To the Family

“I called his chief of staff and explained that I was a long-lost cousin.” That was how A. J. Jacobs tried to get former President George H. W. Bush on the telephone. And he deployed a similar strategy to get in contact with Ludacris. And technically, he is a cousin to both of them; just a few — like 39 — steps removed. As the NYT’s Alex Williams reports, it’s all about a global family reunion.