The Slate Culture Gift Guide

The Slate Culture Gift Guide

Author: Slate Podcasts November 12, 2025 Duration: 48:09
Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia
Music

Hark, the holiday season is upon us—and with it, the most solemn of festive traditions: a gift guide! In this video and podcast special, Slate hosts Dana Stevens, Chris Molanphy, and Willa Paskin beam in from their collective hearths to deliver unto the internet their favorite gifts for culture lovers. In addition to sharing gifts, they also discuss the cultural artifact that is the “holiday gift guide,” and its history going back to the early 20th century, up to the modern day. See the entirety of the 1910 gift guide Our Special Holiday Gift-Book from Greenhut-Siegel Cooper, and Esquire’s ultra-mod gift guide from 1961. 

Check out our gift recommendations below: 

Dana Stevens’ Cozy Movie Night-In: 

Chris Molanphy’s Hit Parade Collection: 

Willa Paskin’s Fruit-Themed Trompe-l'œil Housewares:

The Slate Culture Gift Guide is produced for Slate Studios by Benjamin Frisch and Micah Phillips, with Meryl Bezrutczyk and Andrew Harding.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.


What makes a song a smash? Talent? Luck? Timing? All that—and more. Chris Molanphy, pop-chart analyst and author of Slate’s “Why Is This Song No. 1?” series, tells tales from a half-century of chart history. Through storytelling, trivia and song snippets, Chris dissects how that song you love—or hate—dominated the airwaves, made its way to the top of the charts and shaped your memories forever. Get more Hit Parade with Slate Plus! Join for monthly early-access episodes, bonus episodes of "The Bridge," and ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe directly from the Hit Parade show page on...
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

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Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia
Podcast Episodes
With or Without U2 Edition Part 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:53
U2 have millions of admirers—and haters: from the fans who regard them as rock’s conscience, to the cynics who blanch at lead singer Bono’s self-importance. Here’s the thing: U2 want to play to both crowds. They know why…
With or Without U2 Edition Part 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:02
U2 have millions of admirers—and haters: from the fans who regard them as rock’s conscience, to the cynics who blanch at lead singer Bono’s self-importance. Here’s the thing: U2 want to play to both crowds. They know why…
What’s 1984 Got to Do with It Edition Part 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:32
A decade ago, Rolling Stone magazine called 1984 “Pop’s Greatest Year.” A bold statement…but a lot of critics agree. A confluence of factors—the comeback of dance music, the peak of MTV, the Second British Invasion, and…
What’s 1984 Got to Do with It Edition Part 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:20
A decade ago, Rolling Stone magazine called 1984 “Pop’s Greatest Year.” A bold statement…but a lot of critics agree. A confluence of factors—the comeback of dance music, the peak of MTV, the Second British Invasion and t…
Building a Herstory Edition Part 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:20
For decades—literally since Woodstock—female musicians had battled music-industry perceptions that amassing too many of them, on the radio or on the road, was bad for business. And yet, by the ’90s, women were vital to t…
Building a Herstory Edition Part 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:31
For decades—literally since Woodstock—female musicians had battled music-industry perceptions that amassing too many of them, on the radio or on the road, was bad for business. And yet, by the ’90s, women were vital to t…
Song(s) of the Summer Edition Part 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:56
“Summer in the City.” “I Feel the Earth Move.” “Bette Davis Eyes.” “Whoomp! There It Is.” “Get Lucky.” “Espresso.” What do these big summer hits all have in common? None of them was Billboard’s official Song of the Summe…
Song(s) of the Summer Edition Part 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:22
“Summer in the City.” “I Feel the Earth Move.” “Bette Davis Eyes.” “Whoomp! There It Is.” “Get Lucky.” “Espresso.” What do these big summer hits all have in common? None of them was Billboard’s official Song of the Summe…
I Wanna Rock with Q. Edition Part 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:55
What does a music producer do? If his name is Quincy Jones, a little bit of everything: conducting, arranging, composing. Assembling teams of ace session musicians. Sometimes, even picking a catchy title and telling an a…
I Wanna Rock with Q. Edition Part 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:54
What does a music producer do? If his name is Quincy Jones, a little bit of everything: conducting, arranging, composing. Assembling teams of ace session musicians. Sometimes, even picking a catchy title and telling an a…

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