Candace Bushnell, 'Sex And The City' Author, Sued By Gay Best Friend And Former Manager

In a twist of fate which could have been lifted straight from an episode of the hit HBO series, "Sex and the City" author Candace Bushnell is facing a lawsuit from an ex-manager who has also been described as her former gay best friend.

The New York Post reports that Clifford Streit, who apparently served as the model for the flamboyant character Stanford Blatch (played by Willie Garson), is demanding a 7.5 percent cut of Bushnell's total earnings from both the TV series and subsequent movies, a sum he figures is no less than $150,000.

Streit, who reportedly claims he was instrumental in getting HBO to produce "Sex and the City" based on Bushnell's New York Observer columns in the first place, served as the scribe's manager until 1999, when he was fired.

Bushnell's attorney quickly dismissed the lawsuit, according to the Post. "I can 100 percent say there is no basis for any claim and the action is completely and entirely frivolous," Victor Bushell is quoted as saying. "She doesn’t owe him any money. It’s a garbage lawsuit."

The Daily News notes that the pair reached a settlement five years ago in which Bushnell, whose alter ego Carrie was played by Sarah Jessica Parker on the show, agreed to pay Streit more than $230,000, but he says he hasn't received a payment since 2009.

In other "Sex and the City" news, details about "The Carrie Diaries," a planned prequel, are beginning to emerge. Entertainment Weekly is reporting that "Running Wilde" actress Stefania Owen has been cast in the role of Carrie Bradshaw's 14-year-old sister.

No word on whether SATC fans can look forward to an appearance by a young Stanford.

Also on HuffPost:

Comments

[waterfowler1947]

10:43 AM on 02/28/2012

Still more on SJP? Enough already. Ugly is ugly and will always be ugly.

[Jeffersonian1]

12:46 PM on 02/18/2012

Knowing both of these people, I can say that Candace is no walk in the park; but, in my opinion, Clifford is a bottom-feeding, incompetent nebbish.

[Sara Janmaat]

07:44 AM on 02/18/2012

It would be ridiculous to have Carrie have a younger sister! I did not read the books, so maybe Carrie in the books did, but the Carrie on-screen never did. Not going to be much in the way of a pre-quel, methinks.

[roblabrousse]

02:15 PM on 02/17/2012

Ho-hum.

[scottgates]

01:19 PM on 02/17/2012

Well, I guess they ain't best friends anymore.

[brocknv]

12:23 PM on 02/17/2012

is that Mozzie in that pic

[Jim Wedeman]

02:19 PM on 02/17/2012

thats what i keep saying is that mozzie , wow

[sja8800]

08:57 AM on 02/17/2012

what is this ????....." gay " best friend....why is gay even used, it has no merit in this article what-so-ever !

[brocknv]

12:36 PM on 02/17/2012

because its a craze if people want to be different they jump on the gay band wagon

[dawglover704]

08:44 AM on 02/17/2012

Sex and the City is by far my FAVORITE show :)

[thomcat327]

11:01 AM on 02/17/2012

If that is infact your favorite show, I feel sorry for you. Guess you don't get out much. Did you see their 2nd movie? Could there be anything worse?

[dawglover704]

05:47 PM on 02/17/2012

I said SHOW not movie....

[Jesse Meyers]

08:19 AM on 02/17/2012

The show is over, two movies are done. Why is he just now, coming forward? If I felt I was less than compesated fully for my work, I would have said something. Although, what's the point of him being call "gay best friend", I would understand the "gay" description if his lifestyle contributed to the work, but since I'm almost positive he wasn't sleeping with people to get the show on air - the description comes off as meaningless. Unless, Ms. Bushnell is using that description to sway public opinion. The inevitable question, if you didn't anything wrong; Why do you need to sway public opinion?

[Solar Bear]

11:54 AM on 02/17/2012

Why is he just now, coming forward?

If you read the article, it states they reached a settlement 5 years ago, but he claims he was never paid.

[Jesse Meyers]

12:39 PM on 02/17/2012

TY for pointing that out. After 1/2 year, 1 year, 2 years of not getting paid a settlement agreed upon I might understand, but 5 years? Waiting that long to get paid doesn't make sense, unless he intentionally didn't say anything when he didn't get paid, so the settlement itself could be considered breached and meaningless. Therefore giving him the opportunity to tack on the two movies that have been made since then, which their original agreement probably didn't cover, cause they hadn't been made yet. They should've paid the settlement ASAP, now he's gonna get alot more money.

[LeftRightCenter]

01:40 AM on 02/17/2012

geez lady just pay the gay...

[julesmu84]

01:03 AM on 02/17/2012

14 year old sister? I'm a fan, and even I'll admit that is absolutely absurd. Make the kid adopted or Big's illegitimate daughter or something. Those stories could actually be interesting to tell. As it stands, this just sounds stupid, and I will not be tuning in.

[LemmonHerk]

12:17 AM on 02/17/2012

It says they made an agreement five years ago; OK, if she hasn't paid that, she needs to. But even if they hadn't, I'll have to hand it to the guy for one thing -- $150,000 isn't exactly an outrageous figure. You read about stuff like this, and they're usually asking for millions (because they're represented by a lawyer working on a percentage, like a shoe clerk).

[jumpinjohn011]

10:07 PM on 02/16/2012

If he wins, he'll not only be gay; but happy!

[Raejeanowl]

08:39 PM on 02/16/2012

Prequel? Are they getting younger actresses to play the parts, or are we going to have to suffer the impossible suspension of disbelief that the actors are rolled a cumulative TWENTY years in age back from the end of the original show run, a la Gods and Generals?

[kevvone]

07:53 PM on 02/16/2012

He sounds like a great friend. If there was no contract signed by all of them that he's receive anything, then he gets nothing. I'm sure they're no longer friends now.