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'Broken Harts,' Episode 3: 'The Perfect People'


What can you really tell about someone by a picture or a video?

Can you determine what kind of person they are? Their values, beliefs, and goals? What about a photo of a presidential hopeful on the campaign trail? What kind of crowd would he assemble around the podium to send the message that he’s the “other” guy—the progressive, antiestablishment choice? Wouldn’t the proximity of two white moms and their six black kids help make his case?

You may remember a particularly iconic moment from a March 2016 rally for then presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders. It happened in Portland, Oregon, where Sanders was mid-speech when he a tiny bird landed directly in front of him, inches away from his notes. “I think there may be some symbolism here,” Sanders ad libs, “I know it doesn’t look like it, but that bird is really a dove asking us for world peace.”

There were more than 11,000 attendees that particular rally, and the Hart family were among them. They were standing directly behind Sanders, jumping up and down in matching blue Bernie T-shirts. And this wasn’t the first time the Harts had publicly supported the Senator; days earlier, the family had attended his rally in Vancouver, Washington. Afterward, Jen posted about it on Facebook, saying she’d made the kids stand for four hours in the pouring rain. According to a family friend of the Harts, a member of the Sanders campaign team approached the Harts that day and invited them to come to the Oregon rally.

That’s where they became part of the bird moment. The video has over 2.3 million YouTube views—and counting.

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Jen claimed that the family had been approached about doing a reality TV show, but that “no amount of money would ever be worth the trials and tribulations that would surely come from media/producers manipulating our lives on a TV show.” Fair enough. But how could one family—especially one interested in living off the grid—become virally famous by accident?

PHOTO: Zippy Lomax

From left: Devonte, Abigail, and Sierra Hart at the Beloved Festival in 2013

For photographer Zippy Lomax, the family was the perfect visual symbol for the very transformational music festivals they attended together. One video posted to Jen’s YouTube page shows the family enjoying the 2012 Project Earth Festival in Minnesota. Devonte and Jeremiah, both under 10 at the time, are dancing with flowers around their necks; at the 45-second mark, Jen asks Jeremiah: “You going to give Nahko a hug?” He does.

Some might see her question as proof that Jen coerced the kids into performing. Others might see it as a gesture of encouragement. Either way, if the Hart family seemed off, festival onlookers didn’t notice. They were perceived as the perfect people, living the perfect life.

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Nowhere was this more true than Jen’s Facebook page, where her lengthy, intimate posts landed hundreds of likes from people who believed they knew her well enough to call her a friend. From 2007 through 2018, Jen consistently shared fantastical stories: of the family’s adventures on the road, of homeschooling on the beach, of little moments with the chickens the Harts kept in their backyard. At some point, this fantasy world appears to have eclipsed reality. So what was that reality? We’ll get into that next time, on Episode Four of Broken Harts.

Subscribe now to our new podcast, Broken Harts, from Glamour and HowStuffWorks and based on this story from the October 2018 issue of Glamour. New episodes will air each Tuesday; find them on Apple, Google, Spotify, or wherever you like to get your podcasts. For the full transcript of this episode, click here. Have any tips, feedback, or questions? Email us at brokenhartspodcast@gmail.com

Photo: Johnny Huu Nguyen



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Margaret Atwood Is Writing a Sequel to 'The Handmaid's Tale'


It’s been more than 30 years since Canadian author Margaret Atwood published her revolutionary sci-fi novel The Handmaid’s Tale. Since its release, the book has become a symbol of female resistance, thanks in part to its wildly popular Hulu adaptation—and now Atwood has revealed that she’s going to take the story further by writing a sequel called The Testaments.

In a press release, Atwood shared that The Testaments will be out in September 2019. It will pick up 15 years after the final scene in the original book and will be told from the perspective of three women. Like the television series, The Handmaid’s Tale novel is set in Gilead, a dystopian world in which fertile women (called handmaids) are forced to bear children for wealthier families. Both the show and the book follow Offred, a handmaid who is assigned to a rich couple, and her story in the novel ends ambiguously. Atwood’s sequel could finally offer a glimpse into what became of the character.

“Everything you’ve ever asked me about Gilead and its inner workings is the inspiration for this book. Well, almost everything!” Atwood writes in the release. “The other inspiration is the world we’ve been living in.”

Atwood has previously shared that she wrote The Handmaid’s Tale while living in West Berlin and that she drew inspiration from examples of women’s struggles throughout history.

“It may look like only a year, but the real answer is 4,000 years because that’s how much of women’s history I was drawing on,” she said in a speech last year.

Although the Hulu adaptation has boosted The Handmaid’s Tale popularity, Atwood’s publisher has said the show will not be connected to the new book. Still, the series starring Elisabeth Moss has brought the world of Gilead to new audiences and has inspired women amid the #MeToo era and the Trump administration. Many women have taken to wearing the red robes from the series during reproductive rights demonstrations, and some even wore the costume to protest the confirmation of controversial Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.



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Why 'The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina' Is the Perfect Last-Minute Halloween Costume Inspiration


Crafting the perfect Halloween costume all comes down to timing: You need a reference that’s recognizable, yet fresh—news cycle permitting—on October 31. (Admit it: A Pete Davidson and Ariana Grande couples costume might not feel as on point as it did a few weeks ago.) When it’s down to the wire, Halloween procrastinators can always rely on a handful of zeitgeist-y television shows with very specific aesthetics, like Riverdale or Stranger Things. And this year there’s another program to add to the list, and it drops right in the nick of time.

On Friday, October 26, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina premieres on Netflix, and it brings with it plenty of witchy fashion you’ll want to jump on for Halloween. The show is a dark reimagining of the comics series of the same name: Sabrina Spellman must choose between her mortal friends and her family of witches on her sixteenth birthday—and events move in a sinister, satanic direction from there (it exists in the same universe as Riverdale, after all.)

In many ways it feels like a continuation of a costume trend started by its sister program on the CW. Every character has a distinct way of dressing, based on their looks in the comics, that’s integral to their development. Sabrina’s known to don a preppy red peacoat and a black headband; her witching rivals, the Weird Sisters, have coordinating long-sleeve tea dresses with lace Peter Pan collars. Throughout the series, you’ll see plenty of high-neck dresses, moody colors, and velvet—a vibe that really lends itself to Halloween.

On the whole, Sabrina and her coven stick to a handful of style signatures. We talked to the cast of The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, and they broke down their character’s costumes, their evolution, and the best ways to re-create them on Halloween. Read on.

Sabrina Spellman

PHOTO: Diyah Pera/Netflix

When she’s in the mortal world at Baxter High, Sabrina has an understated preppy look—think Blair Waldorf’s polish but without the colorful tights and pearls. “She actually gets ready in the morning—which is admirable, because she’s got so much going on in her life!” Kiernan Shipka says. “She definitely takes time to put an outfit together.”

Her wardrobe is made up of a lot of pieces you likely own already, and probably not what you’d expect from a witch in training (you can put down the pointed hat, sorry): easy crewneck sweaters, button-front corduroy skirts, and oxford loafers. Each look is completed with two finishing details—a thick black headband, which she wears at all times to neatly pull back her hair, and a red cape coat, just like in the comics.

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PHOTO: Diyah Pera/Netflix

There’s a small detail that’s crucial for getting a Sabrina costume right, according to Shipka: her golden locket. “In the first season, in every single scene, I wear the locket that Harvey [her boyfriend] gives me,” the actress explains. The necklace is a sentimental reminder of her ties to the mortal world. Try as Sabrina might to act and dress like a typical teenager, though, she can’t escape her witchy side—and her fashion reflects that.

At the Dark Baptism, a ceremony where Sabrina is expected to officially join her coven and leave the mortal world forever, she wears a white slip with lace detailing…and that’s it. It’s one of the earliest scenes where Sabrina ventures outside of her demure, straightforward style to something darker, with an almost nineties-rocker edge.

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PHOTO: Diyah Pera/Netflix

“As you see Sabrina sort of leaning toward one side or the other, you can definitely see her clothing choices and her hair and makeup change,” Shipka says. (The biggest shift won’t come until later in season, during a scene in which Sabrina and the witches hit a nightclub in outfits Shipka describes as “insane.” “It’s a lot of leather,” she teases.)

The Weird Sisters

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PHOTO: Diyah Pera/Netflix

Riverdale has Cheryl Blossom. Scream Queens had Chanel Oberlin. And on The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, the title of unapologetic style maven is shared by the Weird Sisters, three witches from the Church of Night.

Prudence, Agatha, and Dorcas are inseparable on the show, and that bond is reflected in their matching campy, goth-glam outfits and makeup. In most episodes, they wear velvet dresses with long sleeves and contrasting lace collars, with black tights and heavy makeup—almost like an ultra-gothic take on The Shining’s twins. Can you think of a better group getup?

The whole squad can wear the same dress, either with bibbed high necks like the Sisters or with a crewneck you can just add a detachable lace collar to. Tie your hair into a severely low bun and paint on a dramatic smokey eye to match their OTT makeup. Swipe on a coat of black lipstick and gather your two closest friends, and you can head out to start hexing.

Aunt Hilda and Aunt Zelda

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PHOTO: Diyah Pera/Netflix

What’s a witch in training without her teachers in the occult? Sabrina lives with her Aunt Zelda and Aunt Hilda, two older sorceresses and warring sisters with opposing style. Aunt Zelda is a stringent follower of the Church of Night—all in for witches and no sympathy for Sabrina’s mortal friends—with a buttoned-up wardrobe to match. Aunt Hilda is her lighthearted counterpart: She’s cheerful, mortal-friendly, and leans toward the colors that Zelda despises.

All it takes to arrange an Aunt Hilda costume are clashing patterns and several pieces of statement jewelry. She’s the most upbeat of the bunch at Spellman Family Mortuary, and her joie de vivre comes across in her boldly colorful clothing and jangling necklaces.

“I think Hilda dresses a bit like me in that she will put each individual item on with joy, not thinking about the end effect,” says Lucy Davis. “[There is] no regard for the end look, thinking it will all go because they’re beautiful.”

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PHOTO: Dean Buscher/Netflix

Meanwhile, Aunt Zelda, played by Miranda Otto, is dark-spirited with an austere flair. She wears only navy and black, in vintage-inspired, conservative silhouettes. “Zelda’s into severe, dark, tailored, strong,” Otto says. “She definitely wears her clothes from a time before synthetics were invented. She’s a lady.”

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PHOTO: Diyah Pera/Netflix

Madam Satan

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PHOTO: Diyah Pera/Netflix

Is “dark glamour” your desired Halloween vibe? Look no further than Madam Satan, the witch tasked with swaying Sabrina toward the Church of Night, for your last-minute costume. She’s the most cunning character on the show, and she has a sharp, sexy wardrobe to match. (Read: lots of tight-fitted dresses and even more heels.)

“There’s some seriously fine tailoring,” Michelle Gomez, who plays her, says of her wardrobe. “She’s all angles and poise.”

Copying the look for yourself is simple: All you need is a V-neck dress that’s fitted to the body, voluminous curls, and a belt to cinch at the waist. Definitely don’t forget the spiky heels—she’s never seen without them.

“Madame Satan can run across a bumpy graveyard in Jimmy Choos with absolutely no problem whatsoever,” Gomez says. “She sleeps in her Jimmy Choos. I think she’s even had a bath in her Jimmy Choos. She just wouldn’t be seen without a perfectly poised ankle.”

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How to Make Halloween Costumes From Your Own Closet



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People Have a Lot of Thoughts About How 'The Conners' Killed Off Roseanne


The highly anticipated Roseanne spin-off, The Conners, premiered last night on ABC to huge numbers. According to Nielsen, 10.5 million people tuned in to see how the Conner family would carry on without their matriarch Roseanne, played by Roseanne Barr. The actress, who led last spring’s Roseanne reboot, found herself in hot water after she made racist comments about Valerie Jarrett, a former aide to the Obama administration. Her remarks caused ABC to cancel the reboot, and in its place is The Conners, which has all the elements that made Roseanne successful—just without Barr.

And naturally, how The Conners killed off Barr’s character is causing some serious chatter online. By the end of the pilot, we learn that Roseanne died from an opioid overdose. It’s a bleak way to send off a character, and especially poignant given the prevalence of opioid abuse in our culture. But Barr took to Twitter to express her disapproval in how the show finished off her character. “I AIN’T DEAD, BITCHES!!!!” she wrote.

Shortly after this, Barr released a statement on Facebook through her friend, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach. Here it is, in full:

While we wish the very best for the cast and production crew of The Conners, all of whom are deeply dedicated to their craft and were Roseanne’s cherished colleagues, we regret that ABC chose to cancel Roseanne by killing off the Roseanne Conner character. That it was done through an opioid overdose lent an unnecessary grim and morbid dimension to an otherwise happy family show.

This was a choice the network did not have to make. Roseanne was the only show on television that directly addressed the deep divisions threatening the very fabric of our society. Specifically, the show promoted the message that love and respect for one another’s personhood should transcend differences in background and ideological discord. The show brought together characters of different political persuasions and ethnic backgrounds in one, unified family, a rarity in modern American entertainment. Above all else, the show celebrated a strong, matriarchal woman in a leading role, something we need more of in our country.

Through humor and a universally relatable main character, the show represented a weekly teaching moment for our nation. Yet it is often following an inexcusable—but not unforgivable—mistake that we can discover the most important lesson of all: forgiveness. After repeated and heartfelt apologies, the network was unwilling to look past a regrettable mistake, thereby denying the twin American values of both repentance and forgiveness. In a hyper-partisan climate, people will sometimes make the mistake of speaking with words that do not truly reflect who they are. However, it is the power of forgiveness that defines our humanity.

Our society needs to heal on many levels. What better way for healing than a shared moment, once a week, where we could have all enjoyed a compelling storyline featuring a witty character—a woman—who America connected with, not in spite of her flaws, but because of them. The cancellation of Roseanne is an opportunity squandered due in equal parts to fear, hubris, and a refusal to forgive.

The Twitter reactions to Roseanne’s death are mixed. Some are outraged:

Others, however, are unbothered and even find the plot twist funny:

We’ll update this post if Barr says anything else. The Conners airs Tuesdays at 8:00 P.M. ET on ABC.

Related Stories:

Roseanne Barr Addresses Valerie Jarrett Tweet: “I Thought the Bitch Was White”

Valerie Jarrett Responds to Roseanne Cancellation: “We Have to Turn It Into a Teaching Moment”





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'The Big Bang Theory' Season 12, Episode 2 Recap: The Story Behind 'The Wedding Gift Wormhole'


Sheldon and Amy’s honeymoon kicked off The Big Bang Theory‘s final season, but it was the second episode of the week—titled “The Wedding Gift Wormhole”—that brought real fun for the couple.

Leonard and Penny give “the perfect wedding gift” to Sheldon and Amy. It’s a sweet gesture, but there’s one problem: The newly marrieds have no clue what it is. The gift, a crystal wand, looks expensive but has no obvious purpose. Naturally, Amy wonders if it’s a marital aid. (God, I’m going to miss this show next year.)

Of course, it’d be inappropriate to ask Leonard and Penny what the gift actually is…but Sheldon is the king of inappropriate questions. You’d think he could have solved this in minutes. Maybe married life has changed him after all? Instead, while Amy and Sheldon are in bed one night, they come to the conclusion that the gift is simply a clue about their actual gift, which they’ll find by going on a scavenger hunt.

Turns out, the idea for this episode was actually born out of the same exact gift that executive producer Steve Holland received from the show’s visual effects supervisor. “The gift we got is the same gift you see in the episode,” Holland says. “It is a wand. The joke was when we got it, we didn’t quite know what it was. We had it it the writers’ room for years and we’d joke about it, so we decided to turn that into an episode where Sheldon and Amy get the wedding gift that they don’t know what it is.”

To this day, Holland doesn’t even know if the wand is expensive or worth anything. “I just know it’s not a marital aid,” he jokes.

By the episode’s end, we learn the wand actually belonged to Raj, who gave it as a wedding gift to Bernadette and Howard, who then gave it to Penny and Leonard, who then gave it to Shamy. The moral of this story? They all need better friends. If Raj does get married this season, he better register for some expensive stuff—and hope he doesn’t get a random hand-me-down.

Related: Is There a Chance for a Big Bang Theory Spin-Off?



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'The Big Bang Theory' Season 12 Episode 1 Recap: The Conjugal Configuration Shows Sheldon and Amy's Honeymoon


The Big Bang Theory kicked off its final season Monday night, September 24, with Amy and Sheldon’s honeymoon to Legoland and New York City. From Lego-crafted eggs and bacon to Harry Potter robes and wands, the experience should have been a dream come true for the newlyweds. Instead, it was…not that.

It started off well, though. The episode—titled “The Conjugal Configuration”—immediately catered to Shamy fans by having Sheldon wake up his new bride and sweetly calling her his wife. (If it’s still oddly surreal to see Sheldon wear a wedding ring, join the club.) We find out the two have consummated their marriage in a hotel suite overlooking the Legoland entrance, and Sheldon has ordered room service made out of Legos. It’s beautiful—until it all goes south.

The next day, Sheldon and Amy check into a new hotel in New York City, where they’re seeing a stage production of Harry Potter and getting a tour of Nikola Tesla’s old stomping grounds. Sheldon tells the bellman they’ll be very busy exploring the city and having coitus, which rubs Amy the wrong way. Shockingly, Amy’s frustration has less to do with Sheldon being so public about their private life and more to do with the fact that he wants to have sex again. “Really, Sheldon, you want to do it again?!” she asks. “Don’t act surprised,” he replies. “It’s on the schedule!”

Later, Amy’s annoyed with Sheldon again after he makes a scene during the play by yelling safety measures from the audience. And when they return to the hotel, Sheldon suggests they engage in coitus. “It’s a bit late,” he says, “but I did block out the rest of the evening for conjugal relations.” Amy is tired and asks to reschedule, but that doesn’t fit with Sheldon’s itinerary. If they don’t have sex tonight, he says, he hasn’t scheduled it again until Thursday at 6. “And that will have to be no frills, because we have a 6:30 reservation at Benihana.”

Of course, Amy shouldn’t do anything physical she doesn’t want to do or be a puppet to her husband’s love-making schedule. But in the past, Sheldon’s been receptive to Amy when she voices her frustration. This time, though, instead of explaining why spontaneity is important to her, she quips, “Would it be so bad to mix it up?” Sheldon is floored by this. “Mix it up?! Who are you? Betty Crocker?” He leaves to take a shower, while Amy feels disappointed and defeated.

PHOTO: Michael Yarish

The next day, during the Testla tour, Amy’s still upset. Sheldon can tell she’s testy, but Amy claims she’s not. So, Sheldon deduces she must be sexually frustrated. “If you abided by my coital schedule, your brain would be floating on a cloud of oxytocin right now,” he says. This sends Amy over the edge. She tells him she’s walking away, while he’s got the look of a deer in headlights. “I’m only recently married,” he tells the group of Tesla fanatics. “Do I stay here or do I follow? Say something useful.”

When Sheldon eventually finds Amy, he’s able to do what the couple should have done 24 hours earlier: communicate how he’s feeling. “You realize I’m not a particularly physical person,” he says. “I want to be a good husband to you, and intimacy is a part of that. I’m just worried if I don’t schedule our bedroom endeavors, I may not think about them, and you will grow cold and distant and seek solace in the arms of a heavily muscled longshoreman.”

Amy tells Sheldon she could never be with anybody but him; it’s OK if he wants to make all the schedules in the world, but maybe he just shouldn’t tell her about them. Sheldon agrees and says he’ll create an algorithm that will generate a pseudo-random schedule. “Do you know why it won’t be a true random schedule?” Sheldon asks. “Because the generation of true random numbers remains an unsolved problem in computer science,” Amy replies.

Of course, it’s Amy’s mathematical/scientific brilliance that turns Sheldon on—and this makes him want to have spontaneous sex. “Where are we going?” she asks when he pulls her away from a park bench. “To the hotel room,” he responds. “And when we get there, I’m going to need you to say that to me again, except naked.”

Related: Could there be a Big Bang spin-off after the series ends?



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