PALMER TWP., Pa. — The new hit Netflix show "Perfect Couple" has had references to Easton onscreen, but for the author of the novel on which it's based, the local angle has a sadder ending.
The show, which debuted Sept. 5, is based on "Perfect Couple," a 2018 book by Elin Hilderbrand that was the third installment in her "Nantucket" series.
The TV mystery/drama miniseries, about a murder that takes place during a lavish wedding, also stars Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber and Dakota Fanning.
Three of the characters, Celeste Otis, Bruce Otis and Karen Otis, hail from Easton, a nod to the time Hilderbrand spent with her late boyfriend, Timothy Field.
Field, a graduate of Phillipsburg High School, passed away at age 49 at his Palmer Township home on Aug. 15, according to an obituary. posted on Legacy.com.
The obituary names Hilderbrand as his significant other, "with whom he traveled extensively both in the U.S and abroad."
When contacted via her publicist, Hilderbrand did not comment on Field's death.
Hilderbrand said she and Field visited several spots in Easton and Phillipsburg while developing characters for "Perfect Couple."
“I chose Easton because my longtime boyfriend Timothy Field lived there," Hilderbrand said via her publicist on Friday, Sept. 27.
"We ate at Diner 248 and I decided the Fudgy Wudgy cake must appear in the book. I also wanted to include the Crayola Factory and of course Nicolosi’s pizza.""Perfect Couple" author Elin Hilderbrand
"While I was visiting him in the spring of 2017, we did some Easton research. We toured the neighborhoods my character Celeste Otis might have lived in.
"We ate at Diner 248 and I decided the Fudgy Wudgy cake must appear in the book. (Both Diner 248 and the cake appeared in one version of the script but ultimately got cut.)
"I also wanted to include the Crayola Factory and of course Nicolosi’s pizza."
The book version of "Perfect Couple" also makes reference to Derhammer Street in Forks Township, the Lehigh Valley Zoo (referred to as Trexlertown Zoo) and a hospital in Northampton County.
'She's from Easton'
It's a stark contrast to the Netflix series, which gives Easton a one-line shout out about Amelia Sacks (or Celeste Otis in the book) played by Irish actress Eve Dawson, daughter of U2 singer Bono.
The line refers to Sacks as seemingly lower-class.
"Ms. Sacks is lovely, but she's from Easton, Pennsylvania," the wedding planner, Roger Pelton (Tim Bagley) says in Episode 1. "Monomoy is not her natural habitat."
"The book has far more Easton color than the show, but I was so happy that Easton got a shout out because it’s a vital part of the novel. I loved all the time I spent there.""Perfect Couple" author Elin Hilderbrand
Hilderbrand said she was pleased with the onscreen mention.
"The book has far more Easton color than the show, but I was so happy that Easton got a shout out because it’s a vital part of the novel," she said. "I loved all the time I spent there."
During the week of its first airing, "Perfect Couple" was the Netflix top series, with 20.3 million views within its first four days.
It maintained its No. 1 position the following week, with 21.9 million views, and was the second-most-watched TV show for the most recent week, with 10.4 million views, according to Netflix’s Top 10 rankings.
In all, Hilderbrand, dubbed the "Queen of Beach Reads,"
has released 30 novels. Her most recent Nantucket-based novel, "Swan Song" was released this year.
She lives on the Massachusetts island full-time with her family.
