Alphabet City: My So-Called Sitcom Life

Moving from Dallas to Manhattan in his late 20s, Jon Paul fancied himself a gay Mary Tyler Moore starring in a sitcom of his life called Alphabet City. A series of publicity jobs created madcap storylines, including a mishap with Whoopi Goldberg’s Oscar, a mistaken identity as Tyra Banks’ Turkish boy-toy, and finishing school lessons in the gossipy halls of Condé Nast. Unlike snarky tell-alls, Alphabet City maintains a Texas-sized optimistic spirit about life in the Big Apple, with guest appearances from Cameron Diaz, Gloria Estefan, Teri Hatcher, Derek Jeter, Ashley Judd, Rosie O’Donnell, Graham Norton, and Vanessa Williams. Following Jon Paul’s journey from naive Southerner to wizened New Yorker, Alphabet City combines the glamour of Sex and the City with the warmth of Tales of the City, and taps into America’s fascination with the world of celebrities. In the end, just like Mary, Jon Paul discovers he’s going to make it after all.