''Vanity Fair'' is a monthly magazine of
popular culture,
fashion, and
current affairs published by
Condé Nast in the United States.
The first version of ''Vanity Fair'' was published from 1913 to 1936. The imprint was revived in 1983 and currently includes five international editions of the magazine. As of 2018, the Editor-in-Chief is
Radhika Jones.
History
''Dress and Vanity Fair''
Condé Montrose Nast began his empire by purchasing the men's fashion magazine ''Dress'' in 1913. He renamed the magazine ''Dress and Vanity Fair'' and published four issues in 1913. It continued to thrive into the twenties. However, it became a casualty of the
Great Depression and declining advertising revenues, although its circulation, at 90,000 copies, was at its peak. Condé Nast announced in December 1935 that ''Vanity Fair'' would be folded into ''
Vogue'' (circulation 156,000) as of the March 1936 issue.
Modern revival
Condé Nast Publications, under the ownership of
S.I. Newhouse, announced in June 1981 that it was reviving the magazine. The first issue was released in February 1983 (cover date March), edited by
Richard Locke, formerly of ''
The New York Times Book Review''. After three issues, Locke was replaced by
Leo Lerman, veteran features editor of ''Vogue''. He was followed by editors
Tina Brown (1984–1992),
Graydon Carter (1992-2017) and
Radhika Jones (2017 to present). Regular writers and
columnists have included
Dominick Dunne,
Sebastian Junger,
Michael Wolff,
Maureen Orth and
Christopher Hitchens. Famous contributing photographers for the magazine include
Bruce Weber,
Annie Leibovitz,
Mario Testino and
Herb Ritts, who have all provided the magazine with a string of lavish covers and full-page portraits of current
celebrities. Amongst the most famous of these was the August 1991 Leibovitz cover featuring a naked, pregnant
Demi Moore, an image entitled ''
More Demi Moore'' that to this day holds a spot in pop culture.
In addition to its controversial photography, the magazine also prints articles on a variety of topics. In 1996, journalist
Marie Brenner wrote an
exposé on the
tobacco industry titled "
The Man Who Knew Too Much". The article was later adapted into a movie ''
The Insider'' (1999), which starred
Al Pacino and
Russell Crowe. Most famously, after more than thirty years of mystery, an article in the May 2005 edition revealed the identity of
Deep Throat (
W. Mark Felt), one of the sources for ''
The Washington Post'' articles on
Watergate, which led to the 1974 resignation of
U.S. President Richard Nixon. The magazine also features candid interviews with celebrities, including a monthly
Proust Questionnaire. Other notable interviews have included:
Teri Hatcher, who revealed in the magazine that she was sexually abused as a child;
Jennifer Aniston's first interview after her divorce from
Brad Pitt;
Anderson Cooper, who talked about his brother's death; and
Martha Stewart's first interview after her release from prison.
Some of the pictorials in ''Vanity Fair'' have attracted criticism. The April 1999 issue featured an image of actor
Mike Myers dressed as a
Hindu deity for a photo spread by
David LaChapelle: after criticism, both the photographer and the magazine apologized.
The magazine was the subject of
Toby Young's book, ''
How to Lose Friends and Alienate People'', about his search for success in
New York City while working for Graydon Carter's ''Vanity Fair''. The book was made into a
movie in 2008, with
Jeff Bridges playing Carter.
In 2005, ''Vanity Fair'' was found liable in a
lawsuit brought in the
UK by film director
Roman Polanski, who claimed the magazine had
libelled him in an article by
A. E. Hotchner published in 2002. The article recounted a claim by
Lewis H. Lapham, editor of ''
Harper's'', that Polanski had made sexual advances towards a young model as he was traveling to the funeral of his wife,
Sharon Tate, in August 1969, claiming that he could make her "the next Sharon Tate". The court permitted Polanski to testify via a video link, after he expressed fears that he might be extradited were he to enter the United Kingdom. The trial started on July 18, 2005, and Polanski made English legal history as the first claimant to give evidence by video link. During the trial, which included the testimonies of
Mia Farrow and others, it was proved that the alleged scene at the famous New York restaurant
Elaine's could not possibly have taken place on the date given, because Polanski only dined at this restaurant three weeks later. Also, the Norwegian then-model disputed the accounts that he had claimed to be able to make her "the next Sharon Tate".
Polanski was awarded damages by the
High Court in London. The case was notable because Polanski was living in France as a fugitive from U.S. justice, and never appeared in the London court for fear he would be extradited to the U.S. Graydon Carter, editor of ''Vanity Fair'', responded, "I find it amazing that a man who lives in France can sue a magazine that is published in America in a British courtroom."
On April 25, 2008, the televised entertainment program ''
Entertainment Tonight'' reported that 15-year-old
Miley Cyrus had posed
topless for a photo shoot with ''Vanity Fair''. The photo, and subsequently released behind-the-scenes photos, show Cyrus without a top, her bare back exposed but her front covered with a bedsheet. The photo shoot was taken by photographer
Annie Leibovitz. The full photograph was published with an accompanying story on ''
The New York Times'' website on April 27, 2008. On April 29, 2008, ''The New York Times'' clarified that though the pictures left an impression that she was bare-breasted, Cyrus was wrapped in a bedsheet and was actually not topless.
Some parents expressed outrage at the nature of the photograph, which a
Disney spokesperson described as "a situation
hatwas created to deliberately manipulate a 15-year-old to sell magazines".
In response to the internet circulation of the photo and ensuing media attention,
Miley Cyrus released a statement of apology on April 27: "I took part in a photo shoot that was supposed to be 'artistic' and now, seeing the photographs and reading the story, I feel so embarrassed. I never intended for any of this to happen and I apologize to my fans who I care so deeply about."
In 2013,
Condé Nast Entertainment struck a deal with
Discovery Communications-owned cable channel
Investigation Discovery for ''Vanity Fair Confidential'', a crime and mystery documentary TV series based on stories from ''Vanity Fair'' magazine. Condé Nast Entertainment launched a ''Vanity Fair''
YouTube channel in July 2013. In anticipation of its 100th anniversary that year, ''Vanity Fair'' co-produced 10 short films, one to celebrate each decade, from well-known documentary filmmakers like
Barbara Kopple and including the film producer
Judd Apatow, and actors
Don Cheadle and
Bryce Dallas Howard.
In January 2014, ''Vanity Fair'' was under fire for allegedly altering the appearance of a celebrity featured in its pages for its February issue,
Lupita Nyong'o, an actress known for her role in ''
12 Years A Slave''. In Nyong'o's case, the magazine tweeted the photo and it began with fans accusing the company of altering her complexion. However, some believe that the ''Vanity Fair'' images are simply a product of bright set lighting, rather than deliberate skin lightening. Nyong'o was pleased with the work and saw no harm done to herself; she did not hold ''Vanity Fair'' or the photographer liable. Shortly before the Nyong'o case, ''Vogue'' magazine, a partner and buyer of ''Vanity Fair'' in 1936, was accused of altering actress
Lena Dunham's photos. Dunham considered the modified photos to be offensive.
''Vanity Fair'' launched ''The Hive'' in June 2016, its online business, politics and technology news vertical. In January 2017, ''Vanity Fairs ''Hive'' and Condé Nast Entertainment partnered with
Cheddar online TV channel to create a live weekly series called ''VF Hive on Cheddar''. Editor Graydon Carter called the series a "representation of how people are consuming more voraciously than ever".
It was announced in November 2017 that
Radhika Jones, editorial director of ''
The New York Times'' books section, would succeed Carter as Editor-in-Chief on December 11, 2017.
In 2018, ''Vanity Fair'' received accolades for removing actor
James Franco from a cover shoot following sexual harassment allegations.
In 2019, former contributing editor
Vicky Ward said her 2003 profile of Jeffrey Epstein in ''Vanity Fair'' had included on-the-record accounts of Annie and
Maria Farmer (who filed the earliest known criminal complaints about Epstein), but that they were later stricken from Ward's article after Epstein pressured the magazine's editor
Graydon Carter.
International editions
There are currently five international editions of ''Vanity Fair'' being published; namely in the
United Kingdom (since 1991),
Italy (since 2003, ISSN 1723-6673),
Spain (since 2008),
[ France (since 2013), and Mexico (since 2015), with the Italian version published weekly. The British ''Vanity Fair'' was first published in 1991.] The Italian ''Vanity Fair'' was established in October 2003[ and celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2013.
''Vanity Fair Germany'' launched in February 2007 at a cost of €50 million, then the most expensive new magazine in Germany in years and Condé Nast's biggest investment outside the United States. After circulation had plummeted from half a million to less than 200,000 per week, the German edition was shut down in 2009.
]
Events
As a successor to a similar invitation-only event annually held by the late agent Irving Paul Lazar, the first ''Vanity Fair'' Oscar Party took place in 1994.[Gary Baum (November 13, 2013)]
Vanity Fair Oscar Party Exits Sunset Tower; Will It Land in Parking Lot?
''The Hollywood Reporter''. During its first years, the magazine's Oscar party was co-hosted by producer Steve Tisch at Morton's in West Hollywood. At first, editor Graydon Carter kept the invitation list small, at around 120 for dinner.[Alex Williams (February 28, 2014)]
Graydon Carter, the Last Impresario
''New York Times''. Between 2009 and 2013, the party was held at Sunset Tower. The 2014 edition took place in a temporary, 12,000-square-foot glass-walled structure at 8680 Sunset Boulevard. ''Vanity Fair'' makes a limited number of invitations available each year for charity.Vanity Fair llega a México
''GQ''. October 29, 2014. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
In recent years ''Vanity Fair'' and ''Bloomberg'' have hosted an after-party at the French ambassador's house following the White House Correspondents' Association dinner.
References
External links
''Vanity Fair'' homepage
''Vanity Fair'' Mobile Blog Reader
''Vanity Fair'' homepage (UK)
''Vanity Fair'' homepage (Italy)
''Vanity Fair'' homepage (Spain)
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