A new biography, “Who Does That Bitch Think She Is?: Doris Fish and the Rise of Drag” by Craig Seligman, chronicles the contribution of drag queen Doris Fish, seen here during Mardi Gras 1987, to ...

Longtime movie critic Mick LaSalle also answers questions about who invented the Chronicle’s Little Man rating system and his favorite film composers. Orson Welles (1915-1985) crafted several historic ...

Beautiful books make classic gifts for a good reason. What better way to show you understand what delights, inspires or just plain occupies the minds of your loved ones than giving them a thoughtful ...

If Anya’s memory, as she sings, is “glowing dim as an ember,” Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens’ song somehow conjures that image’s musical equivalent. The melody in “Once Upon a December” smolders ...

Bay Area author Betty Shamieh with a copy of her first novel, “Too Soon,” in her home workspace in Santa Clara. Photo: Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle If you’re at all involved in the theater scene, you may ...

German actor Max Schreck plays Count Orlok, an unofficial Dracula copy, in F.W. Murnau's 1922 horror classic, "Nosferatu." Photo: Cinequest Robert Eggers’ remake of “Nosferatu” is an atmospheric ...

Alfred Moretti was the most dominant pop star of the ‘90s, a reclusive, technopop legend that reached David Bowie-level fame and created a cultlike following. But that was then. Now Moretti (John ...

Bay Area filmmaker Jenni Olson’s “Masc II” series at BAMPFA showcases rare films about butch dykes and trans men, highlighting gender diversity in cinema. One of the Orlandos in “Orlando, My Political ...

Twenty-five years ago she went on a sexual adventure with Tom Cruise (then her real-life husband) in “Eyes Wide Shut,” an experiment in open marriage that only Stanley Kubrick could have dreamed up.

Who gets to be considered “a real American,” and how does that label shift based on the identity of the beholder? While reading Rachel Khong’s ambitious second novel, “Real Americans,” finding answers ...

Chronicle film critic emeritus Mick LaSalle also answers questions about who he thinks really got snubbed at the Oscars, “The Letter” and the late Heuwell Tircuit. “My Old Ass” is one of the films ...

A scene from "Beyond the Blue Border" ("Jenseits der blauen Grenze"), a German film about two young students who become the target of the secret police in East Germany in 1989. Photo: Berlin and ...