The Frame

Benj Pasek and Justin Paul are on a roll: they wrote song lyrics for "La La Land" and the music and lyrics for the Broadway hit, "Dear Evan Hansen"; more than 3,500 companies are debuting their futuristic products at the annual, massive technology trade show.

Actor and documentary filmmaker Fisher Stevens jumped at the chance to make a documentary about the iconic showbiz mother-and-daughter, Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher; Sorting through the Jan/Feb TV premieres and comebacks to watch for in 2017 with TV critic Whitney Friedlander.

"Hidden Figures" writer Allison Schroeder (who was just nominated for a Writer's Guild award) tells us why she was the right person to co-write the film “Hidden Figures”; In the film “A Monster Calls,” director J.A. Bayona talks about how families might view his dark and personal coming-of-age story; Elliott Smith’s landmark 1997 album, “Either/Or,” gets a 20th anniversary re-issue.

Clay Tarver is a writer and co-executive producer for HBO’s “Silicon Valley," but he recently reunited with his bandmates in the group Chavez to record their first new music in 20 years; there may be a more diverse roster of actor and actress nominees for the Academy Awards this year, but that doesn’t mean #OscarsSoWhite is a thing of the past, says April Reign, the writer and activist who coined the hashtag.

It's our last Frame episode of 2016! From Beyonce's "Lemonade" to Chance The Rapper's "Coloring Book," we look back at the year in music with MTV Executive Editor Alex Pappademas; Also, we revisit one of our favorite musician interviews of the year, soul singer/songwriter Aloe Blacc, who describes himself as an "artivist," someone who blends art with activism.

The singing voice of Debbie Reynolds echoes throughout the show today as we honor the actress who died yesterday; Los Angeles Times culture writer Carolina Miranda picks some of 2016's most impactful moments in culture; playwright Jon Robin Baitz challenged himself in 2016 to write a play responding to Donald Trump's candidacy and get it up before the election. He did that. Now what?

For our wrap up of the best in TV, Margaret Lyons of the New York Times talks with us about the most overrated, underrated and heavily debated shows of 2016; Among the most lauded performances on TV this year was Sarah Paulson as Marcia Clark in the FX mini-series "The People v. O.J. Simpson." Paulson discusses how Clark had been scrutinized by the media and much of America during the trial.

Carrie Fisher imbued the role of Princess Leia with an assertiveness that set the tone for the future Star Wars heroines; Fisher was also the columnist of "Advice from the Dark Side" which ran in The Guardian; New York Times co-chief film critic Manohla Dargis joins John Horn to talk about some of the top film stories of the year.

The popular British singer-songwriter died from heart failure at the age of 53; Kristen Anderson-Lopez is working on a stage musical version of "Frozen," but for now she has another show on Broadway, "In Transit."

David Oyelowo is extremely selective about the roles he chooses to play, and also the kinds of parts he wants to avoid; the Presidential Inauguration Committee has gotten more nays than ayes from singers and bands.

Simmonds stars in the new film, "Wonderstruck" and Harvard is featured in the Deaf West Theatre production of "Our Town"; Netflix will spend $8 billion on content in 2018; low budget horror films like "Happy Death Day" are a bright spot for movie studios.

Mexican jazz drummer Antonio Sánchez has made a career of composing for film ("Birdman") and TV ("Get Shorty"). His new album is called "Bad Hombre"; WSJ reporter Ben Fritz discusses the Weinstein Company's possible sale to Colony Capital; Film producer Emily Best on the power dynamics that foster a culture of abuse in Hollywood.

"Lore" creator Aaron Mahnke reveals how he adapted his horror legend podcast into a new Amazon TV show; country music artist Jason Aldean performed last night for the first time since the Las Vegas shooting. We hear from one person who was at the show; and New York Times film critic Manohla Dargis puts the Harvey Weinstein story of alleged sexual misdeeds into the context of Hollywood history which has kept men in positions of power, women marginalized and many silenced.

Why did Ronan Farrow, a reporter for NBC News, publish his story about Harvey Weinstein in The New Yorker?; over the past 25 years, Geoff Elliott and Julia Rodriguez-Elliott, co-producing directors of A Noise Within, have built a respected, classical repertory company from the ground up; musician Rostam breaks down a song from his first solo album since leaving the band Vampire Weekend.

Agnes Varda and JR travel through their native France to photograph their fellow citizens in the documentary, "Faces Places"; IMAX is trying to lure audiences to its new virtual reality experience centers; experimental opera director Yuval Sharon is among this year's MacArthur Fellowship honorees.

Published reports of Harvey Weinstein's predatory behavior spotlight the non-disclosure agreements that prevent whistleblowers and victims from telling their stories; Brandon Micheal Hall is the lead in ABC's new comedy "The Mayor." He's happy to combine politics and rap in his first big acting gig.

Veteran actor Joe Morton talks about his stage portrayal of the late comedian and activist, Dick Gregory; producer Amy Ziering, whose documentary "The Hunting Ground" was distributed by The Weinstein Company, wants to make a film about sexual harassment in Hollywood; can The Weinstein Company survive without Harvey?

The published report of Harvey Weinstein's history of sexual harassment begs the questions: How did his behavior go unchecked for so long? And how are Democratic politicians trying to distance themselves from Weinstein?; Larry David's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" once helped exonerate a murder suspect. The story is told in the documentary, "Long Shot."

Filmmaker Brett Morgen's "Jane" uses never-seen footage that National Geographic had stored for decades; there are more than usual women among this year's nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; from Amish country to Hollywood, and classical piano to Dolly Parton: the evolution of singer-songwriter Our Lady J.

Lukas Nelson learned a lot from his dad, Willie, but he's making his own musical way; David Geffen has pledged $150 million for the planned new building at the L.A. County Museum of Art; movie studios are increasingly trying to limit what critics can divulge in a review.

Tom Petty recently finished a 40-year anniversary tour with his band. L.A. Times pop music critic Mikael Wood joins us for a remembrance of the music icon's career; in the wake of the mass shooting at a music festival in Las Vegas, NPR music critic Ann Powers talks about country music's complicated relationship with gun culture.

The Pasadena Playhouse marks its 100th anniversary with a collaboration on "Our Town" with Deaf West Theatre; some outdoor concert venues are using a pre-screening process for ticket buyers similar to what the TSA uses at airports.