 | |
 Cover of the Hollywood 2024/2025 issue (UK) | |
| Editor | Mark Guiducci |
|---|---|
| Former editors | |
| Categories | Culture |
| Frequency | Monthly |
| Total circulation (Dec. 2019) | 1,225,706[1] |
| First issue | February 1983; 42 years ago (1983-02) |
| Company | Condé Nast |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Website | vanityfair |
| ISSN | 0733-8899 |
| OCLC | 8356733 |
Vanity Fair is an American monthly magazine ofpopular culture,fashion, andcurrent affairs published byCondé Nast in the United States.
Thefirst version ofVanity Fair was published from 1913 to 1936. The imprint was revived in 1983 after Conde Nast took over the magazine company. Vanity Fair currently includes five international editions of the magazine. The five international editions of the magazine are the United Kingdom (since 1991), Italy (since 2003), Spain (since 2008), France (since 2013), and Mexico (since 2015).
Condé Montrose Nast began his empire by purchasing the men's fashion magazineDress in 1913. He renamed the magazineDress and Vanity Fair and published four issues in 1913. It continued to thrive into the 1920s. However, it became a casualty of theGreat Depression and declining advertising revenues. Nonetheless, its circulation at 90,000 copies was at its peak. Condé Nast announced in December 1935 thatVanity Fair would be folded intoVogue (circulation 156,000) as of the March 1936 issue. Vanity Fair celebrates its 95th anniversary in 2008, as well as its 25th anniversary as a relaunched publication. The National Portrait Gallery in London has mounted an exhibition called "Vanity Fair Portraits, 1913–2008", which traveled to the Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra, Australia, to celebrate the magazine's photographic heritage. Vanity Fair: The Portraits, a special jubilee issue and hardback book, was published in the fall of 2008.
Vanity Fair is a fictitious place ruled byBeelzebub in the bookPilgrim's Progress byJohn Bunyan.[2] Later use of the name was influenced by the well-known 1847–48novel of the same name byWilliam Makepeace Thackeray.
Condé Nast Publications, under the ownership ofS.I. Newhouse, announced in June 1981 that it was reviving the magazine.[3] The first issue was released in February 1983 (cover date March), edited byRichard Locke, formerly ofThe New York Times Book Review.[4] After three issues, Locke was replaced byLeo Lerman, veteran features editor ofVogue.[5] He was followed by editorsTina Brown (1984–1992),Graydon Carter (1992–2017) andRadhika Jones (2017 to 2025). Regular writers andcolumnists have includedDominick Dunne,Sebastian Junger,Michael Wolff,Maureen Orth andChristopher Hitchens. Famous contributing photographers for the magazine includeBruce Weber,Annie Leibovitz,Mario Testino andHerb Ritts, who have all provided the magazine with a string of lavish covers and full-page portraits of currentcelebrities. Amongst the most famous of these was the August 1991 Leibovitz cover featuring a naked, pregnantDemi Moore, an image entitledMore Demi Moore that to this day holds a spot in pop culture.[6]
In addition to its controversial photography, the magazine also prints articles on a variety of topics. In 1996, journalistMarie Brenner wrote anexposé on thetobacco industry titled "The Man Who Knew Too Much". The article was later adapted into a movieThe Insider (1999), which starredAl Pacino andRussell Crowe. Most famously, after more than thirty years of mystery, an article in the May 2005 edition revealed the identity ofDeep Throat (W. Mark Felt), one of the sources forThe Washington Post articles onWatergate, which led to the 1974 resignation ofU.S. PresidentRichard Nixon. The magazine also features candid interviews with celebrities, including a monthlyProust 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 fromBrad Pitt;Anderson Cooper, who talked about his brother's death; andMartha Stewart's first interview after her release from prison.
Some of the pictorials inVanity Fair have attracted criticism. The April 1999 issue featured an image of actorMike Myers dressed as aHindu deity for a photo spread byDavid LaChapelle: after criticism, both the photographer and the magazine apologized.[7]
The magazine was the subject ofToby Young's book,How to Lose Friends and Alienate People, about his search for success inNew York City while working for Graydon Carter'sVanity Fair. The book was made into amovie in 2008, withJeff Bridges playing Carter.[8][9]
In 2013,Condé Nast Entertainment struck a deal withDiscovery Communications-owned cable channelInvestigation Discovery forVanity Fair Confidential, a crime and mystery documentary TV series based on stories fromVanity Fair magazine.[10] Condé Nast Entertainment launched aVanity FairYouTube 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 likeBarbara Kopple and including the film producerJudd Apatow, and actorsDon Cheadle andBryce Dallas Howard.[11]
Vanity Fair launchedThe Hive in June 2016, its online business, politics and technology news vertical. In January 2017,Vanity Fair'sHive and Condé Nast Entertainment partnered withCheddar online TV channel to create a live weekly series calledVF Hive on Cheddar. Editor Graydon Carter called the series a "representation of how people are consuming more voraciously than ever".[12]
In 2017 former editor Tina Brown published[13] "The Vanity Fair Diaries". It was announced in November 2017 thatRadhika Jones, editorial director ofThe New York Times books section, would succeed Carter as Editor-in-Chief on December 11, 2017.[14][15]
In 2018,Vanity Fair received accolades for removing actorJames Franco from a cover shoot following sexual harassment allegations.[16][citation needed]
In 2020,Dario Calmese became the first Black photographer to shoot the cover of aVanity Fair issue; his subject wasViola Davis.[17]Vanity Fair employeesunionized in 2022.[18]
On April 3, 2025, Jones announced that she would step down from her position as editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair.[19] On June 10, 2025, it was reported thatMark Guiducci, the creative editorial director at Vogue, would succeed Jones as Editor-in-Chief at the end of June.[20]
In 1991 Vanity Fair began publishing an international edition. There are currently five international editions ofVanity Fair being published: namely in theUnited Kingdom (since 1991),[21]Italy (since 2003, ISSN 1723-6673),[22]Spain (since 2008),[21] France (since 2013),[23] andMexico (since 2015), with the Italian version published weekly. The ItalianVanity Fair was established in October 2003[21][24] and celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2013.[25]
Vanity Fair Germany launched in February 2007 at a cost of€50 million (euros), 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.[26]
| Country | Circulation dates | Editor-in-Chief | Start year | End year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (Vanity Fair London) | 1991–present | Tina Brown | 1991 | 1992 |
| Graydon Carter | 1992 | 2017 | ||
| Radhika Jones | 2017 | 2025 | ||
| Italy (Vanity Fair Italia) | 1990–1991 | Paolo Pietroni [it][27] | 1990 | 1991 |
| 2003–present | Marisa Deimichei[28] | 2003 | 2004 | |
| Carlo Verdelli [it][27] | 2004 | 2006 | ||
| Luca Dini [it][27] | 2006 | 2017 | ||
| Daniela Hamaui[27] | 2017 | 2018 | ||
| Simone Marchetti[29] | 2018 | present | ||
| Germany (Vanity Fair Germany) | 2007–2009 | Ulf Poschardt[30] | 2007 | 2008 |
| Nikolaus Albrecht | 2008 | 2009 | ||
| Spain (Vanity Fair España) | 2008–present | Lourdes Garzón[31] | 2006 | 2017 |
| Alberto Moreno[32] | 2017 | present | ||
| France (Vanity Fair France) | 2013–present | Anne Boulay[33] | 2013 | 2019 |
| Joseph Ghosn[33] | 2019 | 2021 | ||
| Olivier Bouchara[34] | 2021 | present | ||
| Mexico (Vanity Fair México) | 2015–2018 | Lourdes Garzón[35] | 2015 | 2017 |
| Alberto Moreno[32] | 2017 | 2018 |
As a successor to a similar invitation-only event annually held by the late agentIrving Paul Lazar, the firstVanity Fair Oscar Party took place in 1994.[36] During its first years, the magazine'sOscar party was co-hosted by producerSteve Tisch at Morton's inWest Hollywood.[37] At first, editor Graydon Carter kept the invitation list small, at around 120 for dinner.[38] In 2008, in sympathy with aWriters Guild of America strike,Vanity Fair canceled its annual party.[39] Between 2009 and 2013, the party was held atSunset Tower.[36] The 2014 edition took place in a temporary, 12,000-square-foot glass-walled structure at 8680 Sunset Boulevard.[38]Vanity Fair makes a limited number of invitations available each year for charity.[40][41] In 2021, due to restrictions stemming from health and safety concerns from theCOVID-19 pandemic in Los Angeles,Vanity Fair cancelled its annual party.[42]
In recent years,Vanity Fair andBloomberg have hosted an after-party at theFrench ambassador's residence in Washington, D.C. following theWhite House Correspondents' Association dinner.[38]
In 2005,Vanity Fair was found liable in alawsuit brought in theUK by film directorRoman Polanski, who claimed the magazine hadlibelled him in an article byA. E. Hotchner published in 2002.[43] The article recounted a claim byLewis H. Lapham, editor ofHarper'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.[44]
The trial began 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 ofMia Farrow and others, it was proved that the alleged scene at the famous New York restaurantElaine'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".[45]
Polanski was awarded damages by theHigh Court in London.[46] The case was notable because Polanski was living in France as a fugitive from U.S. justice,[47] and never appeared in the London court for fear he would be extradited to the U.S. Graydon Carter, editor ofVanity 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."[48]
On April 25, 2008, the televised entertainment programEntertainment Tonight reported that 15-year-oldMiley Cyrus had posedtopless for a photo shoot withVanity Fair.[49] 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 photographerAnnie Leibovitz.[50] The full photograph was published with an accompanying story onThe 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.[51] Some parents expressed outrage at the nature of the photograph, which aDisney spokesperson described as "a situation [that] was created to deliberately manipulate a 15-year-old to sell magazines".[51]
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."[51] Nearly ten years later to the day, Cyrus took back the Disney apology statement in anInstagram story showing aNew York Post front page regarding the story, simply stating "IM NOT SORRY Fuck YOU #10YearsAgo".[52]
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 in12 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 theVanity 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 holdVanity Fair or the photographer liable.[53]
Shortly before the Nyong'o case,Vogue magazine, a partner and buyer ofVanity Fair in 1936, was accused of altering actressLena Dunham's photos. Dunham considered the modified photos to be offensive.[54][55]
In 2015,Vanity Fair had to update the account it had published by theNBC News correspondentRichard Engel about the disputed circumstances of his2012 kidnapping in Syria, stating that he had misidentified his captors.[56]
In 2019, former contributing editorVicky Ward said her 2003 profile of Jeffrey Epstein inVanity Fair had included on-the-record accounts of Annie andMaria Farmer (who filed the earliest known criminal complaints about Epstein), but that they were later stricken from Ward's article after Bill Clinton pressured the magazine's editorGraydon Carter.[57][58]
