No. 38: Noise, beards and other distractions
The club is open,
It's summer, baby! I just bought a new swimsuit online, which is always a dice roll. My knees may look like alien pods, but I might as well let 'em see the light of day every now and again.
Anyway, how's your world? Are your plants and goals receiving enough attention? Let's charge ahead ...
What I'm into right now:
A few things jingling my keys:
TV: BASKETS is back, and Louie Anderson just kills me every time. If this were the only show on TV, I'd be cool with that. ... And I'm digging POSE's second season. It's smart, sad, funny, the cast is amazing, and sometimes Sandra Bernhard pops in for a scene. Can't beat that with a stick.
YOUTUBE: UNHHHH just celebrated its 100th episode, and it gets better every week. (I was thinking of going to Trixie and Katya's upcoming NY show by myself, but maybe that's weird?) ... And have you seen UNDER A ROCK? Each short episode features Tig Notaro talking to a celebrity guest she's never heard of (and the celebrity being taken down a peg because they're talking to someone who doesn't think they're amazing). ... And oh, I like this tour of Marc Balet's amazing loft that Fran Lebowitz doesn't even pretend to like.
TRAILERS: Gimme the new season of GLOW with Geena Davis already. ... And I couldn't get through too much of THE BOYS comics because of all the blood and gore, but I may have to see the bloody, gory TV version. ... On a very different note, BIG FAMILY: THE STORY OF BLUEGRASS MUSIC gathers every rad bluegrass performer you can think of. (This community isn't all that different from the comics community in that everyone is super-nice and easy to hang with.)
BOOKS: I found an abandoned copy of Isaac Mizrahi's new memoir on the sidewalk, so I'm in the middle of that right now. Remember his old talk show where his dog would just run around the set? Here's Conan O'Brien in a very long tie-shopping segment and Janeane Garofalo, Isaac, her dogs and his dog. And oh, you can read the first chapter from his book here.
MUSIC: I haven't seen THE DEAD DON'T DIE yet, but I dig the Sturgill Simpson song. ... And my husband introduced me to Khruangbin, a psych-rock-ish band outta Texas that "takes influence from 1960s Thai funk." All of these adjectives really just say you should listen, whether it's on Bandcamp, via NPR's Tiny Desk or Pitchfork Live. Put it on while you work and/or eat some scrambled eggs. It's all good.
KID STUFF: Shout-out to my friend Jason, who told me about kidsbowlfree.com, where kids can sign up to bowl for free all summer. Tons of bowling alleys across the country participate!
READING: I finally got to Taffy Brodesser-Akner's essay about THIRTYSOMETHING, and of course it's great. (I, too, watched this show as a kid, and I'm still obsessed with Melissa.) ... "The Time I Went on a Lesbian Cruise and It Blew Up My Entire Life" lives up to that headline. ... And Harley Flanagan from Cro-Mags paid tribute to his friend Anthony Bourdain.
MISCELLANY: Moe Howard's personal items are being auctioned, so please let us know if you get any of his stuff. ... And Richard Lewis' Twitter feed has been a delight lately with his reflections on working in comedy for 50 years.
Are you having a good time? If you feel inspired, throw me a couple bucks on Patreon to help support this free, freewheeling situation. (Become a $5 supporter this month, and on July 1 you'll receive my list of "99 Great Graphic Novels.") Anyway, self-promotion! It's the sport of the future!
And YOU recommend:
MOVIES: Chris lets us know that the MAPPLETHORPE biopic is now streaming for free on Hoopla, a service you can access with your library card. (If your library doesn't have Hoopla, you can rent it via Amazon or what have you.)
TV: Jackie says the '80s series WISEGUY is now on Amazon Prime. Watch it for stars Ken Wahl and Jonathan Banks (of BREAKING BAD/SAUL fame) on top of some sweet storylines, like this one about the record industry that features guest stars Debbie Harry, Tim Curry, Mick Fleetwood and Patti D'Arbanville.
MUSIC: Ron O. is into one-of-a-kind crooner Orville Peck, "a masked cowboy singer from Canada with a killer Orbison-ian baritone. I saw him twice in the past few months. Audiences are a mix of adoring men and women, with Tom Jones-like devotion (no panty-throwing, though)." He recommends you start with the video for "Dead of Night," and I have to agree. ...
And right now Herman is fond of Australian singer-songwriter Hatchie. He describes her as "a bit dream-pop and shoegaze" and suggests we listen to the songs "Obsessed" and "Without a Blush." Her new record drops today.
MISCELLANY: Mike in Texas digs @subwaycreatures on Instagram, and hopes we do the same. Where else can we see Kate McKinnon riding the rails?
AND YOU? What are you digging right now? Share via email (just hit reply) or text/voicemail at 929-515-1988. I'll put you in a future newsletter!
COMING UP: What to watch/read this week
TV/STREAMING:
- The Netflix series DARK returns (June 21);
- Emma Thompson leads a stellar cast in the miniseries YEARS & YEARS (HBO, June 24);
- LEGION returns (FX, June 24);
- Animated series FINAL SPACE moves to Adult Swim (June 24).
IN THEATERS (OUT JUNE 21):
- TOY STORY 4 has more toys and stuff;
- The documentary THE QUIET ONE profiles Bill Wyman;
- Toni Morrison gets the doc treatment in THE PIECES I AM;
- Aubrey Plaza leads the CHILD'S PLAY reboot;
- WILD ROSE follows a Scottish woman who wants to make it as a country star in Nashville;
- THE EXTRAORDINARY JOURNEY OF THE FAKIR follows a man from Mumbai and his extraordinary, strange trip;
- And Mickey Rourke plays an evil projectionist in NIGHTMARE CINEMA. Spot-on casting!
ALBUM RELEASES (OUT TODAY):
- Check out new records from the aforementioned Hatchie, The Raconteurs, Willie Nelson, Titus Andronicus, Hot Chip, Mark Ronson and Hollywood Vampires.
BOOKS (ON SALE JUNE 25):
- Wonderful TV writer Emily Nussbaum pens I LIKE TO WATCH: ARGUING MY WAY THROUGH THE TV REVOLUTION;
- Sharon Marcus delves into THE DRAMA OF CELEBRITY;
- Christopher McKittrick chronicles the history of the Rolling Stones in New York City with CAN'T GIVE IT AWAY ON SEVENTH AVENUE;
- Bobby Hundreds delivers THIS IS NOT A T-SHIRT: A BRAND, A CULTURE, A COMMUNITY -- A LIFE IN STREETWEAR.
BIRTHDAY COOLNESS:
June 21: Ray Davies, Meredith Baxter, Michael Gross, Manu Chao, Lana Wachowski, Juliette Lewis, Brandon Flowers, Lana Del Rey
June 22: Kris Kristofferson, Todd Rundgren, Meryl Streep, Cyndi Lauper (pictured), Bruce Campbell
June 23: Glenn Danzig, Frances McDormand, Joss Whedon, Selma Blair, Becky Cloonan
June 24: Jeff Beck, Colin Blunstone, Hope Sandoval, Ariel Pink, Mindy Kaling, Solange Knowles
June 25: Eric Carle (he's 90!), Larry Kramer, Carly Simon, Ricky Gervais, Linda Cardellini, Busy Phillips (Also, Anthony Bourdain would've been 63 today.)
June 26: Milton Glaser, Mick Jones, Chris Isaak, Harriet Wheeler, Paul Thomas Anderson, Nick Offerman, Jason Schwartzman
June 27: Vera Wang, J.J. Abrams, Bianca Del Rio
You matter!*
Holler at me via email (whitmath@gmail) or text/call 929-515-1988. Please email if you wanna send me stuff or hire me as a writer/editor/speaker. , and follow/tag me on Twitter and Instagram. (If this email is landing in spam/junk, try doing these things.)
I wanna be adored (and sedated),
Henrietta Pussycat
* Sometimes I listen to Oprah's Super Soul podcast as I'm falling asleep. The other night I heard one where the phrase "YOU MATTER!" was repeated like 20 times, and, I mean, I was into it.
"I went to art school in the days when it was what you did if you didn't want to be like everybody else. ... We hated the drama students -- they were guys with pipes and cardigans."
- Peter Capaldi
"I'm a big cardigan sweater guy."
- James Franco
Read my new kids' book, WE MAKE COMICS, exclusively on the kids' digital platform getepic.com and illustrated by Genevieve Kote. (Use the code SUMMER19 to get a three-month subscription for $3.)
Also, check out my humor essay in the new book MOVING FOREWORD, and see me read from it July 21 at Quimby's Bookstore in Brooklyn. If you come, please say hi!