Classifieds
Call: #734-418-4115
Email: dailydisplay@gmail.com
ACROSS
1 Hershey’s toffee
bar
5 Res __ loquitur:
the thing speaks
for itself
9 Online shopping
mecca
14 Chip in a chip
15 Seasonal song
16 Hunky-dory
17 Start of a knitting
project
18 Prefix with space
19 Dry Italian wine
20 Tailpipe emission
23 Hot state
24 Beatty/Hoffman
box office flop
28 Tug-of-war
injuries
32 Former fillies
34 Ready for a refill
35 Freelancer’s email
attachment: Abbr.
36 Glider on runners
37 Flowing garments
38 Sonar signal
39 Word in a bride’s
bio
40 Went a-courting
41 Two-time US
Open winner
42 Hair-smoothing
hairs
45 Library machine
46 “__ the Walrus”
47 Shellfish
cookouts
54 Medicare
prescription drug
section
57 Pre-coll.
58 Brandy bottle
letters
59 Prospero’s
servant
60 Highest sudoku
digit
61 Hip bones
62 Free, in France
63 Armoire feature
64 Counting-out
word
DOWN
1 Cyber Monday
event
2 Fort with lots of
bars
3 “Then again,” in
tweets
4 Fixed
5 “Be right with
you”
6 Pound, but not
ounce
7 Medieval laborer
8 Six-time All-Star
Moises
9 Slips past
10 __ pork:
Chinese dish
served with
pancakes
11 Letters often
after a perp’s
name
12 Loo
13 Corrosive
substance
21 “Exodus” author
22 Money makers
25 Warbles
26 Musical set in an
orphanage
27 Replies to an
invite, for short
28 Make available
29 “__ coffee?”
30 Louvre Pyramid
architect
31 Pages with views
32 Rachel Maddow’s
network
33 Final Olds made
37 Charming
snake?
38 2007 animated
film in which Sting
voices himself
40 Coax
41 Big chunk
43 Many a
bridesmaid
44 Less cluttered
48 Shift
(for oneself)
49 Hodgepodge
50 “How awful!”
51 Cruise stop
52 Pork choice
53 Do a vet’s job
54 Chum
55 NPR journalist
Shapiro
56 Bone in a cage
By Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke
©2016 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
09/14/16
09/14/16
ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
RELEASE DATE– Wednesday, September 14, 2016
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
xwordeditor@aol.com
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6A — Wednesday, September 14, 2016
Arts
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
By SAM ROSENBERG
Daily Social Media Columnist
W
e live in an age
where
originality
is gradually dying
out. From superhero blockbuster
movies to Top 40 pop music to
network sitcoms, almost every
medium relies on a formula and
it’s becoming more apparent every
day. Though certain works have
tweaked their respective formulas
in new and exciting ways, there
are some that can’t help but be
processed and standardized into
the same product with a subtly
different appeal. What’s even
more appalling is how people
who use these formulas are able
to accrue social currency and
monetary value by simply copying
off of more talented and lesser-
known artists.
This pattern of copycatting
other
people
is
especially
evident on social media outlets
like Instagram, where popular
users
like
@TheFatJewish
(8.9m followers) and @fuckjerry
(9.7m followers) are known for
reposting funny memes that have
originally appeared on Tumblr,
Reddit, Imgur and Twitter. They
may credit the original creators,
but the way @TheFatJewish, @
fuckjerry and similar accounts
capitalize
on
other
people’s
creativity feels somewhat greedy
and even downright immoral.
@TheFatJewish,
@
fuckjerry
and
other
copycat
Instagrammers — @miinute (80k
followers),
@thefunnyintrovert
(237k
followers)
and
@
americadoingthings
(81.9k
followers)
—
have
managed
to make a lucrative lifestyle
for
themselves,
simply
by
re-captioning a picture to make it
seem as though they’ve changed
it to fit their own personality.
In particular, @TheFatJewish,
whose
real
name
is
Josh
Ostrovsky, has become a massive
success due to his immensely
popular
Instagram
account.
Currently raking in six figures, @
TheFatJewish signed with CAA
in 2015 and also helped launch
White Girl Rosé, a wine targeted
to his millennial audience. @
fuckjerry, also known as Elliot
Tebele, has also made a paramount
empire
for
himself,
having
founded his own agency titled
Jerry Media. He is set to make $1.5
million to 3 million in revenue over
the next 12 months, according to a
Forbes interview in April. Tebele
has also branched out, creating
other
meme-filled
accounts,
including a Kanye parody account
(@kanyedoingthings,
919k
followers) and a daily pizza picture
blog (@pizza, 455k followers), and
a fashion meme Instagram (@
beigecardigan, 2.5m followers).
Both of their successes are
definitely admirable, considering
how they know exactly how to
market
themselves.
However,
that doesn’t excuse the fact that
both
@TheFatJewish
and
@
fuckjerry make careers out of
stealing
intellectual
property
from other people for the sake of
entertaining avid Instagram users
and subsequently grossing lots
of money. @TheFatJewish has
especially attracted controversy
from other artists and comedians
for stealing jokes and ideas,
provoking the ire of Timothy
Simons,
Patton
Oswalt
and
Kumail Nanjiani. And while @
fuckjerry has attempted to expand
on his social media enterprise,
he continues to capitalize on
providing
“funny,
relatable”
content that already exists on other
platforms and attempts to fit his
own spritz of a joke in the caption
to make it seem more “authentic.”
To me, it seems rather unfair
for people to dilute posts, made by
others who actually put in effort,
to make a buck. Twitter accounts
like tina (@tinatbh, 777k followers)
and Common White Girl (@
girlposts, 6.44m followers) also
share similar copycat approaches,
generating a massive amount of
followers from reposting funny
videos and memes that are clearly
from different sources. On a more
psychological level, online copycat
culture also reinforces the idea
that in order to be funny or make
money, you as a millennial should
take advantage of social media
and copy other people as well.
Do people not see the plagiaristic
façade behind these accounts? Is
anything even original anymore?
Does God exist? The answers to
these questions are uncertain.
Granted, for those wanting to
succeed, it is really hard to make
your own individual voice stand
out from a crowd of like-minded
people. This is probably why it’s
much easier to use other people’s
work as a means of not only
generating content, but attracting
a bigger audience. Heck, I’ll even
admit that in high school, I used
to copy funny Tumblr posts and
pass them off as my own Facebook
statuses without crediting the
original creator. I loved getting
likes from people, but I didn’t
know then what I know now
about the morals of intellectual
property. As a social media user,
the most effective way to honestly
portray your ideas and thoughts is
through your own voice. It’s OK
to be inspired and influenced by
other artists and yes, sometimes
using borrowing (and crediting)
the work of another person can
help articulate your idea for an
essay or article more clearly. But if
you want to make a genuine living,
please don’t try and steal someone
else’s work and pass it off as your
own. Simultaneously, even if you
credit other people for using their
work, it still doesn’t justify taking
advantage of them and making
gargantuan amounts of money.
Sure, you might be able to score
an interview with Katie Couric
like TheFatJewish or create your
own meme-based board game
called “What Do You Meme?” like
fuckjerry. But to quote from a cool
Pinterest post I saw, “Create a life
that feels good on the inside, not
one that just looks good on the
outside.”
Rosenberg is The Daily’s new
Social Media Columnist. Email
him at samjrose@umich.edu.
SOCIAL MEDIA COLUMN
The soul-sucking pit
of capitalism
‘Bird’ is zany progress
By SHAYAN SHAFII
Daily Arts Writer
If you do the same thing long
enough, eventually something will
stick. Hip hop
is
constantly
changing,
but
that
can
be
mostly
attrib-
uted to new and
unique
artists
bursting
onto
the scene year
after year, rath-
er than estab-
lished stalwarts
reinventing
themselves album after album.
Popular rap music is a revolving
door; last year’s Bobby Shmurda
was this year’s Fetty Wap, who has
already been eclipsed by the unfor-
gettable Desiigner. Travis Scott is
the guy who stands on the other
side of that door, taking photos
with rappers as they enter while
covering his face and talking about
“vibes.” It’s been a couple of years,
and now he’s just “that guy.” It’s
finally stuck.
Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight
is a continuation of what Travis
has always done; it’s like he just
changed clothes and invented a
new gang sign. He’ll never be as
influential or memorable as any
of the rappers he poses with, but
that’s fine. Maybe “the culture”
needs an annual aggregator in the
form of a “Travis Scott Album” — a
summary of the year’s most excit-
ing entrants and sonic trends.
Much like how Kanye West has
made a living out of orchestrat-
ing unlikely collaborations (think:
Chief Keef with Justin Vernon)
to make music greater than the
sum of its parts, Travis tailors
the red carpet for each of his
album’s guests. In a way, it’s actu-
ally remarkable how he coordi-
nates appearances from Kendrick
Lamar and Andre 3000 to make a
project that doesn’t feel like a DJ
Khaled album. Yet, like Khaled,
Travis Scott is more brand than
man. The album credits just fuel
his status as the shape-shifting kid
with cool friends.
Even the title — Birds in the Trap
Sing McKnight — feels fit for some
sort of luxury-trap motion pic-
ture. It conjures imagery of doves
pouring out of an Atlanta kitchen
window while Curtis Snow cooks
crack in a Pyrex pot. It has noth-
ing to do with his music, message,
fans, whatever, but it sounds as
cool as he wants it to be.
To focus too much on the con-
text of a Travis Scott album would
be reductive in nature, though. At
the end of the day, it’s 54 minutes
of actual music. I can’t tell you to
like or dislike it. If you only listen
to music because it sounds cool
on Xanax, I guess you’ll like this
album. Executive-produced and
mixed by Houston legend Mike
Dean, Birds features some of the
most lush production this year,
ensuring that the project will at
least rest easy on the ears.
“Coordinate” lurches under a
synth melody from TM88, with
a hook that’s guaranteed to fea-
ture on every fit-pic caption this
year: “Coordinate the Xan with
the lean in my rockstar skinnies”.
The track feels mostly inspired by
Metro Boomin’s record-breaking
run through Summer 2015, and
Xanax too.
“Way Back” features classic
GOOD Music ad-libs and Swizz
Beatz vocal samples while lift-
ing a synth melody straight from
MadeinTYO’s
“Uber
Every-
where.” Travis juxtaposes nostal-
gia for Dark Twisted Fantasy-era
West with newer and more dis-
posable SoundCloud-rap, which is
actually a creative palette unique
to him. Swizz’s voice echoes and
reverberates off the walls of Tra-
vis’s imaginary trap; neon-haired
friends nod in enjoyment.
“Through the Late Night” is
a song about staying up late, at
night, while your parents sleep
down the hall. Kid Cudi finally
collaborates
with
his
surro-
gate child, humming for most of
his verse before rapping about
dimethyltryptamine and “effer-
vescent vibes.” Paying homage,
Travis actually interpolates lyrics
from Cudi’s 2009 smash hit “Day
‘N’ Night,” another song about not
sleeping.
The album’s standout track,
“Goosebumps,” has shades of
“Antidote” — Travis’s most suc-
cessful pop crossover attempt thus
far. The Cardo and Yung Exclu-
sive beat is reminiscent of the
atmospheric tones that character-
ized Kendrick Lamar’s untitled
unmastered., but with Travis’s
knack for earworm melodies and
textures layered on top. Kendrick
himself makes an appearance and
drops the best verse of the entire
album, alternating flows like he’s
trying to dodge the beat. He moves
to a steep falsetto after mirroring
the melody of the hook, stuttering
and stopping to catch his breath
but moving again before you can
even catch a glimpse.
All in all, the new Travis Scott
album sounds nice. The beats are
cool. No one will complain if you
play this at a party. Your friends
might admit it could have been
better “lyrically” and recom-
mend you check out Rodeo, where
Travis really lays down his “life
story” or something. If you’re into
stuff like being outside, at night,
while wearing vintage band tees, I
recommend you check out the hot
new Travis Scott album Birds in
the Trap Sing McKnight, in stores
now. Xans sold separately.
EPIC
Too spooky.
ALBUM REVIEW
B-
Birds in the
Trap Sing
McKnight
Travis Scott
Epic
TV REVIEW
‘Mississippi’ explores
grief on a spectrum
By DANIELLE YACOBSON
Daily Arts Writer
Watching “One Mississippi”
feels like laughing at a funeral.
The Amazon original, justly
advertised as
a dark com-
edy,
falls
somewhere
between hav-
ing a fantastic
sense of humor
and being seri-
ously messed-
up.
As
the
show explores
weighty themes — death, loss,
illness — a bitter hilarity levi-
tates the grief, just like that
inappropriate smile that loves to
wickedly curl during a sad story.
Inspired by comedian Tig
Notaro’s (“In A World”) life,
the series follows a version of
Tig as she returns to her home-
town in Mississippi after her
mother’s sudden death. As she
copes, heavily relying on sar-
casm and deadpan jabs, she is
forced to face her own mortality
in the aftermath of her recent
cancer treatments. While her
twisted humor can often read
as apathetic, perhaps it’s Nota-
ro’s aloofness that makes “One
Mississippi” so endearing. It’s
almost as if Tig is learning to
walk all over again, taking her
first steps in a world that is com-
pletely unfamiliar.
Grief has many faces; it can
be cold and hot, loud and quiet,
sometimes
even
completely
silent. “One Mississippi” deli-
cately illustrates a spectrum of
mourning through the strained
relationship forced between Tig
and her stepfather, Bill (John
Rothman, “Ghostbusters”). Bill,
a serious and reserved man, is
completely removed from the
humor that Tig uses to cope with
tragedy. Riddled with obses-
sive-compulsive-tendencies,
he actively distances himself
from sentiment. Yet, however
absent he seems at the begin-
ning, the series meticulously
chips away at his cold exterior to
reveal a genuine care for Tig. In
“Effects,” the second of the six
episodes released on Amazon
Prime, Bill’s rigorous internet
search for treatments of Tig’s C
Diff (a bacterial disruption of the
colon) leads to the episode’s gut-
wrenching punchline: a fecal
transplant. The joke seems juve-
nile and uncomfortable, which
is perhaps what makes laughing
irresistible. But despite the slew
of poop jokes that Tig doesn’t
hesitate to share, Bill offers to be
the fecal donor without hesita-
tion. Maybe that’s what family is
all about?
While comedy is often used
to take a break from the sad-
ness, the series employs a beau-
tiful artistry in its treatment of
tragedy. The script isn’t packed
with dialogue or soul-searching
monologues on the meaning of
life and death. Instead, pain and
sadness are best articulated in
just a few, well-selected words.
On the night before the funeral,
Tig’s girlfriend, Brooke (Casey
Wilson, “Happy Endings”), tells
her that tomorrow is a big day.
“Every day is now a small day,”
Tig replies.
As she retraces her steps
throughout her hometown, Tig
remembers her mother, Caroline
(Rya Khilstedt, “Home Alone
3”) in a series of flashbacks.
Dressed in vibrant florals with
a metallic snake coiled around
her forearm, Caroline ironically
breathes life into “One Missis-
sippi.” Memories of her are filled
with laughter and spunk, char-
acteristics that are devoid in the
shattered family she left behind.
She is the source of happiness
which, by itself, is laced bitter-
sweet.
While at times the acting
feels stilted and the characters
detached from their surround-
ings, the series is relatable
to anyone who needs a little
laughter to ease the pain. The
soundtrack is riddled with the
same irony, as Tig cues “One of
Us is Dead” by The Earlies. It’s
delicate and sarcastic; funny, yet
unthinkably tragic.
B
One
Mississippi
Now Streaming
Amazon Prime