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Your Sunday Long Reads: Mila Kunis and James Franco in Conversation, Ellen DeGeneres’s Earning Power, and Burning Man

Actress Mila Kunis poses in the press room during the 2012 MTV Movie Awards held at Gibson Amphitheatre on June 3, 2012 in Universal City, California.
Photo: Jason Merritt/Getty Images

It’s Sunday afternoon, or: your last chance to read all that stuff you meant to read last week before Monday brings a new deluge of things you will want to read. Below, some of our recommendations:

Mila Kunis,” by James Franco (Interview): Two very good-looking people discuss sexism in Hollywood, shame, and, as Kunis put it, “the absurdity of what it is we do.”

The Booming Business of Ellen DeGeneres: From Broke and Banished to Daytime’s Top Earner,” by Lacey Rose (THR): Ten years ago, networks asked, “‘Who is going to watch a lesbian during the daytime?’” A look at how the answer to that question (“a lot of people”) made the comedian rich. 

Hot Mess,” by Brad Wieners (Outside): An oral history of Burning Man, Nevada’s now 25-year-old super rave. 

Against Acknowledgements,” by Sam Sachs (Culture Desk/New Yorker): Why the publishing industry should do away with the endless thank-you pages tacked on to most of today’s books. 

Mike Birbiglia’s Sleepwalk With Me: an interview in three acts,” by Sam Adams: A conversation with the first-time director about transitioning from stand-up to film, with guest appearances by Carol Kane, Marc Maron, and Ira Glass. 

For more in-depth weekend readings, visit our friends at Longreads.

Sunday Reads: Kunis, DeGeneres, and Burning Man