Andy Kropa/AP Photo/Andy Kropa
/
Invision
Days before “Obsession” opened in theaters, its 26-year-old director, Curry Barker, made a bet with his manager and agent. They said if the movie opened above $20 million, they would all get tattoos.“Obsession” fell just short. It debuted with $17 million. They were still thrilled. Barker made the horror film with just $750,000. It was enormously successful. It was also just for starters.
Art & Voices: The APR Local Artist Collection
News & Commentaries From APR
-
-
A concern for animals is woven into the fabric of America's history and culture, so July 4th is a great time to celebrate our freedom and our best friends! -
This week's Keepin' It Real comes from a place of real pain. Cam Marston reflects on the loss of two young men from his community, and a grief he says words can't quite reach. -
Photographs of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. adorned with flower lei from Hawaii residents who traveled to Selma, Alabama, to join him on a pivotal Civil Rights march went on public display in the state Capitol in Honolulu. The Selma-to-Montgomery marches galvanized passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which did away with most barriers such as poll taxes and other forms of voter discrimination targeting Black Americans in the Deep South. -
What if you could capture the warmth and grit of a classic 1970s record in the middle of a small Alabama town? This week on Quick-Fire Quips, we’re heading to the Red Room Sound Studio in Robertsdale to chat with Mick Connolly! He and his wife, Lucinda Rowe, co-own and operate this unique, 100% analog recording space. We’re diving into the art of tape-to-tape editing and their work as the husband-and-wife musical duo, The Heat. -
America is just a few days away from the Fourth of July and the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. That day may involve fireworks, a backyard cookout, and possibly a rendition or two of the Star Spangled Banner. Mobile area author Watt Key is known for his classic novel “Alabama Moon,” which was made into a motion picture. But, he's also an indirect descendant of Francis Scott Key, who wrote “The Star Spangled Banner,” and F. Scott Fitzgerald who penned "The Great Gatsby." -
President Donald Trump didn't get what he wanted in some of the biggest Supreme Court cases this year. The list includes tariffs, birthright citizenship and the attempted firing of Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook. But he also emerged from the term with even greater power. However, the 1964 decision in an Alabama legal case that helped define freedom of the press and defamation in the U.S. went unchallenged. -
This week on StoryCorps, Jai'Lynn Witherspoon and Johnathan Tarver discuss the most influential people in their lives and how love from those people have helped them persevere through life's challenges. -
Jon Meacham is among many historians reflecting on the complex legacy of Thomas Jefferson. He notes that Jefferson's life and work resonate deeply as the U.S. approaches its 250th anniversary. Jefferson embodied contradictions, advocating for both states' rights and federal power. Alabama Governor George Wallace gets a mention. -
Three firefighters killed over the weekend in a wildfire along the Colorado-Utah border were trying to shield themselves from flames by deploying tent-like shelters when they were overcome, authorities said. One of the victims was from Alabama. -
America is just a few days away from the Fourth of July and the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. That day may involve fireworks, a backyard cookout, and possibly a rendition or two of the Star Spangled Banner. Our national anthem hits home with my guest on the national award-winning APR Notebook. Mobile area author Watt Key is known for his classic novel “Alabama Moon,” which was made into a motion picture. But, he's also an indirect descendant of Francis Scott Key, who wrote “The Star Spangled Banner.” -
This week, Don reviews I Got to Keep Moving: Stories by Bill Harris.
Latest News From NPR
- Supreme Court lets Texas restrict minors' access to app stores for the time being
- Platner denies sexual assault allegation, but says he will assess 'best path forward'
- 'Alice and Steve' might be a mess — but it's also too fun to stop watching
- Man sues DHS after agents tracked him down for sending a scathing email to ICE
- Militant LGBTQ+ rights group 'the Lavender Panthers' was founded on this day in 1973
"Simplified" is an interview-style show where Morning Edition host Lacey Alexander takes complex topics and breaks them down so that everyone can better understand them. She enlists a new academic in the state of Alabama every week to simplify a big idea-- whether it's science, economics, media or anything in between.
Sports Minded podcast with host Brittany Young features interviews with coaches, athletes and sports personnel. Insight, commentary and analysis on professional, collegiate and high school sports can be heard here.
Speaking of Pets with host Mindy Norton is a commentary for people who care about pets and want to celebrate that special relationship between humans and animal companions.
Quick-Fire Quips is centered around people who stand out in Alabama. Host Baillee Majors presents guests with a questionnaire of playful personal questions and questions about the Yellowhammer State.
Alabama is known for football and white barbecue sauce. But we’re also making our mark in science, literature and the arts—and we helped put astronauts on the moon! Join APR news director Pat Duggins as he takes up topics like this with interviews on APR Notebook.
Dr. Don Noble, specializing in Southern and American literature, gives his weekly review on the work of Alabama’s finest authors.
StoryCorps episodes show a candid, unscripted conversation between two people about love, loss, family, friendship and everything else in between. These stories are from Selma, where APR recently hosted the Airstream portable studio.
Host Cam Marston brings fun weekly commentaries on generational and demographic trends to provide new ways to interpret the changing world around us.
Coffee & History brings you weekly conversations with fascinating figures in the historical community. Each Sunday morning, Rebecca Todd Minder, Susan E. Reynolds and Caroline Gazzara-McKenzie, explore and share the stories that shape Alabama.
-
Former Alabama basketball star Labaron Philon is settling in with his new team, the Philadelphia Seventy sixers. Observers of the Philadelphia Seventy sixers are focusing on Labaron Philon’s apparent role as primary back-up point guard. -
Lisa McNair was born Sept. 19, 1964. Her older sister, Denise, died in the Sept 15, 1963, bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. The church had been a central organizing point for civil rights protest. One of Lisa McNair's early memories of her sister was of the box that their grandmother kept from the funeral home -
Celebrate the upcoming Holiday by freeing your pet from having another litter of babies - spay and neuter! -
Cam Marston spent Father's Day at church alone, then had dinner with his own dad, and somewhere in between, figured something out. -
Michelin North America plans to close its B.F. Goodrich tire plant in Tuscaloosa. The move could cost over a thousand jobs by the end of 2028. The company says the change is part of a reorganization of its U.S. manufacturing network for the B.F. Goodrich brand. All of the work is expected to move to its Fort Wayne, Indiana. -
Rescue teams rushed to areas hit hardest by a pair of powerful earthquakes that rocked Venezuela, killing at least 164 people, injuring nearly 1,000 and trapping many under the rubble. Mariangel Rincon is from Caracas. She’s been checking in on family and friends in Venezeula while she studies abroad in Spain. Rincon was part of a U.S. State Department delegation that Alabama Public Radio addressed on the subject of human trafficking and investigating case of human rights violations. -
ESPN is reporting that Detroit Lions cornerback Terrion Arnold is facing multiple felony charges after he was arrested in Tampa, Florida. The case stems from an alleged case of robbery and kidnapping in early February -
Alabama wasn’t one of the thirteen original colonies that became the United States. That’s not stopping local communities from taking part in the upcoming observance of America’s two hundred and fiftieth anniversary. -
Remember learning about stalactites and stalagmites on a school field trip? This week on Quick-Fire Quips, we're stepping inside America's most historic cave! Joy Sorensen, President of Majestic Caverns in Childersburg, shares what it was like growing up in a century-long family business. She also claps back at some wild out-of-state stereotypes ("Yes, our teeth come standard!") and recounts a hilarious, real-life cave encounter with her biggest fear: crabs! From local historical preservation and America 250 celebrations, find out why this natural wonder continues to be a crown jewel of Alabama. -
Sportswriters predicted that University of Alabama men’s basketball guard Labaron Philon would go to either the Chicago Bears, the Miami Heat, or the Detroit Pistons in round one of the NBA Draft.The evening led to a different outcome.
