In a world where one team must face off against another not once, but twice, on the world stage tempers will flare, bodies will be pushed to the limit, and reveling fans will discover if the underdog can triumph over tragedy… or if the top dog will rise again. Cliched? Absolutely, but appropriate: just as they did in 2007, the New England Patriots will face off against the New York Giants in this year's Superbowl.

Don Cornelius, the creator of "Soul Train," died Wednesday of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He began his career as a journalist who wrote passionately about the civil rights movement.  After noticing the lack of African American music on popular television, he created the Chicago-based show "Soul Train" in 1970 to showcase the funky blending of gospel and R&B that is soul music. It quickly gained an audience and went into syndication nationally a year later. Celeste Headlee looks back on why "Soul Train" was groundbreaking and reflects on the may ways that Cornelius' legacy lives on. 

Late January means as many action releases as June and July. Liam Neeson returns to the big screen this weekend with the icy survival flick "The Grey." This Friday also sees "Man on a Ledge," starring Sam Worthington as a police psychologist negotiating with a pack of diamond thieves, whilst on a ledge of course. Find out which flicks are worth seeing, and which ones should wait until DVD release.

Louis CK is a veteran stand-up comedian who writes, stars, and frequently directs the cult FX series "Louie." Known among comedy connoisseurs for wittily playing with language and awkward social scenarios, his most recent venture has been to independently produce the feature-length concert film "Live at the Beacon Theatre." Distributed exclusively online, it has earned over one million dollars since its December 10 release. (Watch an outtake from the special after the jump.) Louis CK talks about his special, and gives his predictions for the coming year.

The last week of the year brings with it Hollywood's last chance to release movies eligible for 2012's Academy Awards. "The Iron Lady" (trailer after the jump), the Margaret Thatcher biopic starring Meryl Streep is among them. The movie is getting mixed reviews, but Streep's performance is said to make her a shoo-in for this year's Oscars. The Takeaway's Movie Date podcast team gives their assessment of "The Iron Lady," and look back at their picks for the best and worst movies of 2011.

This week on The Takeaway, we've been talking about the representations of different religions in the media: the controversy surrounding Lowe's pulling their ads from the TLC reality show "All-American Muslim," and America’s fixation with the Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow. While extremism isn't exclusive to any group, those who practice outside of the "mainstream" — be they Mormon or Muslim — are frequently labeled as such. Does it simply take a version of "The Cosby Show" to break down these stereotypes, or is there something more?

A Pew Research Center report released Wednesday shows 51 percent of all adults in the United States are now married — a record low. In 2010, a survey also conducted by Pew found that four in ten Americans thought marriage had become obsolete, but found that most people who had never married (61 percent) would like to do so someday.

Every Friday, The Takeaway looks at the weekend's new releases. Opening this weekend: slacker comedy "The Sitter" with Jonah Hill; and "New Year's Eve" starring Sarah Jessica Parker among many others. Rafer Guzman, film critic for Newsday, and Takeaway producer Kristen Meinzer, co-hosts of The Takeaway Movie Date podcast, give their recommendations on this weekend's new movies.

Whether or not you recognize their surname, no other duo has so clearly shaped American independent cinema and its culture over the past 25 years like Harvey and Bob Weinstein. Among the films released by Miramax Films and the Weinstein Company, 261 have received Oscar nominations and 62 have won Academy Awards. Harvey Weinstein speaks to John and Celeste about his childhood, what got him into the movie business, and his expansive career.

Ever heard of FORBS, otherwise known as the Fraternity of Real Bearded Santas? How about the IOS — the International Order of Santas? As Kris Kringle begins to show up at malls across America, The Takeaway takes a look at where these men come from. The Charles H. Howard School, founded in 1937, is the oldest continually running Santa school in the world and has trained thousands of people to stand in for the real guy when he’s too booked up. Tom Valent is the dean of the Charles H. Howard Santa Claus School, and has been a Santa for 35 years. Holly Valent is the school’s registrar.

Fifty years ago, four young men named Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, and Pete Best stepped into a studio for the first time to record a few songs. They called themselves the Beat Brothers, and they were more or less a backup band for a singer named Tony Sheridan. The Beat Brothers did not remain a backup band for long. Pete Best would be replaced by Ringo Star, and the Beat Brothers became the Beatles, one of the most enduring and popular bands in history.

Throughout today’s show, the Takeaway has been giving thanks, and looking back at some of our favorite interviews from the past year. Our interview with Jennifer Grant is among them, and it's surprisingly timely for Thanksgiving (listen to the very end to know what we mean). Grant is the daughter of the late Cary Grant, who, for more than 30 years, was one of the most bankable actors in the world, starring in such classics as “Bringing Up Baby,” “The Philadelphia Story,” “An Affair to Remember,” and “North by Northwest.”

It’s Thanksgiving. And we have a lot to be grateful for here at the Takeaway — including our amazing listeners and guests. One of our favorites from this past year was the great Betty White. In addition to starring on “Hot in Cleveland,” the legendary comedian, movie star, and seven-time Emmy winner is the author of a new book "If You Ask Me (And of Course You Won’t)." White, who overflows with gratitude, reminds us that there's much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.

In honor of Thanksgiving, The Takeaway looks back at some of our favorite interviews from the past year and gives thanks. Our conversation with Dr. Abraham Verghese is among those we're especially grateful for. Verghese was raised in Ethiopia, by parents from India. He immigrated to the U.S. in the 1980s for a medical residency, and then to rural Tennessee treat gay men afflicted with HIV.  Later, he became a professor at Stanford University Medical School and the author of the best-sellers, "My Own Country" and "Cutting for Stone."

It's the day before Thanksgiving, one of the biggest movie release dates of the year. Among the major releases this year is Martin Scorsese's ode to movie history, "Hugo," and "My Week with Marilyn," starring Michelle Williams and Kenneth Branagh. And of course, "The Muppets" which has everyone as eager to talk about music as they are about movies.

One of the most difficult conversations we can have in our society has to do with race. In some ways the conversation is complicated by recent milestone events in racial equality like the election of President Barack Obama. But, Jay Smooth says that milestones like that are exactly the reason why we need to think and communicate more effectively about race as such milestones can obfuscate the real inequalities that still remain in our society.

His days as prime minister of Italy are coming to an end, but Silvio Berlusconi isn't fading away quietly. On Tuesday, his fourth album of love songs will be released to the public. Titled "Il Vero Amore" (True Love), the album features 11 ballads, which are performed with the help of his long-time collaborator Mariano Apicella. But Berlusconi is hardly the only politician with musical aspirations. Here in the States, political figures from Bill Clinton and Ted Kennedy to Orrin Hatch and Condoleezza Rice have tried their hands at music.

In 1943, a group of Jews stood in a field in near Maidanek, a concentration camp in Poland also known as Lublin. Fearing their deaths, they burried their most prized possessions in the soil. Decades later, more than 60 years after two survivors returned to lead an excavation of the largest recovery of valuables from a death camp in history. A new documentary, called "Buried Prayers" tells the story of that event.

This week's big releases include the animated family film "Happy Feet 2," "The Descendants," starring George Clooney, and the eagerly awaited fourth Twilight movie "Breaking Dawn." Rafer Guzman, film critic for Newsday,and Kristen Meinzer, Takeaway culture producer, are co-hosts of the Movie Date podcast. They give their thoughts on the new movies this week.