Make It Reign
Spins from the DJs at Atlanta’s seminal Magic City strip club can turn nobodies into hip-hop stars.
Ross Andersen is the deputy editor of Aeon Magazine.
“One of the things that’s been really refreshing in dealing with scientists—as opposed to say politicians or most business people—is that scientists are wonderfully candid, they’ll talk shit on their colleagues. They’re just firing on all cylinders all the time because they traffic in ideas, and that’s what’s important to them.”
Thanks to TinyLetter and Alarm Grid for sponsoring this week's episode.
Spike Nation
What it’s like to be a first responder amid the rise of synthetic marijuana.
The Mob's IT Department
Two successful tech geeks slip into organized crime.
Meet the Flintstones
A couple tries to give away their house in Flint, Michigan – but no one wants to live there anymore.
Her Own Best Disputant
An early profile of Diane Keaton.
Graves of Shame
An investigation into the mass graves in Texas that contain the remains of migrants.
The Woman Who Smuggled Herself
The mysterious life of the serial stowaway Marilyn Hartman.
The Endless Fall of Suge Knight
His health failing and his business in tatters, the head of Death Row Records faces murder charges that could put him away for life.
Previously: Does a Sugar Bear Bite? (Lynn Hirschberg • New York Times Magazine • Jan 1996)
Boy, Interrupted
A drug derived from cannabis was the only thing that could control a young boy’s seizures.
What Is Poetry? And Does It Pay?
A trip to the Famous Poets Society convention/contest in Reno.
Letter to My Son
“Here is what I would like for you to know: In America, it is traditional to destroy the black body—it is heritage.”
Sexts, Hugs, and Rock 'N' Roll
Hanging out with a new celebrity class: the teen kings and queens of social media.
"The Conclusion of the Age of the Prophets"
Remembering jazz musician Ornette Coleman.
The Man Who Saw America
A profile of photographer Robert Frank in his 90th year.
The Chef Who Saved My Life
The author was living in a friend’s basement after a bad breakup, unable to eat. Then he had lunch with Jacques Pépin.
What's Changed, and What Hasn't, in the Town That Inspired To Kill a Mockingbird
“It’s an old book!” Harper Lee told a mutual friend of ours who’d seen her while I was in Monroeville. “But if someone wants to read it, fine!”
Raising the Dead
When deep sea diver Dave Shaw reached the bottom of Bushman’s Hole, he discovered the body of Deon Dreyer. Though Dreyer had been gone for 10 years, Shaw was determined to bring him back.
A Long Walk's End
A fugitive spends six years on the Appalachian trail.
Farewell to America
A black British father on his 12 years in the U.S.
Hollywood Heiress's Marriage Turns to Dark Tale of Theft, Murder Plots
She was the daughter of movie mogul Harry Warner. He was 15 years younger and embezzled her money, landing himself in jail. In prison, he offered a young inmate named Richard Matt $100,000 to kill her.
Fiction Pick of the Week: "Making Love"
A convergence of sex, fears, and family drama.
"Beside the bed the baby monitor flashed, as it had been doing all night, a blue light racing up and down to accompany the sounds: breathing, snoring, faint clicking, the mewl of one or another of the cats. If Angela held it to her ear she would also hear the ticking of the mantel clock. These new monitors! So much more sophisticated than those of yore. Nineteen years ago, when last she’d tuned into one, the monitor would occasionally pick up the cell phone call of some stranger in a passing car, some weird adult voice suddenly blaring from the baby’s room."
The Lonely End
Looking after the kodokushi – the elderly who die alone – of Japan.
Calling Art
On the wandering career and sweet baritone voice of Art Laboe, the DJ behind the phrase “oldies but goodies.”
Anna Holmes, the founding editor of Jezebel, writes for The New York Times and is the editorial director of Fusion.
“I think that Jezebel contributed to what I now call ‘outrage culture,’ but outrage culture has no sense of humor. We had a hell of a sense of humor, that's where it splits off. ... The fact that people who are incredibly intelligent and have interesting things to say aren't given the room to work out their arguments or thoughts because someone will take offense is depressing to me.”
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