PUBLISHER’S LETTER
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hope your day gets better,” said the handsome young man as he made a point to walk by me, touching my knee as I sat numb, trepedacious about the upcoming flight. It was difficult to look him in the eye as he’d been trying to make contact for a while — to empathize and let me know he cared. A stranger in the airport, feeling my pain as I quietly sat in the almost incredulously low, standard-issue airport row chairs, tears slowly and selectively rolling down my cheeks; waves of despondence crashing against my brain, my chest, my heart. After 19 hours of travel and weather delays, I was to miss the celebration resulting from decades of striving: the Los Angeles Premiere of “I am the Night,” a limited series on TNT inspired by the life of Fauna Hodel. Just then, I received a tag on Facebook — three years ago today two of my most cherished friends Hodel and Paulette Martinez Bethel met at a restaurant in Hawaii and become fast friends themselves. The two women, one black, one white, look as if they could have been sisters; but more than that (unbeknownst to any of us at the time) they had a similar foundational life experience and identity: one that drove them to strive for belonging — even if they did so in different ways. The dimensionality and intersectionality of their lives created a bond whereby they discussed with each other things the rest of the world wouldn’t quite understand. Hodel passed away last year after a valiant fight with cancer, but not before achieving the life-long dream of telling her incredible story to the world and working to spread a message of love — love beyond color. The result is “I am the Night,” and a collaboration with “Wonder Woman” Director Patty Jenkins and Screenwriter Sam Sheridan, starring Actor Chris Pine. I had
Left — (l to r) Fast friends: Paulette Martinez Bethel and Fauna Hodel. Right — Patty, Doni and Sam on the set of “I am the Night” in Los Angeles.
8
Spring 2019
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www.CultursMag.com
the honor of representing my friend as a consultant on the series, and took the role to heart because I know this win was hard-fought for a woman who deserved everything that comes with it. Thus the tears I spoke of above. Initially, I felt like I’d let my friend down, but the timely Facebook memory reminded me to choose joy — just as Hodel would have wanted. Jenkins is a military B.R.A.T., which is the major focus for this issue. In Making Art for All of Us, pg 80, she and Sheridan show how family dimensionality and the power of a team can inspire greatness. The Military B.R.A.T. Art project, page 36, highlights the forgotten work of B.R.A.T.s curated from closed U.S. Department of Defense schools around the globe; while B.R.A.T.s share what memories are meaningful to them, page 42. Thanks to Jenkins, I also had the great opportunity to visit the set of “Wonder Woman II” while filming in London, which is our destination of choice this issue. TCK Xiaoya Cheng tells us why you should fall in love with it, page 88; and our Must List gives some unique gift ideas straight from the Queen’s stomping grounds, page 52. I hope you enjoy this issue, dedicated to Hodel — as she and I had always discussed her face gracing the magazine’s cover when it went into print. I’m 100 percent sure she’d be proud that the Sheridan-Jenkins clan with its hidden diversity is here in her stead. Choose Joy,
Doni (Dawn-ee) Publisher
