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Rupaul's Drag Race
Bradford Nordeen
02.05.10
The growth of positive depictions of gay chracters and themes on television likely has as much to do with advertising demographics as recent shifts in public opinion and, true to form, Rupaul's Drag Race is packed with as many product placements as the other reality TV shows it mirrors. Bradford Nordeen, author of Fever Pitch, highlights the pleasures and frustrations that the show has to offer as well as how it literalizes Warhol's maxim about fifteen minutes seconds of fame.
The Chase is Always Better Than the Kill
Michael Louie
12.19.09
Michael Louie spent five weeks deep in the trenches during the first annual Brooklyn Fishing Derby, which happened to start the first day of mandatory fishing licenses for all New York saltwater anglers. He seeks out the secret and hidden fishing spots amongst the new development and regimented city property and finds that maybe he's not quite the terrible fisherman he thought he was.
The New Era of Blackface
Louis Chude-Sokei
12.17.09
Around Halloween the question was asked is "blackface Hitler" a culturally acceptable costume? Would it be viewed as an example of, as Louis Chude-Sokei says, "meta-anti-racism" or a bad joke in the worst kind of taste? Both? Chude-Sokei is the author of The Last Darky: Bert Williams, Black-on-Black Minstrelsy, and the African Diaspora, a finalist for the 2005 Hurston/Wright Legacy Award. With a perspective rooted in African diaspora, here he paints a sharp contrast between recent incidents of blackface in American pop culture, such as this season's premiere of Madmen and Robert Downery Jr. in Tropic Thunder, and blackface traditions outside the U.S. in Mexico, Turkey and West Africa. As in his recent talk on murdered African reggae star Lucky Dube, Chude-Sokei offers a unique perspective on the communication between cultures.
'and so his noise was ours too for those times' - On Ronald Tavel (1936 - 2009)
Jennifer Krasinski
04.24.09
So the story goes that Andy Warhol needed a narrator's voice when he made the move from silent pictures to "talkies." And Ronald Tavel had just the voice, i.e. the serpent in the garden he sought after. But Tavel turned out to be an artist far greater than Andy originally bargained for. He built his name with Warhol sure, as his narrator and screenwriter, but Tavel's own projects of poetry, fiction, and especially the theatrical arts are in a class all their own, as he took his audience from the tame waters of the "absurd" out into the utter "ridiculous." Jennifer Krasinski gives Tavel, who died earlier this month, a proper sendoff. Illustrations by Danny Jock.
Five Hundred Eighty-Six Days, Fourteen Hours, Forty-Six Minutes, Eleven Seconds
Michael Louie
09.05.08
Quitting an addiction, any addiction, is no easy matter. Whether it's crack, meth, heroin, or an MMO, the longer one pursues a dragon (or maybe an Orc in this case), the harder it is to give up the chase. But Michael Louie's on the wagon now, from a video game. And after his time given over to a Final Fantasy (FFXI to be precise), Louie looks back at his lost weekend that turned into, added up to, well...the game runs the numbers for you.
Holy Man: Dennis Wilson Revived
Andy Beta
07.30.08
It's been about 25 years since Beach Boys member Dennis Wilson drowned in the waters of the Pacific - the muse for his masterful one solo record Pacific Ocean Blue. But Wilson, had he lived, had much more on the way, such as the legendary unfinished Bambu, now offered along with POB as a Sony double cd. Also now available is the Criterion DVD version of Two-Lane Blacktop, a classic road race movie which stars Wilson, James Taylor (yes the James Taylor) and Warren Oates in one of his most bizarre characterizations on film (which, as Andy Beta writes, "is really saying something.") Under the shadow of elder bro Brian critically for years, the young lost Dennis is finally getting his due.
And Where Might That Be Now, Tom?
Scott Bradfield
07.12.08
Writer Thomas M. Disch died from his own hand last week in New York. Proudly obstreperous and uncouth towards his many (and unfortunately often he felt insipid) genre fans and critics of the SF and fantasy variety, Disch was misunderstood in his time. We'll see how the bulk of history remembers him, while here friend and fellow novelist Scott Bradfield remembers Disch with admiration, sadness, and love.
The Zoo
Amy Gerstler
05.19.08
Amy Gerstler takes us to the zoo. A strange temple to some, where the gaze is exchanged inconspicuously between one species of animal captivated in reposing gawks and a variety of others held in captivity. No tiger attacks here on this day, but, careful there, don't lean too close... Art by Danny Jock.
Sarkozy's Soap Operetta: Eight Months in Office With the French President
Devon Magee
01.12.08
Nicolas Sarkozy has yet to complete a full year in office as French President, and yet he's generated much media copy from French tabloids keeping tabs on his recent divorce and wooing of singer/songwriter, former model, and Italian, Carla Bruni, to The Economist watching his moves closely as he battles the intransigent poverty and rapidly approaching problem of Baby Boomer-age retirement. Devon Magee brings his insight back to Fanzine with his second piece on Sarkozy.
An Interview with Toure
Carla Murphy
01.04.08
Carla Murphy caught up with journalist, author, and now reality television host (“I’ll Try Anything Once”) Touré over the holidays. Of course she'd have preferred to have challenged him to some mildly absurd athletic contest to throw him off the question game (like Touré did over hoops when he interviewed Prince), but alas had to match wits via email. Murphy and Touré discuss surviving prep school, the future of hip hop, and Presidential contender (and as of this posting Iowa caucus winner) Senator Barack Obama.
Silent Teacher Remembered: Hannah Weiner's Open House
Thom Donovan
12.20.07
It's been ten years since poet, artist, and self-professed "clairvoyant" journalist Hannah Weiner died. This past month, people gathered at St. Mark's Church in New York City's Lower East Side to remember this unique individual, to share slides and stories, and perhaps act as she often did, as mediums, to recall her spirit to our present. Thom Donovan was there, and here is his account of the happening (which included a reading of Hannah Weiner's Open House) and thoughts on the artist in general.
The Pugilist at Rest: Norman Mailer (1923-2007)
Andrew Lewis Conn
11.13.07
Was Norman Mailer a "pampered superbrat" as Martin Amis put it, a chauvinist pig as Gore Vidal would have it, or America's finest writer as pugilist - an activist, novelist and journalist who didn't simply cover the story but was always, "indelibly, part of the story." "If American life" in our times, Andrew Lewis Conn writes, "was getting crazier all the time, filtering it through the prism of a crazy, and crazy-making, personality like Mailer’s made better sense than not." Mailer drawing by Danny Jock.
On the Lost Highway with Greil Marcus
Brian Howe
10.04.07
We're beaming proud to have this in depth interview with Greil Marcus conducted by FANZINE first timer Brian Howe. Marcus along with a sprinkling of other intellectual wild ones the likes of Lester Bangs invented a certain style of criticism years ago that young journalists on the culture beat today can only hope to aspire to. If you were ever curious what kind of writing FANZINE wants to publish more of, study some Greil Marcus. If you haven't read Greil Marcus, start with this interview.
Interview with director Marco Williams
Benjamin Strong
09.24.07
Benjamin Strong interviews director Marco Williams prior to the run of his documentary Banished at New York's Film Forum. Banished tackles seriously the sensitive, often scoffed at, subject of literal reparations for stolen land in three communities in the South.
The Amazon Review Project
Dodie Bellamy's Writing Workshop
07.22.07
Fanzine stalwart Kevin Killian has invented a new literary form for the online shopping age. Here come the acolytes.
Sarkozy, the Victor, or What I Did When I Became President Elect
Devon Magee
05.13.07
Nicolas Sarkozy emerged victorious after the second round of the French Presidential election. A thousand cars burned in the aftermath, which, according to who is reporting, may or may not be related to his win. Regardless, France is watching, waiting, and anticipating something come May 16, when Sarkozy officially takes office. Devon Magee reports on the scene from France. Part two of the French Elections series.
What's So Funny About Peace, Love, and Kim Jong Il Bashing? An Interview With Bruce Cumings
Ben Bush
03.31.07
Professor Bruce Cumings on the North Korean nuclear stand off and U.S. intervention: “There is no military option on the Korean peninsula… the nuclear program can only be ended through negotiation.” Ben Bush discusses the problem of an intransigent North Korea with expert Bruce Cumings.
Hardcore Shamanism Pt 3: No Blood From This Turnip
Dodie Bellamy
02.27.07
What's your animal spirit? The graceful leopard? The noble deer? Why not a frog? Maybe you just don't know. Well don't fret. There are plenty of new age shamans out there ready and willing to assist you. Just don't forget your checkbook on the way to the wellness center. Dodie Bellamy takes Fanzine's readers on a personal Virgilian odyssey through the depths of these cults - in and, well, out. (pt. 3 of 3). If you haven't already, start here with pt 1.
Hardcore Shamanism Pt. 2
Dodie Bellamy
02.05.07
What's your animal spirit? The graceful leopard? The noble deer? Why not a frog? Maybe you just don't know. Well don't fret. There are plenty of new age shamans out there ready and willing to assist you. Just don't forget your checkbook on the way to the wellness center. Dodie Bellamy takes Fanzine's readers on a personal Virgilian odyssey through the depths of these cults - in and, well, out. (pt. 2 of 3).
Hardcore Shamanism
Dodie Bellamy
01.19.07
What's your animal spirit? The graceful leopard? The noble deer? Why not a frog? Maybe you just don't know. Well don't fret. There are plenty of new age shamans out there ready and willing to assist you. Just don't forget your checkbook on the way to the wellness center. Dodie Bellamy takes Fanzine's readers on a personal Virgilian odyssey through the depths of these cults - in and, well, out. (pt. 1 of 3).
The Final Days: Seeing Bush, Thinking Nixon
Benjamin Strong
08.09.06
Richard Nixon resigned as president of the United States 32 years ago, but his legacy and his downfall still linger throughout the current administration. Benjamin Strong draws out some striking similarities between the life and times in 1974 and in 2006, and finds more than just military quagmires and sunken presidential approval ratings. Possibly our strongest (excuse the unintentional pun) piece to date.
Interview with William T. Vollmann
Ben Bush
05.18.06
Stargazing? Actually that's somewhat misleading in the title. Copernicus, one of Vollmann's recent subjects, had to rely more on the careful study of the work of his compatriots and predecessors, than on actual stargazing. Vollmann takes Copernicus to heart, especially in terms of dutiful research. Why does America have George W. Bush for another terrible term? Not enough reading Vollmann says.
Adios Buckaroo!
Casey McKinney
03.27.06
Back thar in journalism school I wrote a piece about an important musician in my life. No one wanted to publish it, like who cares about Buck Owens right? Well read and hopefully regret if you are of that ilk. I had the fortune of seeing the man two years ago live, probably one of the best shows I've ever seen, up there with the first time I saw Fugazi at 16 (I'm now 32). Here's what I wrote then, now updated after his passing.
Interview with Peter Sotos
Brandon Stosuy
01.19.06
Brandon Stosuy catches up with controversial author Peter Sotos, a writer furthering the pursuits of De Sade, Bataille, and perhaps Genet, though when asked Sotos will tell you what he really digs is the work of self-proclaimed militant feminist Andrea Dworkin. Is he for real? Read and see.
The Abortion Issue Gets Sticky
Wilbur Wilson
07.21.05
Introducing the scathing Mencken-like wit of Wilbur Wilson, Fanzine's own Washington mole. Not for the faint of heart, Wilson asks the tough questions in a way most journalists are afraid to. For his first article, he queries: What are those punk kids doing standing on the steps of the Supreme Court with their mouths all taped up?