In addition to Hodgman's work on Judge John Hodgman, he has contributed pieces to This American Life and Wiretap. His most recent book, That Is All, was published in 2011. Brantley Gutierrez/Courtesy of Maximum Fun hide caption
Culture
Saturday
Sherman Alexie models an Indies First tote bag. He plans to put in shifts at five Seattle bookstores this Saturday. American Booksellers Association hide caption
Seven In One Blow, which plays at New York City's Axis Theater, is one of many recurring holiday-season productions across the U.S. that bring a distinctly local flavor and history to bear. Dixie Sheridan hide caption
How to make dead fish look attractive? That's the challenge New York-based duo Shimon and Tammar Rothstein faced when they were hired to do the photography for famed French chef Eric Ripert's book On the Line. Photos by Shimon and Tammar, Courtesy of Shimon and Tammar hide caption
Friday
In The Great Beauty, director Paolo Sorrentino surveys the city of Rome through the eyes of jaded journalist Jep Gambardella (Toni Servillo), taking in the city's degeneracies alongside its eternal beauties. Gianni Fiorito/Janus Films hide caption
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (second from left) shakes hands with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry next to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (far left) and French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius (far right) after a statement on early November 24, 2013 in Geneva. Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
After 20 years in captivity, Joe (Josh Brolin) is released into the world with a hammer and an appetite for revenge in Oldboy, a Spike Lee remake of the 2003 South Korean film. Hilary Bronwyn Gayle/FilmDistrict hide caption
Want to warp your little robots? We've got some suggestions. Charles Taylor/iStockphoto hide caption
Thursday
Idris Elba plays Nelson Mandela in a biographical film based on the former South African president's memoir. Keith Bernstein/The Weinstein Company hide caption
Jacob Latimore (from left), Angela Bassett, Jennifer Hudson and Forest Whitaker power through the season in Kasi Lemmons' Black Nativity, a Christmas movie musical based on Langston Hughes' gospel oratorio. Phil Bray/Fox Searchlight Pictures hide caption
Musician and riot grrrl Kathleen Hanna — formerly of Bikini Kill and Le Tigre, now with The Julie Ruin — is the fascinating central figure in the biographical documentary The Punk Singer. Allison Michael Orenstein/Opening Band Films hide caption
National Novel Writing Month — or NaNoWriMo — ends November 30th, and writers around the world are scrambling to meet the 50,000 word goal. iStockphoto hide caption