Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gainsbourged
From the perils of aging to the joys of parenthood—and the undertow of depression—the French singer and actress is now happily looking ahead
Hot Topic
Ever since Edward VIII abdicated the British throne to marry the American divorcée Wallis Simpson, there has been speculation about their relationship. A new book attempts to set the record straight
Leave the Gun, Take the Cocktail
In an excerpt from his upcoming memoir, a maître d’hôtel for Brooklyn’s River Café recalls getting on the wrong side of a mobster from the Gotti crime family—and how he lived to tell the tale
Yabba Dabba Doo!
With two sellout world tours and 430 million downloads, Britain’s most successful comedy podcast, My Dad Wrote a Porno, has finally reached its climax
Packages and Kings
How, amid the wreckage of Heaven’s Gate, a couple of young agents rebuilt the movie business in their own image
All Roads Lead to Paolo Di Paolo
Ahead of a new movie by Bruce Weber on the forgotten photographer and chronicler of postwar Italy, we collect some of his most memorable pictures
Murder, They Wrote
As the holiday season approaches, gifts for mystery book–lovers of every type
A Mania for Egyptomania
Early next month, the “Magnificent Jewels” sale at Sotheby’s New York will include nearly a dozen superb pieces of Egyptian Revival jewelry
A Feast for the Ears
This week’s podcast has grifters, N.B.A. stars, fancy restaurants, angry mobsters, Russian dissidents, and more!
Otello in Athens
Robert Wilson tackles Verdi in the birthplace of tragedy
Go Big or Go Home
A new generation is discovering the pleasures of classic movies at Alexander Olch’s Lower East Side revival house, Metrograph
Sunglasses After Dark
A guided tour of CBGB, the Mudd Club, Tunnel, and downtown’s other lost nightlife haunts
Take a Walk and Talk on the Wild Side
This week’s podcast celebrates what makes downtown New York great
A Night at the Odeon
Jay McInerney, Emma Cline, and Iké Udé gathered at the Tribeca restaurant in celebration of AIR MAIL’s Downtown Set
Street Scenes
A collection of Saul Leiter’s newly discovered color photographs offers a rare look at his pioneering, painterly vision
Songs with Atmosphere
A selection of 14 songs that defy description
Yoko Before John
To understand the most misunderstood woman of the last half-century, you have to go back to the beginning
Isaiah Barr
The saxophonist and co-founder of Onyx Collective, an experimental group of artists, is taking on fashion and filmmaking
How Hip-Hop Was Made
After photographing London’s nascent punk scene, Janette Beckman moved to New York to chronicle hip-hop’s early days and founding artists—A Tribe Called Quest, Run-DMC, and LL Cool J among them
“Why Can’t You Write Normal?”
Kathy Acker’s journey from daughter of Sutton Place to genre- and gender-bending cult novelist
