The First Friday Link Roundup of 2025...

With love to Los Angeles.

Deep Orange California Sunset by Arte Index/Getty Images

I tend to read, watch, and listen to a lot of Oldster-adjacent content. Every other Friday (or so!) I’ll pass some of it along to you in a link roundup like this one.

While I have you…The advertiser-funded and venture-capital-funded approaches to media have failed, and led to the demise of most legacy outlets. Fortunately, the reader-supported approach is working. Support with your dollars the publications you’d like to see survive. Your paid subscriptions help me to keep publishing Oldster Magazine, and to pay contributors. They are greatly appreciated! Thank you!

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• Sending love to all affected by the devastating fires in L.A. - CNN. It’s been so devastating seeing photos and videos of the flames, smoke, and catastrophic wreckage. Here are some links for helping those in need:

  • GoFundMe

  • Mutual Aid LA Network

  • California Fire Foundation

  • Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation

  • Direct Relief

  • 211 LA, which is connecting evacuees with free AirBnbs

• “It Is Tearing Me Up Not to Be in L.A. Right Now” - Oldster contributor David Ulin in The New York Times.

• Jimmy Carter, the 39th President of the United States, who died on December 29th, 2024, was laid to rest this week. - PBS

  

• Jimmy Carter on Death - Rick Rojas at The New York Times.

• RIP Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary Fame, who died this week at 86. - Jem Aswad and Chris Willman at Variety.

  walkonthewildsidenyc

  

  A post shared by @walkonthewildsidenyc

• Happy 78th birthday to punk icon Patti Smith.

  theseventiesoul

  

  A post shared by @theseventiesoul

• “Demi Moore’s stellar second act: how the star was finally given her due at 62.” - Steve Rose in The Guardian

  evanrosskatz

  

  A post shared by @evanrosskatz

• I had mixed feelings about The Substance, but I was moved by Demi Moore’s Golden Globes acceptance speech. And at The Shift, sam baker has interesting things to say about the implications (or lack thereof) in Moore’s win.

• At my other magazine, Memoir Land, Peter Catapano writes “It Must Have Been Eggs: In Memory of Spalding Gray,” whose 21-year death anniversary is tomorrow, January 11th.

  

• “Middle Age Is Sexy Now” - Alexis Soloski in The New York Times.

  lacancircle

  

  A post shared by @lacancircle

• “Kim Deal Tells Kim Gordon Why Contemporary Life Feels Like a Disaster Movie” - the two Kims talk with one another at Interview.

• “At 90 He Finally Had His Bar Mitzvah” - John Leland in The New York Times

• Upstaters: This Monday, 1/13 at 7pm, Upstate Films/Orpheum Theatre in Saugerties has a screening of Let’s Get Lost, the Chet Baker documentary that’s hard to find. I’ve always wanted to see it but have never found it available for rental or screening, so I’m going to try to leave…my…house…in..the..winter…❄️ to see it.

  upstate_films

  

  A post shared by @upstate_films

• I think I need to read Golden Years: How Americans Invented and Reinvented Old Age by James Chappel.

  

  Order the book…

• Remember 66-year-old debut filmmaker Ilise Harris?

  This is 66: Debut Filmmaker Ilise Harris Responds to The Oldster Magazine Questionnaire

  Ilise has completed Your Roots Are Showing, her “documentary that explores the global movement of women choosing not to cover their gray hair.” Through February 11th, Oldster subscribers can stream the movie at a 20% discount using the code “oldsternewyear”.

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That’s all I’ve got for now. More next week! Stay tuned…

Thanks as always for reading, for commenting thoughtfully, and for all your support. 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝 🙏 💝

-Sari