James Del, LTD

Sep 01

fek:


————— Forwarded message —————From: Foster Kamer Date: Fri, Aug 13, 2010 at 1:12 PMSubject: i need you to call meTo: Joe Coscarelli office: 212-475-1900. we have the opportunity to do something very exciting.

And so this thing started. Tony came over to my desk, asked me if I had anything, and that was the first thing I did when he walked away. More on that in a second.Why gossip? Because it was interesting to us, we were writing what we know, and we felt like we could (A) Get it correct, (B) Do a story that would satisfy people who were already familiar with the topic as well as — and more importantly — reach a wider audience with a topic that’s often in their periphery without much thought to it otherwise while(C) Making it pretty entertaining, too. You can’t do a story about gossip without a little gossip in it. I mean, you could, but it wouldn’t be as much fun as this.The main aim of the story wasn’t necessarily to declare anything “dead” though — because those pieces are more often than not, wrong — and in fact, not really to declare anything anything so much as just let the people who make these things speak for themselves, and then take stock of it. I’ve personally experienced the not-great sensation of fucking up some story or reading someone else’s half-baked trend piece with anonymous sources that everyone writes off because it begins with the same conclusion it’s going to end with, and everything in that story is dedicated to reach some grand proclamation. What emerged was, what we think of at least as a pretty accurate picture. There’re some leftover questions, mainly, Why should I give a shit about gossip? and What does gossip even mean any more? among others. We’re gonna be taking some of the awesome interview material we have still - and there’s plenty - and churning some blog posts out of it. This thing isn’t done yet. That’ll be fun, too. Bloggers and print, mixing! It happens.
 Anyway, back to that email: I’m happy with this, but Joe, I mean, Joe fucking killed it, here. This wouldn’t have happened without him. The soul and balance and intelligence of this piece was him. Joe talked me off the ledge one night early on after something we thought we had fell through (when we thought our deadline was a week earlier than it actually was, ha) from basically going into Tony’s office, curling in the fetal position, and telling him to run a five page crossword puzzle (still a decent idea, but glad we went with this). Joe’s also just turned 23 22! Which is insane.Between this, Meagan’s name on bookshelves, Lilit’s name of bookshelves, Stelter with the A1, and Adam Frucci’s new digs, it’s a pretty exciting week for young writers/mediapeople in New York City. Oh, and also: It’s the first day of September, the best month of the year. On an oversharey note, five years ago this month, the day before my 21st birthday, I moved here after dropping out of college and basically was told my life was fucked by everyone but four people, and as much as I loved them, I was pretty sure everyone else was correct. Don’t want to tempt fate, but I’m pretty sure those four people turned out to be right.
And to celebrate this, I’m buying one of them a drink tonight. And then getting blackout drunk with Joe. Happy September. 

(via youngmanhattanite)

fek:

————— Forwarded message —————
From: Foster Kamer 
Date: Fri, Aug 13, 2010 at 1:12 PM
Subject: i need you to call me
To: Joe Coscarelli 


office: 212-475-1900. we have the opportunity to do something very exciting.

And so this thing started. Tony came over to my desk, asked me if I had anything, and that was the first thing I did when he walked away. More on that in a second.

Why gossip? Because it was interesting to us, we were writing what we know, and we felt like we could

(A) Get it correct, 
(B) Do a story that would satisfy people who were already familiar with the topic as well as — and more importantly — reach a wider audience with a topic that’s often in their periphery without much thought to it otherwise while
(C) Making it pretty entertaining, too. You can’t do a story about gossip without a little gossip in it. I mean, you could, but it wouldn’t be as much fun as this.

The main aim of the story wasn’t necessarily to declare anything “dead” though — because those pieces are more often than not, wrong — and in fact, not really to declare anything
anything so much as just let the people who make these things speak for themselves, and then take stock of it. I’ve personally experienced the not-great sensation of fucking up some story or reading someone else’s half-baked trend piece with anonymous sources that everyone writes off because it begins with the same conclusion it’s going to end with, and everything in that story is dedicated to reach some grand proclamation. What emerged was, what we think of at least as a pretty accurate picture.

There’re some leftover questions, mainly,
Why should I give a shit about gossip? and What does gossip even mean any more? among others. We’re gonna be taking some of the awesome interview material we have still - and there’s plenty - and churning some blog posts out of it. This thing isn’t done yet. That’ll be fun, too. Bloggers and print, mixing! It happens.

 Anyway, back to that email: I’m happy with this, but Joe, I mean, Joe fucking killed it, here. This wouldn’t have happened without him. The soul and balance and intelligence of this piece was him. Joe talked me off the ledge one night early on after something we thought we had fell through (when we thought our deadline was a week earlier than it actually was, ha) from basically going into Tony’s office, curling in the fetal position, and telling him to run a five page crossword puzzle (still a decent idea, but glad we went with this). Joe’s also just turned 23 22! Which is insane.

Between this, Meagan’s name on bookshelves, Lilit’s name of bookshelves, Stelter with the A1, and Adam Frucci’s new digs, it’s a pretty exciting week for young writers/mediapeople in New York City. Oh, and also: It’s the first day of September, the best month of the year. On an oversharey note, five years ago this month, the day before my 21st birthday, I moved here after dropping out of college and basically was told my life was fucked by everyone but four people, and as much as I loved them, I was pretty sure everyone else was correct. Don’t want to tempt fate, but I’m pretty sure those four people turned out to be right.

And to celebrate this, I’m buying one of them a drink tonight.
And then getting blackout drunk with Joe. 
Happy September

(via youngmanhattanite)

PLUS, BARBARA IS BACK! (via pareene)

PLUS, BARBARA IS BACK! (via pareene)

Aug 27

I’ve officially been on the field of both Meadowlands.

I’ve officially been on the field of both Meadowlands.

3rd Row on the 50 yardline. Not too shabby.

3rd Row on the 50 yardline. Not too shabby.

Aug 24

staff:

Name Ra Ra RiotLocation Formed in Syracuse, NY / Currently touringFirst Post July 2009
Ra Ra Riot is an indie rock band from Syracuse, NY that fuses swooning strings and intricate, emotional vocals to create a unique sound. Formed way back in 2006, they got their start doing shows around the Syracuse University campus and eventually moved up to music festivals. Consisting of a vocalist, guitarist, bassist, cellist, violinist, and drummer, they quickly started to grab attention thanks to their energetic live performances and the well-orchestrated layers of their music. RRR use their blog to show fans glimpses into their daily lives and into life on the road as they tour the world. Their second full-length album, The Orchard, drops today.
Also check out…
Crimes against Hugh’s Manatees A daily comic strip which features a variety of animals who experience the same mundane experiences that we humans have to put up with. Also, dinosaurs!
Oh Yeah Facts Edmund Burke said that “facts are to the mind what food is to the body.” I’m positive this is true because I just read it on Oh Yeah Facts.
My Mom Reviews My Photos Tanner takes a photo every day, emails it to mom, and then posts her commentary which may or may not have anything to do with the actual photo. Mom’s dog Toby also weighs in.
Be sure to recommend your favorite blog today!

I have been the 2nd worst OYF contributor in the history of OYF (the 1st worst just disappeared from the internet), but this makes me proud. Especially because the driving force of OYF is none other than a 16 year old who is way smarter/more dedicated than I’ve been towards anything ever. Hats off, Adg.

staff:

Name Ra Ra Riot
Location Formed in Syracuse, NY / Currently touring
First Post July 2009

Ra Ra Riot is an indie rock band from Syracuse, NY that fuses swooning strings and intricate, emotional vocals to create a unique sound. Formed way back in 2006, they got their start doing shows around the Syracuse University campus and eventually moved up to music festivals. Consisting of a vocalist, guitarist, bassist, cellist, violinist, and drummer, they quickly started to grab attention thanks to their energetic live performances and the well-orchestrated layers of their music. RRR use their blog to show fans glimpses into their daily lives and into life on the road as they tour the world. Their second full-length album, The Orchard, drops today.

Also check out…

Crimes against Hugh’s Manatees
A daily comic strip which features a variety of animals who experience the same mundane experiences that we humans have to put up with. Also, dinosaurs!

Oh Yeah Facts
Edmund Burke said that “facts are to the mind what food is to the body.” I’m positive this is true because I just read it on Oh Yeah Facts.

My Mom Reviews My Photos
Tanner takes a photo every day, emails it to mom, and then posts her commentary which may or may not have anything to do with the actual photo. Mom’s dog Toby also weighs in.

Be sure to recommend your favorite blog today!

I have been the 2nd worst OYF contributor in the history of OYF (the 1st worst just disappeared from the internet), but this makes me proud. Especially because the driving force of OYF is none other than a 16 year old who is way smarter/more dedicated than I’ve been towards anything ever. Hats off, Adg.

Aug 22

“We have this really exciting idea to do a tour where we spend two nights in each city, and the first night, we play the entire Blue album, and the second night, we play the entirety of Pinkerton. We’re just running it by promoters right now to see if there’s sufficient interest in the markets to do something like that, and if they’re on board, it’s gonna happen.” —

Rivers Cuomo (via soupsoup)

This would change my life, I would spend any amount of money to go to both of these shows.

Aug 21

[video]

Last play at Shea making me teary-eyed over and over.

Last play at Shea making me teary-eyed over and over.

Aug 20

Great Moments in Drunken Hook Up Failure: LIVE -

Yes, I have a massive map of Long Island over my bed. So?

Aug 16

Wrist tattoo…thoughts? Too much? Does saying “Yes and No” all the time warrant a decidedly nerdy permanent inking? I suppose not.

Wrist tattoo…thoughts? Too much? Does saying “Yes and No” all the time warrant a decidedly nerdy permanent inking? I suppose not.