Mark Matousek (born February 5, 1957) is an American memoirist, teacher, and journalist.

Early years

Matousek was born in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. His father James Matousek disappeared when he was four, leaving his mother in dire straits; his sister Marcia committed suicide in 1978. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in dramatic art from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

, in 1978 (

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ...

, summa cum laude), a fellowship to Worcester College, Oxford in 1979, and a master's degree in English literature from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

in 1981.

Journalism

In 1981 Matousek moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, working as a stringer covering popular culture for

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was esta ...

, then in the letters department of ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely ...

'' magazine. He was hired by

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 Art movement, visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore th ...

's Interview in 1982, first as a proofreader then as the magazine's first senior editor. Over the next three years, Matousek conducted hundreds of interviews with prominent figures in film, television, books, fine art, politics, design, and science. Alarmed by the deaths of friends from AIDS, he quit his job in 1985 and spent the next years as an itinerant dharma bum and freelance journalist, living in Europe, India, and the United States. Drawn to eastern philosophy, especially

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religions, Indian religion or Indian philosophy#Buddhist philosophy, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha. ...

, Matousek shifted gears from pop culture to psychology, religion, and spiritual seeking, and became a contributing editor to Common Boundary Magazine, where his back page column, The Naked Eye, appeared from 1994-1999. Subsequently, he received a National Magazine Award nomination for "America's Darkest Secret" (about the epidemic of incest in the U.S.) and published essays in numerous magazines, including

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

, Details, O: The

Oprah Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954), or simply Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', b ...

Magazine,

Tricycle A tricycle, sometimes abbreviated to trike, is a human-powered (or gasoline or electric motor powered or assisted, or gravity powered) three-wheeled vehicle. Some tricycles, such as cycle rickshaws (for passenger transport) and freight trikes ...

, The Utne Reader, AARP Magazine, Out,

Good Housekeeping ''Good Housekeeping'' is an American women's magazine featuring articles about women's interests, product testing by The Good Housekeeping Institute, recipes, diet, and health, as well as literary articles. It is well known for the "Good Hous ...

Yoga Journal ''Yoga Journal'' is a website and digital journal, formerly a print magazine, on yoga as exercise founded in California in 1975 with the goal of combining the essence of traditional yoga with scientific understanding. It has produced live events ...

, McCalls, and Harper's Bazaar. His Ethical Wisdom blog appears regularly in

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

and Psychology Today online.

Books

After working with Sogyal Rimpoche on ''

The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying ''The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying'', written by Sogyal Rinpoche in 1992, is a presentation of the teachings of Tibetan Buddhism based on the '' Tibetan Book of the Dead'' or ''Bardo Thodol''. The author wrote, "I have written ''The Tibetan B ...

'', Matousek collaborated with writer Andrew Harvey on '' Dialogues With A Modern Mystic'' (1994), later interviewing Harvey for a British documentary of the same name. His next book, '' Sex Death Enlightenment: A True Story'' (1996) became an international bestseller published in 10 countries and nominated for two Books for a Better Life Awards. In 2000 he published '' The Boy He Left Behind: A Man's Search for His Lost Father'' (Los Angeles Times Discovery Book,

Randy Shilts Award The Randy Shilts Award is an annual literary award, presented by Publishing Triangle to honour works of non-fiction of relevance to the gay community. First presented in 1997, the award was named in memory of American journalist Randy Shilts. Winn ...

, excerpted in ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the ...

'') and served as co-editor on

Ram Dass Ram Dass (born Richard Alpert; April 6, 1931 – December 22, 2019), also known as Baba Ram Dass, was an American spiritual teacher, guru of modern yoga, psychologist, and author. His best-selling 1971 book '' Be Here Now'', which has been ...

's book '' Still Here''." '' When You're Falling, Dive: Lessons in the Art of Living'' appeared in 2008, and included autobiographical essays on writers including

Joan Didion Joan Didion (; December 5, 1934 – December 23, 2021) was an American writer. Along with Tom Wolfe, Hunter S. Thompson and Gay Talese, she is considered one of the pioneers of New Journalism. Didion's career began in the 1950s after she won ...

Stanley Kunitz Stanley Jasspon Kunitz (; July 29, 1905May 14, 2006) was an American poet. He was appointed Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress twice, first in 1974 and then again in 2000. Biography Kunitz was born in Worcester, Massach ...

Andrew Solomon Andrew Solomon (born October 30, 1963) is a writer on politics, culture and psychology, who lives in New York City and London. He has written for ''The New York Times'', ''The New Yorker'', ''Artforum'', '' Travel and Leisure'', and other publica ...

, and

James Hillman James Hillman (April 12, 1926 – October 27, 2011) was an American psychologist. He studied at, and then guided studies for, the C.G. Jung Institute in Zurich. He founded a movement toward archetypal psychology and retired into private pract ...

, as well as spiritual leaders

Matthew Fox Matthew Chandler Fox (born July 14, 1966) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Charlie Salinger on '' Party of Five'' (1994–2000) and Jack Shephard on the drama series ''Lost'' (2004–2010), the latter of which earned h ...

Byron Katie Byron Kathleen Mitchell, better known as Byron Katie (born December 6, 1942), is an American speaker and author who teaches a method of self-inquiry known as "The Work of Byron Katie" or simply as "The Work". She is the founder of Byron Katie Int ...

, Eckart Tolle et al. In 2011 Matousek published '' Ethical Wisdom: What Makes Us Good'', a study of human morality. His essays have appeared in numerous international anthologies, including: '' Voices of the Millenium'', '' Wrestling With the Angel'', '' A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant and a Prayer'', '' Oprah's Best Life'', and '' Be the Change''.

Social activism and teaching

In 2009 Matousek became creative director of V-Men, the male arm of playwright Eve Ensler's organization for ending violence against women and girls (V-Day), and curator of their online essay series (www.vday.com). His autobiographical essay "Rescue" (included in ''A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant, and a Prayer'') has been performed internationally. He moderated the men's panel at the New Orleans Superdome for V to the Tenth in 2008. Matousek is currently working on a theatrical piece called Breaking Out the Man Box (with playwright James Lecesne), which will serve as V-Men's artistic vehicle (as Ensler's "The Vagina Monologues" launched V-Day). A popular writing instructor, he has taught memoir at Manhattanville College in Purchase, New York, as well as the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, and The New York Open Center. Matousek is a member of PEN International and a core faculty member of Old Stone Farm, a wellness center in Staatsburg, New York.

Bibliography

Books

* 1994 '' Dialogues With a Modern Mystic'' (with Andrew Harvey) * 1996 '' Sex Death Enlightenment: A True Story'' * 2000 '' The Boy He Left Behind: A Man's Search for His Lost Father'' * 2008 '' When You're Falling, Dive: Lessons in the Art of Living'' * 2011 '' Ethical Wisdom: What Makes Us Good'' ,* 2017 '' Mother or thé Unseen World''

Articles

The Dalai Lama's Secret: What Makes Us Good?
''The Huffington Post''

''The Huffington Post''

"Over 50"

"The Huffington Post"

"The Huffington Post"
Two Minute Memoir
"Psychology Today"
How Empathy is Born
"Psychology Today"
The Alchemy of Crisis
"Beliefnet"
The Game of Run and Seek
"Beliefnet"
How to Choose Happiness
"Oprah.com"
Ethical Wisdom
"Tricycle"

"Mark Matousek"

Audio

Ethical Wisdom: What Makes Us Good?
"Audible
The Earthquake
Leonard Lopate Show

Exceptional Wisdom Radio

Video

Are We Born Good?
"Are we Born Good?"
ABC Local
"ABC Local" * *

External links

Official website

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matousek, Mark 1957 births Living people American Buddhists American male journalists Journalists from California American spiritual writers Buddhist writers New Age writers Jewish American writers Manhattanville College faculty LGBT Buddhists LGBT Jews American LGBT writers Writers from Los Angeles 21st-century American Jews