Gerard Joseph Malanga (born March 20, 1943) is an American poet, photographer, filmmaker, actor,

curator A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...

, and

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...

. Malanga worked for pop artist

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (;''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''"Warhol" born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director and producer. A leading figure in the pop art movement, Warhol ...

from 1963 to 1970.

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

referred to him as "Andy Warhol's most important associate." He began as Warhol's studio assistant, helping him with the

silkscreening Screen printing is a printing technique where a mesh is used to transfer ink (or dye) onto a substrate, except in areas made impermeable to the ink by a blocking stencil. A blade or squeegee is moved across the screen in a "flood stroke" t ...

of his paintings. Later, he was appointed as a founding editor of Warhol's ''

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" re ...

'' magazine. As a

Warhol superstar Warhol superstars were a clique of New York City personalities promoted by the pop artist Andy Warhol during the 1960s and 1970s. These personalities hung out at Warhol's studio, the Factory, appeared in his films, and accompanied him to his New ...

, he also appeared in a number of

underground films An underground film is a film that is out of the mainstream either in its style, genre or financing. Notable examples include John Waters' ''Pink Flamingos'', David Lynch's ''Eraserhead'', Andy Warhol's ''Blue Movie'', Rosa von Praunheim's ''Tal ...

. His photography spans over four decades and includes portraits, nudes, and the urban documentation of "New York's Changing Scene." Malanga, who is primarily a poet, considered his portraits to be "poetry on film." He has directed several films and written books. In 2024, Malanga was elected as a Chevalier of the ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' by the

French Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture () is the ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of France in charge of List of museums in France, national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and pro ...

Life and career

Early life and education

Malanga was born on March 20, 1943, in

the Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

, a borough of New York City, and raised on

Fordham Road Fordham Road is a major thoroughfare in the Bronx, New York City, that runs west-east from the Harlem River to Bronx Park. Fordham Road houses the borough's largest and most diverse shopping district. It geographically separates the geopoli ...

. He was the only child of Italian immigrant parents. His father, Gerardo Malanga, was a dry goods salesman. His early drawing ability was supported by his parents, who signed him up for an after-school art program. In 1959, Malanga became a regular on

Alan Freed Albert James "Alan" Freed (December 15, 1921 – January 20, 1965) was an American disc jockey. He also produced and promoted large traveling concerts with various acts, helping to spread the importance of rock and roll music throughout Nor ...

's '' The Big Beat'', televised on Channel 5 ( WNEW) in New York City. By his senior year, Malanga was interested in becoming a poet, but he was also studying graphic design and advertising at the

School of Industrial Art The High School of Art and Design is a career and technical education high school in Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1936 as the School of Industrial Art, the school moved to 1075 Second Avenue in 1960 and more recently, its Midtown Manha ...

in Manhattan. In 1960, he graduated from high school with a major in

Advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a Product (business), product or Service (economics), service. Advertising aims to present a product or service in terms of utility, advantages, and qualities of int ...

Design A design is the concept or proposal for an object, process, or system. The word ''design'' refers to something that is or has been intentionally created by a thinking agent, and is sometimes used to refer to the inherent nature of something ...

. After graduation, Malanga enrolled at the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati, informally Cincy) is a public university, public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1819 and had an enrollment of over 53,000 students in 2024, making it the ...

's College of Art & Design, but he dropped out within a year. In 1961, Malanga was admitted to

Wagner College Wagner College is a private university in Staten Island, New York. It was established in 1883 and, as of the 2023–2024 academic year, it enrolled approximately 1,932 students, including 1,592 undergraduates and 340 graduates. Its theatre prog ...

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

on a

fellowship A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned or professional societies, the term refers ...

. At Wagner, Malanga became part of a writing community. He befriended one of his English professors,

Willard Maas Willard Maas (June 24, 1906 – January 2, 1971) was an American experimental filmmaker and poet. Personal life and career Maas was born in Lindsay, California and graduated from State Teachers College at San Jose. He came to New York in the 193 ...

, and his wife

Marie Menken Marie Menken (born Marie Menkevicius; May 25, 1909 – December 29, 1970) was an American experimental filmmaker, painter, and socialite. She was noted for her unique filming style that incorporated collage. She was one of the first New York fil ...

, who became his mentors. He also made friends with

Saul Bellow Saul Bellow (born Solomon Bellows; June 10, 1915April 5, 2005) was a Canadian-American writer. For his literary work, Bellow was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, the 1976 Nobel Prize in Literature, and the National Medal of Arts. He is the only write ...

and

Robert Lowell Robert Traill Spence Lowell IV (; March 1, 1917 – September 12, 1977) was an American poet. He was born into a Boston Brahmin family that could trace its origins back to the ''Mayflower''. His family, past and present, were important subjects ...

. He attended a symposium with

Kay Boyle Kay Boyle (February 19, 1902 – December 27, 1992) was an American novelist, short story writer, educator, and political activist. Boyle is best known for her fiction, which often explored the intersections of personal and political themes. Her ...

Frank O'Hara Francis Russell "Frank" O'Hara (March 27, 1926 – July 25, 1966) was an American writer, poet, and art critic. A curator at the Museum of Modern Art, O'Hara became prominent in New York City's art world. O'Hara is regarded as a leading figure i ...

, LeRoi Jones, and

Kenneth Koch Kenneth Koch ( ; February 27, 1925 – July 6, 2002) was an American poet, playwright, and professor, active from the 1950s until his death at age 77.) He was a prominent poet of the New York School of poetry. This was a loose group of poets inc ...

. Malanga won the first

Gotham Book Mart The Gotham Book Mart was a famous Midtown Manhattan bookstore and cultural landmark that operated from 1920 to 2007. The business was located first in a small basement space on West 45th Street near the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater Distric ...

Avant-Garde Poetry Prize. He was an editor for the journal ''Wagner Literary Magazine''.

Andy Warhol and The Factory

In 1963, Malanga was looking for a summer job when poet

Charles Henri Ford Charles Henri Ford (February 10, 1908 – September 27, 2002) was an American poet, novelist, diarist, filmmaker, photographer, and collage artist. He published more than a dozen collections of poetry, exhibited his artwork in Europe and the Uni ...

introduced him pop artist

. Malanga had previously silkscreened fabrics for a necktie designer, and Warhol needed assistance with a silkscreening. He was immediately hired by Warhol at $1.25 per hour. "The first was the Elizabeth Taylor portrait. '' Ethel Scull 36 Times'', Elvis Presley, Death and Disasters—we put out a lot of stuff, just the two of us," Malanga recalled. In September, Malanga drove to California with Warhol, Wynn Chamberlain, and

Taylor Mead Taylor Mead (December 31, 1924 – May 8, 2013) was an American writer, actor and performer. Mead appeared in several of Andy Warhol's underground films filmed at Warhol's Factory, including ''Tarzan and Jane Regained... Sort of'' (1963) and '' T ...

for Warhol's solo exhibition at the

Ferus Gallery The Ferus Gallery was a contemporary art gallery which operated from 1957 to 1966. In 1957, the gallery was located at 736-A North La Cienega Boulevard, Los Angeles in the U.S. state of California. In 1958, it was relocated across the street to ...

in Los Angeles. He never returned to Wagner College. "That summer job lasted seven years," he said. Malanga was also involved in Warhol's filmmaking at

the Factory The Factory was Andy Warhol's art studio in Manhattan, New York City, which had four locations between 1963 and 1987. The Factory became famous for its parties in the 1960s. It was the hip hangout spot for artists, musicians, celebrities, and ...

. He appeared in films such as ''

Kiss A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...

'' (1964), ''

Harlot Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-pe ...

'' (1964), ''

Soap Opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

'' (1964), ''

Couch A couch, also known as a sofa, settee, chesterfield, or davenport, is a cushioned piece of furniture that can seat multiple people. It is commonly found in the form of a bench with upholstered armrests and is often fitted with springs a ...

'' (1964), ''

Vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...

'' (1965), and ''

Camp Camp may refer to: Areas of confinement, imprisonment, or for execution * Concentration camp, an internment camp for political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or minority ethnic groups * Extermination ...

'' (1965). He played a combination of

Lee Harvey Oswald Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 – November 24, 1963) was a U.S. Marine veteran who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963. Oswald was placed in juvenile detention at age 12 for truan ...

and

Jack Ruby Jack Leon Ruby (born Jacob Leon Rubenstein; March 25, 1911January 3, 1967) was an American nightclub owner who murdered Lee Harvey Oswald on November 24, 1963, two days after Oswald assassinated President John F. Kennedy. Born in Chicago, R ...

in Warhol's film '' Since'' (1966). Malanga dated model and debutante Susan Bottomly in 1966. After introducing her to Warhol, she was given the new moniker International Velvet. Malanga and Bottomly costarred in the film ''

Chelsea Girls ''Chelsea Girls'' is a 1966 American experimental underground film directed by Andy Warhol and Paul Morrissey. The film was Warhol's first major commercial success after a long line of avant-garde art films (both feature-length and short). I ...

'' (1966). In 1966, Malanga choreographed a dance for Warhol's multimedia presentation, '' The Exploding Plastic Inevitable'', featuring musical performances by

the Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground were an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1964. Its classic lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Lou Reed, Welsh multi-instrumentalist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison, and percussionis ...

and

Nico Christa Päffgen (; 16 October 1938 – 18 July 1988), known by her stage name Nico, was a German singer, songwriter, actress, and model. Nico had roles in several films, including Federico Fellini's '' La Dolce Vita'' (1960) and Andy Warhol's ...

. Malanga and Warhol collaborated on the nearly 500 individual 3-minute ''

Screen Tests The ''Screen Tests'' are a series of short, silent, black-and-white film portraits by Andy Warhol, made between 1964 and 1966, generally showing their subjects from the neck up against plain backdrops. The ''Screen Tests'', of which 472 surv ...

'', which resulted in a selection for a book of the same name, published by Kulchur Press, in 1967. He co-produced ''Bufferin'' (1967), in which he reads his poetry and diaries. It is deemed to be the longest spoken-word movie on record at 33-minutes nonstop. In 1967, Malanga went to Italy to show his film ''In Search Of The Miraculous'' at the Bergamo Film Festival. While visiting friends in Rome, he ran out of money and reached out to Warhol for financial assistance. When Warhol did not respond, he decided to make a movie instead. To fund this project, Malanga planned to sell paintings based on images of

Che Guevara Ernesto "Che" Guevara (14th May 1928 – 9 October 1967) was an Argentines, Argentine Communist revolution, Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, Guerrilla warfare, guerrilla leader, diplomat, and Military theory, military theorist. A majo ...

's corpse, the recently deceased hero of the

Cuban Revolution The Cuban Revolution () was the military and political movement that overthrew the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, who had ruled Cuba from 1952 to 1959. The revolution began after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état, in which Batista overthrew ...

. He intended to create Warhol-style silkscreen paintings and sell them as original Warhol works. He wrote to Warhol explaining his plans and requesting his cooperation. After receiving no reply, he proceeded with the scheme and arranged to exhibit the works at Galleria La Tartaruga in February 1968. The gallerist, Plinio De Martiis, wanted to confirm that he was permitted to sell the works, so he contacted Warhol's New York dealer,

Leo Leo is the Latin word for lion. It most often refers to: * Leo (constellation), a constellation of stars in the night sky * Leo (astrology), an astrological sign of the zodiac * Leo (given name), a given name in several languages, usually mas ...

Castelli Castelli may refer to: Places Argentina * Castelli, Buenos Aires, city in Buenos Aires Province * Castelli Partido, partido in Buenos Aires Province * Juan José Castelli, Chaco, in Chaco Province * Villa Castelli, Argentina, in La Rioja Pr ...

, who notified Warhol. Warhol claimed the works were authentic to save Malanga from imprisonment, but informed Martiis that Malanga was not authorized to sell them. Upon his return to New York, Malanga apologized to Warhol for the forgeries and continued working at the Factory after Warhol survived an assassination attempt in June 1968. In 1969, Malanga managed the "Andy Warhol Theater: Boys to Adore Galore" under his company, Poetry on Film. The theater showed male

pornographic films Pornographic films (pornos), erotic films, adult films, blue films, sexually explicit films, or 18+ films, are films that represent Human sexual activity, sexually WIKT:explicit, explicit subject matter in order to sexual arousal, arouse, fasci ...

for six weeks. He hired

Jim Carroll James Dennis Carroll (August 1, 1949 – September 11, 2009) was an American author, poet, and punk musician. Carroll was best known for his 1978 autobiographical work '' The Basketball Diaries'', which inspired a 1995 film of the same title ...

to work in the box office and fellow Warhol superstar

Joe Dallesandro Joseph Angelo D'Allesandro III (born December 31, 1948) is an American actor and Warhol superstar. He was a sex symbol of gay subculture in the 1960s and 1970s, and of several American underground films before going mainstream. Dallesandro star ...

as the projectionist. Later that year, Malanga became a founding editor of Warhol's ''

'' magazine. In 1970, he left Warhol's studio to pursue his work in photography. In the 1970s, more fake Warhol screen prints appeared in Europe, and Warhol suspected they were made by Malanga. Malanga denied that he had done them, but this created a strain in their relationship. In a December 1976 diary entry, Warhol said: "Ran into Gerard Malanga. Gerard wrote to

Fred Fred or FRED may refer to: People * Fred (name), including a list of people and characters with the name Mononym * Fred (cartoonist) (1931–2013), pen name of Fred Othon Aristidès, French * Fred (footballer, born 1949) (1949–2022), Fred ...

asking why he wouldn't let him do photography for ''Interview'', I guess he just wants a press pass. Fred won't have anything to do with Gerard because we're still getting repercussions from all the fake ''Electric Chairs'' we think he did, they're being resold and resold and each time the money involved gets bigger, so Fred isn't about to give Gerard anything."

Photography career

His portraits were considered by Malanga to be "poetry on film." Nearly all of the major poetry magazines published his poems. Malanga has photographed several poets and artists over the years including,

Charles Olson Charles John Olson (27 December 1910 – 10 January 1970) was a second generation modernist United States poetry, American poet who was a link between earlier Literary modernism, modernist figures such as Ezra Pound and William Carlos Williams an ...

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter, actor and radio broadcaster. He was the vocalist and lyricist of proto-punk band the Stooges, who were formed in 1 ...

William Burroughs William Seward Burroughs II (; February 5, 1914 – August 2, 1997) was an American writer and visual artist. He is widely considered a primary figure of the Beat Generation and a major postmodern author who influenced popular culture and ...

, and Herbert Gericke. In 1973, the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Library hosted a touring exhibition featuring 110 of Malanga's portraits. In 1975, Malanga performed a reading of his poems and shown his film ''April Diary'' at the Sears Harkness Theater in

Binghamton, New York Binghamton ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the c ...

. In 1985, Henry J. Stern, Commissioner of the

New York City Department of Parks & Recreation The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, also called the Parks Department or NYC Parks, is the department of the government of New York City responsible for maintaining the city's parks system, preserving and maintaining the ecolog ...

, appointed Malanga as the first photo archivist for the department. He was responsible for cataloguing and conserving the historic negative collection of Robert Moses. In his introduction to Malanga's first monograph, ''Resistance to Memory'' (Arena Editions, 1998),

Ben Maddow Ben Maddow (aka David Wolff; August 7, 1909 – October 9, 1992) was an American screenwriter and documentarian from the 1930s through the 1970s. Educated at Columbia University, Maddow began his career working within the American documentary m ...

, a photo historian and poet, said, "Malanga has that great essential virtue of the photographer: humility before the complex splendor of the real thing...Malanga is the photo-historian of this culture." In reviewing Malanga's book ''Screen Tests Portraits Nudes 1964-1996'' (Steidl, 2000), photographer Fred W. McDarrah remarked that "Malanga is among the elite editors and photographers who have long dazzled and propelled the New York avant garde."

Awards and honors

In 2024, Gerard was named a Chevalier of the ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' by the

Works

Poetry

*''Screen Tests: A Diary'' (with Andy Warhol) (1967) *''The Last Benedetta Poems'' (1969) *''Gerard Malanga Selbsporträt eines Dichters'' (1970) *''10 Poems for 10 Poets'' Black Sparrow Press (1970) *''chic death'' (1971) *''Wheels of Light'' (1972) *''Nine Poems for César Vallejo'' (1972) *''The Poetry of Night, Dawn and Dream/Nine Poems for César Vallejo'' (1972) *''Licht/Light'' (1973, bilingual) *''Incarnations: Poems 1965-1971'' (1974) *''Rosebud'' (1975) *''Leaping Over Gravestones'' (1976) *''Ten Years After: The Selected Benedetta Poems'' (1977) *''100 years have passed'' (1978) *''This Will Kill That'' (1983) *''Three Diamonds'' Black Sparrow Press (1991) *''Mythologies of the Heart'', Black Sparrow Press (1996) *''No Respect: New & Selected Poems 1964-2000'', Black Sparrow Press (2001) *''AM: Archives Malanga'', Volumes 1, 2, 3 & 4 (2011) *''Three Broadside Poems'', Bottle of Smoke Press (2013) *''Malanga Chasing Vallejo: Selected Poems: Cesar Vallejo: New Translations and Notes: Gerard Malanga. Three Rooms Press, Bilingual edition (2014) *''Tomboy & Other Tales'', Bottle of Smoke Press (2014) *''Whisper Sweet Nothings & Other Poems'', Bottle of Smoke Press (2017) *''Cool & Other Poems'', Bottle of Smoke Press (2019) *''The New Melancholia & Other Poems'', Bottle of Smoke Press (2021) *''Odie is Being Called Back & Other Poems'', Bottle of Smoke Press (2024)

Editor

*''The Brief Hidden Life of Angus MacLise'' *''The Collected Poetry of Piero Heliczer''

Photography

*''Screen Tests/A Diary'', in collaboration with Andy Warhol (1967) *''Six Portraits'' (1975) *''Portrait: Theory'' (With Robert Mapplethorpe, David Attie, and others) (1981) *''Autobiography of a Sex Thief'' (1985) *''Good Girls'' (1994) *''Seizing the Moment'' (1997) *''Resistance to Memory'' (1998) *''Screen Tests Portraits Nudes 1964-1996'' (2000) *''Someone's Life'' (2008) *''Photobooths'' (Waverly Press, NYC, 2013) *''Ghostly Berms'' (Waverly Press, NYC, 2013) *''Julien Mérieau, Astonish me! / étonnez-moi!'' (Warm, 2016) *''The Beats Portfolio'' (Bottle of Smoke Press, 2018) *''The VU Box'' (Bottle of Smoke Press, 2021) *''10 Musicians'' (Bottle of Smoke Press, 2025)

Photo and written biographies

*''Long Day's Journey into the Past: Gunnar B. Kvaran speaks with Gerard Malanga'' (2008) *''Souls'' (2010) *''Gerard Malanga by Lars Movin'' (2011)

Films

*''Academy Leader'' (1964) *''Andy Warhol: Portraits of the Artist as a Young Man'' (1965) *''Prelude to International Velvet Debutante'' (1966) *''Portrait of Giangiacomo Feltrinelli'' (1966). World premiere: Vienna International Film Festival, 2005. *''In Search of the Miraculous'' (1967) *''The Recording Zone Operator'' (1968, incomplete) *''The filmmaker records a portion of his life in the month of August'' (1968) *''Preraphaelite Dream'' (with music by Angus MacLise, 1968) *''The Children'' (AFI grant with music by Angus MacLise, 1969) *''April Diary'' (1970) *''Vision'' (incorporating ''Bufferin'', 1976) *''Gerard Malanga's Film Notebooks'', with music by Angus MacLise (2005).

Music

*''THREE weeks WITH my DOG'' with 48 Cameras (1999) *'' Angus MacLise'', The Cloud Doctrine produced by Gerard Malanga (w/ Guy Marc Hinant), 2003.

References

External links

* * Publisher's Author Page http://www.bospress.net/gerardmalanga.html] * * hdl:10079/fa/beinecke.malanga, Gerard Malanga Papers. Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. {{DEFAULTSORT:Malanga, Gerard 1943 births Living people Male actors from the Bronx American male film actors American photographers American male poets American poets of Italian descent Filmmakers from New York (state) American archivists People from the Bronx Wagner College alumni High School of Art and Design alumni American spoken word poets Musicians from New York City The Velvet Underground Poets from New York (state) People associated with The Factory Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres