profiles

  • Rolling Stone has a new in-depth article about the life of David Foster Wallace (although currently the online version is abridged). Much of the piece comes from an involved interview by David Lipsky in 1996 that ended up not being published, although he also covers the last year of Wallace's life based on interviews with those close to him. Until you get a copy of the magazine, or a full version appears on the web, RS also has an interview with Lipsky about writing the article that you can read. (via matt b) (0) #
    10/16/2008
  • On the eve of the publication of Anathem, Wired just posted the first profile I've seen in a long while on author Neal Stephenson. Highlights: the steel helmet he's constructing in his basement, his extracurricular research on brain surgery tools, and the influence of the Long Now Foundation on his new novel:
    "I could never get that idea, the notion that society in general is becoming aliterate, out of my head," [Stephenson] says. "People who write books, people who work in universities, who work on big projects for a long time, are on a diverging course from the rest of society. Slowly, the two cultures just get further and further apart."
    (3) #
    8/18/2008
  • The New Yorker has a lengthy profile of David Simon, who recently wrapped filming of the fifth season of HBO's The Wire, which premieres January. It also discusses his next episodic series in the works, about musicians who live in post-Katrina New Orleans. (thx, terry) (0) #
    10/15/2007
  • Long profile on Roger Ebert. Didn't know he struggled with alcoholism throughout the 70's. (via rw) Another quote: "Laura Emerick, Ebert’s editor at the Sun-Times, thinks that since his bouts with cancer, “he’s more positive in terms of giving films a break.” My brother always pushed this theory -- now he's getting some validation. (11) #
    11/30/2005
  • An old, but excellent New Yorker essay on magician Ricky Jay. He's more than a magician: he's a con-man, a bunco-steerer, a World Record card thrower, an actor (a mainstay of Mamet and PTA, and recently on Deadwood), a collector of rare books on magic, a magic historian, an artist, and perhaps the world's best sleight-of-hand trickster. His approach to collecting rare books on magic reminds me of Mr. Norrell. A long article, but worth it if you've ever been intrigued by the confidence man personality, i.e., the ability to charm and disarm with some precise language, an enchanting gaze, and a supple wrist. (2) #
    10/7/2005
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