Candace Bushnell
She turned her sharp, scandalous observations of Manhattan's elite into a cultural blueprint for modern womanhood and urban dating.
Born 1958 (age 68)·American author, journalist, and producer·Birthday: December 1·Baby Boomers
Biography
Candace Bushnell arrived in New York City as a teenager with $20 in her pocket and a determination to write. After years of freelancing and penning children's books, she landed a column for the New York Observer in 1994, chronicling the city's social scene with a wit so biting it required pseudonyms for its real-life subjects. That column, 'Sex and the City', became a bestselling book and then the HBO series that defined an era, transforming Bushnell from a journalist into a reluctant oracle of single life. While the show's glamour often overshadowed her grittier source material, Bushnell continued to dissect the complexities of love, money, and power in novels like 'Lipstick Jungle' and 'The Carrie Diaries'. Her work permanently altered the landscape of television, publishing, and the conversation around female independence.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Candace was born in 1958, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Candace Was Born
The biggest hits of 1958
#1 Movie
South Pacific
Best Picture
Gigi
#1 TV Show
Gunsmoke
Candace's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1958Born
NASA founded
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Volare" — Domenico ModugnoBest Picture: Gigi
1963Started school
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1971Became a teenager
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1974Could drive
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1976Could vote
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1979Turned 21
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1988Turned 30
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1998Turned 40
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
2008Turned 50
Barack Obama elected first Black US president; financial crisis
Gas: $3.27/galHome: $153,100Min wage: $6.55/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Low" — Flo RidaBest Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
2018Turned 60
Royal wedding of Harry and Meghan; Parkland shooting
Gas: $2.72/galHome: $211,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"God's Plan" — DrakeBest Picture: Green Book
2026Age 68 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Her 'Sex and the City' column for the New York Observer was adapted into a bestselling book and the landmark HBO television series.
- She authored multiple New York Times bestselling novels, including 'Lipstick Jungle' and 'One Fifth Avenue'.
- Her 'Lipstick Jungle' novel was adapted into a NBC television series that ran for two seasons.
- She was named one of Time magazine's '100 Most Influential People' in 2009.
Did You Know?
She was the first person to use the phrase 'toxic bachelor' in print.
She is a trained equestrian and competed in dressage as a young woman.
She married ballet dancer Charles Askegard in 2002; they divorced in 2012.
The character of Carrie Bradshaw was partly inspired by her own experiences and those of her friends.
“Men may have discovered fire, but women discovered how to play with it.”
