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ONCE WERE WARRIORS director LEE TAMAHORI (TOM-a-hore-ee) and it's star RENA(Rain-a) OWEN. This critically acclaimed new film takes a front-line look at an urban Maori(MOW-er-ee) family plagued by poverty, violence and alcoholism. The movie recently became the top grossing film in New Zealand history

The audience numbers aren't out yet, but viewership for the very last episode of AMC's Breaking Bad was expected to top 8 million Sunday night. Thirty second ad slots reportedly sold for $250,000, and a promise to buy more ads on other shows.

Fresh Air's resident rock historian remembers soul singer Lorraine Ellison, who recorded a handful of albums and dozens of singles in the '60s and '70s; though she charted a few R&B hits, she never quite broke through to stardom. Her biggest success was with the string-saturated ballad "Stay With Me," which topped out at No. 11 on the R&B charts and has since been covered by everyone from Bette Midler to teenybopper idol Rex Smith.

Christopher O'Riley, host of NPR's From the Top, considers Elliott Smith to be one America's greatest songwriters. Smith died in 2003 before ever achieving massive fame. O'Riley's latest release, Home to Oblivion, is a classical translation of Smith's work.

President Bush's top getaway, his ranch in Crawford, Texas, is also the place where Laura Bush seems to find the most solace. NPR's Ketzel Levine gets a rare tour of the ranch with the first lady, who discusses her efforts to restore native grasses and plants to the 1,600-acre property. See photos of wildflowers at the Bush ranch.

One of the world's top female wrestlers is featured in this week's installment of the Weekend Edition Sunday summer reading series. Toccara Montgomery will compete in Athens in the 72-kilogram weight division. She talked about books with NPR's Liane Hansen before leaving for the Summer Games.

Folk artist Mose Tolliver's subjects were nature, people and animals. His medium was house paint. His canvasses were cabinet doors and discarded table tops. His paintings put him at the forefront of the Outsider Art movement.

The Senate Banking Committee grills top regulators and several of the nation's largest lenders about problems with sub-prime mortgages — and what regulators did and did not do to address them. About 14 percent of outstanding subprime loans are now delinquent by 30 days or more.

The new film, set in l942 during the Japanese occupation of China, is about a dangerous affair between a young resistance fighter and a top Chinese collaborator. Lee, who won an Oscar for Brokeback Mountain, says this was much more difficult subject to tackle.

More conservative federal judges and a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage top the agenda for President Bush's second term, according to a conservative author. NPR's Renee Montagne speaks to Richard Viguerie, co-author of America's Right Turn.