FILE - In this Jan. 10, 2009 file photo released by the Florida Keys News Bureau, author and essayist Gore Vidal delivers the keynote presentation during the first session of the 27th annual Key West Literary Seminar in Key West, Fla. Vidal died Tuesday, July 31, 2012, at his home in Los Angeles. He was 86. (AP Photo/Florida Keys News Bureau, Carol Tedesco)

Here's what's happening today in pop culture:

• Gore Vidal has died, and with that the world is a little less interesting. The author, playwright, historian and political commentator is well represented by the movies based on his work – with greatness (his rewriting of “Ben-Hur,” the adaptation of his play “The Best Man,” his performance in “Bob Roberts”) and awfulness (the adaptation of his novel “Myra Breckinridge,” his screenplay for what became Bob Guccione's infamous “Caligula”). [AP, via The Salt Lake Tribune]

• Some of the strangest, and funniest, Olympic commentary on Twitter is coming from Samuel L. Jackson. [The Hollywood Reporter]

• CBS's latest dating reality show, “3,” didn't make it to three episodes. The network canceled it after just two episodes. [Vulture]