Welcome to the overdue era of Alma Wahlberg
The reigning matriarch of the Wahlbergs is not to be messed with. But, if you’re nice, maybe she’ll do your laundry.
Donnie Wahlberg and Alma Wahlberg of ‘Wahlburgers.’Photo by A&E 2015
It’s not easy being the grande dame who has borne the Wahlberg wunderkinds. Just ask Alma Wahlberg. As a matriarch once residing in Dorchester, she managed to lead several of her kindred through episodes of crime (rather public crimes), and going from penniless to the pinnacle points of fame, fortune, and burgers.
Lucky for her, the Wahlbergs literally defied the odds of becoming celebrities. Lucky for them, she’s now a part of it, too.
A&E’s Wahlburgers is now one of the leading reality shows on TV right now, chronicling the life and times of America’s second-most famous family breaking into the under-tapped burger market. Though the whole started-from-the-bottom-now-we’re-here testament is a huge part of the show, the greater portion of what makes it so endearing are the cooky dynamics of the family.
And, maybe to the surprise of many, it’s not Donnie or Mark or even Paul that’s the driving force. It’s Alma.
She’s the reason you, fair viewer, citizen, and essential member of the popular culture community, should be watching this small-potatoes show turned reality phenomenon.
For Alma, life as a reality star is not all glitter and glitz, however, but what’s important to her is making sure her voice is heard. It’s honestly probably hard to hide anyway.
“[Interview segments] are what I like,’’ Alma said. “Sometimes it’s annoying. It’s stop, go, stop, go. But it’s the one time you sit down and say what you want to say. Nobody is going to tell you what to say. A couple of tried, but it doesn’t work. That’s the part I like the best.’’
The tables have obviously turned since the reign of just Marky Mark and NKOTB, or maybe it’s just gotten heavier with more Wahlberg purebreds. Her fan mail is “absolutely mind-boggling,’’ Alma told me, but I hardly think so. There’s little not to love. She has a throaty and raspy laugh, just like your grandma who used to smoke a pack a day. She shops at Super Stop & Shop. She does laundry for her grandson. She’s normal. She’s spunky. And she loves people more than anyone you’ve ever known. (An atypical character trait for a Bostonian, but I digress.)
Said grandson Brandon, also one of the many Wahlburgers characters of Wahlberg descent, recalls his favorite encounter with an Alma fan, which happened in a supermarket: “A woman came up to her and said, ‘The only other person I would approach is Pope Francis.’’’
Being compared with a literal worldwide leader of all that is sovereign and spiritual is a new level of significance. But maybe Alma Wahlberg has earned it. She is in her 70s after all, on-the-clock 30-40 hours a week during shooting months, and still a mom to nine kids. But gestures of such enthusiasm from fans comes with the territory, more or less.
“They all came from Dorchester,’’ she said. “We all have the same—actually, we all had nothing. Basically. Just the different things we found to get by. Everybody helped everybody. So I always proud to say I was from Dorchester.’’
This seems like just the beginning of the age of Alma. Wahlburgers is already in its fourth season kicking off tonight, and it’s full steam ahead for the burger chain itself, as it’s planning to open more than 20 locations in places in Massachusetts, New York, Florida, and Canada.
“I love it. I have a boring life. But I love it,’’ Alma said with a shrug. Boring life? Yeah, sure.
Photos: A crash course on the cast of Wahlburgers:
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