Do Not Detonate Without Presidential Approval

Inspirations for Wes Anderson's Asteroid City: a collection of new and classic writing on mid-century cinema and the American West ** Includes an exclusive interview with Wes Anderson in which the director details how the pieces collected here influenced the characters, stories, and settings in the film ** Featuring 8 newly commissioned pieces alongside more than 20 classic essays from the likes of François Truffaut and Jonas Mekas, DO NOT DETONATE explores key influences on celebrated director Wes Anderson's new film Asteroid City. Together they form a detailed, captivating portrait of the mid-century film world and the enduring myths of the American West. A Conversation Between Wes Anderson and Jake Perlin A Life excerpt – Elia Kazan The Celluloid Brassière – Andy Logan Rainy Day – Lillian Ross The Outskirts: Other Men’s Women – Gina Telaroli The Petrified Forest – Jorge Luis Borges Ace in the Hole: Noir in Broad Daylight – Molly Haskell What Makes a Sad Heart Sing: Some Came Running – Michael Koresky One False Start, Never Wear the Same Dress Twice – Durga Chew-Bose Maigret at the Coroner’s excerpt – Georges Simenon Sunbelt Noir: Desert Fury – Imogen Sara Smith The Voyage Down and Out: Inferno – Kent Jones Bad Day Near The River’s Edge – Nicolas Saada Watching Fail Safe at the End of the World – K. Austin Collins Black Desert, White Desert – Serge Toubiana Marilyn Monroe and the Loveless World – Jonas Mekas Beyond the Stars – Jeremy Bernstein Coming: “Nashville” – Pauline Kael Coming Around the Mountain: Close Encounters of the Third Kind – Matt Zoller-Seitz Selections from Close Encounters of the Third Kind Diary – Bob Balaban Introduction to Small Change: A Film Novel – François Truffaut By The Time I Get to Phoenix – Thora Siemsen My Guy – Hilton Als Wild to the Wild – Sam Shepard