Move Over Urkel, There Are New 'Blerds' Around

Move Over Urkel, There Are New 'Blerds' Around

Morning Edition | NPR

Commentator Eric Deggans argues that the black nerds are ascendant. It used to be that Steve Urkel was their sole standard-bearer, but now there are black nerd standup comics, rappers and even news anchors. Deggans is TV and media critic for the Tampa Bay Times, and author of Race-Baiter: How the Media Wields Dangerous Words to Divide a Nation.

Listen Here

Looking For Lady Day's Resting Place? Detour Ahead

NPR Morning Edition:

When Billie Holiday died in 1959, thousands of mourners attended her funeral at St. Paul the Apostle Roman Catholic Church in New York City. The overflow crowd lined the sidewalks. Honorary pallbearers included such jazz greats as Benny Goodman and Mary Lou Williams. Newspapers and magazines ran heartfelt tributes.

But where is Holiday buried? She's not in New York's Woodlawn Cemetery, the well-known spot for famous dead jazz musicians such as Duke Ellington, Celia Cruz, Miles Davis and Lionel Hampton. She's buried at St. Raymond's Cemetery — or, as singer and Holiday fan Queen Esther puts it, "Way, way, way out," in the Bronx.

The Strange Story Of The Man Behind 'Strange Fruit'

by Elizabeth Blair | Morning Edition

One of Billie Holiday's most iconic songs is "Strange Fruit," a haunting protest against the inhumanity of racism. Many people know that the man who wrote the song was inspired by a photograph of a lynching. But they might not realize that he's also tied to another watershed moment in America's history.

The man behind "Strange Fruit" is New York City's Abel Meeropol, and he really has two stories. They both begin at Dewitt Clinton High School, a public high school in the Bronx that has an astonishing number of famous people in its alumni. James Baldwin went there. So did Countee Cullen, Richard Rodgers, Burt Lancaster, Stan Lee, Neil Simon, Richard Avedon and Ralph Lauren.

Listen Here

Killer Mike: On Ronald Reagan And Raising Daughters