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Nate Parker Skirts Probes About Rape Allegations During 'Birth Of A Nation' Press Conference

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As Nate Parker’s history of alleged sexual assault remains a divisive topic in Hollywood, it’s become abundantly clear that the “Birth of a Nation” cast has banded together to support the 36-year-old director. During an hourlong news conference at the Toronto Film Festival on Sunday, the movie’s performers spoke ardently of the tale’s importance beyond Parker’s personal reproach. 


Parker, who was acquitted of having raped a fellow Penn State student 17 years ago, dodged most direct questions about the allegations on Sunday. The case resurfaced in August, seven months after Fox Searchlight bought distribution rights to “The Birth of a Nation” in a record-high Sundance bid. Parker and the studio have entered damage-control mode over the past few weeks. At the news conference, Parker, who entered the room with an emphatic “good morning,” thanked each journalist for his or her question, then spun his answers so as not to expressly mention the allegations. 


Essence magazine’s Cori Murray moderated the news conference. Murray used the first 24 minutes to pose a question about the production and significance of “Birth” to each cast member, including Parker, who plays the lead, early-1800s slave rebellion leader Nat Turner. Armie Hammer, Colman Domingo, Aunjanue Ellis, Aja Naomi King, Gabrielle Union, Penelope Ann Miller and Jackie Earle Haley spoke of social justice and the need to confront America’s troubled history. Then, the discussion turned to the elephant in the room. 


When asked how he expects audiences to support the film, Parker accentuated his desire to secure the recognition his cast and crew deserve for their efforts. He said each actor worked for scale and every crew member was given equal weight in shaping the finished product, an examination of America’s inequities. In not outright referencing his rape accusations, Parker implied this particular story ― effectively scrubbed from textbooks, according to the cast ― is more important than the baggage of the artist who brought it to life. 


But after the cast members waxed passionate about the need to separate the art and the artist, New York Times reporter Cara Buckley asked whether Parker felt he should apologize to his alleged rape victim, who took her own life in 2012. (Parker, who paused his acting career in 2013 while securing funding for “Birth,” has yet to issue a formal public apology.)


“I’ve addressed this a few times, and I’m sure I’ll address it again,” he said. “This is a forum for the film. This is a forum for the other people that are sitting on the stage. It’s not mine. I don’t own it. It does not belong to me, so I definitely don’t want to hijack this movie. I do want to make sure we are honoring this film.”


This response came two days after the festival’s first “Birth of a Nation” screening, held at a 1,000-seat theater, elicited a standing ovation ― something that doesn’t often occur at the Toronto gala. The question, it seems, is whether the media’s attention to Parker’s rape accusations hold weight with everyday moviegoers. Parker said at the press conference that, while he can’t speak on behalf of Fox Searchlight’s publicity strategy, the speaking tour he planned to mount at colleges and churches will continue. He ignored the more vital part of that reporter’s question: Will he use the tour as a platform to discuss his own history with assault on college campuses? 


The news conference ended with journalists still clambering to pose questions, so it’ll be interesting to see how the rest of the publicity campaign unfolds ahead of the movie’s Oct. 7 theatrical release. On Saturday, a junket interview with CBC News was terminated when the reporter asked Parker whether Fox Searchlight had altered its strategy in the wake of the controversy. If anything, the cast seems even more galvanized in emphasizing the value of the Nat Turner story as it is being depicted in “Birth. 


“We’ve always said, from the very beginning, we’re not creating a movie ― we’re creating a movement,” Gabrielle Union, a rape survivor, said earlier in the conference, echoing one of the cast’s resounding sentiments. “And this movement is not single-focused ... Nat Turner was rooted in a place of faith that helps to subjugate his people and the people who looked like him ... Once he knew better, he did better. That’s what the movie is trying to inspire.”


Watch the trailer for “Birth of a Nation” below. 




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Fox Lands Black Superhero Drama From Salim And Mara Brock Akil

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Fox may soon be adding another DC Comics character to its roster.


The network has given a pilot production commitment to Black Lightning, the black superhero drama from prolific superhero series producer Greg Berlanti, and The Game’s Salim and Mara Brock Akil, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

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Playboy-Centric Art Show Features All The Bunnies And All The Boobs

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A wise man once said: “The major civilizing force in the world is not religion, it is sex.” That man was Hugh Hefner. And this nugget of wisdom was likely on his mind in 1953, when he founded the now-iconic Playboy Magazine. 


The spirit of Playboy was, in a way, revolutionary. The 1950s famously framed pornography ― and, more broadly, sexuality itself ― as a dirty, shameful secret to indulge in in private or not at all. Hefner, however, recognized the beauty and power of erotic imagery, and believed it deserved recognition. 


Through his Playboy brand, he aligned the qualities of a sexual being with those of a gentleman. He conjured up a newfangled American dream for the heterosexual male ― a dream of being cultured, sophisticated, educated and face-deep in naked women. Sex went from being something reprehensible to something cosmopolitan, classy and progressive. For straight men, at least.



Today, everyone knows the word Playboy and all that’s associated with it: smoking robes, mansions, grottos, blondes, Brazilian-waxed centerfolds, a decapitated rabbit in formalwear. Playboy certainly has its pitfalls ― objectifying and fetishizing women, enforcing impossible beauty ideals and heteronormativity ― but I digress. Like it or not, Playboy is an institution that has altered the way society at large sees sex, porn, and, most regrettably, bunnies. 


A new art exhibition at Slow Culture, a gallery and retail bookstore in Los Angeles’ Highland Park, is honoring every part of Playboy’s lasting influence, as well as the magazine’s new direction ― which no longer includes fully nude photos. The show is called “Playboys & Girls.” The show builds upon Playboy’s iconic brand while imagining the possible manifestations of its new direction, one aimed at appealing to women as well as men. 


“A big part of this project was inspired by one of our artists, Jay Howell,” Slow Culture’s Frederick Guerrero explained in an email to The Huffington Post. “When the magazine started rebranding, Jay was one of the first artists they started working with. We thought because of the updated approach to the magazine, it made sense for us to put together an art show that celebrated the direction it was heading. Playboy is such an iconic figure, we thought it would be fun to try and shape that into a group show.” 



The gallery enlisted 20 artists ― from photographers to tattoo artists ― to create new, original works inspired by the culture of Playboy. The images riff off the magazine’s provocative breed of sex-positive hankering, from Molly Steele’s voyeuristic photograph of a young woman eating strawberries in the backseat of a car to Brook Power’s surrealist collage of a nude woman surrounded by floating flamingos. The visual theme uniting the images? They both depict blondes. For as Hefner famously said: “Picasso had his pink period and his blue period. I am in my blonde period right now.” 


Lustful, playful, and classy AF, “Playboys & Girls” aptly communicates the Playboy state of mind ― that the boundaries between sex and art are more slippery than they first appear. The Slow Culture show honors Playboy’s past and celebrates its future, which supposedly aims to “bridge the gap” between men and women’s understanding of sex.


“We really hope to communicate that art is accessible to anyone,” Guerrero said, when describing his hopes for the show. “The art world can be complex and intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be.”


How can one create a space where people who normally feel excluded and disconcerted in the presence of fine art will feel comfortable enough to walk on in, have a drink, and stay a while? Boobs. The answer is probably boobs. 


 “Playboys & Girls” runs until Sept. 24, 2016 at Slow Culture in LA. 


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Watch A Paint-Covered Lil Buck Dance In Stunning Tribute To Black Lives

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Artist Alexa Meade paints on top of real people and 3D environments. She masks skin, clothes, walls and furniture in nontoxic acrylic paints that imitate the colors and textures of the world beneath them. Then, she photographs or films the scenes, creating a hallucinatory effect in which real spaces appear like painted canvases, alive and kicking.


Meade’s most recent piece, a video called “Color of Reality, ” features movement artists Jon Boogz and Lil Buck covered head-to-toe in Meade’s signature camouflage. The powerful short video, written, directed, and choreographed by Boogz and produced by Animi Design, is both a tribute to the black men and women who’ve lost their lives to police brutality as well as a call to action, pleading for an end to violence. 





In “Color of Reality,” two painted figures are shown watching TV, listening to news anchors report on the murders of unarmed black men at the hands of police. A broadcaster begins to describe “graphic body cam and dash cam video of an officer-involved shooting where an unarmed black teenager was killed by police” before Boogz flips off the television set in anguish. 


The two dancers then proceed to channel their frustration and heartache into movement, their bodies undulating, jerking and floating as if possessed. The men eventually leave their painted room to enter the outside world, producing a visual clash between Meade’s tinted reality and the society outside of it. 


The piece ends when Boog and Buck are stopped short as the sound of gunshots rings out. Red paint gushes from their bodies as they crumble to the ground. The message is simple: Senseless violence must come to an end.


See the entire video below. 













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'Quantico' Star's Ode To Fried Chicken Will Brighten Your Day

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“Quantico” and Broadway star Jay Armstrong Johnson joined forces with YouTube sensation Todrick Hall for a sizzling cut on his debut album, and The Huffington Post has an exclusive first listen. 


The actor-singer said he discovered “The Chicken Song,” a gospel-infused ode to fried chicken in all of its various forms written by YouTuber Logan McWilliams, while perusing the web ahead of his acclaimed concert act at New York’s Feinstein’s/54 Below in April.


The 29-year-old invited Hall to perform the song with him live ― a moment that has been captured for posterity on the album, “Jay Armstrong Johnson: Live at Feinstein’s/54 Below,” which hits retailers Sept. 16. 


Listen to “The Chicken Song” below, then scroll down to keep reading. 





“I crave both gospel music and fried chicken, but above that, the musical construction of the actual song is genius,” Johnson told HuffPost. The track’s web-based genesis, he said, made Hall ― who boasts over 2.2 million YouTube followers ― an ideal duet partner. “Given its parodic nature, it seemed like a perfect fit to ask one of YouTube’s biggest stars to join me on the tune,” Armstrong said. “I’m so glad he did.” 


The track is the pair’s second musical collaboration this year. In June, Armstrong sang on “Color,” a song on Hall’s Beyoncé-style visual album, “Straight Outta Oz.” The video showed Hall and Armstrong canoodling amidst flowers and waterfalls, shifting from black and white to color in a nod to “The Wizard of Oz.” 


If Armstrong and Hall’s chemistry seems natural, that’s because the men, who both hail from Texas, met as teens while working for Mary Kay Cosmetics Industrial.  


“To watch a friend reach such heights as a truly multi-faceted artist and business person has been one of my driving inspirational forces,” he said. “He paved the way for a new medium of art with YouTube.” 



Co-produced with composer Will Van Dyke, “Jay Armstrong Johnson: Live at Feinstein’s/54 Below” is very much a labor of love for the star, who is best known to New York audiences for his Broadway roles in “Hands on a Hardbody” and the 2014 revival of “On The Town.”


Armstrong raised money to preserve his Feinstein’s/54 Below concert, which charted his path from bullied gay teen to stage and TV performer through songs by Rascal Flatts, Sam Smith and others, on the new album via an Indiegogo campaign. Having fans from around the world support his endeavor gave the project an extra layer of significance, he said.  


“I’ve known that I’ve wanted to do a concert of this nature for a while, and I was just waiting for the right time,” he told HuffPost in April. “It feels like my audience has broadened from just the theater world to people who watch network TV from their comfort of their couches in Montana or California.” 


Here’s to hoping “The Chicken Song” is just one savory morsel in Armstrong’s musical journey. 






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Ladies, Yoko Ono Wants You To Participate In Her Next Artwork

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Has it been your lifelong secret dream to take part in a participatory artwork by her majesty Yoko Ono? Same.


For women around the world, this once lofty fantasy is about to become very, very real. On Sept. 6, Ono delivered a message to women around the world, inviting them to share a testament of trauma inflicted upon them for no reason other than being a woman. 


The full callout reads: 



WOMEN OF ALL AGES, FROM ALL COUNTRIES OF THE WORLD: YOU ARE INVITED TO SEND A TESTAMENT OF HARM DONE TO YOU FOR BEING A WOMAN.


WRITE YOUR TESTAMENT IN YOUR OWN LANGUAGE, IN YOUR OWN WORDS, AND WRITE HOWEVER OPENLY YOU WISH. YOU MAY SIGN YOUR FIRST NAME IF YOU WISH, BUT DO NOT GIVE YOUR FULL NAME.


SEND A PHOTOGRAPH OF YOUR EYES. THE TESTAMENTS OF HARM AND PHOTOGRAPHS OF YOUR EYES WILL BE EXHIBITED IN MY INSTALLATION ARISING, OCTOBER 7, 2016 – FEBRUARY 5 2017, AT REYKJAVÍK ART MUSEUM.


I VERY MUCH HOPE FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION.






In true Ono style, the simplicity of the project is also its power. There is probably not one woman on this earth, regardless of age, religion, or ethnicity, who has not at some point felt unjustly targeted, oppressed or harassed simply for being a woman. Through the basic gesture of sharing words and images, Ono’s project ensures that women are heard as well as seen. 


Ono will compile the submitted written testimonies, along with a photo of each woman’s eyes, to create the piece “Arising,” which will debut at Reykjavik Art Museum on Oct. 7. Women can send their submissions by mail or email. And if you’re in the Reykjavik area, you can always drop off your materials in person as well. 


Please, participate in this open call, and send the link to everyone you know. The more women who share their stories of discrimination and trauma, the fewer people can remain oblivious to one of the persistent civil rights issues of our time. And ― you get to be in a goddamn Yoko Ono exhibition. 


Get to work. Yoko is watching. 


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Who Will Win And Who Should Win At This Year's Emmys

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If we’ve hit a golden era of television, the Emmys should be great fun, right? Right! This year’s roster of nominations gives us a fairly apt snapshot of the best in TV, or at least one as good as we can expect from a voting body that has granted “The Big Bang Theory” four Outstanding Comedy Series nominations.


In preparation for Sunday’s awards, I’ve humbly cooked up a handbook for who is likeliest to win. Predicting the Emmys isn’t as scientific as the Oscars ― there aren’t umpteen precursor awards and high-profile publicity blitzes to forecast these prizes. But with a little insight into the Television Academy’s voting history and the current critical zeitgeist, placing bets isn’t impossible. And to remind ourselves that no golden age is without some lackluster choices, I’ve suggested a snubbed replacement nominee in each category. Here we go:


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David Bowie’s Estate Denies That Singer’s Ashes Were Scattered at Burning Man

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This article originally appeared on artnet News.



The ashes of late musician and artist David Bowie, who was quietly cremated following his unexpected death from liver cancer in January, were not, in fact, scattered at this summer’s Burning Man festival, reports the Independent.


According to E! Online, Bowie’s godchild had been given permission by the singer’s wife, Iman, to bring his ashes to the annual art and music festival in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert. The story was originally reported by the Burn.Life blog, which said that Bowie’s 16-year-old daughter, Lexi Jones, was responsible. Her name no longer appears in the story, which was edited “at the request of someone who will remain nameless ... out of respect.” 




“David’s godchild and David had long talks about Burning Man and what it stands for, and David loved the message behind it,” E!’s anonymous source alleged. Bowie was said to have been honored at a ceremony attended by roughly 70 people at the Burning Man Temple, a structure erected each year in honor of festival-goers’ dearly departed. The temple is burned to the ground to mark the end of the gathering.


“We played [David’s] music the entire drive from our camp to the Temple and back,” the source claimed, adding that “most of us had the Bowie [lightning bolt] face paint on in his honor.”



this time last week, we were making one of our last playa meals (@squeezemyteddy killin' the grilled cheese game ) and enjoying an empty city waiting for temple burn. at that moment, I was thinking how nervous I was to see this burn and how heavy my heart was feeling. in my previous three years of @burningman, I have never stayed for temple burn, but this year had more significant meaning for me. I placed a memorial inside the temple this year for @colleenburns and the side that started burning first was exactly where I had placed it. as soon as it went up in flames, I couldn't even watch anymore and felt my body shutting down. I left the group and dipped about 30 feet back and sat in a ball and grieved. Teddy came and found me about five minutes later, but that moment, where my knees crumbled and my voice was shakey... that was the first moment I had really accepted her death. I could feel her with me, telling me to not be sad and to enjoy and appreciate every moment of life. acceptance is always a weird stage, one where understanding why isn't always important, but just accepting the fact that the event occurred. I'm grateful to have had my best friend by my side when I needed him the most, and I'm grateful for everyone who has been in my life through one of the roughest months of my life. Colleen, your magic is beyond words and you continue to change my life for the better. I think about you everyday and I llove you more then words can say. "I know that someday we will surely find it." ✨ #burningman #temple #davidbest #kaskadekonnect #angelonmyshoulder #llove #everythingbagel

A photo posted by Tiffany Wood (@wiffany15) on




It’s a compelling image, to think of the iconic Bowie being laid to rest at an epic party dedicated to artistic self-expression. Alas, “there is no truth in the story,” a spokesperson for the Bowie estate told the Independent.


This year’s Burning Man Temple was designed and built by the Temple Crew, a group that began working together for Burning Man’s 2000 edition. The David Best-led team was inspired to turn their structure into a memorial when one of their crew members died in a motorcycle accident in the lead up to the festival. The Temple has since become an important Burning Man tradition, and Best’s team has reportedly designed about half of the annual Temple structures in the years since.


This year’s ornate, Asian-inspired design featured eight temples, and was finished with a stained patina to give it an ancient appearance. Best and his team were also responsible for the massive-scale model of 17th-century London that was ignited on the Thames on September 4 to commemorate the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire of London.


Since his sudden passing, Bowie has continued to make headlines, for everything from the release of unpublished photos of the singer frolicking with wolves, to an auction of a lock of his hair. Bowie’s famed art collection, including a painting by Irish artist Jack Butler Yeats, also hits the auction block at Sotheby’s later this year.


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This 12,000-Year-Old Town Could Soon Be Underwater

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An ancient Turkish town along the Syrian border is on the verge of destruction. But not because of war or extremism.


Hasankeyf is tucked along the banks of the Tigris River. The area is littered with history: neolithic caves, Roman ruins and medieval monuments. Yet this precious example of Mesopotamian history will almost inevitably disappear once an enormous new dam is installed.


Some 78,000 people, the majority of whom are Kurds, live in this region and will be displaced once the Ilisu Dam is finished. It’s unclear exactly when the area will be flooded, but the new structure is already more than 80 percent complete.



At 12,000 years old, many say that Hasankeyf meets all the criteria to be deemed a UNESCO World Heritage site. But Turkey has not officially applied for heritage status.


Last year, Belgian photographer Pascal Mannaerts documented what could be the town’s final days. Here are some of his images.












View Pascal Mannaert’s original photo essay here.

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What Gloria Estefan Did When She Was Told She Might Never Walk Again

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More than 25 years ago, Gloria Estefan defied the odds when she walked onto the American Music Awards stage. That emotional 1991 performance came less than a year after the singer had been left “paralyzed” by a horrific bus accident ― by medical standards, it was basically a miracle.


Estefan sat down with HuffPost Live on Monday and opened up about the accident, which is featured prominently in “On Your Feet!,” the hit Broadway musical based on her and her husband’s life and rise to fame.


In March 1990, then 34-year-old Estefan, her husband and her son were on a tour bus traveling through a “freak snow storm” in the Poconos when a tractor-trailer rear-ended them. Estefan broke two vertebrae.



I fought like hell."
Gloria Estefan, singer


During her conversation with HuffPost, the Cuban-American artist recalled the day Dr. Michael Neuwirth told her she might never walk again. 


“I’ll never forget, he came into my room and he said ‘OK, this is what science says: It’ll be very difficult for you to [walk], hopefully you can walk... but I doubt you’ll be able to ever perform again. Now, having said that, I can tell you that I’ve seen a lot of things that we’d consider miracles and that it’s up to you what happens with your life.’”


Estefan took these words to heart, spending countless hours in the months following on her physical therapy with the hopes of walking again.


“I fought like hell,” she said. “I was doing rehab seven hours a day. At the beginning it was floating in the pool for three months because I couldn’t move my limbs. And then step by step, every day I focused on one small goal that I could achieve, and I looked at the big picture but [each] day is what I focused on. And that’s the way to get through any hardship, I think.”



And Estefan says her swift recovery was mainly motivated by her family.


“My dad was in a wheelchair, so I was very cognizant of what that entails,” she said. “So I knew that I would fight my hardest so that my family wouldn’t have to go through that if it was going to be up to me... I also thought, ‘Ok you know what, I’m going to focus on just getting my life back, being able to stand up and walk.’ I didn’t worry about the career until after.”


But Estefan’s career was certainly also in limbo after the accident, which happened not long after a string of hits had helped her and her husband soar to global stardom. 


“Literally when we crashed, or when we got rear-ended by that 18-wheeler, Emilio was on the phone with his brother reading him the headline in The Miami Herald,” she recalled. “[There was] a picture of us holding a crystal globe, and it said ‘Gloria and Emilio Estefan Have The World in Their Hands’ and then boom, so talk about one-second you’re at the top...’”


Watch the artist open up about the accident and the “euphoric” moment when she made her comeback on the AMA stage in the video above. 

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7 Comics That'll Make Perfect Sense If You Have Social Anxiety

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When anxiety shows up at the party, you can bet it’s a buzzkill.


Some people confuse social anxiety with introversion, but it’s important to note that they aren’t the same thing. Introverts are often characterized by a preference for being alone, while anxiety, on the other hand, can make social situations downright intolerable. Of course, you can be a socially anxious introvert, too.


No matter where you stand when it comes to social situations, the following comics from Marzi Wilson of Introvert Doodles will remind you that when dealing with anxious feelings, you’re never alone.


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Man Behind Discovery Channel Believes The Future Of Documentary Is Virtual

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In the late 1970s, when the rise of satellite delivered cable services and new television channels focusing on everything from sports to news to movies, a 20-year-old history student named John Hendricks grappled with a question: Why wasn’t anyone making the TV channel he wanted ― that is, a channel that would play documentary films all day long?


“I loved documentaries since I was a kid,” Hendricks explained in an interview with The Huffington Post. In fact, when he was a student at the University of Alabama, one of his jobs was to acquire the 16mm films professors would use in their classes. “I was aware of all these great documentary films that were made by the BBC and other producers around the world. It added so much more to the teaching experience when the room darkened and the film played, and all of the sudden you were actually witnessing a volcano somewhere in the world in your geology class.”


After a few years of waiting for his dream channel, it became clear that if he wanted it, he would have to build it himself. In 1982, Hendricks incorporated the parent company of what was to become the Discovery channel, which launched on satellite on June 17, 1985.





Over the following 31 years of programming, the channel grew to become the fourth most widely distributed channel in the United States, reaching about 100,000,000 households. In recent years, it’s been the home to hits such as “Planet Earth,” “MythBusters” and “Deadliest Catch.” By mixing facts and storytelling, the shows sparked wonder and curiosity, all the sentiments that were close to Hendricks’ heart.


Now, having stepped down from the channel about two years ago, he’s taking his lifelong interests to new forms, launching CuriosityStream, a sort of a Netflix for documentary film, and hosting Curiosity Retreats, weeklong stays at a luxury mountain resort in Colorado (Gateway Canyons) where guests can experience intimate TED-like sessions with renowned scientists and thought leaders. (Tickets cost a minimum of $4,398.00.)


As Hendricks embarks on these new ventures, we reached out to the Discovery founder to talk about his 30-year career and what drives his insatiable curiosity.





One of the earliest taglines for Discovery Channel was “There’s no thrill like Discovery.” Why do you think that is?


Curiosity is a fundamental human trait. If you go back to thousands of years ago when we had to survive in the wilderness, there were people who were curious about how to make sharper tools, how to throw a spear farther. The fundamental driving force in human advancement is curiosity that wants us to try to figure out things and do them better and more efficiently. Most successful people have been propelled by curiosity.


But people have different degrees of curiosity. I’ve learned in my career that about 25 percent of people really do display a fundamental, insatiable curiosity all throughout their lives. I’ve watched the ratings over the years and this percentage seems consistent. CuriosityStream is tailor-made for that 25 percent of the population who carry around this cradle-to-grave curiosity about the world, about the current events and about how things work. 


What are some of the projects you are working on?


I’m very intrigued with virtual reality (VR), which gives people a closer-to-reality experience. We are starting to film new productions in VR because that’s going to be the ultimate way that we could take you to a pyramid or the Himalayas or show you the wildlife migration in Africa. These productions will be shorter, about 20 minutes instead of an hour, because wearing the goggles for that long might not be pleasant. 


Besides virtual reality, what will the future of science and nature documentary look like?


The special effects now have to be the state of the art because people now have come to expect a certain standard from science-fiction movies. If you have a science documentary about the exploration of other planets, for example, your animation better be first-rate.


But I think the biggest difference would be the length. As we are going into subscription video, on-demand and online streaming, you don’t have to develop programming in that one-hour format anymore. It can be as long or as short as the story requires. When we told a recent story on one of the space missions, it was only 17 minutes long. Science and nature documentaries don’t have to be cut to a broadcast clock any longer, and you can tell the story as concisely and compelling as possible.


What’s the value of good storytelling?


Good storytelling is not just for fiction. To have an impactful documentary it has to have a well-told story as well. In fact, storytelling is another fundamental human trait. A couple of years ago, I got to spend 10 days with one of the last hunter-gatherer tribes in Africa and I was just so amazed witnessing the storytelling around the campfire. It’s something that we like to do as humans; to passively listen to a story at the end of the day. Forty thousand years ago it was the elder around the campfire. Today, it’s TV.


Children are born curious. How can we nurture this early curiosity and keep it alive later on?


Pay attention to your daydreams. If you find yourself daydreaming about something, that’s a clue that you are really interested in that. And I always encourage people now to explore it further, even if its a quick internet search. And just keep exploring.


This exploration can take different forms at different times of the day. During the day we are kind of in a hunting-and-gathering mode, for news and information, so it’s probably not the best time to sit down at one in the afternoon to watch a movie. But something interesting happens after dinner. I think we humans, we are very receptive to storytelling particularly in the evening. We want to be immersed in stories, just the way we did at the campfire.


I also think that heavily structured school work kills curiosity and puts the lid on freewheeling curiosity. It’s important to find ways to keep it alive in children. Luckily, staying curious is rewarding. It leads you to gather knowledge, and you get some satisfaction when you understand the world a little better.

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Hey ’Merica, Those 'Focking' 'Moobs' Are Now In The Dictionary

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Just when you thought a word like “YOLO” was on its way out of the vernacular, the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) solidified its existence in your conversations for years to come. 


The definitive record of the English language released its latest list of additions, including some old favorites (”fuhgeddaboudit!”), a few Roald Dahl-related terms in honor of the author’s 100th birthday and quite the assortment of expletives. “Gender-neutral,” “’Merica,” “non-apology” and a slew of food terms one might think already exist in the dictionary, like the beloved Greek spinach pie “spanakopita,” were also among the 1,000-plus words added to the book. 



Some of the newest words/definitations in the OED: 


biatch, n.: Originally in rap and hip-hop music as a more emphatic expression of bitch. Also sometimes used humorously.


focking, adj. and adv.: A. adj. Used as an intensifier, expressing annoyance, frustration, hostility, etc. B. adv. Intensely, extremely. Also simply as an intensifier.


moobs, n.: Unusually prominent breasts on a man (likened to those of a woman), typically as a result of excess pectoral fat; = man boobs.


yolo, int. and adj.: A. int. ‘You only live once’; used to express the view that one should make the most of the present moment without worrying about the future (often as a rationale for impulsive or reckless behavior). B. adj. Designating or characterized by such an attitude or view.


Visit the OED’s site to read about the latest additions.

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Stephen King Compares Donald Trump To Cthulhu; Cthulhu Issues Angry Denial

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The ultimate “deplorable” wants nothing to do with Donald Trump.


A parody Twitter account set up for Cthulhu, one of the Great Old Ones created by early 20th century author H.P. Lovecraft, took offense to being linked to the Republican presidential candidate by novelist Stephen King:






But the Cthulhu account, which claims Cthulu is running for president, quickly fired off a denial ― and it was an absolute gem packed with references from King’s many books: 






Now that this issue has been cleared up, is America finally #ReadyForCthulhu?


 



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Celebs Use Poetry To Highlight The Plight Of Refugees

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(Reuters) - A host of celebrities seek to highlight the plight of refugees in a video in which they read a poem listing items people have grabbed as they fled their homes.


Oscar winner Cate Blanchett leads a cast including Keira Knightley, Stanley Tucci, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Jesse Eisenberg and Kit Harrington in performing the poem “What They Took With Them” in the film, which U.N. refugee agency UNHCR said was released on Facebook on Monday to support its #WithRefugees petition.


Written by Jenifer Toksvig, the poem was inspired by the stories and testimonies of people fleeing their homes and the items they took with them.


Among those listed by the actors in the film are a wallet, an army service record, a high school certificate, a mobile phone, house keys and a national flag.


“The rhythm and words of the poem echo the frenzy and chaos and terror of suddenly being forced to leave your home, grabbing what little you can carry with you, and fleeing for safety,” Blanchett, a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, said in a statement.


UNHCR said the petition is asking governments to ensure refugees have access to safe places to live, education and work.

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An Unfair Hollywood Demeans Older People, New Research Finds

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You have to look wide and far to find people over 60 in the 100 top-grossing films of 2015, and when you do find them, they are demeaned by ageist language and presented inaccurately and unfairly, says new research conducted by Humana and the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. 


Among the researchers’ more disturbing findings:


1. Older people are underrepresented in film. 


While 18.5 percent of the population is 60 and over, just 11 percent of film characters were that age. 


2. More than half the films with older characters direct ageist comments at them.


Out of 57 films that featured a leading or supporting senior character, 30 contained ageist comments; that’s more than half of the films. Characters were called things like, “a relic,” “a frail old woman” and “a senile old man.” The report does not name specific films, nor would study representatives identify in which movies those three sample quotes were from.


3. Older people are stereotyped as tech-illiterate.


Only 29.1 percent of on-screen leading or supporting characters aged 60 or older are depicted using technology, while 84 percent of aging Americans report that they use the internet weekly.


4. Older people are portrayed as anti-social shut-ins.


On screen, just one third of seniors pursue interests or hobbies and 38.5 percent attend events, while in reality, they are more than twice as likely to engage socially with friends or relatives on a weekly or monthly basis.


5. Seniors are rarely shown as the masters of their own destinies.


The top five traits respondents rated as most important to aging successfully were self-reliance, awareness, honesty, resilience and safety. In film, seniors are rarely depicted as in control of their lives.


The pity, of course, is that people believe what they see on-screen. Humana’s quantitative survey found that seniors who rate themselves as very optimistic about aging tend to be the most active physically, socially and in their communities. They also report a much lower number of physically unhealthy days on average: just 2.84 for the most optimistic, compared to 12.55 physically unhealthy days for the least optimistic.


And those who are the most optimistic also report feeling on average 12 years younger than their actual age (those who are least optimistic feel on average 7 years older than their actual age).


“Seniors are rarely seen on screen, and when they are, they are ridiculed,” said Dr. Stacy L. Smith, director of the Media, Diversity & Social Change Initiative at USC’s Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism, in a press release. “When did we become a society that is comfortable with subtle and stigmatizing stereotypes about a group that have long served as the pillars and stalwarts of our communities?”


Dr. Yolangel Hernandez Suarez, vice president and chief medical officer, care delivery at Humana added: “As a health care company, we’re committed to helping aging Americans defy stereotypes and take steps to achieve their best health. That’s why it’s important to note that, according to our findings, seniors who report being optimistic about the aging process also report better health.”


She called the absence of senior representation in film a “missed opportunity” for pop culture. 


Key findings surrounding both studies will be presented at The Atlantic Live! New Old Age conference Tuesday in New York City. Humana and USC will lead individual discussions to explore the findings in greater detail, which will be streamed at The New Old Age’s livestream broadcast.


In recent years, many actors have called out Hollywood for ageism. For example, in January, actress Catherine Zeta-Jones criticized filmmakers for not making more movies about older people. In addition, “Sex and the City” actress Kim Cattrall, 59, said the “expiration date” for women in the industry seems to be 35. Oscar-winner Julianne Moore, 55, has also said that studios seem to focus on lucrative films rather than inclusion and telling important stories. 

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These Feminist Comics Go Out To All The Women Who've Endured Bad Sex

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When a clitoris is crowned queen, her demeanor changes in various ways. For one, she starts to wear a crown ― obviously. She also becomes more steadfast in her desires, knowing just what turns her on and how to get it. She’s emboldened to speak her mind, in whatever language clits speak in these days, and not afraid to bring the sass when necessary. 


This wealth of clitoral knowledge comes from the drawings of Sweden-born, Brooklyn-based artist Camilla Engstrom. The Clit Queen is but one of her playful, body-centric cartoon characters that transform feminine ideals and the anxieties they induce into drawings of anthropomorphized private parts. 


“It was triggered by all the bad sex I’ve had in my life,” Engstrom told The Huffington Post, describing the Clit Queen’s origin story. “But instead of making some sad cartoons, I wanted them to be funny.”



#justsaying

A photo posted by Camilla Engstrom (@camillamengengstrom) on




The Queen ― through simple instructions like “I’m right here you stupid idiot!” (delivered to a wayward finger) and “You kindly wait for your turn!” (to an impetuous penis) ― demands her sexual needs be met. As any queen should. Engstrom hopes the drawings inspire women to follow in the clit’s footsteps and discover their own inner queen ― in other words, raise their standards when it comes to good sex. 


Engstrom has been drawing since she was a kid. Though she remembers acknowledging her talent at a young age, she was hesitant to leap into a creative field as an adult. She ended up pursuing fashion, thinking it a way to combine her artistic impulses with the steady structure of a 9-to-5 job. While working as a fashion assistant, though, Engstrom realized she was far from happy.


So she started to channel her frustrations with the field ― specifically, frustrations with the kinds of judgment and ill treatment of women she experienced ― into her drawings, carving out a space where women outside the restrictive norms that governed the fashion industry could run wild and free. And, mostly, naked. 



#TGIF

A photo posted by Camilla Engstrom (@camillamengengstrom) on




“I wanted to draw something that looked like the opposite of a fashion figure,” Engstrom said. “It started with a stiff, but plump figure without a face. Then it turned in to a more cartoon-looking character. I started to share the images on Instagram. People’s positive responses gave me the confidence to share more of my work.”


Before long, Engstrom quit fashion and was drawing full time. Her most prevalent character is a woman named Husa, which means housemaid in Swedish, though Engstrom insists she was drawn to the name’s sound alone. The artist calls Husa her alter ego. “She represents the weirdo in me,” she explained in an interview with Lisa Says Gah. The pillowy, pink lady is all soft bulges and big smiles ― a striking emblem of feminine self-love.


Husa, like many young women in 2016, is obsessed with Kim Kardashian. In Engstrom’s drawings, Husa can be seen recreating Kardashian’s photo shoots. The artist often uploads split images to her Instagram account, juxtaposing paparazzi pics or selfies with line drawings of Husa assuming the same pose. “I don’t know what it is about Kim,” Engstrom mused. “I think I’m obsessed with celebrities in general. Maybe my obsession with her is about me wanting a piece of her fame. I also love her body. I love drawing her figure, especially her butt. “



#husajustwantstobeyou

A photo posted by Camilla Engstrom (@camillamengengstrom) on




Engstrom’s newest fixation ― straying not too far from the Clit Queen’s kingdom ― are penises. Her newest series of black-and-white drawings features playful dick pics that would blow any middle school doodler away. Mermaids sprout phallic heads in lieu of their own, penises grow like daisies in a fertile field, sexy appendages grow in women’s bellies where whole babies should be.


Men are often pretty serious about whatever they’re packing below the belt, preferring that their members be treated with the utmost respect. Engstrom, on the other hand, is a bit more playful. She allows her little guys to run free, indulge in their fantasies, be soft and gentle. The surrealist drawings are sure to bring a smile to your face, and perhaps to your other body parts as well.


Whether making a clit, a dick, or a Kim K, Engstrom imbues her work with both a feminist agenda and a dirty mind, exploring the amusing connection between the two. In a simple and addicting visual language, the artist encourages viewers to tap into their inner Husa. 


Engstrom’s work will be on view with Deli Gallery from Sept. 16–18 at the Independent Art Book Fair in New York. 


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12 Blind And Partially Blind Photographers Changing The Way We See The World

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People who are partially or completely blind often move through the world at a slower pace, author Candia McWilliam explains in the introduction to The Blind Photographer, a compilation edited by Julian Rothenstein.


The reasoning behind her assertion is quite practical. “Falling is a possibility,” she explains. “Trust in an environment must be established. Atmosphere must be tested ... A kind of sonar depending upon intuited locations of all kinds of presence or even threat may develop with practice. Practice itself takes time.”


Patience, as many photographers and critics know, is central to the art of taking a good photograph ― capturing not just how something looks, but its texture, weight and feeling. How a blanket might feel if it rubbed across your cheek. How much time it might take for a soap bubble to pop. 


For photographers living with vision impairments, an object in the world is not just something seen with the eyes, but something felt, tasted, heard, smelled, and dreamed of. This is what the camera hopes to capture, or to create. And this, of course, takes time, endurance and hope.









The 150 images featured in Rothenstein’s book, compiled from artists around the world, can be felt as well as seen. Often, subject matter is visualized in forms many of us might not recognize, influenced by the fact that many sight-deprived individuals do not live in total, monochrome darkness, despite common misunderstandings of various impairments.


“Light differently penetrates most forms of blindness,” McWilliam explains in her intro. “With it may come fluctuating colour, soft sheddings of light, small like clothes-moth wings, or any number of other suggestions of the world beyond the differently-lit self.”


The photographs invite the viewer not just to ogle each image but to imagine a moment ― its speed, temperature and sound. In China, Fu Gaoshan photographs a crowded subway train, his camera pointed upward as if trying to grasp for air. Mexican photographer Ana Maria Fernandez captures a lone street musician playing trumpet, the imagined sound of the music clashing with the loneliness of the empty street. Indian photographer Satvir Jogi photographs a red sun as it sets above the ocean, the center of the solar system manipulated to fit in the cup of someone’s hand.









The book also includes brief interviews with some of the selected artists, in which they explain why they became interested in photography and elaborate on their particular techniques. For Alberto Loranca, who takes pictures of action figures blown up to resemble superheroes, it’s a matter of mathematics. 





“I can distinguish light and shadow and I pay a great deal of attention to light in order to take pictures,” he explained. “I calculate the amount of light needed using trigonometry. At one point I recalled analytic geometry lessons and thought that if I place the camera in a particular position in relation to the floor and the subject, I can imagine the angles in the shadows and that could help me. I simply deduce how you would see it without too many mathematic operations, and I think I have obtained good results.”












To outsiders, embarking on the task of photography while visually impaired may seem ambitious, if not inconceivable. Yet many of the featured photographers see a natural connection between the way they experience the world and the way of the camera. 





As photographer Evgen Bavcar put it: “Photography must belong to the blind, who in their daily existence have learned to become the masters of camera obscura.” Bavcar, a photographer as well as a philosopher, traces the origins of the camera obscura back to Plato’s cave, where shadows danced on the walls, imitating the illuminated world waiting outside. For Bavcar, the darkroom is perfect evidence of photography’s predilection toward shadow; only cloaked in darkness can true forms emerge.


“All the images that I create exist beforehand in my mind and are perceived by my third eye, that of the soul,” he said. 





The photographers included in Rothenstein’s collection are not just committed to taking pretty pictures. They want to change the way you see the world. “Hope quivers in these photographs,” McWilliam explains. “Not the sentimental hope that offers a tidy ‘cure’; rather the hope that tomorrow may bring some new way of expressing life as it is felt.”





The Blind Photographer, published by Princeton Architectural Press, is available on Amazon


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50 Amazing Words Roald Dahl Made Up

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One hundred years ago, a man named Roald Dahl came into the world. Born in Wales in 1916, he ascended to literary fame in the 1940s, producing some of the most recognizable children’s literature of our time: Matilda, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Witches, James and the Giant Peach, The BFG.


Dahl blended fantasy, horror and folklore into books that enchanted readers, not simply because his stories were fantastical tales of candy factories and witches and telekinesis, but because he often made heroes of unlikely children. He crafted funny and violent narratives told from the perspective of girls and boys, giving orphans and poor kids and bullied students the platform to best mythical creatures and wayward adults. It’s no surprise that many of his books were adapted into films that stretched his legacy into the 21st century ― every title above has made its way to the silver screen; even the 1984 classic “Gremlins” is said to be partly inspired by a story he wrote in 1942.


Like authors before him ― William Shakespeare, Lewis Carroll, Dr. Seuss ― Dahl’s literature is particularly unique because it’s based on a language without boundaries. His characters speak in alliteration, onomatopoeia, anagrams and portmanteaus, choosing to say “churgle” instead of “laugh” or “bish” instead of “ruin.” Terms like “zozimus” define a thing (in this case, the stuff dreams are made of) so magical yet based in reality, that his tendency to create entire sentences in Dahlian gibberish only elevated his characters’ ability to communicate complex concepts like fear and hate. 


In honor of his centennial birthday, Oxford University Press has packaged the words utterly distinct to Dahl’s universes, whether they’re familiar terms imbued with new meaning or entirely made-up phrases originating in the belly of a giant. The Oxford Roald Dahl Dictionarycompiled by Dr. Susan Rennie, is both an unconventional tool for teaching kids how to read and an expansive survey of one man’s contribution to literary history.


From “argy” to “zozimus,” these are just 50 of the magnificent expressions the late, great author left behind:



1. Argy (verb): If giants or human beans or cattlerpiddlers are argying, they are having an argument.


One of the biggest chatbags is the cattlepiddlers ... They is argying all the time about who is going to be the prettiest butterfly.” -The BFG


2. Biffsquiggled (adjective): If you feel biffsquiggled, you are confused or puzzled. 


“’You must not be giving up so easy,’ the BFG said calmly. ‘The first titchy bobsticle you meet and you begin shouting you is biffsquiggled.’” -The BFG


3. Bibble (verb): When something bibbles, it makes a soft gurgling sound.


“All around them lay the vast black ocean, deep and hungry. Little waves were bibbling against the side of the peach.” -James and the Giant Peach


4. Bish (verb): If you bish something, you ruin it.


“’This is it!’ he whispered to himself under his breath. ‘The greatest moment of my life is coming up now! I mustn’t bish it. I mustn’t bosh it! I must keep very calm.’” -Esio Trot


5. Bundongle (noun): A bundongle is something that contains only air. 


“I thought all human beans is full of brains, but your head is emptier than a bundongle.” -The BFG


6. Catasterous (adjective): A catasterous situation is very bad indeed, and a catasterous disastrophe is the worst of all.


“’Catasterous!’ cried the BFG. ‘Upgoing bubbles is a catasterous disastrophe!’” -The BFG


7. Churgle (verb): When you churgle, you gurgle with laughter.


“The fact that it was none other than Boggis’s chickens they were going to eat made them churgle with laughter every time they thought of it.” -Fantastic Mr. Fox


8. Crodsquinkled (adjective): If a giant is crodsquinkled, he is in a hopeless situation. 


“’I is slopgroggled!’ squakwed the Gizzardgulper. ‘I is crodsquinkled!’ yowled the Bloodletter.” -The BFG


9. Daddle (verb): If you daddle, you run very fast.


“So start to run! Oh, skid and daddle / Through the slubber slush and sossel! / Skip jump hop and try to skaddle! / All the grobes are on the roam!” -Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator


10. Darksome (adjective): Dark and murky.


“’This one is a nasty fierce bogrotting nightmare ... I would be hating to get this one inside me on a darksome night.’ the BFG said.” -The BFG



11. Diddly (adjective): Individual or distinct.


“Every human bean is diddly and different. Some is scrumdiddlyumptious and some is uckyslush.” -The BFG


12. Dispunge (verb): If you dispunge something, you hate or loathe it.


“’Here is the repulsant snozzcumber!’ cried the BFG, waving it about. ‘I squoggle it! I mispise it! I dispunge it!’” -The BFG


13. Dreadly (adjective): A dreadly creature, such as the dreadly vindscreen-viper, is feared because it is so dreadly.


“’Save our souls!’ bellowed the Fleshlumpeater. ‘Sound the crumpets! ... The teeth of the dreadly viper is still sticking into me!’” -The BFG


14. Exunckly (adverb): If you say “exunckly” to someone, you are agreeing with what they have just said.


“It’s a funny thought,’ Sophie said. ‘Exunckly,’ the BFG said.” -The BFG


15. Flavory-savory (adjective): Sweet and delicious, as fresh walnuts taste to monkeys.


“A walnut fresh from the tree is scrumptious-galumptious, so flavory-savory, so sweet to eat that it makes me all wobbly just thinking about it.”-The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me


16. Fizzwiggler (noun): A fizzwiggler is someone who is mean and cruel. The BFG thinks that Mrs. Clonkers is a real fizzwiggler because she is cruel to the children in the norphanage.


“’The filthy old fizzwiggler!’ shouted the BFG. ‘That is the horridest thing I is hearing for years!’” -The BFG


17. Fluckgungled (adjective): See “crodsquinkled.”


“’I is gunzleswiped!’ shouted the Meatdripper. ‘I is fluckgungled!’ screamed the Maidmasher.” -The BFG


18. Frumpet (noun): If you call someone a frumpet (not that you would), you mean that they are old and unattractive.


“Mrs. Twit ... suddenly called out at the top of her voice, ‘Here I come, you grizzly old grunion! You rotten old turnip! You filthy old frumpet!’” -The Twits


19. Giganticus (adjective): Grand and spectacular.


“’So now!’ barked the Grand High Witch. ‘So now I am having a plan! I am having a giganticus plan for getting rrrid of every single child in the whole of Inkland!’” -The Witches


20. Glimp (noun): A very quick glimpse or peek.


“I is showing you now who is going to eat you up if they is ever catching even one tiny glimp of you.” -The BFG



21. Gloomness (noun): Darkness or nighttime.


“At the witchy hour of gloomness, / All the grobes come oozing home.” -Charlie and the Great Elevator


22. Gollup (noun): A big gulp or swallow.


“I’ll bet if you saw a fat juicy little child paddling in the water over there at this very moment, you’d gulp him up in one gollup!” -The Enourmous Crocodile


23. Grinksludging (adjective): A grinksludging dream is one that is no fun at all.


“If I is giving a girl’s dream to a boy ... the boy would be waking up and thinking what a rotbungling grinksludging old dream that was.” -The BFG


24. Grunch (verb): When a Gruncher grunches, it easts its food (usually Minpins) noisily by grinding and crunching.


“The one waiting for you down there is the fearsome Gruncher, the Red-Hot Smoke-Belching Gruncher. He grunches up everything in the forest.” -The Minpins


25. Grunion (noun): A very mean or grumpy person.


“George ... was especially tired of having to live in the same house as that grizzly old grunion of a Grandma.” -George’s Marvellous Medicine


26. Horrigust (adjective): Something horrigust is truly horrible and disgusting.


“You is saying it is grizzling and horrigust for giants to be eating human beans, right or left?” -The BFG


27. Inky-booky (adjective): An inky-booky taste is the taste you get from chewing a piece of paper with writing on it. School-chiddlers taste like this to giants, perhaps because they read more than giants do.


“I is very fond indeed of English school-chiddlers. They has a nice inky-booky flavour.” -The BFG


28. Jumpsy (adjective): If you feel jumpsy, you feel anxious and the slightest thing will make you jump.


“’I is nervous myself,’ the BFG whispered. ‘I always gets as jumpsy as a joghopper when the Fleshlumpeating Giant is around.’” -The BFG


29. Lickswishy (adjective): A lickswishy taste or flavor is gloriously delicious.


“’I knows where there is a bagglebox for boys!’ shouted the Gizzardgulper. ‘All I has to do is reach in and grab myself a handful! English boys is tasting extra lickswishy.’” -The BFG


30. Mideous (adjective): A mideous place is horrible and nasty (but grobes still love living there).


“In the quelchy quaggy sogmire, / In the mashy mideous harshland...” -Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator



31. Mintick (noun): A minute.


“Now hang on a mintick.” -The BFG


32. Natterbox (noun): A natterbox is someone who cannot stop talking, usually about nothing in particular. 


“Spiders is also talking a great deal. You might not be thinking it, but spiders is the most tremendous natterboxes.” -The BFG


33. Notmucher (noun): Someone who doesn’t do very much, or will never amount to much.


“’The Queen of England,’ Sophie said. ‘You can’t call her a squifflerotter or a grinksludger ... You can’t call her a squeakpip or a notmucher either.’” -The BFG


34. Pibbling (adjective): Very small and unimportant.


“You is not fit to be a giant! You is a squinky little squiddler! You is a pibbling little pitsqueak.” -The BFG


35. Plexicated (adjective): If something is plexicated, it is complicated and difficult to do or make.


“’Stay there please,’ he said, ‘and no chittering. I is needing to listen only to silence when I is mixing up such a knotty plexicated dream as this.’” -The BFG


36. Plussy (adjective): Someone who is plussy is full of life and energy. Being a plussy is the opposite of being a Minus.


“She’s a Minus no longer! She’s a lovely Plus! She’s as plussy as plussy can be!” -Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator


37. Razztwizzler (noun): Something wonderfully exciting or enjoyable.


“I must say it’s quite an experience,’ Sophie said. ‘It’s a razztwizzler,’ the BFG said. ‘It’s gloriumptious.’” -The BFG


38. Re-inscorched (adjective): Metal that is re-inscorched has been toughened to make it extra strong.


“’It’s a steel rope,’ said Mr. Wonka. ‘It’s made of re-inscorched steel. If they try to bite through that their teeth will splinter like spillikins.’” -Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator


39. Ringbeller (noun): A ringbeller is a really splendid dream, the kind that makes you wake up smiling and happy.


“’What a funny dream,’ Sophie said. ‘It’s a ringbeller,’ the BFG said. ‘It’s whoppsy.’” -The BFG


40. Rommytot (noun): If someone talks rommytot, they are talking nonsense.


“’Human beans is juicier,’ the Bloodletter said. ‘You is talking rommytot,’ the BFG said, growing braver by the second.” -The BFG



41. Scrotty (adjective): If you feel scrotty, you feel sad and gloomy.


“Whenever I is feeling a bit scrotty,’ the BFG said, ‘a few gollops of frobscottle is always making me hopscotchy.’” -The BFG


42. Shootle (verb): Shootling means shooting with guns, which grown-ups with no common sense do to each other.


“’But human beans is squishing each other all the time,’ the BFG said. ‘They is shootling guns and going up in aerioplanes to drop their bombs on each other’s heads every week.’” -The BFG


43. Sickable (adjective): Something that is sickable looks or tastes so vile that it makes you feel instantly sick.


“’It’s disgusterous!’ the BFG gurgled. ‘It’s sickable! It’s rotsome! It’s maggotwise! Try it yourself, this foulsome snozzcumber!’” -The BFG


44. Squishous (adjective): Something squishous is very easy to squish, like a boneless Knid.


“’Oh you Knid, you are vile and vermicious,’ cried Mr Wonka. ‘You are slimy and soggy and squishous!’” -Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator


45. Suspichy (adjective): If a giant is suspichy, he is suspicious about something. 


“The Fleshlumpeater turned and started at the BFG. ‘What is you doing here with all these grotty twiglets!’ he bellowed. ‘You is making me very suspichy.’” -The BFG


46. Telly-telly bunkum box (noun): A television.


“’If you do go back, you will be telling the world,’ said the BFG, ‘most likely on the telly-telly bunkum box and the radio squeaker.’” -The BFG


47. Vermicious (adjective): Something vermicious is vicious and nasty, just like a Knid.


“’It’s worse than that!’ cried the Chief of Police. ‘It’s a vermicious Knid! Oh, just look at its vermicious gruesome face!’” -James and the Giant Peach


48. Whiffsy (adjective): Something whiffsy is always moving.


“’Giants is never dying,’ the BFG answered ... ‘Mostly us giants is simply going on and on like whiffsy time-twiddlers.’” -The BFG


49. Whunking (adjective): Big and heavy.


“So what you soldiers has to do is to creep up to the giants while they is still in the Land of Noddy and tie their arms and legs with mighty ropes and whunking chains.” -The BFG


50. Zozimus (noun): Zozimus is what dreams are made of. The BFG whisks zozimus with an eggbeater until it forms bubbles just like soapy water.


“Dreams is not like human beans or animals. They has no brains. They is made of zozimus.” -The BFG


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24 Of The Most Outrageous, Least Wearable Looks From Fashion Week

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Let’s face it: New York Fashion Week is weird. It’s filled with chaos, celebrity and, oh right, fashion. All eyes are on designers for a fleeting moment, in a chance to express their artistic vision and designs for the upcoming season.


Some of these visions will undoubtedly end up on the red carpet in the coming months. Others are hard to imagine ever ending up anywhere besides, perhaps, Jeremy Scott’s birthday party. 


While we all collectively dream of wearing some of the stunners seen on the runway, there are also some looks so wild, so outrageous, we can’t even imagine what it would be like to wear them.  


Behold, 24 of the least wearable looks we’ve seen (so far) at fashion week. 


Warning: Some of the photos below are NSFW.


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