The Corrupt World Behind the Murdaugh Murders

Plus: Inkoo Kang on “The Last of Us”; John le Carré’s search for a vocation; and, has academia ruined literary criticism? View in browser | Update your preferences Monday, January 16, 2023 Letter from South Carolina The Corrupt World Behind the Murdaugh Murders In isolated, poor regions of South Carolina, coming from an élite family offered a feeling of impunity. Did this license lead Alex Murdaugh to commit fraud after fraud—and then kill his wife and son? By James Lasdun Culture Dept. On Television Road-Tripping Through a Post-Apocalyptic America in “The Last of Us” The HBO drama works best as a post-catastrophe travelogue, teasing out the ways survivors rebuild mini-societies with new power alignments. By Inkoo Kang Photo Booth The Seedy Glamour of Nineteen-Seventies Hollywood Ave Pildas set up his camera on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, capturing a now vanished world of tourists and drifters and junkies and aspiring starlets. By Michael Schulman Page-Turner John le Carré’s Search for a Vocation The writer’s collected letters reveal the high value he placed upon honorable work. By Jennifer Wilson Books Has Academia Ruined Literary Criticism? Literature departments seem to provide a haven for studying books, but they may have painted themselves into a corner. By Merve Emre From the Archive Letter from Jackson The Struggle for Civil Rights in Mississippi From 1964: An encounter with Martin Luther King, Jr., during a summer of pressure. By Calvin Trillin Letter from Selma The Selma March From 1965: On the trail to Montgomery. By Renata Adler Fun & Games Dept. Name Drop Play Today’s Quiz Can you guess the notable person in six clues or fewer? By Liz Maynes-Aminzade Daily Shouts Did You Feed the Cat? She’s so cute! By Jobe Anderson Crossword A Challenging Puzzle Viola pieces: four letters. By Elizabeth C. Gorski Daily Cartoon Monday, January 16th By Emily Bernstein Thanks for reading. Let us know your thoughts about today’s edition. Plus, browse more newsletters and invite a friend to sign up for The Daily. You’re receiving this e-mail because you signed up for The Daily from The New Yorker. Manage your preferences | View our Privacy Policy | Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2023. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.