The Magazine
August 19, 2019
Reporting
The Political Scene
Stacey Abrams’s Fight for a Fair Vote
As the 2020 elections approach, Abrams is leading the battle against voter suppression.
A Reporter at Large
The Radical Transformations of a Battered Women’s Shelter
Transition House had to be true to its principles and then it had to leave them behind.
Personal History
A Year Without a Name
American Chronicles
The Fight to Redefine Racism
In “How to Be an Antiracist,” Ibram X. Kendi argues that we should think of “racist” not as a pejorative but as a simple, widely encompassing term of description.
The Critics
Musical Events
Erich Wolfgang Korngold, the Opera Composer Who Went Hollywood
His melodic gift rivalled Puccini’s—but his reputation suffered when he began writing movie scores. Now the classical world is giving him a fresh listen.
Books
Téa Obreht Reimagines the Western
Her second novel, “Inland,” brings unexpected disturbances to the American landscape she grew up romanticizing from afar.
The Theatre
Endgames in “Sea Wall/A Life” and “Coriolanus”
Jake Gyllenhaal and Tom Sturridge take pains to dredge up feelings of audience profundity, and the Public presents a colorful new rendition at Shakespeare in the Park.
On Television
“Sherman’s Showcase” Celebrates a Lost TV Genre
Each episode is a loving homage to a fake “Soul Train”-like show and its iconic host.
Pop Music
Clairo and the Fuzzy, D.I.Y. Sounds of Bedroom Pop
The singer’s music mines the details of digital-native Gen Z life.
The Current Cinema
“After the Wedding” Flouts Its Own Rules
The film abandons its earnest reminders of global inequality to focus on a love triangle among wealthy white Americans.
The Talk of the Town
David Remnick on Trump’s white-identity politics; don’t meme, vote; the frequencies of antiquity; the origin of “The Real World”; the sage of standards.
Survivor Dept.
Johnny Carson’s Favorite Singer
At ninety-one, the cabaret star Marilyn Maye has a packed schedule and a batch of new fans who may have missed the first eight decades of her career.
Staten Island Postcard
Joey Salads Gets Out the Vote
Using “Jackass” tactics, the Staten Island YouTube star and congressional candidate thinks he’s better at social-media marketing than A.O.C.
Dept. of Rummaging
Making Music from the Met’s Forgotten Treasures
After rummaging around in the basement storerooms of the Metropolitan Museum, Oliver Beer assembled the Vessel Orchestra.
Location Location
Winston Churchill’s Granddaughter’s MTV Connection
A visit with the octogenarian Edwina Sandys in the SoHo loft that launched “The Real World”—and American reality TV.
Comment
What Toni Morrison Understood About Hate
President Trump bears out the author’s warnings about the violence of language.
Shouts & Murmurs
Shouts & Murmurs
Recent Articles of Mine
Cartoons
1/11
“You should start taking probiotics now, before we discover that they don’t make any difference.”
Cartoon by Paul Noth
Fiction
Sketchbook
The Worst of the 1919 White Sox
Goings On About Town
Tables for Two
Rezdôra Brings Northern Italy to New York City
An Osteria Francescana alum specializes in handmade stuffed pastas and whimsical, photogenic desserts.
Art
Ecological “Follies” to Tease the Imagination at Storm King
Architectural installations by the American artist Mark Dion grace the landscape of the sprawling outdoor museum.
The Mail
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