ANNA WINTOUR Biography - Producers, publishers & editors

 
 

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ANNA WINTOUR

Name: Anna Wintour                                                               
Born: 3 November 1949 London, England                                           
                                                                                 
Anna Wintour (born November 3, 1949, in London) is the editor-in-chief of       
American Vogue, a position she has held since 1988. She became interested in     
fashion as a teenager. Her father, Charles, editor of the Evening Standard,     
often consulted with her on how to make the newspaper's coverage relevant to the 
youth of mid-1960s London. After dropping out of school at 16, she began a       
career in fashion journalism. Her career took her across the Atlantic, with     
notable stints at New York and Home & Garden. She returned home for a tumultuous 
year to turn around British Vogue, and later assumed control of the franchise's 
magazine in New York. She revived a stagnant publication, a success that has     
earned her wide acclaim in the industry.                                         
                                                                                 
Like one of her predecessors, Diana Vreeland, she has become a fashion icon. Her 
pageboy bob haircut and sunglasses have become a common sight in the front row   
of the most exclusive fashion shows. Away from the cameras, she has become as   
much an institution in the fashion world as her magazine. Universally hailed for 
her keen eye for fashion trends and support for younger designers, her aloof and 
demanding persona has earned her the nickname "Nuclear Wintour". A former       
personal assistant, Lauren Weisberger, wrote the 2003 bestselling roman à clef 
The Devil Wears Prada, later made into a successful film starring Meryl Streep   
as Miranda Priestly, a fashion editor widely believed to be based on Wintour.   
She has also drawn both praise and criticism for her willingness to use the     
magazine and its cachet to shape the industry as a whole. Animal rights         
activists have also singled her out for her continued promotion of fur.