Longread #464 -- Never PUNting This Blog -- 6/19/14

Well, it's been awhile, but here's a fun one!

"At the World Pun Championships, Victory Is Easier Said Than Punned" by Zachary Pincus-Roth

Published in LA Weekly, June 5, 2014

Eric

Longread #309 -- The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent and Depraved -- 5/3/13

In honor of tomorrow's Kentucky Derby, here's Grantland's presentation of a classic article by Hunter S. Thompson about Derby weekend.

Happy Friday!

"Director's Cut: ‘The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent and Depraved’ by Hunter S. Thompson" by Michael MacCambridge
Published on Grantland, May 4, 2012

Eric

Longread #290 -- Roger Ebert -- 4/5/13

Roger Ebert, a man who profoundly shaped the way millions of people watch and enjoy movies, passed away yesterday after a long-running battle with cancer. In this article, which was written nearly three years ago, writer Will Leitch gives his personal reflections on Ebert. It is an engaging story that also shows a great deal about Ebert's character and how he interacted with his readers.

If you are interested in reading more about Ebert, I also greatly enjoyed the Esquire profile of him by Chris Jones called "Roger Ebert: The Essential Man." It was also published in 2010. That profile has several long quotes from Ebert's essay writings about death, which you can access here: "I do not fear death" by Roger Ebert.

"My Roger Ebert Story" by Will Leitch
Published on Deadspin, March 1, 2010

Eric

Longread #288 -- Selling Out -- 4/3/13

So this is a story of a guy with a dumb idea that unfolded in predictably stupid ways. Nevertheless, it's a comical and ridiculous read.

"Meet the Man Who Sold His Fate to Investors at $1 a Share" by Joshua Davis
Published in Wired, March 28, 2013

Eric

Longread #285 -- The Open Mic -- 3/29/13

This article provides an entertaining glimpse into the world of stand-up comedy and open mic nights in particular. It focuses specifically on Seattle, and in profiling the open mic experience at different locations, examines the joys and perils that confront people who aspire to be stand-up comedians. A friend who attends many open mics and performs comedy shows in town was interviewed (although not quoted) for this piece. While the article itself takes on a very specific starting point, it uses that as a lens by which to view stand-up comedy more broadly.

Happy Friday!

"Fear & Laughing at the Open Mic" by Brett Hamil
Published in CityArts, March 25, 2013

Eric

Longread #279 -- The Things You Love -- 3/21/13

Satire is an amazing communicative device. While I tend to thing that it is overused in our society, it nevertheless retains enormous persuasive power. While satire is intended to be funny, it can and should be so much more. The best satire uses humor as a vehicle to force the audience to rethink an assumption or reconsider a viewpoint.

This article from the Onion -- one of the foremost purveyors of satire -- hits this note remarkably well. While it is an extremely funny article, my hope is that people who read it don't stop just at the humor. Instead, this article should compel people to think about their priorities in life and how their day-to-day actions actually align with those priorities. While it's easy to brush this aside as just another funny article from the Onion, I hope that you take a few minutes to reflect after reading it. As a friend wrote after sharing this on Facebook, "the fact that 7 people have shared this in the past day makes me feel like we're all doing something wrong..."

"Find The Thing You're Most Passionate About, Then Do It On Nights And Weekends For The Rest Of Your Life" by David Ferguson
Published in the Onion, March 20, 2013

Eric

Longread #220 -- The Year in Band Names -- 12/21/12

There's not a lot for me to say to introduce today's longread. If you're going to read one "2012 in review" article, I'd suggest this one.

Note: I couldn't get a single page version, so you will want to click to page 2 to read the full article.

"Fartbarf, Neon Piss, and more: the year in band names 2012" by Kyle Ryan
Published in the Onion A.V. Club, December 13, 2012
http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-year-in-band-names-2012,89829/

Eric

Longread #187 -- Chore List of Champions -- 11/2/12

As I embark on a short vacation, I thought I'd share a lighter longread. This is from a contract that Kurt Vonnegut wrote with his pregnant wife. While this theme has certainly been played out by comics, sitcoms, and many other media over the years, it's still makes for a pretty good laugh.

Happy Friday!

"Chore List of Champions" by Kurt Vonnegut
Published in Harper's, September 2012. Originally written January 26, 1947.
http://harpers.org/archive/2012/09/chore-list-of-champions/

Eric