Hamel Alan - Twos Company

Copyright 2017 by Suzanne Somers

All rights reserved.

Published in the United States by Harmony Books, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.

crownpublishing.com

Harmony Books is a registered trademark, and the Circle colophon is a trademark of Penguin Random House LLC.

Photograph credits appear on .

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Somers, Suzanne, 1946 author.

Title: Twos company / Suzanne Somers.

Description: First edition. | New York : Harmony Books, 2017.

Identifiers: LCCN 2017021476 | ISBN 9780451498267 (hardcover : alk. paper) | ISBN 9780451498274 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Somers, Suzanne, 1946 | Somers, Suzanne, 1946Marriage. | ActorsUnited StatesBiography. | Hamel, Alan. | Hamel, AlanMarriage. | EntertainersCanadaBiography.

Classification: LCC PN2287.S63 A3 2917 | DDC 791.4502/8092 [B] dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017021476

ISBN9780451498267

Ebook ISBN9780451498274

Cover design: Caroline Somers and Danielle Shapero-Rudolph

Cover photographs: Cindy Gold

v5.1

a

To my husband, my family, and my therapists.

You all know who you are, how much you mean to me,

and how deeply all of you have enriched my life.

To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.

OSCAR WILDE

This life is what you make it. No matter what, youre going to mess up sometimes, its a universal truth. But the good part is you get to decide how youre going to mess it up. As for lovers, well, theyll come and go too. And baby, I hate to say it, most of themactually pretty much all of them are going to break your heart, but you cant give up because if you give up, youll never find your soulmate. Youll never find that half who makes you whole and that goes for everything. Just because you fail once, doesnt mean youre gonna fail at everything. Keep trying, hold on, and always, always, always believe in yourself, because if you dont, then who will, sweetie? So keep your head high, keep your chin up, and most importantly, keep smiling, because lifes a beautiful thing and theres so much to smile about.

MARILYN MONROE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

At the top of the list is Heather Jackson, my editor extraordinaire. You remind me when Im redundant, repetitive, or too wordy. You force me to cut to the meat. You are ruthless in your comments. You make me mad, and then I see it. Your eye is impeccable, and my trust in your instincts gives great comfort. This is our eighth book together. I look forward to the next and the next. Thank you for being a great friend, and thank you for your enormous talent.

Alan Hamel, my cool, sexy, hot, smart (supersmart), honest, kind, and savvy husband. My chairman/CEO, the guy at the top of the company, is a true executive who oversees but allows his executives to do their thing. Unlike most people in these roles, Alan is extremely creative. For this book, I asked him to tell it his way: without polish, without any political correctness. To be truthful, shocking, and compelling. You are consistently true to yourself. You dont care what anyone thinks; you see it as you see it, and you tell it as it is. I like that, and so will the readers. You are the real deal, a straight talker, and a real man. I love you more than anything.

Bruce, you are part of all my stories. You are my story. You came through me to teach us both about the life we live. Just seeing you walk through the door makes me smile and my heart soar. I am a proud and happy mother, and I love you with all my heart. (Alan wanted me to remind you, I taught you to walk!)

My daughter, Leslie Hamel, thank you for your unbelievable talent. Thank you for all the costumes youve designed for me that Ive written about extensively in this book, and no small thing, for the Doodle Shirt you designed from your fathers doodles that became the shirt on the cover of this book. Heres to a great new business! Thank you for accepting me as your other mother. It means so much to me. I love you.

Thanks once again to Sandi Mendelson, my lucky charm, my one and only publicist. This is our nineteenth book together. It doesnt matter how great the book; if the public doesnt know about it, the work gets lost. Sandi makes sure all the right outletsthe most prestigious TV shows, social media, print, Facebook, every source availablegive coverage. The result has been a string of bestsellers. You are the best and such fun to work with.

Marc Chamlin, my literary lawyerwe turn it over to you, tell you what we need and want, and then you go get it, and no one ever feels screwed over. Thats true talent and diplomacy. Thanks.

Caroline Somers is now president of our company, after a long run as creative director and executive vice president of branding and product development. There is no one better or smarter to be at the helm. You wear so many hats, you keep all the plates spinning, and nothing suffers. It all gets done, and it gets done great. You are my right hand. Johnny had Ed, Oprah has Gayleand I have you, Caroline. You anticipate my every need, you help me execute my vision, and you represent us at the highest level of professionalism. I loved our collaboration on the photo shoot and design for this jacket. Most important, we are in sync. You are my son Bruces wife and mother to my darling granddaughters, Camelia and Violet. You are one of those women who does it all. I love you dearlyand I love being your earth mother.

Thank you to Danielle Shapero-Rudolph for the fantastic jacket design. I love the fun, the energy, and the style. I love your enormous talent and what youve brought to the company and the brand.

Thanks to Cindy Gold for the fantastic jacket photo. I love working with you and your talented team.

Roger Ball, our senior vice president in charge of production. In other words, our everything guy. You are the best; a dear friend, a master of lighting, and a lot of fun. Its been thirty years.

Julie Turkel, our dear sweet assistant, who lies awake at night thinking of nice things to do for us and the company.

Thanks to Mooney, as always, for giving me my trademark Suzanne Hair. And its just cool to be with you.

Thanks also to Jill Schugardt, vice president of procurement. She handles all interfacing for ordering, delivering, and distribution of our products. Your work is incredibly detailed, and youre really good at spreadsheets and things I know nothing about!

Sam Harwit, director of social media, manages all my social media platforms and helps me stay current with emerging apps. Youre smart, savvy, and adorable.

Jason Latshaw, vice president for e-commerce and sales, youre the heart of my sales team, running the website and ensuring that my customers have a smooth experience in finding my products and that they are delivered promptly to their homes.

Dave Henson, my computer guyhow Ive written so many books with such limited computer skills speaks highly of your input. When I call you in tears saying, Helllllp! you are there and put it all back together again. Thanks so much.

Herb Schmidt, who handles the money, our CFO for many years. Thank you.

My partners at Crown are Diana Baroni, vice president and editorial director; Tammy Blake, publicity director; Christina Foxley, assistant marketing director; and Aaron Wehner, senior vice president and publisher at Clarkson Potter, Ten Speed Press, and Harmony Books.