Linda Holmes
Linda Holmes is a pop culture correspondent for NPR and the host of Pop Culture Happy Hour. She began her professional life as an attorney. In time, however, her affection for writing, popular culture, and the online universe eclipsed her legal ambitions. She shoved her law degree in the back of the closet, gave its living room space to DVD sets of The Wire, and never looked back.
Holmes was a writer and editor at Television Without Pity, where she recapped several hundred hours of programming — including both High School Musical movies, for which she did not receive hazard pay. Her first novel, Evvie Drake Starts Over, was published in the summer of 2019.
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Nearly a decade ago, HBO's The Jinx helped kick off the true-crime boom, and played a role in the arrest of suspected murder Robert Durst. Now, its follow-up series is grasping for revelations. -
With former president Trump's real-life legal drama unfolding in New York, here are some of Hollywood's best courtroom dramas for some low-stakes intrigue.
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Shortly after the picture came out, it went viral because of some inconsistencies — creating a public relations disaster for the Palace and making people wonder what's really going on with Kate.
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The release of the Mother's Day photo was not meant as a proof of life. However, any clever communications person should have known it would be taken that way and closely scrutinized by the public. -
With the Oscars handed out, NPR critic Linda Holmes reflects on the night's big winners, takeaways, and telecast highlights.
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For a night with relatively few surprises but some very enjoyable winners, it was a solid show that honored an awful lot of good movies, and movies that drew significant audiences. -
You know that scene in Pretty Woman when Julia Roberts is eating a croissant that is suddenly a pancake? Continuity issues like that crop up all the time. Whether you let it distract you is your call. -
Each week, Pop Culture Happy Hour guests and hosts share what's bringing them joy. This week: The Open Ears Project, R.F Kuang's The Poppy War trilogy and a Dungeons & Dragons show called DesiQuest. -
From war to injustice and religious extremism, the documentary finalists are thematically harrowing stories from around the world. Each is a triumph of storytelling and craft. -
Super Bowl viewership isn't faltering in the same way broadcast, cable and awards shows are. But do we really need mass consumption of the same cultural work? Or just smart and connected consumption?
