Periscope

Film: A Punk Pilgrim's Progress
By John Sparks

In the 1980s when the Clash was the "only band that mattered," lead singer Joe Strummer was the rocker fans most wanted to know but couldn't. Strummer remained an enigma up to his 2002 death from a heart attack at 50. Now, with "The Future Is Unwritten"--newly released in theaters in the United States and on DVD in Europe--director Julien Temple sheds light on the contradictory figure known variously as Joe, John and Woody. Strummer reinvented himself constantly, through boarding school, squatting in West London, global stardom and a long search for purpose. Near the end, Strummer took to gathering friends around huge campfires, and Temple re-creates these scenes with former bandmates, friends and fans like Bono and Johnny Depp. While Temple does not solve the enigma, he does make you wish you'd been at one of Strummer's campfires.

Reality Check
By Jessica Bennett

With nearly 15 million users, LinkedIn may seem like a boon to ambitious professionals looking to build career-advancing contacts, but perils lurk. LinkedIn's social networks have also become powerful tools for potential clients and employers to check up on you without your knowledge by contacting people whom you know but you might not have chosen as references. One way to keep control of your contacts: don't accept invitations to join someone's network before looking at who's already linked in.

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