GOOD Magazine wants to know if crossword puzzles are doomed to die an inevitable print media death. According to the piece, the heyday of crossword puzzles was the 1920s, and at the time the black-and-white geometric confections were considered just as sinful as booze and other Jazz Age vices. OK, maybe not “just as,” but the New York Times expressly used the word “sinful” and refused to print one until 1942.
A GOOD commenter argues that crosswords have actually gotten more popular due to the web, but if you ask us, having Google at your fingertips takes a lot of the fun out of the puzzles. For the record, we’ve never finished one on our own (one that wasn’t printed in People magazine, that is), and we kind of like it that way. Read More »
Because according to this pretty (and kind of surprising) infographic from Good Magazine, local law enforcement officials in New York and New Jersey make more drug-related arrests due to marijuana and cocaine. Is anyone else surprised to see that heroin is so hot in New England? Or that coke is so big in the Southeast? Both seem rather antithetical to what those regions of the US are known for (being a buttoned-up Puritan and moving really, really slow). We’re going to need fire up the green monster and ponder this. Thanks for the tip, Leah.
Books - DEEPA MEHTA will co-write and direct a big screen adaptation of SALMAN RUSHDIE’s famed allegory MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN. [Guardian]
Dance/Opera - Are horses behind some of the best dancing on Broadway? [NYT]
Design - Explosion-loving JAMES BOND is architecture’s worst enemy. [Archinect]
Film - In a seriously meta move, DAVID MURPHY will direct CHEVY CHASE in NOT ANOTHER NOT ANOTHER MOVIE. [Slash Film]
Music - Famed indie rock band YO LA TENGO is releasing a new album under a secret identity. Maybe. [Pitchfork]
Television - New details about season five of LOST — which returns on Jan. 21, revealed. [THR]
Theatre - Unless you’re from Chicago, DAVID CROMER is the most talented director you’ve never heard of. [NYT]
Visual Arts - A London street artist is giving away an estimated £1m of his work for free. [Independent]
Web - GOOD Magazine’s new blog points us to a homesick robot’s poetic Twitter feed. [Good]
