The Boston Globe - 07.08.2019

B10 The Boston Globe WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 7, 2019

Names

ByAnnLevin
ASSOCIATEDPRESS
Carrie’s back! Or at least her real-
life alter ego, Candace Bushnell,
whose loosely autobiographical news-
paper columns and book aboutthe
dating adventures of single women in
their30s became the basis of the hit
HBOshow‘‘Sex and the City.’’
This time, Bushnell and her posse
are hurtling toward their 60s, dealing
with problems of the middle-aged in-
cluding broken marriages, second ca-
reers, and vaginal dryness. Only this
time the gang is bigger than Carrie,
Miranda, Samantha, and Charlotte.
There are at least six gal pals, plus
friends and acquaintances, making
theirstories a little harder to keep
track of in ‘‘Is There Still Sex in the
City?’’ But their trials and tribulations

and escapades — on Tinder, with men

20 or 30 years younger, in the high-

priced salons of Madison Avenue—

are narrated in the smart, sassy voice

that legions of fans came to love dur-

ing the six-year run of the showin the

late 1990s and early 2000s.

‘‘Is There Still Sex in the City?’’ be-

gins with a brisk update on Bushnell’s

real life sinceshe got famous — a mar-

riage, divorce, and a couple of shrewd

real estate deals that gave her the

means to acquire a small apartment in

Manhattan and ‘‘a quaint run-down

farmhouse’’ in the Hamptons.

Much of the action takes place in

the latter, where she ultimately meets

a smart, sexy, age-appropriate guy

who becomes her MNB — ‘‘my new

boyfriend’’ — one of several acronyms

in the book that indicate a type or a

condition. The book is dedicated to

him, which suggests that everything

worked out happily ever after, as it did

for Carrie when she ended up with Mr.

Big. But it would be a mistake to dis-

miss this book as romantic fluff. Bush-

nell’s style may be arch and breezy, but

many of the characters deal with dis-

appointment, heartbreak, and per-

haps just as lethally, resignation.

A young woman who regularly uses

Tinder asks Bushnell wistfully, ‘‘What

were dates like when you were

young?’’ A 40-something divorcee’s de-

cision to marry for money the second

time around is seen by her friends as

‘‘payback for men using women for,

well, just about everything.’’

A rich but not particularly attrac-

tive 75-year-old man blithely assumes

that women will sleep with him be-

cause ‘‘society colludes to tell men

they’re a little bit better than they ac-

tually are while it tells women they’re

a little bit worse.’’

From Cosmos to rosé, her current

beverage of choice, Bushnell may

drink pink. But she knows how to

write dark.

Is there ‘Sex in the City’

for women in their 50s?

MONICA SCHIPPER/GETTYIMAGES

In hernew book,CandaceBush-

nellandherpossearedealing

withproblemsof themiddle-aged. GROVE PRESS VIA AP

BOOKREVIEW

IS THERE STILL SEXINTHECITY?

ByCandaceBushnell, 272 pp.,

GrovePress

Why Mark Wahlberg says

Patriots-Cowboys Super Bowl

matchup would be a ‘win-win’

Is Dorchester nativeMark Wahlbergreconsidering

his Patriots fandom?

The 48-year-old actor told reporters at Dallas Cow-

boys training camp on Saturday that he “might have

to change [his] blue.” Wahlberg — who is friendly

with Patriots quarterbackTo mBrady— said he might

have to “start wearing another shade,” due to the

opening of a new location of his family’s restaurant

chain, Wahlburgers, at the Cowboys’ practice facility.

“The Cowboys are showing me so much love,”

Wahlberg said. “I don’t have a Wahlburgers at Gillette

Stadium yet. I gotta reevaluate my loyalty here.”

Wahlberg went as far to cement his prediction for

Super Bowl LIV, saying he’ll be able to attend “stress-

free” if it’s between the Patriots and the Cowboys.

“That’s going to be a good Super Bowl matchup,”

he said. “I’m calling it right now.”

While Wahlberg (pictured with Cowboys tight end

JasonWitten) did not attend Super Bowl LII or LIII, he

was at Super Bowl LI before leaving early and missing

New England’s historic comeback. Despite Philadel-

phia’s 41-33 victory in 2018, Wahlberg called the

game “a win-win” because of his role as Eagles receiv-

er Vince Papale in the 2006film “Invincible.”

“If it’s Patriots-Cowboys,” he said, “it’s another

win-win for me.” NICOLE YANG, Boston.com

IN

VI

EW

ABC has picked up a limited series

that is based on a bookwritten by a for-

mer Globereporter and professor of

journalism at Boston University.

In April, Deadline reported that

Lionsgate Television Group and 3 Arts

planned to mounta limited series based

onMitchell Zuckoff’s “Fall and Rise: The

Story of 9/11,” a bookthat had yet to

come out. Now, the bookis a bestseller

and ABC plans to make the series a reali-

ty.

Zuckoff, who was a Pulitzer Prize fi-

nalist for his investigative reporting with

the Globe, wrotethe story that ran on the

front page of the paperthe day after the

deadly attacks. Bothhis and ABC’s goal is

to debut the series in 2021, in time for

the 20th anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001.

To Zuckoff, there is a direct line be-

tween his experience writing about the

attacksfor the Globe and his decision to

write this new book.

“This bookis a direct outgrowth of

the work I did at the Globein the imme-

diate aftermath of the attacks,” Zuckoff

said. “We werewriting a rough draft of

history back then. Throughthe passage

of time, you gain a better perspective,

and I suppose [“Fall and Rise”] was an

attemptto write the more complete his-

tory of that day and go beyond that first

draft.”

Zuckoff will serve as the program’s ex-

ecutive producer, along withErwin Stoff

andRichard Abateof 3 Arts.

The book follows 24 people whose

lives were changed by the attacks. Read-

ers get a minute-by-minute retelling of

each person’s experience, something that

Zuckoff believes is crucial to the docu-

mentation of 9/11’s history.

“There are people who now have only

existed in a worldfull of war becauseof

these attacks. I hope this show, like my

book, will help anyonetake a second to

think about the specific lives and individ-

ual stories of people forever changed by

these events,” Zuckoff told the Globe.

Zuckoff currently teaches Narrative

Studies at Boston University’s College of

Communication and is married to Globe

photographerSuzanne Kreiter.

CHRIS TRIUNFO

ABC picks upTVseries based on former Globe reporter’s book

Casey Affleckhas mostly avoided
discussing the now-settled lawsuits
stemming from his 2010directorial
debut, “I’m Still Here.” But the Cam-
bridge native opened up on actorDax
Shepard’s podcast while promoting
his second directorial effort, “Light of
My Life.”
Affleck told Shepard that the values
central to the #MeToo movement are
“values that are
at the heart of my
being.” When the
lawsuits — which
alleged sexual
misconduct and
other harassment
— resurfaced
during the height
of the movement,
the “Manchester
by the Sea” star
decided his best
course of action
was to say noth-
ing at all.
“The way that
I’m thought of
sometimes by certain people recently
has been so antithetical to who I really
am that it’s been frustrating,” Affleck
told Shepard. “And not being able to
talk about it has been hardbecauseI
really wanted to support all of that,
butIfel tlikethebestthingtodowas
to just be quiet so I didn’t seem to be
in opposition to something that I real-
ly wanted to champion.”
“I’m Still Here,” a mockumentary
chronicling actorJoaquin Phoenix’s
(fake) decision to leave his acting ca-
reer behind and become a hip-hop art-
ist, involvedPhoenix staying in char-
acter as a bizarro version of himself in
public while Affleck filmed, including
during a contentious appearance on
David Letterman’slate-night show.
Because of the deliberately blurred
lines of reality central to the film’s con-
ceit, Affleck acknowledged that the
way the film set for “I’m Not Here”
was run was “a big mess,” and that it
was “not something I would do again.”
“There was a ton of partying, be-
cause that was the content of this doc-
umentary, at times mockumentary,”
Affleck said. “We’re recordingevery-
thing. It was confusing for everybody
and it was deliberately so. And that’s
my responsibility. The intention was
to have the crew as a part of the mov-
ie. I don’t knowhow much they knew
they were a part of the movie.”
KEVIN SLANE, Boston.com

Casey Affleck

addresses

past sexual

misconduct

allegations

Robert Krafthas a knack for

making friends with famousmusi-

cians, fromMeek MilltoSnoop

Dogg. So it’s not surprising that the

Patriots owner found himself on-

stage with celebs likeJamie Foxx,

DaveMatthews, and longtime pal

JonBonJoviover the weekend.

Kraft was at the Apollo in the

Hamptons party on Saturday night,

an annual concert and fund-raiser

held at billionaireRonald Perel-

man’s massive estate that raises

money for the legendary Harlem

theater and youth education pro-

grams.

Page Six reports that Kraft, 78,

was accompanied to the gala by his

new girlfriend, New York City doctor

DanaBlumberg, 45. The pair were

also spotted holding hands in June

at the French Open tennis tourna-

ment in Paris, and were in the

stands in Paris in July at the Wom-

en’s World Cup when Team USA

beat the Netherlands, 2-0, in soccer.

In a video shared by singer-song-

writerMarques Anthonyon Insta-

gram on Monday, Kraft fist-bumps

Bon Jovi onstage as the pair sing

“Livin’ on a Prayer” along with Foxx,

Matthews, the Black Eyed Peas, ac-

torWoodyHarrelson, and others.

Other notable names at the

event included comedianJerry Sein-

feld, directorSpikeLee, and Netflix

CEOTe d Sarandos. Other A-list mu-

sicians to perform includedMark

Ronson,Maggie Rogers,Pharrell

Williams, the Isley Brothers,Patti

LaBelle, and Run-DMC.

According to Page Six, Kraft has

been discussing teaming up with In-

for CEOCharlesPhillipsto plan fu-

ture editions of Apollo in the Hamp-

tons, with Perelman planning to

stop hosting the concert after this

year. KEVIN SLANE, Boston.com

Martha’s Vineyard African-Ameri-

can Film Festival has returned for its

17th year, welcoming several big

names to the island.

Attendees of the festival, which

runs through Saturday, Aug. 10, in-

clude directorsSpikeLeeandRoger

RossWilliams, actorMichaelB. Jor-

dan, filmmakerReginaldHudlin, and

actressesLynnWhitfield,MerleDan-

dridge, andDeborah Joy Winans.

Centerpiece screenings include a

showcase of music and clips from

Lee’s filmography, as well as “Green-

leaf”and “David Makes Man” fromthe

OprahWinfreyNetwork, and HBO’s

“The Apollo.” In addition to the 70 fea-

ture films, documentaries, and short

films produced by directors and film-

makers across the globe,this festival

will also include panel discussions and

otherevents throughout the island.

On Aug. 8 at 5:30 p.m., Warner

Bros.presents a first look at scenes

from the film “Just Mercy,” followed by

a conversation with lawyer, author,

and founder of the Equal Justice Ini-

tiativeBryanSte-

vensonand Jor-

dan, who por-

trays Stevenson

in the movie.

For the first

time this year,

the MVAAFF is a

qualifying festival

in the short film

category for the

Academy Awards

— meaning best

short film win-

ners can enter

the Oscars shorts

competition the

following season.

“We are hon-

ored and ecstatic

to have the Acad-

emy recognize

us,”Floyd Rance,

cofounder of the

MVAAFF, said in

a release. “For the past few years,

we’ve produced the MVAAFF with the

primary goal of providing a positive

environmentwhere African-American

filmmakers can share their thoughts,

ideas, and aspirations.”

On Wednesday afternoonat 1 p.m.,

the festival screens “EmPOWERED:

More Than Enough to Heal,” a film

that explores the impact of black phy-

sicians on medicine, as well as the sig-

nificance of historically black colleges

and universities in strengthening the

medical field.

Then, at 7 p.m., the Global Sport

Institute at Arizona State University

premieres “BrianBanks,” a film about

a football player whose dreams to play

in the NFL are shattered when he is

wrongly convicted and sent to prison.

On Thursday at 8 p.m., OWNpres-

ents the first episode of its drama se-

ries “David Makes Man,” executive

produced by Oprah Winfrey and Jor-

dan, and starringTa rell Alvin Mc-

Craneyof “Moonlight.” The one-hour

drama centers on a 14-year-old prodi-

gy from the projects, haunted by the

death of his closest friend and relied

on by his mother, who must work to

find a way out of poverty.

Lee closes out the festival Aug. 10

with a showcase of clips, videos, and

music.

For more information on the

MVAAFF anda complete scheduleof

screeningsand special events, visit

http://www.mvaaff.com.

MARTHA MERROW

Spike Lee, Michael

B.Jordanamong

starsat Vineyard

African-American

FilmFestival

SUZANNE KREITER

MitchellZuckoff

JERODHARRIS/GET

TYIMAGESFORWAH

LBURGERS

Atgala withnewgirlfriend,Kraft singswithFoxx,BonJovi

JEAN CATUFFE/GETTY IMAGES/FILE

Robert Kraft withDr. Dana

Blumbergat theFrenchOpen.

LEE

JORDAN

AFP/GETTYIMAGES

Casey Affleck:
“I feltlike the
best thingto do
wasto just be
quiet.”