Glenn O'Brien (March 2, 1947 – April 7, 2017) was an American

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

who focused largely on the subjects of art, music, and fashion. He was featured for many years as "The Style Guy" in ''GQ'' magazine and published a book with that title. He worked as an editor at a number of publications, and published the arts and literature magazine ''Bald Ego'' from 2003 to 2005.

Life and career

O'Brien was born in

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, where he attended the

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St. Ignatius High School. O'Brien went to

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

and edited the ''Georgetown Journal'', which was founded by

Condé Nast Condé Nast () is a global mass media company founded in 1909 by Condé Montrose Nast, and owned by Advance Publications. Its headquarters are located at One World Trade Center in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan. The company's media ...

. O'Brien later studied film at the

Columbia Graduate School of Arts and Sciences The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (also known as GSAS) is the graduate school of Columbia University. Founded in 1880, GSAS is responsible for most of Columbia's graduate degree programs in the humanities, social sciences, and natural scie ...

. In his early career, O'Brien was a member of

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...

Factory A factory, manufacturing plant or a production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. T ...

. He was the first editor of ''

Interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" ...

'' from 1971 to 1974. After his departure, he continued to write for the magazine and returned as editor several times, with a nearly 20-year association with the title. He was a music critic for the publication in the

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

era for which he penned the influential column "Glenn O'Brien's Beat". With link to Welch, Will
"Rest In Peace: One Last Riff with Glenn O’Brien, the King of New York Cool"
''GQ'', April 8, 2017. From 1978 to 1982, O'Brien hosted a New York city

Public-access television Public-access television is traditionally a form of non-commercial mass media where the general public can create content television programming which is narrowcast through cable television specialty channels. Public-access television was creat ...

cable TV show called ''

TV Party Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

''. During this period, O'Brien edited several iconic downtown novels, including Kathy Acker's ''

Blood and Guts in High School ''Blood and Guts in High School'' is a novel by Kathy Acker. It was written in the late 1970s and copyrighted in 1978. It traveled a complex and circuitous route to publication, before being officially released in 1984. It remains Acker's most po ...

'' and ''The Correct Sadist'' by Terence Sellers. In 1980, he wrote the screenplay (which he also co-produced with Patrick Montgomery) for a film to be called ''New York Beat'', starring

Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat (; December 22, 1960 – August 12, 1988) was an American artist who rose to success during the 1980s as part of the Neo-expressionism movement. Basquiat first achieved fame as part of the graffiti duo SAMO, alongside Al ...

It was released in 2000 as "

Downtown 81 ''Downtown 81'' is a 2000 American film that was shot in 1980-1981. The film was directed by Edo Bertoglio and written and produced by Glenn O'Brien and Patrick Montgomery, with post-production in 1999-2000 by Glenn O'Brien and Maripol. It is a r ...

", with post-production managed by O'Brien and

Maripol Maripol (b. 1957) is an artist, film producer, fashion designer and stylist. She has had an influence on the looks of influential artists such as Madonna and Grace Jones. As part of the 1980s New York downtown scene, she captured the likes of Jea ...

. In June 1980, O'Brien's article Graffiti '80: The State of the Outlaw Art" was published in ''

High Times ''High Times'' is an American monthly magazine (and cannabis brand) that advocates the legalization of cannabis as well as other counterculture ideas. The magazine was founded in 1974 by Tom Forcade.Danko, Danny"Norml Founder Retires – Exha ...

'' magazine. It was the first major survey of the burgeoning

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

art scene, which featured Basquiat,

Fab 5 Freddy Fred Brathwaite (born August 31, 1959), more popularly known as Fab 5 Freddy, is an American visual artist, filmmaker, and hip hop pioneer. He is considered one of the architects of the street art movement. Freddy emerged in New York's downtown ...

and Lee Quiñones. After leaving ''TV Party'', in addition to continuing his writing career, he attempted a stint as a stand-up comedian, and was a contributing editor of '' Allure'', Harper's Bazaar, and Creative Director of advertising at

Barneys New York Barneys New York Inc. is an American luxury brand founded in New York City in 1923. It has introduced major designers including Armani, Azzedine Alaïa, Comme des Garçons, Christian Louboutin, and Ermenegildo Zegna to the US market. Barneys ...

. For 10 years, he wrote a monthly column for

Artforum ''Artforum'' is an international monthly magazine specializing in contemporary art. The magazine is distinguished from other magazines by its unique 10½ x 10½ inch square format, with each cover often devoted to the work of an artist. Notabl ...

magazine. O'Brien edited Madonna's 1992 ''

Sex Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones ( ova, of ...

'' book. He had been introduced to Madonna a decade prior through her relationship with Basquiat. He also worked with her on

The Girlie Show World Tour The Girlie Show was the fourth concert tour by American singer and songwriter Madonna, in support of her fifth studio album, '' Erotica'' (1992). In October 1992, Madonna simultaneously released ''Erotica'' and the coffee table book ''Sex''. Th ...

book in 1993. In January 2008, he was named editorial director of Brant Publications, which includes '' Interview Magazine'' as well as '' Art in America'' and ''

Antiques An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...

''. In June 2009 it was announced that he had left his position with Brant Publications. He lent his collection of early Basquiat works to various exhibitions, including

Deitch Projects Jeffrey Deitch (pronounced ''DIE-tch'';Mike Boehm (January 12, 2010)L.A.'s MOCA picks art dealer Jeffrey Deitch as director''Los Angeles Times''. born 1952) is an American art dealer and curator. He is best known for his gallery Deitch Projects ...

, and is a co-author of a major volume on the artist. O'Brien died of complications from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

on April 7, 2017, at the age of 70. Madonna called O'Brien "an amazing soul and a creative genius" in a statement on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

Awards and honors

On February 17, 2009, O'Brien was named one of Top 10 Most Stylish Men in America by '' GQ''.

Published works

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A toast to the world's preeminent spirit
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References

External links

Official website for Glenn O'Brien
*
Style Guy Blog
* ttps://archive.today/20130204185747/http://www.theblock-mag.com/farewell-mr-obrien/ O'Brien's final interview as Editor-In-Chief of ''Interview'' magazinein ''The Block'' Issue 18
Glenn O'Brien on How to Be a Man
on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Obrien, Glenn 1947 births 2017 deaths American magazine editors American music critics American fashion journalists Columbia University School of the Arts alumni Georgetown University alumni Writers from Cleveland Writers from New York City Deaths from pneumonia in New York City People associated with The Factory