THE GOLDEN BACHELOR shows me his dink. The pickleball shotin which you lift your paddle in a compact underhand stroke so the ball drops right over the net-is deceptively challenging for one's opponent to return, rewarding finesse over brute strength. I don't have the slightest idea how to play pickleball. Lucky for me, Gerry Turner is a great teacher. But unlike with most instructors, he appeared to me the night before, while I was watching a video explaining the game, in an ad for his new prime-time TV show, one that has been sold as the latest (partial) rebranding of traditional dating-show dictates.
In theory, The Bachelor franchise is a factory for fairy tales with each season's star meant to pluck his future spouse from a symmetrical-faced, white-teethed lineup of generally 20-something romantic prospects. In reality, those fairy tales have ended less commonly in a true happily ever after than in the would-be bride selling hair gummies on Instagram. But then the Disney-ABC powers that be decided to look outside their usual Future Influencers of America demographic. The casting call for Golden Bachelor was originally issued in early 2020; immediately, show-runner Jason Ehrlich knew the type of man he didn't want: a convertible-driving, country-club-frequenting "silver fox" with "gobs of money" and a preference for younger women. They needed someone genuine, someone "rootable." Like a tan, charming needle in a haystack, he was finally found: a now-72-year-old widower living in northern Indiana who, by the way, pronounces his name as "Gary." Turner's submission caught the casting team's attention in the first week of reviewing applications. "Every minute we spent with Gerry, we liked him more and more. He was just so kind and sweet and obviously handsome," Ehrlich says. "Everyone who met him, we just thought, We've got to do this for him."
Denne historien er fra October 23 - November 5, 2023-utgaven av New York magazine.
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Denne historien er fra October 23 - November 5, 2023-utgaven av New York magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Trapped in Time
A woman relives the same day in a stunning Danish novel.
Polyphonic City
A SOFT, SHIMMERING beauty permeates the images of Mumbai that open Payal Kapadia's All We Imagine As Light. For all the nighttime bustle on display-the heave of people, the constant activity and chaos-Kapadia shoots with a flair for the illusory.
Lear at the Fountain of Youth
Kenneth Branagh's production is nipped, tucked, and facile.
A Belfast Lad Goes Home
After playing some iconic Americans, Anthony Boyle is a beloved IRA commander in a riveting new series about the Troubles.
The Pluck of the Irish
Artists from the Indiana-size island continue to dominate popular culture. Online, they've gained a rep as the \"good Europeans.\"
Houston's on Houston
The Corner Store is like an upscale chain for downtown scene-chasers.
A Brownstone That's Pink Inside
Artist Vivian Reiss's Murray Hill house of whimsy.
These Jeans Made Me Gay
The Citizens of Humanity Horseshoe pants complete my queer style.
Manic, STONED, Throttle, No Brakes
Less than six months after her Gagosian sölu show, the artist JAMIAN JULIANO-VILLAND lost her gallery and all her money and was preparing for an exhibition with two the biggest living American artists.
WHO EVER THOUGHT THAT BRIGHT PINK MEAT THAT LASTS FOR WEEKS WAS A GOOD IDEA?
Deli Meat Is Rotten
