America's Most Critical Journal since 1999
Nut Jobs and Other Head Cases by Fred Russell Nowadays when people seem to be talking to themselves in the street, it usually turns out that they’re talking into their mobile phones, so it isn’t easy anymore to tell the crazies from the normals. Yo... More »
by Fred Russell Amalia Knight, M.Sc., was a ghostwriter. She had been ghostwriting since her elementary school days, when she had patched up compositions for her classmates, and then through high school and the university, when she had written them from scratc... More »
Now that my Israeli cable provider has dropped ESPN, where I occasionally used to watch an eight-ball tournament, being a pool player myself, I have been reduced to watching snooker on British Eurosport, including the recently completed Dafabet Masters at Lond... More »
Bill Maher rubs me the wrong way. I get him and John Oliver back to back from my cable provider and it turns out that the two of them together are more than I can take. Oliver likes to say “Fucking this” and “Fucking that” a little too ... More »
As boorish as it sounds I have to say That there is An element of silliness In the classical male ballet. I mean What exactly Is the point Of jumping high into the air And banging your ankles together Like a demented au pair? And forget the full basket And chi... More »
(From the American Idol Archives) by Fred Russell Ryan: Good evening, America. Three contestants. Three dreams. Three journeys. You will vote. You will decide. You’ll hear them tonight singing their hearts out. Each of our contestants will be given his c... More »
by Fred Russell 4 January 2015 In May 1726 Voltaire sailed up the Thames, London-bound. He was thirty-two at the time, a scrawny Frenchman with a big mouth. Everyone was after his ass. Back in France he’d had a run-in with someone called the Chevalier de... More »