Arts & Culture

If you’re one of the Doomsday disciples who believe December 21st marks the “end of days,” then you don’t have to worry about last minute Christmas shopping. Why do the Mayan Prophesy and the apocalypse continue to be an obsession for so many? Midday's American culture commentator Sheri Parks debunks the notion that the Mayan calendar predicted the end of the world on December 21st.

With tens of thousands of Marylanders in foreclosure, today we'll hear about two remediation programs: the National Mortgage Settlement, which could bring principal reduction to distressed borrowers, and the Independent Foreclosure Review, which could put your mortgage in front of a neutral third party to look for the bank's mistakes and potentially get you some financial compensation from your servicer. Deadlines for both are looming.

Michael Collier is the former poet laureate of Maryland. He teaches on the faculty of the University of Maryland, College Park, and he directs the Breadloaf Writers Conference in Vermont. He has been a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award.

Web Extra: Michael Collier reads his poem "Six Lines for Louise Bogan"

Half a century ago in Taneytown, Maryland, a young couple – Dotty and Leroy Eyeler - started a bluegrass band together. Little did they know they’d become the matriarch and patriarch of a musical legacy:  The Carroll County Ramblers.  

Baltimore city is getting ready to create its budget for fiscal year 2014--and its asking citizens how it should allocate those billions of dollars. We ask budget director Andrew Kleine how citizens can make their thoughts known through budgeting workshops.

The Sparrows Point steel mill and its surrounding communities will be recognized this weekend by the Maryland State Arts Council. We ask oral historians Elmer Hall and Louis Diggs about the significance of the towns on Sparrows Point.

Dan discusses Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" with Midday film critic Linda DeLibero, associate director of film and media studies at the Johns Hopkins University; Midday culture commentator Sheri Parks, associate dean of Arts and Humanities at the University of Maryland and author of Fierce Angels: The Strong Black Woman in American Life and Culture; Richard Striner, professor of history at Washington College and author of Father Abraham: Lincoln's Relentless Struggle to End Slavery, and Daniel Mark Epstein, poet and author o

At one time in his life, Charlie Wilhelm was a loan shark, a drug dealer, and a bookmaker.  He raked in ten thousand dollars a week, cash.  But when he was ordered to murder two friends, he took himself (and all of his information) to the FBI.  Wilhelm turned informant, wearing a wire and later testifying against his former partners in crime, putting them behind bars for years to come.

 We meet Charlie Wilhelm, and we hear his reflections on crime, loyalty, and redemption this week on The Signal.

We talk to Baltimore City Council President Bernard "Jack" Young who wants to force some city contractors to hire more city residents.

A little over a decade ago, a band called Oxes captured the hearts of Baltimore music fans with their loud guitars, weird meters, and even weirder performances. They're back with a new single. Today, they look back on their days as bassless provocateurs.

How to handle the onslaught of mammoth holiday meals.