Morning Coffee (11/28/16)

Me elsewhere: TV news for the week.

Syria war: Key Aleppo rebel area captured by forces

Good for them: ThinkProgress will no longer describe racists as ‘alt-right’

And them: Facing a massive boycott, Target CEO doubles down on support of LGBTQ rights with these words

"It is unconscionable, this know-better recrimination, directed at the very people who just put the most work and energy into defeating Trumpism, coming from those who will be made least vulnerable by Trump’s ascension."

This is really good and important: Progressive fundamentalism: how Hollywood and the media fortify the bubbles we all live in

What the alt-right really wants, according to a professor writing a book about them

How the DNC chair election works

China is trying to counter the West’s influence in Africa by exporting its literature there

In Praise of Paris Geller and Her Anger

Morning Coffee (10/21/16)

I think we all need some Happy Friday links this week.

SUCH good news: Gugu Mbatha-Raw Joins Ava DuVernay’s ‘A Wrinkle in Time’

Ooh: JRR Tolkien's Middle-earth love story to be published next year

This is very cool: Using Math to Repair a 650-Year-Old Masterpiece

This piece about the new Taylor Swift coffee table book (which is on my Christmas list, obviously) gets at a lot of what I like about her.

Aww, look at this baby elephant trying to save her trainer. (Everyone's fine.)

Ha: What This Big-Ass, Twitter-Powered Metronome Is Doing in Downtown Austin

I'm not that into these particular Gilmore Girls posters, but hey, new Gilmore Girls posters!

This Chart Reveals Which ‘Hamilton’ Character You Are At Work

Hygge – a soothing balm for the traumas of 2016

A Brief History of the Haunted House

Morning Coffee (10/7/16)

Time for some happy Friday links!

Me elsewhere: I was not impressed by the Conviction pilot.

Ooh, National Book Award finalists!

I am so excited about this YA arranged marriage rom-com.

In case you missed it, Netflix released a very cute Gilmore Girls featurette.

Prince Harry and James Middleton are having a beard-growing contest?!?!

A Guide to the Real-Life Homes of the Heroes of Children's Literature

Let's look at some pretty coats.

Star Trek corn maze!

This 1856 review of Clara Schumann is fascinating.

Stark, Spare, Beautiful Midcentury British Safety Posters

A Field Guide to Wodewoses

Morning Coffee (10/4/16)

I'm probably not going to have time to write about it - I'm focusing on network premieres - but I really liked Westworld on HBO. Check it out!

Strange matter wins physics Nobel

Trump Foundation ordered to stop fundraising by N.Y. attorney general’s office

Sad news: Neville Marriner, Prolific Musician and Acclaimed Conductor, Dies at 92

This is important: Why Every Woman Should Be Mad That People Are Treating Kim Kardashian's Holdup Like a Joke

!! Drink Free Coffee Like a Gilmore Girl at Hundreds of Luke’s Diner Pop-Ups Across America

"If you believe this election is basically a lock, or you happen not to live in a battleground, and are thus flirting with the idea of abstaining or of voting for a third party, ask yourself if you want to live in a country that has established proof of concept for a more polished racist demagogue."

This paper is long but worth reading: Fanning the Flames: Reporting on Terror in a Networked World

Pepe The Frog’s creator is voting Hillary, isn’t sure what the hell happened either

Oh: Stephen King's 'It' Movie Producer Denies Creepy Clown Sightings Are Marketing Stunt

Postcard from the past: a nostalgic glimpse into holidays of yesteryear

Morning Coffee (9/10/16)

This is important: What Really Happened at Donald Trump's Intelligence Briefing

Trump: this Esquire article proves I opposed the Iraq War. Esquire: no, it doesn’t.

I just... Gary Johnson just has one simple question: ‘And what is Aleppo?’

Heh: Aleppo, explained for non-experts and Gary Johnson

Wells Fargo Fined for Fraudulently Opening Accounts for Customers

What is a Trump rally like without Trump? Very different.

WHAT: A Quadruple Take on the Giraffe: There are Four Species, Not One

GIVE IN TO THEIR DEMANDS IMMEDIATELY: 400 Workers At Marshmallow Peeps Plant Go On Strike

I can't take this first new Gilmore Girls picture.

Uh, wow: Step Inside CBS’s Full-Size Replica of The Room Where JonBenét Ramsey Died

Morning Coffee (7/28/16)

Last night's convention speeches were great - Kaine won me over, Obama and Biden were phenomenal, my personal favorite Chris Murphy did well - but you're going to have to wait for the weekend for links about THEM because I AM SO TIRED YOU GUYS and so these are all things I bookmarked BEFORE last night.

A bit of entertainment news before we get to the politics: Gilmore Girls trailer and premiere date!! I have been less excited about this than... much of the Internet... but that trailer absolutely gave me some feelings.

THIS IS NOT GOOD: Donald Trump Calls on Russia to Find Hillary Clinton’s Missing Emails We are past joking here. This is very serious and way beyond partisan politics.

"Trump just coordinated with Russia in a way that would be illegal if Russia were a super PAC, in the hope that Russia will do something it would be illegal for a super PAC to do."

Aide: Trump 'will not be releasing' taxes

Related: Have we stopped to appreciate how crazy Donald Trump has gotten recently?

Oh hey, my tweet is in this BuzzFeed story: People Are Mad Hillary Was Left Off Some Front Pages After Making History

Bill Clinton explained Hillary’s political style perfectly — but disguised it as a love story

Rebecca Traister's take is also good. "It’s ironic that, in politics and other male-dominated public spheres, one of the roadblocks for women is objectification and sexualization, but when it comes to Hillary Clinton, whose ambition and brains have long rendered her bloodless in the American imagination, hearing her described as an object of desire could feel corrective and bizarrely just. So he did it."

Love this headline: Hillary Clinton’s husband wore a fetching pantsuit to honor her nomination for US president

SO SAD: Sesame Street has laid off Bob, Gordon, and Luis.

Morning Coffee (1/30/16)

Reminder! I'm going to see four Oscar nominees today and writing up a little diary of it as a Patreon exclusive. Sign up by tonight to get it!

ICYMI, yesterday's Oscar Project post was about the delightfully feminist Creed.

Gilmore Girls is OFFICIALLY BACK and that link has some details.

I am totally fine with Coca-Cola product placement in Grease! Live, when I think about it. It fits so well. And to the other point in that article, it's certainly worth noting that "Did she put up a fight?" is still considered an acceptable lyric, but what a lot of the stories about this seem to be missing is that the lyrics that are being changed ("The chicks'll cream" to "scream," etc.) are frequently changed in stage productions, including (according to Seth Rudetsky) on Broadway. So it's not Fox suddenly doing this without precedent. And REGARDLESS, the actor does not seem the correct person to ask about this. It's not up to HIM.

Hillary Clinton and the audacity of political realism (Bill Clinton said on Snapchat [!] yesterday that Hillary makes him rearrange their furniture every three months, and when she is done being president HGTV should really give them a show. Imagine: Two former presidents show up at your house and tell you what's wrong with the layout of your living room! GOLD.)

Speaking of: How “House Hunters” became the most unstoppable juggernaut on TV

Bernie Sanders' Campaign Is Concerned About the 'Berniebro,' As They Maybe Should Be

When A Country Without Abortion Tells Women To Not Get Pregnant

I was happy to read this non-terrible review of The Finest Hours, given what I was saying yesterday about wanting to watch Chris Pine be soaking wet for two hours act.

Interesting: 32 Top Network Execs Dish on the Shows They Really Want

From Pickup Artist to Pariah

Perseus Rescuing Andromeda, In Order Of Rescuing

Morning Coffee (1/22/16)

Happy Friday!

ICYMI, yesterday's Oscar Project post was on Carol, which I found disappointing.

Happy birthday, Wilbur Scoville! Reading about him made me want hot peppers, of course.

The kid in Brooklyn is a delight.

Whoa! 230-year-old secret lovers' code solved by Antiques Roadshow viewer

The Boston Timescape Project is nifty.

io9 doing important work: Kids of The Magic School Bus, Ranked

11 Things Women With Curly Hair Are Tired Of Hearing Especially this one:
"4. 'I have curly hair too, but I always get up in the morning to straighten it.'
Wow, cool, very awesome. But also, how sad for you."

Interesting: Gently Posed Photos of Everyday Life in Late-19th-Century Rural Japan

I came across these Stars Hollow art posters this week and they are gorgeous.

The odds of me buying something from Taylor Swift's fashion line are . . . certainly greater than zero.

Prayers That Would Double As Excellent Pickup Lines If I Possessed Even An Ounce Of Real Courage

Morning Coffee (10/20/15)

Very exciting Lauren Graham-related news part one: THEY'RE REVIVING GILMORE GIRLS. THIS IS FOR REAL.

And part two: She and Mae Whitman are adaption the Fug Girls' delightful novel The Royal We!!! I am beside myself.

Plans for permanent crime museum in London Let's go to London!

More Dragon Tattoo books are coming. (I haven't read the new one yet so I'm not sure how I feel about this specifically, but I'm always wary of new authors continuing series by dead authors.)

Ooh, interesting: Mummies May Have Been Scattered Across Bronze Age Britain

13 Rules for Owning a Castle

My cousin has Turkish towels and I was skeptical but THEY ARE GREAT.

Heh. The Onion, but just barely: Man With No Real-Life Career Goals Knows Exact Job He’d Want In Harry Potter Universe

Finding Work/Life Balance in the Face of the Unexpected

Poems I Have Misunderstood

Morning Coffee (6/17/15)

Are you watching UnREAL? You should be.

Well, this is horrifying: Silent Bridal Showers Are Real, and They're Shameless

Ooh: A Map of Every Game of Thrones Filming Location in Real Life

"Also, Eastwick was filmed on the same set used by Gilmore Girls, which meant that every thirty seconds I thought Lorelai and Rory were going to come around the corner and go to Luke’s and then every thirty-one seconds I was horribly disappointed."

What should you watch after your favorite show's finale?

Team Taylor, obviously.

How to Tell If You're About to Be Murdered in This Mystery: A Flowchart

Perfect: Things Women In Literature Have Died From

Morning Coffee (5/21/15)

Ooh, IndyCar is coming to Boston.

Science proves there were exactly three pop music revolutions, so that’s settled.

Matt Czuchry, feminist.

Did they find Captain Kidd's treasure? (I'm always skeptical, but these stories are still fun.)

Whoa: Airbus had 1,000 parts 3D printed to meet deadline. We're living IN THE FUTURE.

A Palace Chef on What the Royal Family Really Eats

Did you see that DFTBA is now selling delightful Rainbow Rowell things?

Did you follow Mallory Ortberg's kitten saga this week? Here and then here.

Morning Coffee (1/20/15)

Hey! My friend Susan Adrian's book Tunnel Vision is out today and it's awesome! And if you post a picture of your Chucks and tag it #TunnelVision you may win a free copy!

Bored with cheap books you can keep forever? For just $300k you can get one that explodes!

Or if you give a FRACTION of that to Save Alice, Tony will get a tattoo of the show's logo (at $120k) and, you know, we get more of an awesome show and FEWER BOOKS WILL BE HARMED. I think.

Speaking of: 10 Ways Classic Alice Taught Us How to Kiss

Come choose the February book for Brain Soup Goes Gilmore!

Aww: Yoko Nagae Ceschina, Countess and Fairy Godmother to the Arts, Dies at 82

This list is PERFECT: 24 Things No One Tells You About Book Publishing

If Hermione Were The Main Character In “Harry Potter”

Morning Coffee (1/12/15)

I'll have A WHOLE POST about this for you soon, because I feel very strongly, but Classic Alice is a web series that deserves your attention and any spare change you could throw its way.

Wondering what you need to know from the Golden Globes? Vox has you covered.

Have you seen the new Brain Soup Goes Gilmore book club, run by Emma Approved actress Dayeanne Hutton? This month's book is Emma!

WHAT. All Girls' High School Retouches Photos to Make Students Look Thinner

Ha. Hacked L.A. Traffic Sign Wants You To “Read A F*cking Book”

What's the first piece of recorded music you ever purchased? (Midori's Encore, I think.)

Classic literature gets a facelift in Russian bookstores

The New York Times Accidentally Invented a New Country, and the Internet's in Love

The Comments Section For Every Video Where Someone Does A Pushup

Morning Coffee (9/19/14)

Happy Friday!

(Non-happy interlude - here's my review of new show The Mysteries of Laura. It's a terrible show.)

Scotland voted no, so the scotch industry is happy.

For some reason I'd never taken the weekly Slate news quiz before today, but it's fun! I recommend it!

Speaking of Slate, the CultureFest is doing a live show in Boston.

Connie Britton and Kirsten Gillibrand were roommates during a study abroad program and everything is amazing.

Heeeee: 18 New New York Times Bestseller Lists That Will Change The Way You Think About Bestseller Lists

Oh my God: Thin Mints & Samoas Are Now Drinkable

Dirtbag Teddy Roosevelt

Heh: Ranking the Cast of 'This Is Where I Leave You' by Emmys, Jewishness, and Every Other Important Metric

I think some of these Gilmore Girls facts are pretty well known, but it's still a fun list.

Morning Coffee (9/11/14)

The important news you need: Gilmore Girls will be on Netflix on October 1st.

Why Disruptors Are Always White Guys

Castle fans, take a gander at the new poster. I think it's striking, but I hope they don't think anyone is actually in suspense as to whether Castle is dead.

Ooh: British ship from 1845 Franklin expedition found by Canada

Worth a read: I Was the Weirdest Person at BronyCon 2014

The vanishing islands of Kiribati

Hee: Proper Cultural Criticism for Serious Men: Introducing ‘Actually…’ Magazine

The Onion: Startup Very Casual About Dress Code, Benefits

Morning Coffee (4/4/14)

Happy Friday!

Apparently Tom Hardy and his dad are writing a 19th century period drama for him to star in for the BBC. Adorable.

Here are Disney villains doing the "Cell Block Tango."

Wonderful: Revisiting Pamela: How To Read Books You Don’t Want To

This essay by the white mother of a black son is great.

An Interview With A Hypothetical Super-Independent Athlete Baby

I love this series: Two Monks Invent Byzantine Art and Two Monks Invent Renaissance Art

"Things just get sort of progressively drier, and then the day is over, and there you are."

Magic Mike 2 is apparently shooting in the fall.

Which Rory Gilmore Are You?

Morning Coffee (3/14/14)

I saw the Veronica Mars movie last night. Here is my one-sentence review. It is only spoilery in that if you know what I wanted from the movie (in general, not any one area), my reaction basically tells you whether the movie provided what I wanted.

This is fascinating and completely non-spoilery, if you need something to pass the time before watching the movie: 'Veronica Mars' Costume Designer Salvador Perez Reveals Style Secrets From Original Series

Also, these imagined Veronica Mars book covers are amazing.

I'm sorry, I promise the rest of these are NOT about Veronica Mars.

Memories From the Set: Bradley Whitford Talks Stints on West Wing, ER, Frasier and More

The Exquisite Wistfulness of 19th-Century Vegetarian Personal Ads

Report: Only 20 Minutes Until Introverted Man Gets To Leave Party

Dirtbag Romeo and Juliet

Which Gilmore Girls Guy Is Your Soulmate? (I got Logan. I'll allow it.)

Morning Coffee (1/3/14)

Happy Friday!

If you missed it late last night, here's the Veronica Mars movie trailer.

Inside the Design of the New Times Square New Year's Eve Ball

Fascinating: The Quest for a Natural Sugar Substitute

Nice: The Church has approved Mayan language Mass.

I have never before felt I had so much in common with Sarah Hyland.

If Lisa Frank Designed the Game of Thrones House Sigils

What Would Lorelai Gilmore Do?

Minimalist Disneyland Posters

Morning Coffee (1/17/13)

I liked The Carrie Diaries! Here's my take at TheTelevixen.

If you missed the crazy college football fictional dead girlfriend story everyone was talking about yesterday, you should really read it.

My boss is smart: Auntie MJ's Vegetarian Tips

Ugh: Lena Dunham, Adele, Lady Gaga, Amy Adams All Very Ugly, Says "Esquire"

12 Truths About Writing and Guilt

Gilmore Girls and/or Bunheads fans should read this fascinating interview with Amy Sherman-Palladino.

The National Book Awards is adding a longlist.

How Twitter Has Become Controversial at the TV Critics Press Tour