John Semley
@johnsemley3000.bsky.social
writer and researcher, covering books, films, and psychoactivity, in no particular order. a pocket full of spare change and anger unlimited.
John Semley, who reported on the dying art of the open-casket ceremony, spoke with Jess Bergman about the history of undertakers, the corporatization of funeral parlors, and communal grieving. buff.ly/woZYM9N
do I know any Calgary journos who would be willing to do me—or, really, a colleague of mine—a journalism related favour? please reach out, if so!
🐳 You’re God damned right @hesterblum.bsky.social & I made a TWENTY-FIVE EPISODE PODCAST just about 𝐌𝐎𝐁𝐘-𝐃𝐈𝐂𝐊. Subscribe now at exploringthegreats.com/moby-dick & enjoy our thrilling trailer:
This piece on the decline of restoring corpses for open-casket funerals is excellent, and not as morbid as you might think. After all, "their labor is intended for the living." harpers.org/archive/2026...
A Dying Art, by John Semley
The last of the morticians
harpers.org
“As consumer tastes shift toward closed caskets and cremations, reflecting a general American ambivalence toward the traditions of ritualized bereavement, demand for posthumous primping has fallen dramatically.” —John Semley (@johnsemley3000.bsky.social)
A Dying Art, by John Semley
The last of the morticians
buff.ly
Sad news to hear about the passing of Glen Hansard. He was a one of a kind generational singer-songwriter. Glen was a great friend of ours & us of him. Here's his last visit with us w/ The Swell Season last year on @worldcafe.bsky.social w/ @rahrahraina.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wlmn...
The Swell Season on World Cafe
YouTube video by World Cafe
youtube.com
“While restoration may be a moribund art, the atmosphere at the NFDA showcase was anything but sepulchral.” —John Semley (@johnsemley3000.bsky.social) harpers.org/archive/2026...
A Dying Art, by John Semley
The last of the morticians
harpers.org
Longreads@longreads.com · 5d agoThis week's #longreads Top 5 includes: • In a pickle / @nymag.com • Gut feeling / Taste • King of pain / @newyorker.com • Life (or something like it) / @harpers.bsky.social • For those about to rock / @theatlantic.com longreads.com/2026/07/31/l...
CW: take care with yourself because this deals frankly with death and grief and makes mention of tragic passings, mutilation, and viscera (not luridly, mind) But I found this to be an extraordinarily thoughtful and humane piece of writing to begin the day. harpers.org/archive/2026...
A Dying Art, by John Semley
The last of the morticians
harpers.org
“These days, the American way of death seems less like denial than desensitization. We may still fear the reaper, but we are also bored by him.” John Semley (@johnsemley3000.bsky.social) on the dying art of the open casket.
A Dying Art, by John Semley
The last of the morticians
buff.ly
Sports teams unveiling a new third jersey are always like "the brown stripe is a nod to our town's original nickname, Sewer City"
Emily Wilson’s 2017 translation of Homer’s epic—the first by a woman—was called a woke “abomination” by online reactionaries. Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster film faced similar critiques long before its release.
The New ‘Odyssey’ Movie Is Sparking a Right-Wing Backlash. This Female Scholar Knows It Well
Emily Wilson’s 2017 translation of Homer’s epic—the first by a woman—was called a woke “abomination” by online reactionaries. Christopher Nolan’s film is facing similar critiques.
wrd.cm
"A traditional funeral arrangement, including a basic casket, hearse, embalming, restoration, and various other professional fees, averages about $8,300 in the US. Direct cremation, meanwhile, can be accomplished for as little as $795, inclusive of the urn."
A Dying Art, by John Semley
The last of the morticians
harpers.org
In @thestar.com today, I wrote about how the World Cup was a success for the US--in spite of Donald Trump's best efforts to ruin it. www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...
John Semley: How the American people trump their government’s tyrannical behaviour to embody a lofty ideal
During the World Cup, the U.S. embodied a lofty ideal even as their government behaved badly
thestar.com
In the new issue of @harpers.bsky.social, I wrote about the history, and narrowing future, of the restorative arts: that is, the craft of rendering corpses casket-ready. I watched morticians face off in a corpse-head restoration contest, and travelled to DC to watch a restoration up-close.
Harper’s Magazine@harpers.bsky.social · 2w agoJohn Semley (@johnsemley3000.bsky.social) reports from the Restorative Art Technical Showcase on the dying art of the open casket. harpers.org/archive/2026...
“While restorative artists are accustomed to battling the ravages of time, it is now coming for their own discipline.” John Semley (@johnsemley3000.bsky.social) on the state of the mortuary arts.
A Dying Art, by John Semley
The last of the morticians
buff.ly
In the new issue of @harpers.bsky.social, I wrote about the history, and narrowing future, of the restorative arts: that is, the craft of rendering corpses casket-ready. I watched morticians face off in a corpse-head restoration contest, and travelled to DC to watch a restoration up-close.
Harper’s Magazine@harpers.bsky.social · 2w agoJohn Semley (@johnsemley3000.bsky.social) reports from the Restorative Art Technical Showcase on the dying art of the open casket. harpers.org/archive/2026...
So much of this culture war jockeying, writes WIRED contributor John Semley, exists purely online, to sustain an infrastructure of monetized outrage that is increasingly preoccupied with Western chauvinism, racism, and just plain antisocial weirdness.
‘The Odyssey’ Backlash Failed Tremendously
For all the hysteria over “woke” casting and ahistorical choices, Christopher Nolan’s epic is on track to make $200 million globally during its opening weekend.
wired.com
For all the hysteria over “woke” casting and ahistorical choices, Christopher Nolan’s epic is on track to make $200 million globally during its opening weekend. www.wired.com/story/the-od...
‘The Odyssey’ Backlash Failed Tremendously
For all the hysteria over “woke” casting and ahistorical choices, Christopher Nolan’s epic is on track to make $200 million globally during its opening weekend.
wired.com
Amazing piece by @johnsemley3000.bsky.social on JD Vance's new book, and the whole phenomenon of the "convert to Catholicism for trad" trend of which Vance is a (particularly unpersuasive) advocate. thebaffler.com/latest/catho...
@johnsemley3000.bsky.social drove 40 minutes to get to a sold out 8 am screening of The Odyssey—the movie is not going to fail but the reactionary backlash sure did. www.wired.com/story/the-od...
‘The Odyssey’ Backlash Failed Tremendously
For all the hysteria over “woke” casting and ahistorical choices, Christopher Nolan’s epic is on track to make $200 million globally during its opening weekend.
wired.com
This is very funny throughout but this line really sent me "They’re purchased at airports, thoughtlessly, as last-minute gifts for grandparents, who smile, and pat the cover mock-appreciatively from the hospital bed before depositing them in a shoebox, to be ferried to a charity thrift shop."
John Semley@johnsemley3000.bsky.social · 4w agoRead and reviewed JD Vance's new come-to-Jesus memoir, COMMUNION, for @thebaffler.com. With thoughts on the weird new alchemy of catholicism and American conservatism, the vexing rise of the adult catholic convert, and the Little Free Library publishing ecosystem. thebaffler.com/latest/catho...
and now i got a catholic block inside of my head...
John Semley@johnsemley3000.bsky.social · 4w agoRead and reviewed JD Vance's new come-to-Jesus memoir, COMMUNION, for @thebaffler.com. With thoughts on the weird new alchemy of catholicism and American conservatism, the vexing rise of the adult catholic convert, and the Little Free Library publishing ecosystem. thebaffler.com/latest/catho...
Read and reviewed JD Vance's new come-to-Jesus memoir, COMMUNION, for @thebaffler.com. With thoughts on the weird new alchemy of catholicism and American conservatism, the vexing rise of the adult catholic convert, and the Little Free Library publishing ecosystem. thebaffler.com/latest/catho...
Catholic Bloc | John Semley
Having eagerly accepted the yoke of Catholic guilt, J. D. Vance’s project is to fit the whole of America within those bonds.
thebaffler.com
Is there some spiritual element to Vance’s conversion to Catholicism? Or is it, as @johnsemley3000.bsky.social speculates, part of his “slithering belly crawl through the corridors of American political power?”
Catholic Bloc | John Semley
Having eagerly accepted the yoke of Catholic guilt, J. D. Vance’s project is to fit the whole of America within those bonds.
thebaffler.com
“The idea that J. D. Vance is nurturing some rich, inner religious life, which might be worth writing or reading about, is frankly unbelievable. And not in this sense of it being incredible or mind-boggling. As in: I literally cannot believe it.”
Catholic Bloc | John Semley
Having eagerly accepted the yoke of Catholic guilt, J. D. Vance’s project is to fit the whole of America within those bonds.
thebaffler.com
For the past few months, I've been keeping a log--call it a diary, sure--of weird, fun, sad, sinister observations as America counted down to its big 250th birthday bash. Today, @thestar.com published them. In print tomorrow! www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...
John Semley: I went to a party in the Birthplace of America and kept seeing Trump everywhere
For months, I've been documenting funny, weird, awful, heartening developments in Trump's America.
thestar.com
J.D. Vance’s long, boring conversion to performative Catholicism is now the subject of a memoir coming soon to a free bin near you. @johnsemley3000.bsky.social reviews “Communion.”
Catholic Bloc | John Semley
Having eagerly accepted the yoke of Catholic guilt, J. D. Vance’s project is to fit the whole of America within those bonds.
thebaffler.com
Read and reviewed JD Vance's new come-to-Jesus memoir, COMMUNION, for @thebaffler.com. With thoughts on the weird new alchemy of catholicism and American conservatism, the vexing rise of the adult catholic convert, and the Little Free Library publishing ecosystem. thebaffler.com/latest/catho...
Catholic Bloc | John Semley
Having eagerly accepted the yoke of Catholic guilt, J. D. Vance’s project is to fit the whole of America within those bonds.
thebaffler.com