Charles Moss

Freelance Writer

Chattanooga, Tennessee

I'm a freelance writer specializing in pop culture. I've written for The Atlantic, Slate, Washington Post, VICE, Paste Magazine and Tablet Magazine. This lovely background photo is courtesy, by the way, of Amy Fletcher Photography.

Charles Moss

Freelance Writer

Chattanooga, Tennessee

‘Black Panther’ is just the beginning: The history and future of the Black Comic Book movement
While Marvel and DC Comics are doing a pretty good job of finally trying to erase the race line when it comes to its heroes of color, there are others who have been creating socially and culturally relevant comic book characters for years. When Dawud Anyabwile was a kid, he loved comic books, particularly Marvel Comics.
This little boy has a disease with no cure. His family is determined to fight back.
Laura and Josh Ledbetter know they have only a few years left, at the most, until their 5-year-old son, Grayson, dies. A year ago, Grayson was diagnosed with Alexander disease, an extremely rare type of leukodystrophy that destroys the white matter that protects the nerve fibers in the brain, resulting in debilitating mental and physical delays, and in most cases, death by age 10.
The Washington Post
The Oscar-Nominated Sound Designer Behind 'Baby Driver' Explains the Difference Between Editing & Mixing
With two Oscar nominations under his belt for his latest collaboration with director Edgar Wright, Baby Driver, one for sound editing and the other for sound mixing, engineer Julian Slater is already having a great 2018. But what's the difference between sound editing and mixing? Every year, movie-going laymen ask the question at their Oscar parties, and every year, someone forgets to look up the answer before the ceremony begins.
Thrillist
The Bizarre Story Behind Those Amazingly Terrible, String Halloween Masks
Jon James Miller, Halloween costume historian and child of the 1970s, grew up loving the decorated neighborhoods, the candies, the nighttime strolls with family and friends. He'll never forget his three favorite costumes: C-3PO, Spider-Man and Batman. All
Thrillist
Inside the Brilliant Minds Behind the New Season of 'Stranger Things'
Matt and Ross Duffer talk nostalgia, 'Ghostbusters,' and preview the second season of the Netflix smash. It's only three weeks until Stranger Things 2 premieres when I get on a call with Matt and Ross Duffer, the show's creators. They're scrambling to get the last of the visual effects done for the second season of their hit Netflix show, but they seem relatively relaxed despite the short time frame and stupendously high expectations from fans.
Vice
'The Defenders' Showrunner Talks Shocking Deaths and the Show's Future
Get Your Real-Life 'Mario Kart' Kicks on This Go-Kart Tour of Tokyo. You Can Start Watching the Eclipse Right Now With This Livestream. Game of Thrones Recap: A Secret Targaryen Accepts the Ultimate Mission. By now, you’ve surely finished watching the eight episodes of The Defenders -- the superhero team based on the comic book series and set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe -- that dropped August 18 on Netflix.
Thrillist
GoT, Westworld DP Robert McLachlan on Filming Androids, the Red Wedding and a "Major" New Action Scene
When I get on the phone with veteran cinematographer Robert McLachlan, he’s standing on Stage 15 at Sony, taking a break from shooting the fifth season of Showtime’s Ray Donovan, set to premiere in August. An amateur photographer and home movie-maker, as well as a commercial artist and painter—McLachlan’s father encouraged him to do what he loved.
Paste Magazine
My grandfather inspires me to be a better father, years after his death
During my junior year in high school, my English teacher, Mrs. Self, had us write an essay to practice for the multitude of college admission essays we would be writing. From the list of topics, I chose “Who is your biggest role model in life and why?”. When I was a child, there was nobody I looked up to more.
The Washington Post
I'm Only Here for This Moment
On May 29, it will be 20 years since Jeff Buckley waded ionnto the Mississippi River and music lost a shooting star of extraordinary vision and emotional intensity. Via poignant interviews with the singer's friends and bandmates, Charlie Moss discovers how Buckley's relocation to Memphis promised renewal, but ended in disaster.
MOJO Magazine
Patrick Johnson, Star Wars and the Rise of Nerd Culture
When I reach filmmaker Patrick Johnson, it’s around 11:30 at night. He has literally just finished getting his new film, 5-25-77 ready to to be turned into a DCP, as it’s called in the industry, or a Digital Cinema Package, which will then be distributed to theaters across the country in preparation for the premiere on May 25.
Paste Magazine
Neal Pollack takes his son to school in a new audio documentary series
Neal Pollack is known for many things. He’s a certified yoga instructor, a three-time Jeopardy! champion and most notably, the author of the humorous, sarcastic “Greatest Living, American Writer” column and author of 10 bestselling books, including The Neal Pollack Anthology of American Literature and Keep Mars Weird.
The Washington Post
Bringing the 'Unfilmable' and Sensational 'American Gods' to TV
Showrunners Bryan Fuller and Michael Green chat about adapting a show that was stuck in development hell for years. There's a scene in the new Starz show American Gods where Bilquis, the Queen of Sheba, is having passionate sex with an older man. As she c
Vice
Nice Chops If You Can Get It
How one of the last segregation-era businesses in Chattanooga, Tennessee struggles to survive urban development. Along the eastern block of Chattanooga’s M. King Boulevard, an array of large, colorful murals distracts the eye from a smattering of old, crumbling, graffiti-infested, two-story buildings that desperately cling to a former, much grander life.
The Awl
Why Composer Jeff Russo Looked to Pink Floyd for 'Legion'
We chat with Jeff Russo about creating the music for FX's trippy new comic-book adaptation. FX's Legion, which premiered last night, is based on Marvel comics character David Haller, the mutant son of Professor Charles Xavier from the X-men. Created by wr
Vice
Thinking of my friend who died young, looking at my children differently
One of my fondest memories of childhood was watching the stop-motion animated special, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” every December. My mom would take my sister Meri and me to our friend Steven Votava’s house to celebrate Hanukkah. Once we lit the candles, we’d all gather around the television to watch “Rudolph” and “Frosty the Snowman.”.
The Washington Post
How Doctor Strange Helped Create Hippies
When writer Steve Englehart and artist Frank Brunner took over the run of Marvel Comics' Doctor Strange in the early 1970s, they would get together every couple of months to have dinner and then get high, brainstorming wild, new directions in which to take the character. Based on the latest marketing efforts for Scott Derickson's Doctor Strange—the newest superhero to join Marvel's Cinematic Universe—it appears they weren't the only ones to get high and discuss the Sorcerer Supreme.
Vice

About

Charles Moss

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Charles prefers to go by Charlie and sometimes Chuck, but not often.

He has experience writing about all facets of pop culture, from comic books and music to literature and movies. Charlie started off in the pop culture journalism field in 2007 as a writer for the Chattanooga-based alternative newsweekly The Pulse, writing album reviews and pieces on local music history. He then became a regular contributor to the pop culture site Popmatters, writing features on music and movies, eventually moving into a staff position as a comic book reviewer until 2011. He went on to become the weekly pop culture columnist for Chattanooga-based news site, Nooga.com and has since spread his pop culture wings, writing for The Atlantic, Paste, Tablet, The Washington Post, Slate, and more.