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"Masters of Sex"
By
Matthew Munhall
· Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2014
The Showtime period drama “Masters of Sex” is based on the real life Dr. William Masters (Michael Sheen) and Virginia Johnson (Lizzy Caplan), who conducted groundbreaking research on human sexuality at Washington University in St. Louis beginning in the late 1950s. The scope of their relationship soon moves far beyond simply being research partners, and the couple’s chemistry becomes the show’s emotional centerpiece. Equally interesting is how the show, which is two-thirds through its fantastic second season, is exploring issues of gender, sexuality and race in a manner unlike anything else currently on television. Show developer Michelle Ashford and the show’s writers use the context of repressed, post-war America — before “The Feminine Mystique,” before the March on Washington, before the Stonewall Riots — as the backdrop for its progressive ideology.
A Grande hit
By
Matthew Munhall
· Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2014
“Maybe one day I’ll get away with something naughty,” Ariana Grande quipped in a recent New York Times profile. Like many teen idols before her, the 21-year-old former Nickelodeon star is in the midst of navigating the transition from child star to bonafide pop diva.
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