Love Letters

A few years ago, while at summer camp in North Carolina, Ray was wrestling with some of life’s biggest questions. Identity, love, growing up, a first kiss — Ray had a lot on their mind, and no one to confide in. Until they met Maria, a counselor clad in sandals and tie-dye who would become Ray’s mentor, guide, life coach, and cheerleader, all wrapped into one. In this first episode of the new season, a portrait of two people and their lasting, beautiful bond. Email us at [email protected].

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1989 Boston. The crack epidemic is raging, the murder rate soaring, and white flight has taken hold. Charles Stuart and his pregnant wife, Carol, are carjacked, drawn deep into a dangerous “inner city” neighborhood, and allegedly shot by a Black man. All of Boston – and the nation – is gripped by the hunt for the suspect. What follows will reveal truths about the city... and ourselves.

Presented by The Boston Globe and HBO Documentary Films, Murder in Boston: The Untold Story of the Charles and Carol Stuart Shooting is hosted by Adrian Walker who, along with a team of Pulitzer-winning investigative reporters, unveils explosive new findings and change the narrative of a story long cemented in the city’s lore. The HBO Documentary Series Murder in Boston: Roots, Rampage, and Reckoning is available to stream on Max.

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Almost every love story has a supporting cast — friends, relatives, therapists, and others who play a key role in what happens. In Season 9 of Love Letters, we pay tribute to those important figures in the background. You’ll hear all kinds of stories about help and guidance people received in their romantic lives, from an ex who became the perfect wingperson, to the communities that support the spouses of pro athletes, to the best queer mentor anyone could ask for. Season 9 launches Jan. 23. Email us at [email protected].

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It’s Meredith against the world in this bonus episode as she attempts to prove why a viral list of places women will supposedly never go on a first date is wrong, and why The Cheesecake Factory – that’s right, The Cheesecake Factory – is a totally acceptable date spot. To pull this off, she takes her producer, Jesse, to one of her most beloved spots for a platonic work-date. They discuss everything from Meredith’s devotion to the chain restaurant, to the horoscopian powers of The Cheesecake Factory’s menu, to Shaquille O’Neal and Barbie. All classic first-date stuff. Email us at [email protected].

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Meredith sits down with her sister, Brette, to tackle two family-themed letters from the Love Letters column. First, a woman feels some tension with her future sister-in-law. Second, a writer discovers that her boyfriend and her mother had a one-night-stand in the past. Should the woman confront her mom? Does the mom even remember this guy? How are they going to make it through the holidays? Send your own letter to [email protected].

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Meredith sits down with comedians Jake Johnson and Gareth Reynolds, co-hosts of the popular new podcast “We’re Here to Help.” Gareth and Jake — who played Nick Miller on the hit show "New Girl" — are longtime friends who bonded doing improv together. Their podcast is a lot like them: fun, silly, sometimes accidentally poignant. Meredith, Jake, and Gareth compare their approaches to advice-giving and dish on baldness, horses, and trashy TV. Warning: This episode is very fun. Email us at [email protected].

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For the final episode in our series “We Found Love,” we explore the psychology behind prison relationships, a proposed law in Massachusetts that would eliminate life sentences without parole, and the story of an incarcerated man who’s wrestling with the pressures of a young relationship. Email us at [email protected].

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Venus and Cornelius have been together for more than six years and engaged for five. They dream of seeing the world together, buying a house, and making their union official. But whether any of those things will ever happen is unclear, because Cornelius is serving a life sentence for murder without the possibility of parole. In Episode Two of the three-part series “We Found Love,” Boston Globe criminal justice reporter Ivy Scott brings us an intimate portrait of a committed, loving relationship that exists largely on the phone. Email us at [email protected].

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The first chapter of “We Found Love,” a three-part miniseries exploring how romantic love and partnership run up against – and sometimes transcend – the criminal justice system. Through the stories of three couples, at all different stages in their relationships, Boston Globe reporter Ivy Scott dives deep into what it takes to find love in a hopeless place. In today’s episode, she tells the story of Sharlene, a successful working mother with a secret, and Blake, a Southern gentleman serving time for second-degree murder. Their first encounter, in the visiting room of a Massachusetts state prison, would change the course of their lives. Email us at [email protected].

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Meredith sits down with director Susanna Fogel to discuss Susanna’s new movie, "Cat Person," based on the buzzy 2017 short story by Kristen Roupenian in The New Yorker. They discuss Susanna’s decision to cast Nicholas Braun and Emilia Jones as romantic leads; the role that friends play in sussing out potential partners; and why "Cat Person," the story, stirred so much contentious debate — Susanna calls it a "weird Rorschach test for people's own [stuff]." Email us at [email protected].

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