A-Town Magazine
Of thee I sing: A guide to US patriotic songs, from ‘The Liberty Song’ to Jay-Z and Kanye West
NEW YORK | The history of American patriotic songs offers a lesson about the different ways you can say you love your country. Composers have celebrated endurance under fire ( “The Star-Spangled Banner” ) and invoked divine approval (“God Bless America”). While Toby Keith’s “Made in America” dares anyone to question American eminence, Woody Guthrie’s […]
Malls, once symbols of American consumer culture, are splitting. Some are dying as others thrive
LIVINGSTON, N.J. | I wasn’t a mall rat. Growing up in the 1970s, I didn’t hang out much with my friends at my local mall in New Jersey. The Livingston Mall, which opened in 1972 with stores including Bamberger’s, Sears and Hahne & Co., may have been a bustling social scene for my peers. But […]
Rei Ami from ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ and comedian Ken Jeong take a bite out of ‘Shark Week’
NEW YORK | Rei Ami, whose voice helped fuel the hit movie “KPop Demon Hunters,” recently found herself facing plenty of real hunters — watching from the ocean floor as about 16 reef sharks went on a feeding frenzy. She was scared, sure. But more than that, she was brought to tears. “I thought I’d […]
Study suggests the threat of mold-associated illnesses may be underappreciated
NEW YORK | A first-of-its-kind U.S. study suggests invasive mold infections may be an underappreciated — and potentially deadly — threat. The researchers detected about 450 cases in Atlanta-area hospitals over five years. About a third of the patients died in the hospital. The findings, published this week by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control […]
The Trump administration is ending a Medicare drug subsidy program. Here’s how it could affect costs
NEW YORK | Millions of older adults on Medicare prescription drug coverage could face steeper monthly costs in 2027, after the Trump administration concludes a temporary subsidy program that has helped offset premiums for the past two years. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services this week announced it would wrap up the program, which […]
A World Cup banner turns the Malvinas into a cultural obsession for a new generation in Argentina
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina | It took a World Cup to transform a remote cluster of islands that’s home to more sheep than people into a cultural juggernaut. A decision by Argentina’s players to unfurl a banner about the disputed Falkland Islands after defeating England in the World Cup semifinals carried a historical cause onto the […]
Between prices and a diarrhea-causing parasite, lettuce is causing hard times at some restaurants
It’s been a choppy year for restaurants that lean into lettuce. Lettuce prices rose sharply in the first half of 2026 due to hot weather in Arizona, where about one-third of America’s lettuce is grown. Now, restaurants are dealing with the fallout from a cyclospora outbreak linked to shredded lettuce that has sickened thousands of […]
The risks of waiting too long to harvest garden vegetables
We sowed. We planted. We watered, watched and waited. And now, beanstalks are reaching for the heavens, tomatoes are getting plump and zucchini are seemingly doubling in size overnight. Timing their harvests is a balancing act, and in many cases you, as gardener, are forced to choose between optimal flavor and yield. Sometimes, one must […]
Movie Review: Olivia Wilde rules playful BDSM comedy ‘I Want Your Sex’
Erika Tracy, the artist and provocateur at the heart of “I Want Your Sex,” may be the most quotable fictional female executive since Miranda Priestly “that’s all-ed” her way into film history. Yes, sure, it is a little strange to compare a very buttoned-up character in a mass-audience, PG-13-rated movie with one in a very […]
SENTINEL MUSE: Love is in the air, and on all kinds of stages and venues in and near Aurora
AURORA | Here’s your chance to marvel at a couple who just mailed it in. Get out of the heat and into the Vintage Theatre before the end of the month to spend time with Jack and Louise, who build a love for each other through letters on opposite ends of the country during World […]