Listen to Culture Gabfest No. 522 with Dana Stevens, Sam Anderson, and Stephen Metcalf with the audio player below.
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This week, Dana, Stephen, and New York Times Magazine staffer Sam Anderson unpack A Simple Favor, asking the fundamental question for twisty noirs everywhere: How much plot is too much? Next, they dive into Sam’s new book, Boom Town: The Fantastical Saga of Oklahoma City, Its Chaotic Founding, Its Apocalyptic Weather, Its Purloined Basketball Team, and the Dream of Becoming a World-Class Metropolis. Finally, the gabbers take on the fine art of headline writing, debating the tabloids’ greatest hits and exploring the way the internet has changed the industry.
Links to some of the things we discussed this week:
- Paul Feig’s A Simple Favor
- “A Simple Favor Announces the Arrival of Blake Lively, Character Actress” by Inkoo Kang in Slate
- Boom Town by Sam Anderson
- “If Jane Jacobs Co-Wrote Blazing Saddles, It Would Be Like This Book” by Jack Hamilton in Slate
- “Watch the Nightmare-Inducing Animatronic Founding Fathers at Oklahoma City’s Capitalism Children’s Museum” by Sam Anderson in Slate
- “The New York Post Has Outdone Itself With This Pervy, Puntastic Beatles Cover” by Simon Dumenco in AdAge
- “Remembering Legendary ‘New York Post’ Headlines” in NPR
- “Hey, Google! Check Out This Column on Headlines” by Margaret Sullivan in the New York Times
Endorsements:
Dana: Julia Turner’s new podcast, Women in Charge, and the Flaming Lips documentary The Fearless Freaks
Sam: “Living Like Weasels,” from Annie Dillard’s essay collection Teaching a Stone to Talk
Stephen: Robert Frost’s North of Boston, and particularly the poem “The Death of the Hired Man”
Outro: “Road to Monte Carlo 2” by Magnus Ringblom
You can email us at culturefest@slate.com.
This podcast was produced by Benjamin Frisch. Our production assistant is Alex Barasch.
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