The Magazine
November 25, 2024
Goings On
Goings On
The Elegiac Art of Robert Frank
Also: Rachel Syme samples opulent advent calendars, Helen Shaw reviews “Tammy Faye” and “A Wonderful World,” “Emilia Pérez” is streaming, and more.
The Talk of the Town
David Remnick on Trump’s Cabinet of wonders; George C. Wolfe on burlesque; an organ gets a tune-up; in search of pleasure partiers; the N.S.A. on demand.
Comment
Donald Trump’s Cabinet of Wonders
The President-elect’s nominations look like the most flagrant act of vindictive trolling since the rise of the Internet. But it is a trolling beyond mischief.
The Boards
Helping “Gypsy” ’s Strippers Take It All Off Anew
George C. Wolfe finds inspiration for his production—starring Audra McDonald as Broadway’s first Black Mama Rose—watching the pasties twirl at a burlesque show.
Dept. of Reparations
With Help from Martin Scorsese, a Little Italy Organ Gets a Sprucing Up
Since the Civil War, the Erben organ has imbued St. Patrick’s Basilica with “a tinge of sadness.”
Casting Call
I.S.O.: Ten to Fifteen Lesbians Over Sixty. Nudity Optional
The artist Samantha Nye tries to drum up models for a shoot of a female-only “pleasure party” at the Belvedere Guest House, the all-male gay compound.
Podcasting Dept.
Why N.S.A. Rules Say No to Smartphones, No to Texting, Yes to Podcasts
The agency, known for listening, is getting into the (extremely vetted) talking game, with “No Such Podcast.”
Reporting & Essays
Personal History
The Long Way Home After a Cancelled Flight
Had I proposed earlier that we invite someone stranded to come with us to New York, Hugh would have said no. But now there was really no way for him to back out.
Letter from India
Should a Country Speak a Single Language?
In India, one of the world’s most polyglot countries, the government wants more than a billion people to embrace Hindi. One scholar thinks that would be a loss.
Annals of Law
An Investigation Into How Prosecutors Picked Death-Penalty Juries
One of the notes on potential jurors read, “I liked him better than any other Jew But No Way,” then added, “Must Kick, too Risky.”
Profiles
Marielle Heller Explores the Feral Side of Motherhood
With “Nightbitch”—in which Amy Adams turns into a dog—the director portrays parenting as a visceral transformation.
Shouts & Murmurs
Shouts & Murmurs
This Election Just Proves What I Already Believed
The list of issues I was right about goes on and on. Guns? Kamala Harris owns too many, but also not enough.
Fiction
Fiction
“Minimum Payment Due”
I had no story except my debt. And debt wasn’t a story. Debt was a lack of foresight. Debt was being caught up in the moment. Debt was an indication of character.
The Critics
A Critic at Large
What’s the Difference Between a Rampaging Mob and a Righteous Protest?
From the French Revolution to January 6th, crowds have been heroized and vilified. Now they’re a field of study.
Books
The Frenemies Who Fought to Bring Birth Control to the U.S.
Though Margaret Sanger and Mary Ware Dennett shared a mission, they took very different approaches. Their ensuing rivalry was political, sometimes even personal.
Books
Briefly Noted
“Women’s Hotel,” “Under the Eye of the Big Bird,” “By the Fire We Carry,” and “Alexander von Humboldt.”
On Television
“Say Nothing” Is a Gripping Drama of Political Disillusionment
The FX adaptation of Patrick Radden Keefe’s book captures both the allure of the I.R.A.’s cause and the way violence comes to weigh on its perpetrators.
The Theatre
“Give Me Carmelita Tropicana!” and “Gatz” Beat On Against the Current
The playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and the performance artist Alina Troyano summon downtown’s wild spirit, and Elevator Repair Service revives its signature hit.
Poems
Poems
“Before I Can Exist, I Have to Enter the Gift Shoppe”
“America, like hope’s sharp pencil, / winks brightly beyond a gantlet of elegant shill.”
Poems
“In Praise of Machado de Assis”
“Better to fall / out of a cloud than from / a third-story window.”
Cartoons
Puzzles & Games
The Mail
Letters should be sent with the writer’s name, address, and daytime phone number via e-mail to [email protected]. Letters may be edited for length and clarity, and may be published in any medium. We regret that owing to the volume of correspondence we cannot reply to every letter.