Werewolves, it’s time to lock yourselves up extra tight (probably in the library cage, if you’re Oz) — tonight, the full moon will be a “supermoon,” that is, even bigger and brighter than usual. The phenomenon is caused when the moon becomes full at the same time as it comes closest to the earth in its orbit, and has been linked to various natural disasters — though science tells us that’s all nonsense. To celebrate the lunar event, you’ll probably be wanting to indulge in some moon-related pop culture, so we’ve collected 30 culturally relevant moons and moon-related phenomena for your perusal. Click through to check out the moon in all its phases in pop culture, and let us know if we’ve missed your favorite lunar shout outs in the comments.
According to figures just released by Disney, The Avengers, which many people (with the notable exception of New York Times critic A.O. Scott) are calling the best Marvel movie yet, took in an estimated $18.7 million at midnight showings across the country last night. It now holds the record for the biggest superhero midnight debut of all time. Just let that sink in for a second.
If you were one of the hardcore fans who made it out to the multiplex (and to be honest, even if you didn’t), we bet that you’ll be excited to hear that Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Pictures have teamed up with Flavorpill favorite Gallery 1988 on new Avengers-themed art show. Click through to preview a few of the highlights, pick up a print of your favorite piece here, and if you live in LA, be sure to head to the gallery’s Melrose location in person now through Sunday to see the work in person.
As a tornado of everything Marvel winds its way across the country, set to unleash Joss Whedon’s superhero powerhouse The Avengers in theaters tomorrow, the massive launch inspired our team spirit. We started to imagine other super groups in pop culture that would band together in order to fight the good fight. These dream teams have been assembled from the upper echelons of film and television and are prepared to take down the enemy. Who are they, and what are they fighting for? Find out past the jump where we break down their stats and play with a few pop culture stereotypes. Assemble your own Avengers-style teams below.
When you’re as obsessed with pop culture as we are, you can’t help wondering what would happen if some of your favorite characters could break out of the confines of their individual universes and get to connect. Not that this doesn’t occasionally happen, but it’s not often enough to stop us predicting things like which TV characters would be friends in real life (or literary characters, for that matter). Our latest musing along these lines took us into more romantic territory, as we started to imagine which far-flung pop-culture characters were practically made for each other. In fact, some of them were so obvious, we’re amazed we didn’t make the (love) connection before. Join us as we play matchmaker for everyone from Harry Potter to Sookie Stackhouse, and then let us know what you think the chances are for these star-crossed couples in the comments.
We are officially obsessed with the serious skills of Finnish makeup artist Jangsara, who has chosen to celebrate the advent of The Avengers by creating a series of intricate superhero-inspired eye makeup designs, one for each major character. She even posts detailed how-tos for each design (right now you can DIY Captain America, Thor, and Iron Man, with more to come) so there’s no excuse for anyone to see the film without a little corresponding paint. Well, okay, there are lots of excuses, such as our novice’s shaking hands, but we still want to try. Click through to see all of Jangsara’s Avengers-style designs, and let us know which one you’d most like to rock in the comments.
Earlier this week, Forbes released its annual list of the 15 richest fictional characters, topped by Tolkien’s legendary dragon Smaug and featuring other one percenters like Tywin Lannister, Tony Stark and Robert Crawley. Well, that’s all very well and good, but the list got us to thinking about the other end of the stick — the poorest fictional characters across pop culture, from street urchins to hobos to a very special monster who lives in a trash can. Click through to check out our list, and since we obviously couldn’t hit them all, let us know if we’ve missed your favorite impoverished fictional figure in the comments.
Well, we’re not going to argue with this: The White House has announced that Barack Obama will present the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Bob Dylan, Toni Morrison, and 11 other notable Americans. Along with identifying him as “one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century,” the president’s people are commending Dylan’s “considerable influence on the civil rights movement.” Morrison, meanwhile, is praised as “one of our nation’s most celebrated novelists” and acknowledged for being the first African American woman to win a Nobel Prize. Among the other (living and deceased) recipients of America’s highest civilian honor are Madeleine Albright, John Glenn, Shimon Peres, National Farmworkers Association co-founder Dolores Huerta, and Girl Scouts founder Juliette Gordon Low. [via ArtsBeat]
Earlier this week, we were pleased to find the very first drawing of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Seeing these earliest forms of Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Donatello piqued our curiosity and led us on a hunt for early sketches of our other favorite cartoons. As you’d expect, these first renderings are somewhat strange to behold — faces seem distorted, eyes seem too big, and familiar characters have a foreign air. Needless to say, they’re all pretty fun. Click through to check out the debut sketches of Toy Story, Mickey Mouse, The Simpsons, and more.
An amateur investigative journalist and his girlfriend infiltrate a group led by an enigmatic woman who claims she hails from the future and will keep those who follow her safe from harm. Initially intent on exposing the woman as a fraud, the couple becomes more deeply immersed in the strange, new world. Zal Batmanglij’s Sound of My Voice — co-written with lead star Brit Marling, who plays the mysterious cult figure — opens in theaters today.
Creepy — and often hilarious — depictions of covert organizations and new religious groups have abounded in pop culture. There are a few figures, however, which haven’t amassed their own cult, but could easily attract legions of followers by sheer personality alone. We examined several pop culture characters that would make persuasive cult leaders below. Chime in with your picks in the comments section.
Among other criticisms that have been lobbied at the inexplicably popular erotic novel Fifty Shades of Gray, many have complained about the book’s origins; namely, that it was envisioned as an alternate reality Twilight fan fiction, and the author, E.L. James, merely replaced all the names of the characters in order to make it marketable.
Fan fiction gets an incredibly bad rap in the publishing and book-writing world; Anne Rice, George R.R. Martin, and Diana Gabaldon have all spoken out against potential fan fiction writers using their characters for their own stories. And “real life” fic, where writers create stories about their favorite celebrities (and often pair them together romantically), are even more vilified. We don’t get where all the hate comes from, though — sure, reading about members of One Direction making out with each other can get kind of creepy, but lots of your favorite books, movies, and even musicals are technically borrowed from other sources! Here’s a roundup of some of our favorites, as well as some we can’t believe exist at all — let us know what you think!
