ARAB TIMES, FRIDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 2-3, 2021 NEWS/FEATURES 13

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‘Deep descent’ Hunter details drugs, grief in new memoir

WASHINGTON, April 1, (AP): President Joe Biden’s son Hunter details his lifelong struggle with alcohol- ism and drug abuse in a new memoir, writing that “in the last fi ve years alone, my two-decades-long mar- riage has dissolved, guns have been put in my face, and at one point I dropped clean off the grid, living in $59-a-night Super 8 motels off I-95 while scaring my family even more than myself.” His “deep descent” into substance addiction fol- lowed the 2015 death of his older brother, Beau, who succumbed to brain cancer at age 46, Hunter Biden writes in “Beautiful Things.” The book is set for re- lease on Tuesday. “After Beau died, I never felt more alone. I lost hope,” he wrote. He credits his second wife, Melissa Cohen Biden, with helping him sober up, along with the love from his father and late brother. Before meeting his future wife in California, Hunter Biden cycled through addic- tion, rehab and sobriety all while managing to have a fam- ily and career as a lawyer and lobbyist. His family tried to in- Biden tervene sometime in 2019 after his mother, Jill Biden, called and invited him to a family dinner in Delaware. But Hunter Biden sensed that more than a hot meal was on table after he saw his three daughters and two counselors from a Pennsylvania rehab center where he’d been a patient when he arrived. In this image provided by CBS, Adhir Kalyan as Al appears in a scene from ‘United States of Al.’ (AP) He swore at his father and bolted from the house, but was chased down the driveway by Joe Biden, who “grabbed me, swung me around, and hugged me. He held me tight in the dark and cried for the longest time. Television Everybody was outside now.” To end the scene, Hunter Biden agreed to check into a facility in Maryland. He was driven there by Beau’s widow, Hallie, with whom he’d had a relationship. After she dropped him off, Hunter Biden writes, he New CBS series is funny and relatable called an Uber, told the staff he’d return in the morn- ing and then checked into a hotel near Baltimore’s airport. Smoked ‘AI’ puts war buddies on footing “For the next two days, while everybody who’d LOS ANGELES, April 1, (AP): The eran producer , whose of different ancestry. been at my parents’ house thought I was safe and makers of “United States of Al” are comedies have navigated weighty top- “Why not authentically cast?” actor sound at the center, I sat in my room and smoked the keenly aware they’re treading on sen- ics including addiction (“Mom”) and Maysoon Zayid (“General Hospital”) crack I’d tucked away in my traveling bag,” he wrote. sitive ground with the new CBS series the perils of genius (“The Big Bang said in a tweet, adding, “I crave Mus- “I then boarded a plane for California and ran and ran about two survivors of war. Theory”). He lists his fi rst priorities lim content but this is offensive.” and ran. Until I met Melissa.” Riley is a combat veteran back from for a project as laughter and characters The show’s makers defend hiring The fi rst drink Hunter Biden remembers having was the Mideast, camped in his dad’s ga- that he and hopefully viewers will care Kalyan, whose credits include “Rules a fl ute of champagne. rage and facing post-traumatic stress about, Lorre said. of Engagement” and “I Love Dick,” He was 8 and at an election-night party in Dela- disorder and a tattered marriage. He “United States of Al” has a lot to and their approach to the issue overall. ware celebrating his father’s reelection to the Sen- can savor a recent win: helping bring play with as a buddy comedy with a “We looked at many, many audi- ate in 1978. He says he didn’t know what he was Awalmir, aka Al, an Afghanistan bonus fi sh-out-of-water angle. But tions of Afghan actors, and Adhir’s doing because “to me, champagne was just a fizzy translator and friend, to live with him there is also a “political element,” performance is just so exceptional,” drink.” This image provided by Netflix shows in America — a land of promise as Lorre said. “It’s inescapable, the dire Goetsch said. “His extensive experi- But he writes that he knew better when he was poster art for the film ‘Concrete Cow- well as extreme culture shock for the circumstances of thousands of in- ence with the multi-cam sitcom was 14 and overnighting at his best friend’s house in the boy,’ premiering April 2 on Netflix. (AP) Muslim newcomer. summer between eighth and ninth grades. They split terpreters in Afghanistan who were vital to our decision to cast him.” a six-pack of beer while the boy’s parents were out. Now consider this: “United States promised safe haven.” Al’s family members, seen in early The boys pretended to be asleep when the parents re- of Al” is a sitcom. It arrives Thursday episodes in online calls from their na- (8:30 pm EDT), embraced by advo- Resource tive country, are played by Afghan or turned home because they were drunk after three beers The show’s creators, David Goetsch apiece. cates for Afghan and Iraqi interpreters Afghan American actors, the produc- “Getting blasted and sick as a dog didn’t scare me who aided US troops. It has baggage and Maria Ferrari, who worked with ers said. or turn me off one bit,” he wrote. “Instead, I thought as well, dinged by observers who take Lorre on “” and Kalyan, who has portrayed a variety it was kind of cool. While I felt a nagging guilt from exception to a South African-born ac- produce the new series with him, say of ethnicities and nationalities, said he disappointing my father, who didn’t drink and who tor of Indian descent who isn’t Muslim they approached the subject matter sees concern over his casting as legiti- encouraged us to stay away from alcohol as well, I playing Al. with respect and attention to perspec- mate because he understands what it’s wanted to do it again.” James Miervaldis, an Army veteran tive. like to “feel that perhaps your culture Drinking, he wrote, “seemed to solve every unan- who served in Afghanistan and helped The writing staff includes three Af- has been misrepresented.” swered question about why I felt the way I felt. It took bring the interpreter he worked with ghan Americans and an Afghan-born He’s said he’s striving to portray to America, is a booster. He heads the writer, Goetsch and Ferrari said. Be- Awalmir realistically. away my inhibitions, my insecurities, and often my Palin Can Xue judgment. It made me feel complete, fi lling a hole I board of No One Left Behind, a non- sides relying on No One Left Behind “I hope that when people view this, didn’t even realize was there - a feeling of loss and my profi t group that supports translators and other groups as resources, word- they will watch the performances and sense of not being understood or fi tting in.” who receive hard-won special US im- of-mouth brought them former transla- feel that the manner in which the char- At 18, Hunter Biden was busted for cocaine pos- Variety migration visas. The group was among tors willing to share their experiences. acter is being portrayed is representa- session but did pretrial intervention with six months’ those consulted by the show’s produc- Equal care is taken with the charac- tive in a positive way,” Kalyan said. ers. ter of Riley, the producers said. As vol- probation and the arrest was removed from his record. Also: He says he disclosed the episode during a 2006 Senate NEW YORK: An Emmy-winning pro- “We were nervous,” Miervaldis said unteers with a Writers Guild program committee hearing on his nomination to serve on the duction designer who was known to be a in an interview. “How was Hollywood for veterans for two years, they knew LOS ANGELES: “Lovecraft Country,” Amtrak board of directors. hoarder has been found dead under a pile going to capture this very serious situ- it could be a valuable resource; half of “The Queen’s Gambit” and “What We As an adult, he once let a crack cocaine ad- of garbage in her New York City home. ation, and make it funny and relatable the six writers on a recent script had Do in the Shadows” are among the se- dict he first met when he was a senior at George- Evelyn Sakash, 66, was found Tues- to 99% of the country that hasn’t been been in the guild program. ries featured in a virtual edition of the town University live with him in his Washington day lying on her kitchen fl oor buried un- overseas or worn the uniform in this Young, whose credits include “A Paley Center’s annual festival cele- apartment for about five months. Hunter Biden der garbage, a police spokesperson said. day and age?” Million Little Things” and “Suburgato- brating TV programs and their makers. was kicked out of the U.S. Navy Reserve after he Sakash was found by her sister, who After seeing several episodes, he ry,” said he became close friends with A 20th-anniversary reunion of cast failed a drug test. had hired a cleaning crew to clear out considers the series and its characters veterans in recent years and gained a members and creators of “Six Feet Hunter Biden, now 51, also writes about thinking he the woman’s home in the College Point as “very true” to his own experience, new appreciation for the struggle some Under” also is part of PaleyFestLA, on section of Queens and look for her, starting with the airport reunion of Al, have in adjusting to civilian life, in- demand starting this week on Yahoo had developed a superpower - “the ability to fi nd crack police said. The sister and the cleaners in any town, at any time, no matter how unfamiliar the played by Adhir Kalyan, and Riley, cluding one vet in particular. Entertainment. This is the second year found Sakash around 4:15 pmTuesday, the former Marine played by Parker When the “United States of Al” that the festival has been forced online terrain,” and about once having a gun thrust in his face they said. when he embarked on such a hunt during fi ve months Sakash was a production designer Young. (“”) pilot script came to him, Young real- because of pandemic restrictions. of self-exile in Los Angeles. who had worked on fi lms including co-stars as Riley’s hospitable dad. ized he’d seen “this experience play Some panel discussions include celeb- It was in Los Angeles where he met Melissa Cohen, “Mermaids,” released in 1990, and 2014s “It brought back a lot of good emo- out fi rsthand, and it would be such an rity moderators, among them “The Late and he describes their fi rst meeting as akin to love at “Still Alice,” according to her IMDB tions,” Miervaldis said. “I choked up. honor to tell that story. And I felt such Late Show with James Corden,” moder- fi rst sight. He says she didn’t fl inch when he told her page. She won a Daytime Emmy Award I laughed. I wasn’t sure how else the a responsibility to do it right, to do it ated by Andrew Rannells; “Evil,” with about his addiction, his alcoholism and other prob- in 2003 for “Between the Lions.” other episodes would go, but I had the justice.” Whoopi Goldberg and “Ted Lasso” lems. A police missing person report said same reaction, having lived this life However the series is received after with moderator Patton Oswalt. “She pushed away everyone in my life connected Sakash was last seen alive on Sept 30, with my interpreter for almost fi ve its debut, early criticism came from Sessions with stars and creators of to drugs,” taking away his phone, computer, car keys 2020. The city medical examiner’s offi ce years.” those taking issue with a rare Middle “The Good Doctor” and “Big Sky” and wallet, he wrote. She deleted every contact in his will determine her cause of death. (AP) The series is under the wing of vet- Eastern starring role going to someone round out the festival lineup. phone who wasn’t family, and tossed his crack co- ❑ ❑ ❑ caine. LONDON: Chinese writer Can Xue and The South African fi lmmaker slowly eased him off Kenyan author Ngugi wa Thiong’o, both gov Sarah Palin says she tested positive rus, such as wearing masks in public. not only allowing the newfound luxury of drinking and arranged for a doctor to come to their long-favored contenders for the Nobel for COVID-19 and is urging people to “Through it all, I view wearing that of being incognito, but trust it’s better Hollywood Hills apartment to help with his withdraw- Prize for literature, are among nominees take steps to guard against the coronavi- cumbersome mask indoors in a crowd as than doing nothing to slow the spread,” al. He slept for three days. for the International Booker Prize for Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presi- fi ction. dential nominee, told People magazine. Also: Can Xue’s “I Live in the Slums” and “And history will show we Masked NEW YORK: Maggie O’Farrell’s “Hamnet,” an im- Ngugi’s “The Perfect Nine: The Epic of Singer visitors were masked before being agined take on the death of Shakespeare’s son from Gikuyu and Mumbi” are among 13 books masked was cool,” she said in her state- the bubonic plague, has won the National Book Critics on the long list for the 50,000 pound ment, referring to the TV show on which ($69,000) prize. she once appeared. Circle prize for fi ction. It was not clear when Palin, 57, tested “Hamnet,” an unfortunately well timed story for the The list announced Tuesday features works from four continents, including “The positive. She told the magazine that other current pandemic, explores the impact of the boy’s ill- members of her family tested positive as ness and death on his family. He was Shakespeare’s War of the Poor” by France’s Eric Vuil- lard, “In Memory of Memory” by Russian well. She said her case shows “anyone only son, and scholars have long speculated about his can catch this.” infl uence — if any — on “Hamlet,” which Shake- writer Maria Stepanova, “The Dangers of Smoking in Bed” by Argentina’s “I strongly encourage everyone to use speare worked on in the years following Hamnet’s Mariana Enriquez and “Minor Detail” by common sense to avoid spreading this death. Palestinian author Adania Shibli. and every other virus out there,” Palin Tom Zoellner’s “Island on Fire: The Revolt That Writer Lucy Hughes-Hallett, who said, in urging vigilance but not fear. Ended Slavery in the British Empire” won for nonfi c- heads the judging panel, said a theme of She said she also advised “reprioritiz- tion, and Amy Stanley’s “Stranger in the Shogun’s many of the books was “migration — the ing some personal time and resources to City: A Japanese Woman and Her World” was the pain of it, but also the fruitful intercon- ensure as healthy a lifestyle as you can winner in biography. nectedness of the modern world.” create so when viruses do hit, you have The autobiography award went to Cathy Park The six fi nalists are set to be revealed at least some armor to fi ght it.” Hong for “Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reck- on April 22 and the winner on June 2. Palin is an American politician, com- oning.” The International Booker Prize is mentator, author, and reality television Other winners announced during Thursday night’s awarded every year to a book of fi ction personality. As the Republican nominee virtual ceremony included Francine J. Harris’ “Here in any language that is translated into for Vice President of the United States Is the Sweet Hand” for poetry and Nicole Fleetwood’s English and published in the UK or Ire- in the 2008 election alongside Arizona land. It is run alongside the Booker Prize This image release by Netflix shows Anya Taylor-Joy from the series ‘The Senator John McCain, she was the fi rst “Marking Time: Art in the Age of Mass Incarceration” Queen’s Gambit.’ ‘The Queen’s Gambit,’ ‘Lovecraft Country’ and ‘What We Do Republican female vice presidential for criticism. Raven Leilani received the John Leon- for English-language fi ction.(AP) ❑ ❑ ❑ in the Shadows’ are among the series featured in a virtual edition of the Paley nominee and the second female vice ard Prize for best fi rst book for her novel “Luster.” Center’s annual festival. The event celebrates TV programs and their stars and presidential nominee of a major party, ANCHORAGE, Alaska: Former Alaska producers. (AP) after Geraldine Ferraro in 1984. (AP)