This week on "Sunday Morning" (December 26)
Host: Jane Pauley
WATCH THE FULL DECEMBER 26 EPISODE!
COVER STORY: The universal nostalgia for "Take Me Home, Country Roads" | Watch Video
"Take Me Home, Country Roads," a song about a longing for home (co-written by a songwriter who had never even been in West Virginia), has been embraced by the Mountain State in a big way, and has since been appropriated by singers around the world looking for their very own "place I belong." Correspondent Conor Knighton looks into the genesis and global impact of John Denver's first big hit; and with country star Brad Paisley about the special pull the song has for him.
For more info:
- Brad Paisley
- Bill Danoff
- Sarah Morris, Department of English, West Virginia University
- Special thanks to West Virginia University
- Special thanks to West Virginia Department of Tourism
A LOOK BACK: Top news stories of 2021 month-by-month | Watch Video
"Sunday Morning" host Jane Pauley looks back on key events of a dramatic year.
POSTCARD FROM PARIS: Reconstructing Notre Dame Cathedral | Watch Video
It's at the heart of Paris, in every sense of the word, and so when Notre Dame Cathedral was engulfed by fire in April 2019, it became the nation's mission to restore the medieval church to its full glory. Correspondent Seth Doane was given rare access to the cathedral's interior as it undergoes repairs, and talks with the former military general in charge of completing the effort by 2024.
GALLERY: Fire burns Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris
For more info:
MOVIES: Peter Dinklage on recasting the hero of "Cyrano" | Watch Video
The famously private "Game of Thrones" star talks with "60 Minutes" correspondent Lesley Stahl about a new film adaptation of the play "Cyrano de Bergerac," featuring Dinklage as the ghostwriter of love letters wooing the beautiful Roxanne. Stahl also talks with "Cyrano" screenwriter Erica Schmidt (Dinklage's wife); and with director Joe Wright, who reveals how the period romance almost devolved into a disaster movie while shooting near a suddenly-active volcano.
To watch a trailer for "Cyrano" click on the video player below:
For more info:
- "Cyrano" opens in select theaters January 21
- "Cyrano" cast and creative team, Goodspeed Musicals, East Haddam, Conn.
- Thanks to The New Group
- Thanks to Goodspeed Musicals
- Goodspeed photos by Diane Sobolewski
A LOOK BACK: 2021's most popular movies, music and books | Watch Video
MUSIC: The defiance of Ludwig van Beethoven and his "Ode to Joy" | Watch Video
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) was a composer of extraordinary gifts, but a lifetime of maladies – including the almost-total loss of his hearing – threatened his ability to write music. He would overcome thoughts of suicide to compose his masterwork: the Ninth Symphony and its optimistic final movement, "Ode to Joy." Correspondent Mo Rocca talks with biographer Jan Swafford and conductor Marin Alsop about Beethoven's incredible triumph over terrible mental and physical suffering; and with a hearing specialist who has created a simulation of how Beethoven actually heard his music.
For more info:
- "Beethoven: Anguish and Triumph" by Jan Swafford (Mariner Books), in Hardcover, eBook and Audio formats, available via Amazon and Indiebound
- janswafford.com
- marinalsop.com
- Charles Limb, MD, Chief of the UCSF Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery
- UCSF Douglas Grant Cochlear Implant Center
- Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
Audio-visual of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony is provided courtesy of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus and Riccardo Muti Music
HEADLINES: Archbishop Desmond Tutu dead at 90 (Video)
South Africa's first Black Archbishop, who bravely challenged his country apartheid rule, is dead at age 90. Correspondent Debora Patta, in Johannesburg, looks back at the life of human rights campaigner Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who won a Nobel Peace Prize as a man who spoke truth to power, whether it was a White racist regime or a corrupt African dictatorship.
A LOOK BACK: Hail and farewell – A tribute to those we lost in 2021 | Watch Video
"Sunday Morning" remembers some of the creative, inspiring and newsworthy men and women who passed away this year, who'd touched us in unforgettable ways, and left us with wisdom, love, and the satisfaction of lives well-lived. Lee Cowan reports.
COMMENTARY: Faith Salie on saying "grace" | Watch Video
The "Sunday Morning" contributor suggests her own Word of the Year – one that has taken on many meanings in a challenging time.
For more info:
NATURE: Winter in Minnesota (Extended Web Video)
"Sunday Morning" leaves us on this first Sunday morning of winter on the north shore of Lake Superior. Videographer: Scot Miller.
WEB EXCLUSIVES:
PODCAST: "Unsung Science"
"Sunday Morning" correspondent David Pogue explores the origin stories behind some of the most mind-blowing advances in science and technology. Presented by CBS News and Simon & Schuster.
Listen to the episode, "How the Cellphone was Born: Three Months of Craziness":
The Emmy Award-winning "CBS Sunday Morning" is broadcast on CBS Sundays beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET. Executive producer is Rand Morrison.
DVR Alert! Find out when "Sunday Morning" airs in your city
"Sunday Morning" also streams on CBSN beginning at 10:30 a.m. ET.
Full episodes of "Sunday Morning" are now available to watch on demand on CBSNews.com, CBS.com and Paramount+, including via Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Chromecast, Amazon FireTV/FireTV stick and Xbox.
Follow us on Twitter (@CBSSunday), Facebook, Instagram (#CBSSundayMorning), YouTube, TikTok, and at cbssundaymorning.com.
You can also download the free "Sunday Morning" audio podcast at iTunes and at Play.it. Now you'll never miss the trumpet!
