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Former NBA star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar tells the story of a little-known black tank battalion in World War II. He was inspired to write a book after learning a family friend had been a member of the unit.

Writer and critic Luc Sante has edited a true-crime series of books. The Library of Larceny has republished the stories of bank robber Willie Sutton (Where the Money Was, pool room hustler Danny McGoorty (McGoorty) and pyramid schemer Charles Ponzi (Ponzi). Sante speaks with NPR's Linda Wertheimer.

Los Angeles Times critic Kenneth Turan first saw Best of Youth, which was originally made for Italian television, two years ago at Cannes. He's been waiting to review the movie -- which intertwines one family's story with 40 years of post-war Italian history -- ever since. It was, he says, worth the wait.

In The Thin Blue Line, director Errol Morris' uncovers evidence he believes could save a man's life. Following the release of the movie, Randall Dale Adams, convicted of murder, was freed from a life's sentence. This story was originally broadcast on Aug. 19, 1988.

For more than 20 years, filmmaker Peter Brosnan has been working to unearth and restore the "Lost City" of Cecil B. DeMille: the massive set of his epic The Ten Commandments, which was buried in the California desert in the 1920s.

NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports that the state of West Virginia has abandoned plans to erect a monument honoring women veterans, because of objections from some female vets that the proposed statue looked too "masculine." Ludden speaks with one of the female vets, former Marine Dottie Alderman, and sculptor P. Joseph Mullins.

A collection of staged murder scene photos once used in the TV series Law and Order, are being featured in an exhibition at the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film. Brenda Tremblay of WXXI in Rochester, N.Y., reports.

Television critic David Bianculli reviews the final episode of NYPD Blue and previews Deadwood the HBO Western which begins a second season this weekend. Both shows were created by David Milch.

A six-hour Italian epic with subtitles may not sound like everyone's cup of cafe. But critic Bob Mondello says The Best of Youth's sprawling story of two brothers, and the different paths their lives take over the years, is among the most affecting films you'll see this year.

Last night's Oscar ceremony drew surprisingly strong ratings, though the evening itself was free of upsets. In a movie season that began amorphously, with no blockbusters in contention and no clear front-runner, Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby took four awards in top categories, including best picture.