Martha Quinn is an American actress and
radio
Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connec ...
and
television personality, best known as one of the original
video jockeys on
MTV (along with
Nina Blackwood,
Mark Goodman,
Alan Hunter, and
J. J. Jackson).
Early life
Quinn was born on May 11, 1959 in
Albany, New York
Albany ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. Albany is the oldes ...
, the daughter of Nina Pattison, a retirement counselor, and David Quinn, an attorney. She is the stepdaughter of personal finance columnist
Jane Bryant Quinn, and has two older brothers and a younger half-brother. Prior to joining MTV, Quinn graduated from
Ossining High School in 1977, and
NYU in 1981.
MTV
On July 13, 1981, Quinn was working at
NYU's Weinstein Dormitory where she answered phones and gave students their toilet paper, mail, and lightbulbs. At the end of her day she decided to stop at
WNBC (AM), where she had just finished up interning for her senior year. Coincidentally, California record company executive Burt Stein also was visiting WNBC. He asked out loud if anyone knew what
Robert Pittman was doing. Pittman had been the program director of WNBC a year or so earlier, but had left to start a new venture: a cable channel called MTV (Music Television). WNBC assistant program director Buzz Brindle overheard Stein’s question and remembered the new venture. He turned to Quinn and suggested that she should try out for a role at the new network as a
VJ. Brindle called
Pittman and told him about his former intern, Quinn. Pittman told him to get her to the MTV studios immediately, as it was the last day of auditions. Quinn immediately took a cab to
Hell's Kitchen for her audition. Brindle's idea had some merit. Quinn had spent much of her time at New York University doing two things: performing in TV commercials (
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...
,
Country Time Lemonade,
Clearasil,
Campbell's Soup) and working at
WNYU-FM, the college radio station.
Quinn entered the studio knowing nothing about MTV or what its producers expected of her. She did a four-minute audition where she talked about
Earth, Wind, and Fire; MTV executives immediately surrounded her, asking, "Who are you? Where did you come from? How old are you?" Quinn was stunned, realizing she had just found the perfect job for her talents. Two days later Quinn got the news she was an MTV
VJ.
Quinn joined
Mark Goodman,
Nina Blackwood,
Alan Hunter and
J. J. Jackson as original faces and voices of MTV. Being hosts of the nation's first music television network provided them with an in-depth and up-close perspective on the most popular rock/pop music and artists of the 1980s.
In 1986, Quinn took part in the then-World Wrestling Federation's (later World Wrestling Entertainment (
WWE)
Slammy Awards, conducting interviews backstage.
Quinn initially left MTV at the end of her contract in late 1986. However, she was rehired by the network in early 1989 and stayed with the channel until 1992.
Popularity
Quinn's presence on MTV through
1991 was noted by ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason.
The magazine was first known fo ...
'' magazine readers, who voted her "MTV's Best-Ever VJ," and by
''Allure Magazine'', which referred to the '80s decade as "the Martha Quinn years." In a 2011 review of ''
I Want My MTV'' by Craig Marks and Rob Tannenbaum, Dwight Garner recalled: "Every sentient straight male in the country developed a schoolboy crush on Martha Quinn, one of the first V.J.'s, fresh out of New York University and so cute she could make your cranium detonate."
In the early ‘90s, she also hosted the MTV programs ''Martha's Greatest Hits'', ''MTV Prime with Martha Quinn'', and ''
Rockline''. Critics have dubbed Quinn's departure from MTV as "the day the video music died." She was also the MTV host at
Knebworth 1990.
Acting roles
In 1984, Quinn appeared as herself in an episode of the short-lived sitcom ''
E/R''. Quinn played Tympani Charles in ''
Dangerous Curves'' in 1988. In
1990, she appeared on the short-lived ''Brady Bunch'' sequel ''
The Bradys''. Quinn played Tracy, who married
Bobby Brady (played by
Mike Lookinland). She joined
Ed McMahon as a co-host for ''
Star Search'' in
1994. She was a bi-weekly
correspondent on ''
The Early Show'' in
1999
1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons.
Events January
* January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers.
* January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...
. Her film appearances include 1988's ''
Tapeheads''; the
1989 film sequel ''
Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives!''; 1991's ''
Problem Child 2'' as Emily, a hot date that received a shocking introduction from John Ritter's problematic son, Junior; and the 1992 low-budget sci-fi comedy film ''
Bad Channels''. She also had a recurring role on ''
Full House''. Quinn was featured in a series of commercials for
Neutrogena in the mid-1990s.
Career in the 21st century
In 2001, Quinn hosted ''Martha Quinn's Rewind'', a daily radio program that was aired on at least five
Clear Channel radio stations in the United States.
In 2005, Quinn joined
Sirius Satellite Radio network, hosting a one-hour weekly show from her home in Malibu called ''Martha Quinn Presents: Gods of the Big '80s'' for the
Big '80s channel. After Sirius merged with
XM Radio, the channel was rebranded as
The 80s on 8, and the show was simply titled ''Martha Quinn Presents''. Quinn joins the other surviving original MTV VJs in hosting programs for The 80s on 8 (10:00 am – 1:00 pm).
On the September 22, 2005 episode of
Comedy Central's new series ''
The Showbiz Show with David Spade'', Quinn appeared as herself in mock archival footage (dating back to 1983) from her MTV days. In two separate bumper skits, Quinn sarcastically foretold considerably bizarre behavior from stars
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...
and
Sting. Subsequent episodes took shots at
Whitney Houston and
Tommy Lee.
In 2007, Quinn lent her name, face and voice to ''The '80s Game with Martha Quinn'', a PC trivia game developed by Funkitron. The game featured multiple-choice questions about 1980s culture in categories including music, politics, television, sports, movies and celebrities.
Quinn was on SiriusXM until 2016 when she left to host mornings for
KOSF in San Francisco, owned by Bob Pittman's
iHeartMedia
iHeartMedia, Inc., or CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc., formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc., a company founded by ...
.
In December 2017, Quinn hosted a show for public television called ''The 80's (My Music)''.
Since January 2022, Quinn has been hosting ''The Martha Quinn Show'' for iHeartMedia, broadcasting across more than 35 iHeartMedia stations, including stations in San Francisco, Seattle, Milwaukee, Salt Lake City, Minneapolis, St. Louis and more.
Personal life
Quinn was vegetarian but has since become vegan.
In the 1980s, she dated
Stiv Bators, frontman for punk band
Dead Boys.
In 1992, she married musician Jordan Tarlow (ex-
Fuzztones). They have two children.
In May 2023, Quinn was diagnosed with
endometrial cancer.
In popular culture
Quinn is featured prominently in
Joe Hill's post-apocalyptic novel ''
The Fireman''.
References
External links
Martha Quinn's Channel on YouTube*
Stuck in the 80s interview with Martha QuinnThe 80s Game with Martha Quinn on Funkitron's website*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quinn, Martha
American radio personalities
American television actresses
American video jockeys
American women television personalities
Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development alumni
Actresses from Albany, New York
Living people
21st-century American women
20th-century American actresses
Year of birth missing (living people)