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Romance Fiction Is Booming, And It’s Not Just Because Of Love

“It is possible, with your small candle, to make your way in the darkness. One delight, against all this. The world crumbles, and lipstick sales go up. And so, too, do sales of romantic fiction.” - The Guardian (UK)

Wait, The Right-Wing Is Using ‘Theatre Kid’ As An Insult?

This feels very, let’s say, sixth-grade. One actor: “‘Theater kid’ being the bullied party is a tale as old as time. … We’ve always been the outsiders, the weirdos. It’s a quick cultural shorthand to treat us as the underdog.” - The New York Times

This Year’s Best Music Was Inspired By Grief

"Death, collapsed relationships, the passing of youth and the inexorable passage of time: these are sombre themes that fit a quite spectacularly grim year. But in the broader context of what’s happening to music, these albums about loss are, oddly, cause for optimism.” - The Guardian (UK)

How Terrible Does A Christmas Movie Have To Be For It To Disappear Forever?

Bad, really bad. "It’s a mistake to compare this stuff to other films. It is, indeed, a mistake to compare it to any other artistic enterprise. What we’re dealing with is closer to tinsel or snow in a can. Christmas movies are mere decoration.” - Irish Times (Archive Today)

AOL Instant Messenger Taught The Internet To Chat

But it wasn’t supposed to exist at all - and it’s only thanks to a “semi-rogue” group that we all know ROTFL, LOL, and so much more. - The Verge

Some Pretty Big TikTok Creators Are Worried About New US Ownership

And that’s because of censorship. - Variety

You’re Probably Going To Watch A Movie On, Or Over, Christmas, Right?

How to pick an (Oscar) winner: "The presumptive top five in the Best Picture race includes two auteur-driven blockbusters, one old-school weepie, one timely social drama, and one family saga by a venerated European director.” - Vulture

What Directors Have To Say About ‘Wasting’ Money On Their Movie Sets

“You don’t have a right to make your movie, because it costs so much and you need so much help. You do have to earn the right to make your movie. That is a part of our job.” - Los Angeles Times (Yahoo)

K-Pop Demon Hunters, But Make It Classical

Does this have rizz? Welsh mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins has recorded a classical reinterpretation” of “Golden,” from K-Pop Demon Hunters. - BBC

Literary Authors Are Writing Romances Under Pseudonyms And Never, Ever Talking About Romance In Public

Gross. "Every type of writing requires specific attention to detail. For people not to take that seriously (and to ask for your help in promoting their work when they don’t do anything to help boost other people’s work) is pretty shitty behavior.” - LitHub

Rosa Von Praunheim, The Pioneer Of Gay Cinema In Germany, Has Died At 83

“His second feature, entitled It Is Not the Homosexual Who Is Perverse, But the Society in Which He Lives, premiered at the Berlin film festival in 1971 and has since been described as Germany’s 'Stonewall moment,’ radically breaking conventions in its portrayal of queer life.” - The Guardian (UK)

Sorry, TrumpKennedyCenter Dot Org Is Not Available

Why? Because a comedian knew what was coming. “Morton isn’t in the game to sell off his domains. ... Instead, he buys them with the express purpose of turning them into seemingly legit websites that, upon closer inspection, often skewer their namesakes.” - Washington Post (Yahoo)

Chicago’s NPR Station Created A ‘Theatre Club’ For Younger Audience Members, And Advertised It On TikTok

The first club meetup included “an exclusive Theater Club post-show talkback with artists who worked on the show, and a drink ticket that can be used at the Chopin bar so folks can hang out after the talkback and chat theatre with likeminded folks.” - American Theatre

Bradford Ends Its ‘City Of Culture’ Year

How did it go? “The year-long celebration cost around £51m and generated audiences of three million people.” OK. Also, train traffic from London went way up. - BBC

Sinners Is The Most Culturally Important Film Of 2025

“Hollywood machers were convinced the film would never make money and that Warner Bros’ big gamble ‘could be the end of the studio system.’ But Sinners never let that cynicism in.” - The Guardian (UK)

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