Bob Colacello (born 1947) is an American writer. Born in

Bensonhurst, New York Bensonhurst is a residential neighborhood in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bordered on the northwest by 14th Avenue, on the northeast by 60th Street, on the southeast by Avenue P and 22n ...

, and raised in

Plainview, Long Island Plainview is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located near the North Shore of Long Island in the town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, New York, United States. The population of the CDP was 27,100. The Plainview post office has t ...

, he graduated from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private research university in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll in 1789 as Georgetown College, the university has grown to comprise eleven undergraduate and graduate ...

in 1969, and also has an MFA degree in film criticism from

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 ...

Graduate School of the Arts.

Early endeavors and ''Interview'' magazine

Colacello began his writing career around 1969, when he began publishing film reviews in 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 cr ...

'' weekly. As a graduate student in the Film department at Columbia University in New York, his first publications doubled as his class essays and homework assignments. In 1970, Colacello wrote a review of

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 ...

's film ''Trash'', which he hailed as a "great Roman Catholic masterpiece". This review garnered the attention of Warhol, and

Paul Morrissey Paul Morrissey (born February 23, 1938) is an American film director, best known for his association with Andy Warhol. He was also director of the first film in which a transgender actress, Holly Woodlawn, starred as a girlfriend of the main cha ...

, the director of many of Warhol's films, who approached Colacello to write for ''

Interview magazine ''Interview'' is an American magazine founded in late 1969 by artist Andy Warhol and British journalist John Wilcock. The magazine, nicknamed "The Crystal Ball of Pop", features interviews with celebrities, artists, musicians, and creative thin ...

'', a new art/film/fashion magazine Warhol had recently begun to publish. Colacello was made editor of ''Interview'' within six months and, for the next 12 years, remained directly involved in all aspects of life and business at

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

— Warhol's studio—as he developed the magazine into one of the best-known lifestyle magazines of the time. As Colacello himself writes in Holy Terror: Andy Warhol Close up (1990), Warhol suggested Colacello change his name to Bob Cola, in order to sound more "pop."

Biographical writings

After his tenure with ''Interview'', Colacello began writing for ''

Vanity Fair Vanity Fair may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Literature * Vanity Fair, a location in '' The Pilgrim's Progress'' (1678), by John Bunyan * ''Vanity Fair'' (novel), 1848, by William Makepeace Thackeray * ''Vanity Fair'' (magazines), the ...

'' magazine, and has been a regular contributor since, writing extended profiles on a wide range of public personalities, including

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to a ...

and

Camilla Parker Bowles Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is Queen Consort of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. She became queen consort on 8 September 2022, upon the ac ...

Balthus Balthasar Klossowski de Rola (February 29, 1908 – February 18, 2001), known as Balthus, was a Polish-French modern artist. He is known for his erotically charged images of pubescent girls, but also for the refined, dreamlike quality of his image ...

Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev ( ; Tatar/ Bashkir: Рудольф Хәмит улы Нуриев; rus, Рудо́льф Хаме́тович Нуре́ев, p=rʊˈdolʲf xɐˈmʲetəvʲɪtɕ nʊˈrʲejɪf; 17 March 19386 January 1993) was a Soviet ...

Liza Minnelli Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, dancer, and choreographer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli is among a rare group of performers awarded an Emmy, Grammy ...

, Estée Lauder,

Doris Duke Doris Duke (November 22, 1912 – October 28, 1993) was an American billionaire tobacco heiress, philanthropist, art collector, horticulturalist, and socialite. She was often called "the richest girl in the world". Her great wealth, luxurious l ...

, and

Naomi Campbell Naomi Elaine Campbell (born 22 May 1970) is an English model, actress, singer, and businesswoman. She began her career at the age of 15, and established herself amongst the most recognisable and in-demand models of the past four decades. Cam ...

. Colacello is also a biographer. He is the author of '' Ronnie and Nancy: Their Path to the White House, 1911-1980'', about the social and political rise of

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

and his wife

Nancy Reagan Nancy Davis Reagan (; born Anne Frances Robbins; July 6, 1921 – March 6, 2016) was an American film actress and First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989. She was the second wife of president Ronald Reagan. Reagan was born in Ne ...

. His memoir of working with Andy Warhol in the 1970s and early 1980s, titled '' Holy Terror: Andy Warhol Close Up'', was called the "best-written and the most killingly observed" book on the subject by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. Colacello has been coy about his sexuality in the past and once considered himself "presumably gay".

Books

*Colacello, Bob. ''Ronnie & Nancy: Their Path to the White House, 1911 to 1980.'' Warner Books, 2004 *Colacello, Bob. ''Bob Colacello's Out.'' Göttingen: Steidl, 2008 *Colacello, Bob. ''Holy Terror: Andy Warhol Close Up.'' New York, New York: Harper Collins. Vintage reprint edition, March 11, 2014

Awards

* 2017

Paez Medal of Art The Paez Medal of Arts is a decoration awarded by The Venezuelan American Endowment for the Arts (VAEA) that is presented once a year to an individual or group that has had an impact and contributed to excellence, growth, support and the prolifera ...

, New York City (VAEA).

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colacello, Bob 1947 births Living people People from Bensonhurst, Brooklyn American biographers American male biographers American magazine writers Walsh School of Foreign Service alumni Columbia University School of the Arts alumni Historians from New York (state) People from Plainview, New York American LGBT writers People associated with The Factory American people of Italian descent