"The Magic of Scranton" by Anne Supsic from Sunday Philadelphia Inquirer (August 9, 2009)

The cover of the travel section of Sunday's Philadelphia Inquirer (August 9th, 2009, N1, N6) features an article by Anne Supsic titled "The Magic of Scranton," which details a trip she took to Scranton with her husband and grandson to see local sites like the Houdini Museum. The article is also accompanied by some excellent photographs of places in Scranton.

You can read the complete article online by clicking here.

Thanks to GlobalScranton for the scoop, and definitely follow them on Twitter (www.twitter.com/GlobalScranton)

Entertainment Weekly (April 17, 2009, Issue #1043)

Scranton has a brief reference in this week's Entertainment Weekly in the Top Ten Funniest Actresses section which scrolls across the top of the cover.

The Office's Mindy Kaling (who was in Scranton last July to launch The Office's Official Board Game) is cited in the magazine (page 41) and online as one of the 10 funniest actresses today. It reads:

"Shtick Chirpy Valley-girl inflections; deep superficiality; injecting the often airless Scranton environs of The Office with random pop cultural references."

To see Mindy Kaling's entry on the EW website (changed from the Top 10 to the Top 25 Funniest Actresses for the online version), click here.

Entertainment Weekly (April 10, 2009, Issue #1042)

There was a brief reference to Scranton in last week's Entertainment Weekly, the issue with Jennifer Hudson on the cover.

Check out the article Poehler Express by Tim Stack (pages 33-35) about actress and comedian Amy Poehler and her new sitcom Parks & Recreation a new sitcom from the creators of The Office.

In discussion of the creation of the show, the article states:

"With that, Scranton was out, Indiana was in, and Poehler was set to play a striving deputy director of Pawnee's Parks and Recreation Department."

To read the full article (retitled Amy Poehler on Her New Sitcom on EW's website), click here.

Entertainment Weekly (November 28, 2008, Issue #1023)

Even when it's only yet-another-one-of-the-numerous-references-to-The Office references, I must admit I still get giddy when I see Scranton mentioned in my favorite magazine, Entertainment Weekly.

This time, Scranton was mentioned on page 9 of EW in the popular section called The Bullseye, which rates the pop culture news stories of the week ala a game of Darts (humorously, several events nobody cares about--usually those involving Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt--often miss the bullseye and the arrow lands two pages ahead).

A near-miss on The Bullseye this week is the following item on The Office:

"Jim and Pam are finally in

the same city together.

Now, for the love of

Scranton, give these two a

decent storyline."

For the love of Scranton? I smell a future catchphrase...

The New Yorker (January 28, 2008, Volume 83, Issue 45)

A couple of months ago, my colleague (and regular contributor to our blog) Evelyn Gibbons found a local reference in The New Yorker.

On page 25 of the January 28, 2008 issue of The New Yorker, there is an article by Ben McGrath titled Red Carpet Dept.: Step On It, from the magazine's popular The Talk of the Town section. The article discusses the eighth annual banquet of the Valera Global Limosuine Company and previous Chauffeur of the Year winner Souleymane Bah. The article highlights the fact that Bah lives in Blakeslee, Pennsylvania.

To read the full article, click here.

An abundance of the thanks to the sizzlin' Evelyn Gibbons for another great reference.

Entertainment Weekly (August 22/29, 2008, Issue #1007/1008)

Check out this week's double issue of Entertainment Weekly, the one with Harry Potter and the Fall Movie Preview on the cover.

On page 110 is The Ausiello Files, a column by EW writer Michael Ausiello that contains questions from readers requesting spoilers and such for their favorite television shows. One in particular caught my eye this week:

"Office news. You have it. I want it. Give it up! - Pamela

"Given all the tomfoolery that transpires at Dunder-Mifflin, it's kind of shocking to think that we've yet to meet this guy, but this season The Office will finally be introducing the paper company's head of HR. However, since he'll be heard before he's actually seen in Scranton, there's still time for Michael to remove that hidden camera in the ladies' room."

Entertainment Weekly, (July 25, 2008, Issue #1003)

On page two of this week's issue of Entertainment Weekly (the Letters Page), is a brief box detailing this past weekend's The Office Games, which were held in Scranton, PA, hosted by cast member Mindy Kaling. It begins, "Beijing's got nothing on Scranton, PA." Readers were also invited to log on to EW's PopWatch Blog to put in their suggestions for The Office Games. To read the EW blog entry (some of the comments are quite funny), click here.

Entertainment Weekly (April 11, 2008, Issue #986)

If you happen to catch a glimpse at this week's Entertainment Weekly (the one with Ellen DeGeneres on the cover) check out the cover story, The Ultimate TV Trivia Quiz. Jump to question number 12:

12. Kevin from The Office's Police tribute band is called...

a. King of Penn(sylvania)

b. Scrantonicity

c. Pennyatta Mondatta

d. Roxanne Roll

To take the full EW quiz online, click here; to jump right to the Scrantonicity question, click here.

Don't forget The Office returns with brand new, post-strike episodes THIS THURSDAY, April 10th at 9 PM.

"Journeys: 36 Hours / Scranton, PA" from The New York Times (Friday, November 1, 2002)

Yes, Scranton even made the New York Times!

A few years before The Office made certain local landmarks famous, the New York Times profiled Scranton in their Journeys column in the Travel section on Friday, November 1, 2002. The article, titled "36 Hours / Scranton, Pa., profiles a weekend visit to Scranton (Friday night through Sunday morning) and highlights local landmarks and restaurants.

To read the full article from the New York Times website, click here.

Entertainment Weekly (November 30, 2007, Issue 966/967)

If you happen to catch a look at this week's Entertainment Weekly, be sure to check out pages 54-55. On a US map detailing the Most Entertaining Places of the Year, spot number 14 is:

14. Welcome to Scranton, Penn.