Interview Names Editor & Publisher
(NEW YORK) On Thursday, Brant Publications Inc. announced several major masthead moves at its flagship title Interview, beginning with the appointment of Christopher Bollen as editor in chief, effective April.
Bollen joins Interview from V Magazine and V Man, the bi-monthly magazine partners of fashion quarterly Visionaire, where he was editor of both titles. His last day at V will be April 15, after he completes the summer issue. On the publishing side, Alan Katz, a veteran of the industry with over 20 years experience, has been named group publisher over all three titles at Brant, including Interview, Art in America, and The Magazine Antiques. He starts on Monday. Katz, who replaces Sandra Brant, hails from Condé Nast Publications, where he was vice president and publisher of Vanity Fair until August 2006. He joined Vanity Fair from Cargo, the Condé Nast men's shopping title he helped launch in the same capacity in 2004. Before Cargo, Katz spent 14 years at New York Magazine, where he was publisher from 1999 to 2003. Since May 2007, Katz has been president, sales and marketing, of myTime.com, an internet start-up with Shelter Partners, set to debut next month.
At New York, Katz developed multi-media partnerships for the magazine through the launch of the joint venture NewYorkMetro.com, a Website that integrated the internet with the magazine and cable channel. "Alan brings vast experience working with publications covering culture and style," said co-editorial director Glenn O'Brien. "He has a proven track record in both sales and marketing, and will bring an innovative approach to branding our titles. Alan in a lot of ways turned New York around. He did a great job with Cargo, and what happened with Cargo had nothing to do with Alan. He's from our world and knows everybody and commands a lot of respect." Katz added: "I am thrilled to have the opportunity to spearhead the growth of these three iconic publications, and to work with the incredibly talented team of Fabien and Glenn. I look forward to developing a strong integrated marketing and sales strategy for the company. The possibilities of bringing a multimedia platform to these titles is both exciting and limitless."
At Interview, Bollen will report to Brant Publications co-editorial directors O'Brien and Fabien Baron. "It was a difficult decision to leave a place as creative and editorially boundless as V, which has served as my home for the past eight years," said Bollen. "Nevertheless, I'm incredibly excited to be joining Interview and adding my name to a team as gifted as this one. The Interview legacy is clearly inimitable, but I'm also looking forward to leading it in new cultural directions. I think it's going to be a very happy marriage."
Baron added, "We are very excited to work with Chris. He is a great talent, and has an innate understanding of popular culture, from fashion to art, each a very important part of Interview." And according to O'Brien, "I'd been looking at V and V Man for a long time, and Chris struck me as very intelligent and charming. I've read his writing, and he's one of the few people out there who understands both art and fashion. For me, that was the right qualification for Interview."
Julie Anne Quay, executive editor at V, confirmed Bollen's resignation and wished him all the best. "At the same time, we are looking forward to meeting new people and internally look at ways that V can continue to be the cutting edge incubator of all talent that is art, music, and fashion related," she said. Indeed, it's an exciting time at V, given that the publication last year celebrated its 50th issue (Gwen Stefani graces the current 52nd edition), and at V Man, which is going quarterly. Quay said the magazine had not decided as to whether Bollen's current position editing both titles will be split or remain intact.
In related masthead news, Stephen Mooallem has been promoted from senior editor to executive editor. Mooallem will assume the title after the departure of current executive editor Brad Goldfarb, who has resigned to pursue other interests. Mooallem has been with Interview for five years. "I think Brad realized that this change was a good opportunity for him to go on with a different direction," said O'Brien. Bruce Weber, meanwhile, has also officially left Interview in his role as a long-time contributing photographer. Both men worked directly with former editor-in-chief Ingrid Sischy.
"Bruce sent a letter saying he wanted his name removed from the masthead," O'Brien admitted. "He was listed along with 30 other photographers. We're not saving any payroll through this resignation."
JIM SHI
