“What is a man?” asks Esquire for the merry month of May, and they have a lot of interesting answers, plus George Clooney on the cover. Among other things, Tom Chiarella writes, “He looks out for those around him. He owns up. He can cook eggs.” That’s a man? Well, they have a lot more to say.

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Back in the Dark Ages, I was working for Cosmopolitan under Helen Gurley Brown, just after she took over the magazine. This made me really interesting to people just on the face of it. And men always said provocative things to me about Cosmo, usually leading into the inevitable discussion about sex. But the more serious ones told me they actually read the magazine, religiously.

Helen Gurley Brown/Image: Wikipedia

So I always asked these guys why they were bothering their heads with Cosmo? Their best answer was: “to find out what women really want.”

Therefore, if you are wondering about guys and what makes them tick and you want a real answer – not a b.s., made-up macho answer like some so-called “men’s magazines” – I say, buy the May issue of Esquire. The editors and their writers offer a number of suggestions and ideas. In spite of some simplistic answers, you’ll at least see Esquire’s point and you can decide if you agree as to what makes a man.

I liked Stephen Marche’s 1000-word putdown of conspiracy theories. You know, like the World Trade Center towers being brought down by explosives, not the airplanes; like Mary Magdalene being the mother of Jesus’s children via a theory by writer Dan Brown; like those who don’t believe there was any moon landing. There’s also an interview with “Deadwood’s” Ian McShane. Esquire presents their chosen list of men and every one of them looks like a prison mug shot. I liked “How to skin a moose” and other advice such as “How to fell a tree” or “fillet a fish.” (I’m never going to do these things but it’s interesting that Esquire knows how.) I liked the display of what every man needs to have in his garage; I’d say that would be pretty much the same for every woman.

But now Gov. Palin of Alaska doesn’t have to go to all the trouble of writing her book. Her life and times are perfectly summed up in Luke Dittrich’s article, “Todd Palin Is the Man for America Now.”       

A day in Todd’s life putting off fixing the snowmobile and changing diapers, etc. It’s lots of fun.


Todd Palin © Getty Images

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Remember Zowie Bowie, the whimsically named son of rock icon David Bowie? Well, now he goes by the name Duncan Jones, and has directed a sci-fi movie, titled “Moon.” It is getting great advance buzz and opens next month.

“Moon” stars Sam Rockwell, who just keeps getting better all the time, and features the voice of Kevin Spacey (as Rockwell’s robot companion). First-peekers say this is an excellent, quietly creepy film, minus all the CGI that dominates most things in movies these days.

The script was written by Bowie/Duncan and another son of privilege, Nathan Parker, the offspring of director Alan Parker – of “Midnight Express,” “Fame,” “Evita” and “Angela’s Ashes” renown.

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“The Tudors” continues apace on Showtime, with heads lopped off aplenty and Jonathan Rhys Meyers increasingly complex and disturbing as the aging Henry VIII. (Although Jonathan’s encroaching maturity is more a byproduct of clever, deeply shadowy lighting. He still looks pretty hot, and I’d venture the real Henry as he aged was never this sexy!)


Jonathan Rhys Meyers/Image:Jonathan Hession/SHOWTIME