I Love Lucy’s Other Half
Raised as a prince in pre-Guevara Cuba, Desi Arnaz fled to America and revolutionized TV with Lucille Ball—but he couldn’t escape the trauma of his youth
A Bro Is Born
How Cory Michael Smith went from growing up in blue-collar Ohio to playing a tech billionaire in Mountainhead, the new movie from Succession creator Jesse Armstrong
Making a Scene
In Slauson Rec, a new behind-the-scenes documentary, Shia LaBeouf builds a theater company—then torches it with tantrums, tirades, and flying chairs
The Making of The Thick of It: Part II
The creators and cast reflect on the Britcom’s stickiest moments—including a scandal that nearly derailed the whole thing—and the show’s legacy today
Dog Days
With an essay by P. G. Wodehouse, a newly reissued coffee-table book collects 820 photographs of Elliott Erwitt’s most unexpected muse
Editor’s Picks
This week, don’t miss a collection spotlighting Vietnamese voices, the story of a troubled American dynasty, and a Pulitzer Prize–winning funny guy’s new memoir
Magda Butrym’s Guide to Warsaw
The Polish fashion designer shares her favorite spots in her hometown
The Price of Laughter
As Trump’s tariffs set in, Americans are getting hit right in the funny bone
Dive In!
From Spain to India to Mexico, a new coffee-table book showcases the world’s most stunning swimming pools
The Mouths of Babes
Imagine Lucy from “Peanuts” with the politics of John Lennon and you’ve got “Mafalda,” a comic strip whose millions of fans included Gabriel García Márquez
Holding Court
Former tennis world No. 1 Rafael Nadal was as much a worrier in his sport as he was a warrior, his nervous habits extending from elaborate pre-point rituals to clocking issues with the courts he won Grand Slams on
Fifty Shades of White
A Robert Ryman retrospective goes up at David Zwirner’s Hong Kong outpost, marking the monochrome painter’s first solo exhibition in Greater China
From Bonnie and Clyde to Kramer vs. Kramer
The ultra-violent screenplay he co-wrote for Bonnie and Clyde made his name. But Robert Benton’s real specialty was depicting frailty and family struggles
The Making of The Thick of It: Part I
Armando Iannucci, Peter Capaldi, and others tell the story of how the profanity-laced, pitch-black political Britcom came to be, 20 years on
Daddy Issues
When it comes to claiming responsibility for his son Eric, Trump points his short fingers at Biden
Billionaire Boys’ Golf Club
On this week’s podcast, William D. Cohan reports on the latest power move for .01-percenters
Go Right Ahead—Compare Me To A Summer’s Day
Dozens of eloquent voices are heard in Shakespeare’s incomparable sonnets
The Missing Sister
Before #FreeBritney, there was Aimee Semple McPherson—an influential radio evangelist who fell victim to an abusive conservatorship
