running a shell command from a python program

[Sandman]

Hi,
   I'm a newbie, so please be gentle :-)

How would I run a shell command in Python?

Here is what I want to do:
I want to run a shell command that outputs some stuff, save it into a
list and do stuff with the contents of that list.

I started with a BASH script actually, until I realized I really needed
better data structures :-)

Is popen the answer? Also, where online would I get access to good
sample code that I could peruse?

I'm running 2.2.3 on Linux, and going strictly by online doc so far.

Thanks!
S C