#nostalgia

#nostalgia

You know that warm comfort from grandma-style cooking - where the biscuits are fluffy, the fried chicken's crisp and golden, and your sweet tea arrives in a Mason jar? That's the charm of a place called PoFolks, a Southern‑style chain of family restaurants founded in Anderson, South Carolina. The year was 1975, and the PoFolks clan expanded to about 170 locations in less than a decade, spreading the love with down-home country fare like chicken‑and‑dumplings, fried catfish, turnip greens, kuntry-fried steaks, and cornbread.

Arriving in time for peak candy season at Halloween, the new Tootsie Pop ad follows the exact same storyline as the original, with a child asking Mr. Owl how many licks it takes to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop, only for the owl to scoff the whole thing after just three licks. Over five decades later, will we ever know the answer?

I was born in the wrong century or so my mother says, while I protest from my writing bureau, wax seal in hand, ready to dispatch an Austen-style letter to a friend. But as I put out the candle flame with my antique snuffer, I wonder if she might be right. For me, the past has always felt like home I grew up on a literary diet of classic fiction, seasoned with a love of my Regency hero, Jane Austen.

It may have started as an innocuous TV show seemingly aimed at teens and tweens, but The Summer I Turned Pretty has been a stratospheric hit, hypnotising audiences of all ages. With viewers flitting between camp Conrad or team Jeremiah, hooked on the love triangle between two brothers and the show's pivotal character, Belly, it has kept many of us (even in our late 40s) glued. So, it's with deep sadness for many that the final show of season three airs this month.

Some comedians are simply born funny. When Will Ferrell appeared on The Late Show earlier this summer, Stephen Colbert asked him to name who he saw at his first concert and he responded Roddy Ricch with a straight face. Just a hip-hop guy, about five years ago, he joked. My first concert. It was enough to bring me to tears, and Ferrell did it so easilylike King Midas, but if everything he touched burst into laughter.

Brand crossovers are everywhere right now - and getting weirder. Kate Spade released crossbody bags in the form of giant Heinz ketchup packets. Urban Outfitters released a back-to-school dorm collection with Chipotle that included a lamp shaped like a bag of chips and a metallic blanket that lets you wrap yourself up like a burrito. And Tecovas released $345 cowboy boots made with the same red vinyl used for Chili's restaurant booths and stamped with chili peppers, of course.

Some Gen Xers look back on elementary and middle school lunch periods fondly. Perhaps they were a welcome respite from the boredom of classroom learning, a time to have fun with their friends, or a chance to trade lunch box treats. For others, it was a dreaded period of forced socialization (or isolation), or the moment they realized what horrors awaited them in their lunch bag.

Nostalgia has become an inescapable feature of the 2020s. Whether it's the resurgence of Y2K fashion, old digital cameras or reruns of Friends, The Office or Gilmore Girls. Gen-Z are looking to teleport back to a more comfortable, less stressful past. And brands are looking to capitalize on the demand for retro fashion, products and experiences. But what makes nostalgia so powerful? What are the benefits and watchouts of nostalgia marketing?

Haven't you heard? There's a new colour trend in town just in time for the end of summer. Pastel yellow, or 'butter yellow' as it's been warmly nicknamed, is everywhere in fashion right now. It's also hitting the tech world, with brands finding ingenious ways to jump on the dairy bandwagon.

While many of us now opt for wireless earphones - including AirPods, Google Pixel Buds, and Beats Studio Pro - several celebrities have been photographed rocking wired alternatives. Actress Emma Watson, 35, was pictured wearing a pair during a coastal stroll in Saint Tropez earlier today, while stars like Harry Styles, Bella Hadid, and Charli XCX have all recently been spotted with wired earphones glue to their ears.

Beetling around the tatty East Village, casually framing the twin towers downtown, it lifts the lid on a time that has been and gone: when the city was a melting pot of miscreants and misfits, when lowly bar staff could still afford Gotham rents,, and when every car came equipped with a cigarette lighter. Don't they have those any more? says Aronofksy, frowning at his untouched cup of herbal tea.

Much of that credit goes to indie developer Fabraz, whose past work on games like the underrated Demon Turf proves it has a way of making exhilarating new additions to the genre. That same charm is very much present in Bubsy 4D, a surprise hit that left me wanting to play more at the end of the three levels I played during an Atari event this month.

Projecting himself into the old age he would never reach, he pictured his future grandkids asking him about the music of the '60s: "What's all this shit about the Yardbirds?" It was a challenge to articulate the significance of a decade that had already hardened into a myth, as well as to reckon again with an original whose legions of imitators would go on to take over the world.

Nostalgia for the 1990s might have reached its peak with Oasis back on tour this summer, but several of Britain's best-known brands are also trying to make a comeback, reinventing themselves with new flavours, packaging or names. Walkers, Nik Naks and Bacardi Breezer are among some of the brands that are adapting to try to stand out in the food and drink market. This week, the crisps brand Walkers launched its first new permanent flavours in two decades Masala Chicken and Sticky Teriyaki.

Michael D Higgins has ruined us for other presidents

The problem with the post-Lucas films is that they never quite decided what they wanted to be. The Force Awakens tried nostalgia cosplay. The Last Jedi tried to set fire to nostalgia cosplay. The Rise of Skywalker then tried to urgently stitch nostalgia back together again. The result was messy, divisive, and crucially for Disney almost impossible to spin off.

The latest drop, the Nike Shox TL Seaweed, injects a seasonal palette into a sneaker already known for its futuristic cushioning system.

The introduction of A.I. scribes in the clinic was met with skepticism, feeling unnecessary, especially for someone comfortable with traditional note-taking methods.

The new Times Square Planet Hollywood merges nostalgia with modernity, showcasing high-definition screens playing contemporary music videos that stray far from the restaurant's original theme.

The Camp Snap CS-8 is designed for shooting video without the distractions of modern technology, offering a retro experience reminiscent of 1960s Super 8 camcorders.

Sizzler emerged in the 1950s in Culver City, becoming a beloved staple that popularized surf and turf in Los Angeles, appealing to families seeking affordable comfort food.

Michael Madsen's final posthumous role offers a nostalgic glimpse of a small-town theater's last days, echoing the bittersweet memories of cinema's past.