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Film

10 Notorious Leaked Screenplay Scandals

By Jason Bailey on

Earlier this week, we told you about Xavier Macafee, the New Mexico man who was arrested on suspicion of burglary after allegedly breaking into Bryan Cranston’s car and stealing, among other things, the script to one of Breaking Bad’s final episodes. While we still don’t know if it was a coincidental act or the work of a brilliant BB superfan, this isn’t the first time a swiped script has created havoc in Hollywood. Here are ten tales of leaked screenplays, and what happened to the films… Read More

Television

The All-Time Weirdest Guest Appearances on ‘The Simpsons’

By Tom Hawking on

So if you haven’t heard, Tom Waits was on The Simpsons last night, voicing “a gravelly voiced paranoiac” prepper and joining the long list of illustrious and not-so-illustrious guest stars who’ve graced the show since it started screening way back in 1989. His appearance got us thinking about some of the more unlikely guest stars and/or performances the show has seen over the years — and so we’ve amused ourselves after the jump selecting some of our favorites, from Johnny Cash playing a psychedelic coyote to Thomas Pynchon breaking a 40-year TV silence. Did we miss any of your favorites? Go ahead and let us know. (And advance apologies for the quality of a couple of the clips — Simpsons videos are like hen’s teeth on YouTube.) … Read More

News

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

By Caroline Stanley on

1. Sally Ride, who in 1983 became the first American woman in space on the Challenger shuttle, died yesterday at the age of 61 following a 17-month battle with pancreatic cancer. [via NPR]

2. Exciting news for science fiction fans: J.J. Abrams and Edgar Wright are teaming up on a new film called… Read More

Music

Listen to M.I.A.’s Theme Song for Julian Assange’s Radio Show

By Judy Berman on

Even before M.I.A. released her Vicki Leekx mixtape on New Year’s Eve 2010, she and Julian Assange seemed like kindred spirits — so it’s only natural they’re collaborating. Last week, we learned that she wrote the theme music for the house-arrested WikiLeaks activist’s new radio show, The World Tomorrow, which just aired its first episode on Russia Today. As Stereogum notes, the instrumental track isn’t particularly exciting: it’s really just M.I.A.’s somewhat spookier, more aggressive version of the 30-second psych-up music that precedes practically every other political talk show, and it’s overlaid with Assange’s self-aggrandizing intro. We’re more interested to hear that the singer, who WikiLeaks is calling “the Julian Assange of pop music,” will appear on a future episode of the show. Who wants to bet there won’t be a truffle fry within five miles of the taping? … Read More

Pop Culture

Guy Fawkes and Other Cultural Icons the Public Can’t Decide About

By Emily Temple on

Today is Guy Fawkes Day, the 406th anniversary of British folk hero Guy Fawkes and his cohorts’ foiled Gunpowder Plot to blow up part of the British Houses of Parliament and assassinate King James I. Guy Fawkes is one of those figures that the public can’t seem to decide about — was a he a hero for fighting what he deemed to be tyranny or a villain for trying to kill a bunch of people? Perhaps he’s a little bit of both, which only adds to his appeal as a folk hero. To celebrate the holiday, we’ve collected a list of Fawkes other cultural icons, from pop stars to presidents, that have split the public opinion on whether they’re heroes or villains. Be sure to let us know which you think are which in the comments. … Read More

Web

Interactive Interview: Wikipedia's Jimmy Wales

By Doug Levy on

You may not recognize Jimmy Wales by name alone, but you can be certain he has had an impact on your life. Five years ago, Wales was named as one of the world’s most influential people by Time magazine as the man behind Wikipedia — the online, crowdsourced encyclopedia that has become the default resource for curious fact and trivia seekers worldwide. Chronicling everything from Justin Bieber’s biography to the origin of nuclear physics, the site is a repository for unfathomable amounts of information — even if some of it isn’t always correct. As the digital age continues unfettered, we caught up with Wales on camera for a Flavorpill Interactive Interview, in which he shares his thoughts on Julian Assange, FourSquare, and the strangest things he’s seen on the site he brought to life. … Read More

News

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

By Caroline Stanley on

1. Evidently craving some controversy, last night Kanye West tweeted the following: “an abortion can cost a ballin’ nigga up to 50gs maybe a 100. Gold diggin’ bitches be getting pregnant on purpose. #STRAPUP my niggas!… It ain’t happen to me but I know people.” [via Vulture]

2. Earlier today a British court… Read More

News

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

By Caroline Stanley on

1. Motown singer Teena Marie, the self-proclaimed “Ivory Queen of Soul” who was best known for her 1984 hit song “Lovergirl,” died on Sunday at the age of 54. [via Sound of the City]

2. Wikileaks founder Julian Assange signed a $1 million deal with Random House for his memoirs to help pay… Read More

Web

What’s On at Flavorpill: The Links That Made the Rounds in Our Office

By Caroline Stanley on

Today at Flavorpill, we found solace in the fact that Train’s “Hey, Soul Sister” topped Maura Johnston’s list of the 20 worst songs of the year. We played pin the mustache on Hall & Oates and looked at 15 of the greatest mustaches in Coen Brothers history. We read… Read More

News

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

By Caroline Stanley on

1. The repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell wasn’t the only exciting piece of legislation passed by the House and Senate this weekend; they also passed the Local Community Radio Act, which allows for the creation of thousands of new non-commercial stations on American airwaves. [via P4K]

2. Sofia Coppola says that her… Read More