Welcome to the Monday Memo — your pop culture snapshot from Manifesto.
Hey friends, Mondays can be tough. Here are 7 things to make November 6th, 2023, a bit better. Office Dialogue: When is TOO early to decorate for the holidays?
1. Artist of the Week: Lucy Salmon
Lucy Salmon is an illustrator based near Bath, UK. She loves strong coffee, gouache, and colored pencils. Salmon is often inspired by her surroundings, drawing ideas from the cozy and quaint villages of Southwest England. She says, "I have been drawing for as long as I can remember and I experiment and draw in my sketchbook almost every day. For me, drawing is exploratory and expressive, I love to make work that tells a story about everyday moments, and that connects with others."
2. What we're listening to: Ghost Story - Apple Podcasts
Spooky season may be over, but that doesn't mean you should miss this delightful podcast from Wondery. Host Tristan Redman is a seasoned journalist who doesn’t believe in ghosts. But weird things happened in the bedroom he lived in as a teenager. When he discovers years later that the ghost of a faceless woman has visited subsequent occupants of the same house, he’s curious. It just so happens that Tristan’s childhood home is right next door to the house where his wife’s great-grandmother, Naomi Dancy, was murdered in 1937 – killed by two gunshots to the face. Could there be a connection between the ghost and the murder?
3. What we're watching: All the Light We Cannot See - Netflix
Based on the international best-seller, All the Light We Cannot See follows the story of Marie-Laure, a blind French teenager, and Werner, a German soldier, whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II. All four parts of this buzzed-about miniseries dropped last week, so strap in for an incredible story of resilience and perseverance.
*SCREAMS IN MILLENNIAL* Last week, Walmart debuted their Black Friday spot featuring the cast of the 2004 cult-classic, Mean Girls. The commercial shows us our beloved characters in 2023—guidance counselor Cady Heron (Lohan), weather reporter Karen Smith (Seyfried), stage mom Gretchen Wieners (Chabert), proud dad Kevin Gnapoor (Surendra), and bestie Damian (Franzese)—returning to North Shore High School where a new crew of It girls rule the halls. The ad revisits some of the film's most iconic scenes but features items from their Black Friday promotion. Lucky for us, there is more to come. Walmart will be releasing a new commercial featuring the cast every Wednesday leading up to Black Friday and on Cyber Monday, Nov. 27. That means more content — and deals — to look forward to. This is a perfect combination of nostalgia with a fresh spin. Two for you, Walmart! You go, Walmart!
5. Cognitive Bias of the Week: Plan Continuation Bias
The plan continuation bias is the unconscious cognitive bias to continue with the original plan despite changing conditions. Let's think about a beach vacation. We have been planning this trip for months, but when the time finally arrives it is unseasonably cold and rainy. What?!?!?! The plan was to lay on a warm beach, go snorkeling, and eat dinner on the patio. While it's understandable to be upset, we still may feel like the push to stick to the plan. Even though it might be a better idea to check out museums or a movie, we may instead stick with the plan and sit on the beach with a rain jacket. There are two reasons we act this way. The first is an overly optimistic estimate of the probability of success, possibly to reduce cognitive dissonance after making a decision ("It's normally nice here during April!"). The second is that of personal responsibility: when you are personally accountable, it is difficult to admit that you were wrong ("How was I supposed to know it was hurricane season?"). The lesson here: go with the flow.
The movie, set to debut in November, chronicles the life of Radcliffe’s “Harry Potter” stunt double, who worked closely alongside Radcliffe from “Sorcerer’s Stone” all the way to “Deathly Hallows Part 1” when he was tragically paralyzed during a set accident. 6. Good News of the Week:
Daniel Radcliffe produced a documentary about his ‘Harry Potter’ stunt double, who was paralyzed while filming the franchise (Variety)
A new study shows that green spaces could reduce gun violence (GGG)
A teen started an ambitious coral reef restoration project that’s planted more than 50,000 corals in French Polynesia and Fiji (Harper's)
Abandoned Ohio golf course being rewilded into public land with native fish and wildlife returning (GNN)
7. Bonus: Now and Then - The Beatles
The Beatles’ final song is now streaming thanks to AI. Machine learning helped Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr turn an old John Lennon demo into what’s likely the band’s last collaborative effort.