Leah Pickett Pop Culture

The online future of television

By: Leah Pickett | Mar. 21, 2013

Mar. 21, 2013

In the future – 20 years from now – we may look back on House of Cards as the show that changed television.

Instead of airing on an established cable network like HBO or AMC, the American political drama series (executive produced by David Fincher and starring Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright and Kate Mara) premiered its entire first season on February 1, 2013 via the streaming service Netflix.

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The best Chicago books you haven't read yet

By: Leah Pickett | Mar. 20, 2013

Mar. 20, 2013

March has been a spectacular month for aspiring writers and writing programs.

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Kickstarter pros and cons

By: Leah Pickett | Mar. 18, 2013

Mar. 18, 2013

The Internet rejoiced last week when the "The Veronica Mars Movie Project," helmed by the original series creator Rob Thomas and enthusiastically supported by star Kristen Bell, broke a slew of records for the fundraising site Kickstarter.

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Fear and violence in Chicago: a female perspective

By: Leah Pickett | Mar. 15, 2013

Mar. 15, 2013

Out of all the violent crimes that take place in Chicago each year (including 506 homicides in 2012, the vast majority of them gun-related, and 62 in 2013 so far), tragedies involving young innocents like Hadiya Pendleton and Jonylah Watkins are always the ones that affect us the most.

We see their smiling faces--so alive and so full of promise--and our hearts break, as we imagine our daughters, our grandaughters and even ourselves at that age. Then, we shudder with the horrible realization: that could have been my daughter, my grandaughter.

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Can working women really have it all?

By: Leah Pickett | Mar. 13, 2013

Mar. 13, 2013

Good news: the U.S. unemployment rate just dropped to 7.7 percent, the lowest number we've seen in 4 years. Bad news: most of the highest-paid jobs in this country still belong to men.

The outliers in this scenario are two incredibly successful women of the Internet age: Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg and Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer.

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Art or smut? Debating 'Spring Breakers'

By: Leah Pickett | Mar. 11, 2013

Mar. 11, 2013

Harmony Korine has been pushing boundaries since 1995, when his breakout film Kids shocked and disturbed the nation with its graphic portrayal of teen sex, AIDS and drug use. However, Kids was also a groundbreaking piece of art house cinema: shot documentary-style with non-actors (a young Chloe Sevigny and even younger Rosario Dawson were literally plucked off the street for their first film roles), making the drama feel as raw and real as possible. As a writer, Korine's intention may have been to shock his audience; but Kids accomplished even more than that: it woke people up with a bang.

Unfortunately, Korine's latest foray into the adolescent underworld--Spring Breakers, opening this Friday in select theaters--doesn't look nearly as promising.

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Nick Offerman at the Music Box

By: Leah Pickett | Mar. 8, 2013

Mar. 8, 2013

Before Nick Offerman became Ron Swanson--rugged individualist, breakfast food aficionado and instant fan favorite on the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation--he was just another Chicago actor looking for his big break.

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