F

Flavorwire

Books

Flavorwire Exclusive: Norman Lock on His Favorite Short Story

By Emily Temple on

The short story can be a magical thing. It’s a breath, a moment, a captured mood — or an entire teeming world packed into a few pages. Maybe, if it’s really great, it’s both. The only trouble with short stories is that not enough people read them. So, in a series to celebrate Short Story Month (and help you add to your reading list), Flavorwire is asking some contemporary masters of the form to talk about the short stories they love. In this installment, virtuosic fabulist Norman Lock, whose newest collection Love Among the Particles hit shelves this month, tells us about his literary love of the moment. … Read More

Photography

From W.E.B Du Bois to Waris Ahluwalia: Portraits of History’s Most Fashionable Men

By Emily Temple on

Admirers of the well-dressed man, look no further. Artist/Rebel/Dandy: Men of Fashion, out this week from Yale University Press in conjunction with the RISD Museum of Art’s exhibition on the same subject, is chock-full of photographs of famed sartorial geniuses and flamboyant clotheshorses, not to mention essays on “notable dandies” like Charles Baudelaire, Oscar Wilde, and John Waters. It’s enough to inspire anyone to consider a wardrobe overhaul. After the jump, you’ll find just a small sampling of the book’s many great portraits — so if you’re in the Providence area, make sure to head on over to the exhibition for the full experience. … Read More

Theatre

The Critic Who Smashed a Theatergoer’s Cell Phone Is No Hero

By Tyler Coates on

How do you teach a rude stranger about etiquette and manners? There’s an easy answer: you don’t.

Perhaps you’ve seen the story of National Review writer Kevin Williamson, who achieved Internet hero status this week after grabbing a theater patron’s cell phone during a performance of Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 and throwing it across the room. It struck a nerve with many people: those who attend live theater performances and see movies and who have experienced Williamson’s frustration at the sight (and sounds) of a audience member’s distracting cell phone use. But while many of us have wanted to take physical action in response to our cell phone-induced anger, most of us don’t. The reason is because it would make us as bad — if not worse — than the person using his or her phone so cavalierly during a performance or film. … Read More

Celebrity

In Defense of Justin Bieber: Why America Turns on Male Child Stars Who Try to Grow Up

By Tom Hawking on

You’ve no doubt read the hysterical, salacious coverage of the ongoing disaster that has been Justin Bieber’s European tour: the scuffles with god-awful photographers in England, the “drug bust” (i.e., getting busted for smoking weed — a nation gasps!), the bizarre heist that apparently involved someone absconding with all the money from the tour’s Johannesburg date. And the monkey. Oh, the monkey. The whole sorry business has certainly had its fair share of perverse car-crash comedy potential, but it’s also illustrative of the way in which society tends to turn on child stars — and especially male ones — once late adolescence starts intruding on their polished cuteness. … Read More

Photography

Fascinating Early-20th-Century Color Photos of Famous People

By Emily Temple on

There are some historical figures who we always think of in black and white. After all, the world trucked on in monochrome, Pleasantville-style, until the middle of the 20th century, right? Well, not exactly. In fact, color photography dates back to the mid-1800s — the first three-color process photo was taken in 1855, but it wasn’t until 1907 that the first commercially viable method of color photography, Lumière Autochrome, was invented — and perhaps unsurprisingly, photographers jumped to take snapshots of their famous friends. Below, some notable characters, from Mark Twain to Auguste Rodin, whom we usually see in black and white, showing their true colors. … Read More

Celebrity

43 Great Tina Fey Quotes for Her 43rd Birthday

By Jason Bailey and Chloe Pantazi on

One of Flavorwire’s favorite people, Tina Fey, turns 43 years old today, so we’re marking the occasion in the best way we know how — by rounding up some of the funniest witticisms and best advice from the brilliant and funny writer/comedienne. We’ve got one for every year, so click through for her thoughts on working motherhood, celebrity, homophobia, strip clubs, and Mark Wahlberg’s… Read More

Books

10 of the Greatest Cold War Spy Novels

By Emily Temple on

Before his death, legendary crime writer Mickey Spillane entrusted the completion of his unfinished work to his longtime friend, Max Allan Collins — a top-notch writer in his own right. This month, Collins has completed and released Complex 90, Spillane’s unfinished sequel to The Girl Hunters. To celebrate its publication, Flavorwire asked Collins to sound off on a few of his favorite Cold War thrillers. Bone up on your spy skills with his picks, and be sure to add any favorites that Collins missed to the list in the comments. … Read More

Television

‘The Office’ Comes to a Poignant, Lovable Conclusion

By Jason Bailey on

Last night on NBC, with the appropriate pomp and fanfare, The Office did what it should have done at the close of season seven: it came to an end. The American version of the British classic had an appropriate cause for conclusion when star Steve Carrel made his exit, but the Peacock wasn’t ready to let one of its few successes go quite that easily. So things got bumpy in Scranton, during an eighth year filled with miscalculations and peculiarities. But when original showrunner Greg Daniels was brought back in to steer the show snugly into port during its last season, a funny thing happened: The Office started to work again. And last night’s series finale was a fine, poignant wrap-up of an erratic but lovable show. … Read More

Books

Last Day to Enter Flavorwire’s First Short Fiction Contest

By Judy Berman on

Writers, take note: today is the last day to enter Flavorwire’s first-ever short fiction contest. In honor of May’s National Short Story Month, we’re offering a prize of $500 for one outstanding short story. To enter, simply send a story of 5,000 words or less — in the body of a message, not as an attachment — along with a brief author bio and all relevant contact information to flavorwirefiction@gmail.com before midnight tonight. Flavorwire Literary Editor Emily Temple will judge all entries and announce the results on the 24th. We’ll publish the winning story, along with a handful of honorable mentions, on Flavorwire throughout the final week of May. … Read More

Pop Culture

What’s On At Flavorwire: Links You Need to See

By Lillian Ruiz on

With The Office finishing its run tonight, Vulture has prepared the show a Six Feet Under style send-off. Speaking of killing your idols (sorta), check out this piece on why you sometimes have to end a series to save it. Shaun of the Dead turns ten today (what?!) and A.V. Club is celebrating… Read More