Arts & Life

Arts

Inspired By Monks, A Writer Embraces His Life Of Solitude

3:39pm March 12, 2015

Fenton Johnson says that while alone, people can "find the richest possible ways of being in the world." He's lived alone for more than 20 years. His Harper's article describes his pursuit.

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Arts

'Gone Girl': A Gripping Film That's More Fun Than The Book

3:31pm March 12, 2015

by David Edelstein

Based on a screenplay by author Gillian Flynn, the movie is sensationally effective. It's made like a classic noir — evenly paced, with an elegance that in context is deeply perverse.

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Claire Danes plays Carrie Mathison on Homeland. Season 4 begins Sunday on Showtime.

Arts

'Homeland' Regains Urgency With Twin Protagonists And Divided Loyalties

3:31pm March 12, 2015

by David Bianculli

Last year, the Showtime drama about a CIA agent with a bipolar disorder lost its way. But the show's intensity is back in Season 4 when the CIA accidentally bombs a wedding in Pakistan.

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Books
Arts

'B & Me' Is Intelligent, Immoderate, And A Bit Belabored

5:18pm March 11, 2015

by Heller McAlpin

J.C. Hallman's audacious account of his engagement with the erotic writing of Nicholson Baker makes a splash, but critic Heller McAlpin says the book sometimes runs aground in self-indulgence.

Arts

A Travel Show For Your Favorite Weird-Museum And Dance Enthusiast

4:23pm March 11, 2015

by Linda Holmes

Ovation's American Canvas has a lot of fun in San Francisco, starting with the art installation at Alcatraz.

Books
Arts

In 'Shadow,' Change And Growth As A Story Sheds Its Scales

4:10pm March 11, 2015

by Amal El-Mohtar

Rachel Hartman continues her tale of half-dragon musician and unwilling diplomat Seraphina in Shadow Scale. Reviewer Amal El-Mohtar says the new book doesn't just live up to the old, it outgrows it.

Books
Arts

A Writer Moves To 'Bettyville' To Care For His Elderly Mom

1:27pm March 11, 2015

In 2011, George Hodgman visited his mother Betty for her 91st birthday in Paris, Missouri. When he saw she needed care, he left Manhattan to live with her. But she still hasn't accepted that he's gay.

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Star Wars Lords Of The Sith will feature the first official LGBT character.

Books
Arts

Coming Out In A Galaxy Far Far Away: Star Wars Gets Its First LGBT Character

1:17pm March 11, 2015

by Jasmine Garsd

Star Wars has had a complicated relationship with LGBT issues in the past. A new character, Moff Mors, might change that.

Raychelle, Ben, Lily and Kaitlin are among the nerds in tight competition on TBS's King Of The Nerds.

Arts

Pop Culture Happy Hour, Small Batch Edition: 'King Of The Nerds'

9:54am March 11, 2015

by Linda Holmes

Pop Culture Happy Hour regulars Stephen Thompson and Glen Weldon talk about the TBS competition show King Of The Nerds.

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A jury in Los Angeles decided Tuesday that Robin Thicke (left) and Pharrell Williams lifted parts of Marvin Gaye's 1977 hit "Got To Give It Up."

Got To Give $7.4 Million Up: Jury Finds Pharrell And Thicke Copied Marvin Gaye Song

8:01pm March 10, 2015

by Jasmine Garsd

A Los Angeles jury has determined that singers Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke lifted portions of Marvin Gaye's 1977 hit "Got to Give It Up" when writing their hit "Blurred Lines."