate Hotel that eventually led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon. Watergate not only had profound impacts on how Americans see the government and the press, but it has influenced decades of film and TV, books and podcasts.

50 years of Watergate in pop culture

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Ariana DeBose performs onstage at the 75th Annual Tony Awards. Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Tony Awards Pro hide caption

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Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Tony Awards Pro

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Our 2022 Tony Awards Recap

The big winners of the 75th Tony Awards included the play The Lehman Trilogy, and the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical A Strange Loop. The evening was hosted by the charming and completely committed Oscar winner Ariana DeBose, and filled with musical performances, emotional acceptance speeches, and a tribute to Stephen Sondheim.

Our 2022 Tony Awards Recap

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Ewan McGregor in Obi-Wan Kenobi on Disney+. Lucasfilm Ltd./Disney hide caption

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Lucasfilm Ltd./Disney

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Is 'Obi-Wan Kenobi' the show you're looking for?

In the Star Wars Disney+ series Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ewan McGregor returns as one of the last remaining Jedi Knights as he's hiding out on Tatooine. When young Princess Leia is kidnapped, Obi-Wan is convinced to come out of retirement and pull "one last job" to rescue her — even if that means crossing lightsabers with his former apprentice, the evil Darth Vader, played by Hayden Christensen. (Take our annual survey at npr.org/podcastsurvey)

Is 'Obi-Wan Kenobi' the show you're looking for?

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