''Interview'' is an American
magazine
A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...
founded in late 1969 by artist
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 ...
and British journalist
John Wilcock
John Wilcock (4 August 1927 – 13 September 2018) was a British journalist known for his work in the underground press, as well as his travel guide books.
The first news editor of the New York ''Village Voice'', Wilcock shook up staid publish ...
. The magazine, nicknamed "The Crystal Ball of Pop", features interviews with celebrities, artists, musicians, and creative thinkers. Interviews were usually unedited or edited in the eccentric fashion of Warhol's books and ''The Philosophy of Andy Warhol: From A to B and Back Again''.
History
Andy Warhol period
Bob Colacello
Bob Colacello (born 1947) is an American writer. Born in Bensonhurst, New York, and raised in Plainview, Long Island, he graduated from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in 1969, and also has an MFA degree in f ...
was a film student at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
in 1970 when he got a call from someone at ''Interview'' while he was having dinner at his parents’ house in suburban
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...
. Warhol had read a film review Colacello had written for ''
The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...
'' and wanted to meet him. Colacello subsequently began writing film reviews and essays for ''Interview''. After about six months, Colacello was promoted to editor of the magazine, at a salary of $50 a week. (He also received course credits, as he was still working on his master’s degree at Columbia). Colacello brought in his friend and classmate
Glenn O’Brien
Glenn O'Brien (March 2, 1947 – April 7, 2017) was an American writer 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 ...
as an assistant. Colacello's first issue featured film 1940s-era stills of actress
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth (born Margarita Carmen Cansino; October 17, 1918May 14, 1987) was an American actress, dancer and producer. She achieved fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars, appearing in 61 films over 37 years. The press coined th ...
on the cover and on every page. The idea came from Warhol collaborator and filmmaker
Paul Morrissey, who told Colacello, “Just put one on every page and it’ll be funny.”
In the early days, complimentary copies of ''Interview'' were often given away to the "in-crowd"; this was the start of the magazine's circulation. Over time, Warhol withdrew from everyday oversight of ''Interview'' but he continued to act as ambassador for the magazine, distributing issues in the street to passersby and creating ''ad hoc'' signing events. From 1972 to 1989, the artist
Richard Bernstein created covers of ''Interview'', giving the publication its signature style.
Brant Publications period
The magazine's format has remained consistent at 60% features and 40% glossy advertising. It has been published by Brant Publications, Inc since shortly after Warhol's death in 1987. It was helmed for 18 years by
Ingrid Sischy
Ingrid Barbara Sischy () (March 2, 1952 – July 24, 2015) was a South African-born American writer and editor who specialized in covering art, photography, and fashion. She rose to prominence as the editor of ''Artforum'' from 1979 to 1988, and ...
, until she and
Peter Brant
Peter Mark Brant Sr. (born March 1, 1947) is an American industrialist, as well as a magazine publisher, film producer, and art collector. He is married to model Stephanie Seymour.
Early life and education
Brant was raised in Jamaica Estate ...
's ex-wife Sandra became lovers and left the magazine, selling Ms. Brant's half-ownership stake in the parent company Brant Publications. For a year and a half the magazine was in flux, edited by
Christopher Bollen.
2008 to 2018
''Interview'' restarted under co-editorial directors
Fabien Baron
Fabien Baron (born July 5, 1959) is a French director, art director and magazine editor. He is best known for his iconic ad campaigns and work as editorial director of Andy Warhol's ''Interview'' magazine.
Life and career
Baron was born on J ...
and
Glenn O'Brien
Glenn O'Brien (March 2, 1947 – April 7, 2017) was an American writer 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 ...
in September 2008, with a cover featuring
Kate Moss
Katherine Ann Moss (born 16 January 1974) is a British model. Arriving at the end of the "supermodel era", Moss rose to fame in the early 1990s as part of the heroin chic fashion trend. Her collaborations with Calvin Klein brought her to fas ...
. Stephen Mooallem and
Christopher Bollen served as the working editor-in-chief and editor-at-large, respectively. The publication's content can be found online and via an
app, Other Edition, available on iTunes.
As of 2017, Fabien Baron was the editorial director;
Karl Templer Karl Templer is a British-born New York-based fashion stylist. He is creative director of Interview and his work has appeared in publications internationally including Vogue Italia, Vogue Paris, W, and The New York Times. Templer has styled brand c ...
was creative director; Nick Haramis was editor-in-chief. In December 2013, Stephen Mooallem left Interview to join ''
Harper’s Bazaar
''Harper's Bazaar'' is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. It was first published in New York City on November 2, 1867, as the weekly ''Harper's Bazar''. ''Harper's Bazaar'' is published by Hearst and considers itself to be the st ...
'' as its executive editor. Keith Pollock served as editor-in-chief from 2014 to 2016.
It was announced on May 21, 2018 that the publication ‘folded’ and would end both its print and web publications by the end of 2018. The publication also filed for
Chapter 7 bankruptcy
Chapter 7 of Title 11 of the United States Code (Bankruptcy Code) governs the process of liquidation under the bankruptcy laws of the United States, in contrast to Chapters 11 and 13, which govern the process of ''reorganization'' of a debto ...
and liquidation.
Relaunch
On September 6, 2018, Interview announced the launch of its 521st issue. The magazine was purchased by Kelly Brant and Jason Nikic, with some reports suggesting that the title's intellectual property will be returned to Peter Brant.
In other media and popular culture
The magazine is featured in
The CW
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
's television series ''
The Carrie Diaries
''The Carrie Diaries'' is a young adult novel, the first in a series of the same name by American author Candace Bushnell. The series is a prequel to Bushnell's 1997 collection ''Sex and the City'', and follows the character of Carrie Bradshaw du ...
'', a prequel to
HBO's ''
Sex and the City
''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy, romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO. An adaptation of Candace Bushnell's Sex and the City (newspaper column), newspaper column and 1996 book anthology of the ...
''. The protagonist, played by actress
AnnaSophia Robb
AnnaSophia Robb (born December 8, 1993) is an American actress, model, and singer. She began as a child actress on television, making her leading debut as the titular role in '' Samantha: An American Girl Holiday'' (2004). She made her feature ...
, vicariously explores
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
through the fashion editor of ''Interview'', played by
Freema Agyeman
Freema Agyeman (; born Frema Agyeman; 20 March 1979) is a British actress. She rose to fame with her role as the Doctor's companion Martha Jones in the BBC science fiction series ''Doctor Who'' (2007–2010), and received further recognition f ...
.
References
External links
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{{Brant Publications
1969 establishments in New York City
Magazines established in 1969
Monthly magazines published in the United States
Andy Warhol
Cultural magazines published in the United States
Contemporary art magazines
Magazines published in New York City