JamesMarcus

James Marcus is a writer, translator, critic, and editor. He is the author of Amazonia: Five Years at the Epicenter of the Dot-Com Juggernaut and five translations from the Italian (the most recent being Dino: The Life and Films of Dino De Laurentiis and Collusion: International Espionage and the War on Terror). He has contributed to the Los Angeles Times Book Review, Newsday, the Atlantic Monthly, the New York Times Book Review, Lingua Franca, the Nation, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and many other publications. He also written about jazz, pop, and classical music for Salon, The Oregonian, and WBUR Online Arts, and is currently editor-at-large at The Columbia Journalism Review. He blogs at www.housemirth.blogspot.com.

my website

http://www.housemirth.blogspot.com/

Submitted Comments (132)

Is Amazon Treating Gay Authors as Second-Class Citizens? »

• I understand your skepticism, David. I'm just saying that as a former employee, it's hard for me to see the company as a bastion of ...

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• Yeah, the whole thing is still a little mysterious. I updated the blog post to include a newish mea culpa issued by an Amazon spokesperson, ...

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• 5 comments from 4 members total

Welcome Home BB! »

• Welcome back, BB. The joint just isn't the same without you.

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 6 replies View »

• 70 comments from 45 members total

Propeller Week In Review: April 9, 2009 »

• Uh, ditto :).

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• Glad to have you here, Funnyboyz, and have a Happy Easter yourself.

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• Many thanks, C-M. I hope you have a splendid holiday weekend yourself.

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• That post was on the AOL Welcome screen, hence the tsunami of traffic.

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• Hey, ranch! We're filling in all the remaining potholes this weekend. Meanwhile, thanks for the positive and it's great to see you around again.

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• I'm glad you noticed that the plot of "Slumdog Millionaire" was stolen directly from the WIR :).

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• I second that emotion :).

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 2 replies View »

• Yesterday we did the full-body Passover immersion: a five-pound brisket, matzoh-ball soup, gefilte fish (homemade from red snapper and cilantro, but not by me), flourless ...

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 3 replies View »

• Tsk tsk :). We can't take you anywhere, Will.

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• Thanks, N2N. I like the photo of all the world leaders jumping off that high step. It looks like they're all doing the Frug at ...

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• Way to go! The fruit basket should be there any minute.

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• 34 comments from 16 members total

YouTube - While My Guitar Gently Weeps - George Harrison »

• Excellent video of a song not included on the original LP release. Love the dual drumming by Ringo and Jim Keltner, and the guitar duel ...

  8 months, 2 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• 23 comments from 12 members total

The Beatles finally go digital! »

• This interesting exchange inspired me to get out the Marsh book and look at the relevant discussion. Here's the short version: in the UK, the ...

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 2 replies View »

• Oh, I'm a purist like you--I much prefer the original "Beatles For Sale." But Capitol wasn't reconfiguring the records to squeeze out extra singles. In ...

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 4 replies View »

• Since the first tranche of CD issues in 1987, I've become totally used to the British album configurations. But not long ago, I did download ...

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 6 replies View »

• My Beatles vinyl is all 40 years old and full of scratches, ticks, and pops. Most of it is probably semi-unplayable at this point. But ...

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 8 replies View »

• I've been waiting for this to happen for years. Most of the old transfers from 1987 just don't sound that great--often much worse than the ...

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• 12 comments from 4 members total

Obama Fried Chicken Joints Pop Up Around Town »

• Folks, I can only say that this story is not about racism. The chicken joint is in Harlem and is most likely owned by an ...

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 2 replies View »

• 70 comments from 28 members total

Propeller Week In Review: April 3, 2009 »

• I got all choked up and couldn't say a word :).

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• And sometimes I just DIVIDE and conquer.

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• 8 months, 3 weeks ago 3 replies View »

• By now I'm sure a neatly trimmed Van Dyke would make those guys feel completely naked.

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• I got started early today, STONERS--I like to keep the customers happy :). Anyway, glad you enjoyed it, and have an excellent weekend yourself.

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• Reminds me of my favorite line from "Unfaithfully Yours," uttered by a fan to an orchestra conductor: "No one handles Handel the way you handle ...

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• Once again, ind06, you are the man.

  8 months, 3 weeks ago 0 replies View »

• 25 comments from 12 members total

Angie Harmon: I'm Not Racist Because I Disagree with Obama »

• Disagreeing with Obama does not make her a racist, not any more than disagreeing with Sarah Palin makes you a misogynist.

  8 months, 4 weeks ago 2 replies View »

• 29 comments from 18 members total

Propeller Week in Review: March 27, 2009 »

• Thanks a million, Progressive, that made my day. Michelle Phillips looks like a little choir girl, and Denny Doherty--well, he should have stuck with the ...

  8 months, 4 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• The Beatles didn't lip-synch on Ed Sullivan--not the first few times, anyway.

  8 months, 4 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• The pop-off blocker prevents you from viewing the WIR Photo Gallery, handcrafted and compiled by yours truly. You can always allow it to make this ...

  8 months, 4 weeks ago 1 reply View »

• The Mugwumps--that is going back a ways! Of course you're right, almost everybody lip-synched back then, no shame attached to it.

  9 months ago 1 reply View »

• Next time, Tim, I promise you an extensive photo gallery of your two GOP sweethearts :).

  9 months ago 0 replies View »

• Thanks EE, and you have a great week yourself.
  
  I was looking for a good M video of "Dedicated to the One I Love," ...

  9 months ago 3 replies View »

• Yep, she does tiptoe around in those go-go boots :). Apparently the whole story about the ham sandwich is a mean-spirited rumor, by the way. ...

  9 months ago 3 replies View »

• Re: the pina colada, if only. No, it was an appointment with the ear, nose, and throat doctor, then some parent-teacher conferences, then a software ...

  9 months ago 0 replies View »

• Couldn't you disable the pop-up blocker for just 1.5 seconds? It would me so much to us. Meanwhile, thanks for the kind words, and we're ...

  9 months ago 0 replies View »

• 27 comments from 12 members total

Newt's Resurrection »

• Wow. I don't really care which church Newt attends, but having just read the Daily Beast article, I was fascinated to learn more about "leading ...

  9 months ago 0 replies View »

• 9 comments from 8 members total

Gateway Pundit: House Passes Hitler Youth Bill »

• PC, you've got two different things here. There is the bill just passed in the House, which calls for a commission to examine whether mandatory ...

  9 months ago 0 replies View »

• I am being real. Obviously the meaning of any statute can be twisted or fudged, but this one is pretty explicit about forbidding politically partisan ...

  9 months ago 2 replies View »

• Thanks for the tip :).

  9 months ago 0 replies View »

• You may not like mandatory community service for young people, but that's a far, far cry from brownshirt thuggery. By the way, many states already ...

  9 months ago 7 replies View »

• 210 comments from 41 members total

Propeller Week In Review: March 20, 2009 »

• Ah, neutrality--it's a blessing and a curse. But if we were all magnanimous here at Propeller, the place would be far more dull. The occasional ...

  9 months, 1 week ago 0 replies View »

• I was at the NBCC Awards last week, so I was unable to write the WIR. That aside, rumors of my death have been vastly ...

  9 months, 1 week ago 0 replies View »

• That keg's not returnable, is it? Might as well tap it, folks :).

  9 months, 1 week ago 0 replies View »

• Pupi, STONERS, thanks for the kind words, and I hope you have a great weekend yourselves.

  9 months, 1 week ago 0 replies View »

• Eagerly anticipating the WIR, as if it's the most important thing in the world, actually makes you good :). Exemplary, in fact.

  9 months, 1 week ago 1 reply View »

• Mine too :).

  9 months, 1 week ago 1 reply View »

• You're fast, Will! I think you propped and commented exactly one nanosecond after the WIR was posted. Anyway, glad you liked it. Have a great ...

  9 months, 1 week ago 0 replies View »

• 29 comments from 17 members total

CJR: MySpace Odyssey »

• Thanks, EE. I'm afraid that online crooks and liars don't limit themselves to country folk--they're happy to steal from city dwellers as well.

  9 months, 1 week ago 0 replies View »

• Many thanks, Shadow.

  9 months, 1 week ago 0 replies View »

• It was a fun assignment, yes, and I'm glad you enjoyed it. I'll have to hunt down that NY magazine story--I want to see a ...

  9 months, 1 week ago 3 replies View »

• 7 comments from 4 members total

Yahoo News - The American Legion Strongly Opposed to President's Plan to Charge Wounded Heroes for Treatment »

• Why don't you ask the guys in the video?

  9 months, 1 week ago 1 reply View »

• Proof that military veterans hate him right back:
  
  http://blog.propeller.com/2008/08/26/a-sacred-trus...

  9 months, 1 week ago 3 replies View »

• I wasn't defending Obama, I was pointing out that a press release isn't the most reliable source of news. I can't believe you're arguing with ...

  9 months, 1 week ago 3 replies View »

• If Obama is intent on screwing veterans, then he deserves a paddling. However, we won't hear the other side of the story in this article, ...

  9 months, 1 week ago 6 replies View »

• 34 comments from 16 members total

CJR: Carl Malamud, Public Printer »

• Thanks, STONERS. I thought that Malamud sounded like a fascinating guy, and I hope he gets the gig.

  9 months, 1 week ago 1 reply View »

• 13 comments from 8 members total