Nathan Rabin
Nathan Rabin was the first and only head writer of The A.V Club, a site that employed him in various capacities for eighteen years. It was in this capacity that he coined the phrase “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” in the very first entry in My World of Flops, a column about cinematic failure that he has been writing for fifteen years.
He is the author of eight books, including 2013’s You Don’t Know Me But You Don’t Like Me, which got four stars from Rolling Stone and made its list of the top 20 music books of the year, and 2012’s Weird Al: The Book, a coffee table book he wrote with, and about “Weird Al” Yankovic. Rabin went on to write multiple subsequent books about Yankovic, including 2020’s The Weird Accordion to Al, an exhaustive guide to his life’s work and the 2021 coloring book The Weird A-Coloring to Al, which he created with illustrator Felipe Sobreiro.
Since 2017, Rabin has written for Nathan Rabin’s Happy Place, his personal website, and for the last few years has cohosted Travolta/Cage, a podcast that explores the complete filmographies of John Travolta and Nicolas Cage. He lives in Alpharetta with his wife, dog and two sons.
30 Years Ago, One Timeless Comedy Taught Men A Valuable Lesson
Groundhog Day is hilarious. But what it has to say about masculinity is perhaps even more valuable.
15 Years Later, The Greatest Stop Motion Duo Will Finally Get A New Movie
Yes! Wallace and Gromit are back.
'Turning Red' and Billie Eilish Deserved A Best Original Song Oscar Nom. Here's Why.
4*Town 4 ever.
You Need To Watch The Greatest Summer Camp Movie Before It Leaves Netflix
Addams Family Values is better than you remember.
'MILF Manor' Is A Real Version of '30 Rock’s' MILF Island
You haven’t even begun to cringe.
20 Years Ago, One Bizarre Kids' Movie Pull Off A Shameless Bait-And-Switch
Do you remember Kangaroo Jack? Are you sure?
How to Stream Classic ‘Looney Tunes’ Online Right Now
Here’s where to find the old-school stuff.
HBO Max Just Killed Classic Looney Tunes. Here’s Where To Watch It Now.
Families can still stream missing Looney Tunes episodes elsewhere. But what’s the endgame here?
46 Years Ago The Pointer Sisters Secretly Made The Best Sesame Street Song Ever
Anita Pointer has died at the age of 74. But children can still benefit from this enduring Sesame Street classic.
15 Years Ago, 'Walk Hard' Bombed At The Box Office. Now Its Songs Are Immortal
In 2007, Walk Hard wasn’t a hit. But now, it's brilliant.
The Dumb, Enduring Genius of Adam Sandler’s “The Chanukah Song”
28 years ago, Adam Sandler helped Jewish kids feel seen in the most hilarious way possible.
Why Adam Sandler’s Eight Crazy Nights Still Sucks For Jewish Dads
It's the most popular Chanukah movie of all time, which, for most of us, is a real bummer.
Watching A Charlie Brown Christmas Is Depressing. That’s Why It’s Great
The morose feeling of this 1965 classic is a feature, not a bug.
80 Years Ago, One Classic Movie Fought Toxic Masculinity And Nazis At The Same Time
‘Casablanca’ is classic for a reason. But, this 1942 film is also very relevant right now.
The Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Special Is Weirder, And Way Darker Than You Remember
For Charlie Brown, the holidays are all about sadness, rejection, and disappointment.
29 Years Ago, Henry Selick Brought Us The Darkest (And Best) Christmas Movie Ever
Let's give credit where credit is due.
The 100 Greatest Kids Movies Of All Time, According To Movie Critic Dads
From golden oldies to 21st-century instant classics, here’s our deeply curated, and surely controversial, ultimate ranking of 100 movies kids must see before they hit their 10th birthday.
31 Weirdest Easter Eggs In 'Weird: The Al Yankovic Story'
The world’s foremost expert on Weird Al explains all the weird — and hilarious — deep cuts you might have missed in the new movie.
Shut Up, Ralphie! No One Asked For 'A Christmas Story Christmas'
Here’s how we got from the surprising charm of A Christmas Story, to whatever this is.
'The Great Pumpkin' Is The Most Brilliantly Melancholy Holiday Special Of All Time
And, it’s only gotten better with age.