joe erbentraut
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‘Supermarket Sweep’ went off air but never left our hearts
“The next time you’re at a checkout counter and you hear that beep…” Beep beep! If you were a kid living in America during the ‘90s, it was almost impossible to avoid the above words, the iconic line that signaled closing time for each episode of Supermarket Sweep, the popular game show that premiered on…
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What really happened when Erykah Badu ‘put up a prayer’ to R. Kelly
The Grammy-winning neo soul icon could have played the role of “healer” at her Chicago show, instead she opened a wound with her remarks on R. Kelly.
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When artists cry out for help, how do we justify our silence?
Even after Amy in 2011, we didn’t take responsibility for how we contributed to her demise. In the curious case of Kanye, are we repeating our mistake?
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Belated thanksgivings
This year, I’m very thankful for health, home, love, friends and family — blood, four-legged and especially chosen, near and far. But I’m especially thankful for free HBO preview weekends, specifically The Leftovers, Justin Theroux and his perfect facial structure, The Comeback and an uncanny look into a time-mirror at future-me (Mickey Deane) and Getting On and…
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Manboobs and me
I was asked to read an essay as part of the Marrow reading series’ event at the Pitchfork Book Fort in Union Park on Sunday, July 20. This is what I read that day. I remember when I noticed my body was very different from most of the boys I knew. When I first came to…