The Other Side of Mulholland

“A witty novel of manners and mores in the two Los Angeles… Satire that’s more affectionate than barbed; a good-humored look at the L.A. that Randall…grew up in, still lives in, and is titillated by.” -Kirkus Review. Los Angeles is the only major city literally divided by a mountain range: the Santa Monica Mountains, along which winds the infamous Mulholland Drive. On one side of the mountains is Upper L.A., the city everyone knows and dreams about, while on the other side of Mulholland is the San Fernando Valley, a gigantic suburb that seems to exist only as a geographic punchline. These mountains also divide the Newmans, a mildly dysfunctional but charming family. Twin sons Tim and Perry live in Upper Los Angeles, trying to make it in the creative snake pits of show business and journalism. Their parents, Syd and Ann, reside in a sprawling empty nest in the Valley where they raised their family, complete with kidney-shaped pool, a mandatory wet bar, and some less-than-idyllic problems brewing. Relentlessly funny, The Other Side of Mulholland follows the Newmans as Tim and Perry—one gay, one straight, one adrift in life, one seemingly together—try to create a future while Mom and Dad watch, help, hinder, and figure out their own path. When one brother is given an opportunity that could shift the fraternal dynamic, will he take it? In this modern satire, Randall pokes fun at living in the world’s most misunderstood city, showing how life, especially family life, can be warped by influences and dichotomies unique to the City of Angels: show business, delicatessen wars, entertainment websites, car washes, brush fires, auto worship, malls, the Chabad telethon, and more.