READ A BOOK! How to be a Man: Glenn O’Brien
Posted: August 12th, 2011 | Author: Marcus Dangerfield | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Glenn O'Brien, How to be a Man, Read A Book | Comments Off“A good line bears repeating,” I often repeat to myself
Glenn O’Brien is - hate this tag. but it fits – an old school man. He’s a a very hetro-dandy, bit of a style meister and a liver of life. He describes his working life rather opaquely as “writer, editor, copywriter and creative director, also worked as a grocery clerk, demolition man, steelworker, waiter, bartender, convention salesman, needlepoint painter, art director, singer, stand up comedian, and record producer”
O’Brien’s flippant CV continues through his personal descript “I’m a Pisces with Aquarius rising and a Cancer moon. I’m also a Fire Boar and right handed”
O’Brien was born in Cleveland, apparently during a blizzard, he attended public and parochial schools in Ohio and New Jersey and the Jesuit-run St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland. He studied at Georgetown University, where he edited the Georgetown Journal – founded by Conde Nast. O’Brien also attended Columbia University Graduate School of the Arts, where he studied film. He joined Andy Warhol’s Interview Magazine, which was one year old, in 1970, as Assistant Editor and was made Editor & Art Director in 1971. O’Brien left Interview and became New York Bureau Chief of Rolling Stone in 1974, and then took the position of Articles Editor at Oui magazine with the Playboy Corporation in Chicago 1975. His CV is endless and envious, oh and if it went passed you, he’s adept with a word.
CHAPTER IV. CULTURE AND SOCIETY
How To Be Polite
Yes, Virginia, civilization did end. But in case it comes back, we don’t want to be left out, do we? In the meantime, behaving with style and aplomb will both impress those we want as friends and frighten our enemies. Exemplary behavior will make sure the welcome mat is always out when we visit and that the answering machine won’t pick up when we call. Here are a few basic considerations on behavior in an anything-goes world.
Don’t hide your mistakes; they may be the best part of your resume. Since the mid-eighties, we have lived in a culture of recovery. I think it’s something we picked up from the space program. By the nineties, chic twelve-step meetings surpassed the country club and the VIP room as the place to shine. Everyone has a few skeletons in the closet. They make your profile spicier and provide real contrast: “Oh, he’s wonderful now. He used to be such a mess.” If you were awful enough you might even get a book out of it. But learn from Oprah. Slug it “fiction.”
O’Brien;s point of view is one that is much missed in modern society, sartorially elegant, witty and pretentious, his bohemian cravings shine in his words “To tell you the truth I never understood what it is about Men’s Health that appeals to men. It’s just one step away from Men’s Death. But apparently it’s really a topic of concern since 1.8 million men care about it enough to buy a magazine called that. Of course I have concerns about my health, but I think of my health more as Health than Men’s Health. I mean I know men are more likely than women to contract HIV, which is another one of the reasons I don’t use that orifice for alternative purposes, and I know men are more likely to have heart attacks, and 100% more likely to have prostate cancer”
“A man must wear a suit. He must not be a suit”
“I love the necktie because it is the only article of clothing in a man’s wardrobe that has real enemies. Iranian revolutionaries, for instance, see the tie as an evil phallic symbol of Western decadence”
“I wish he were joking when he informs us…”It is in the interest of big business for there to be fewer workers and for them to have shorter lives.” Think big dude. Think like John Stuart Mill. As the work force ages it gets slower, more inefficient, more bitter” said Jason Ross, of the Daily Show
Mark Oppenheimer via his webpage ‘Slate’ penned: How To Be a Man is funny and urbane, beautifully bound and deckle-edged. But I loved reading it because it cured me of my temporary hankering to be more of a Glenn O’Brien-type, with better clothes, a busier social calendar, and a facility for apothegms like, “Buy aStar Trek uniform in case you get called for jury duty.” It is probably possible to live a meaningful existence amid all that frippery, but if so, O’Brien does not make the case. I think he is probably quite sad. He does not seem to like women much, and I gather he likes children even less, although he probably loves his own. He used to love gay men, back when they were flamboyant and fun, but now they are domestic and shabbily dressed. He hates cats, tolerates dogs. He does not seem to know any poor people anymore, unless they are cleaning up after him.
By far the most outstanding advise from O’Brien’s pages is also the simplest advice he imparts - in fact it’s all simple - that’s the charm of How to be a Man:
Always say thank you. Say it even when you’re not grateful. Even when you’re angry. You’ll get them thinking and worrying: “Was he serious? Have I gone too far this time? What’s he up to?” Kill them with cordiality. Write notes. Send e-mails. Put “thank you” down on paper. But be careful about “I love you.” Magnanimity is rare and magnificent. Thank you for reading this…
Glenn O’Brien is featured as “The Style Guy” at GQ magazine, and has published a book with that title. He has worked as an editor at a number of publications, and published the arts and literature magazine Bald Ego from 2003-2005. In his early years he was a member of Andy Warhol’s Factory. He was a music critic for the Andy Warhol publication Interview in the punk era, with the column “Glenn O’Brien’s Beat”. In 1980-1981, he wrote the screenplay (which he also co-produced with Patrick Montgomery) for a film to be called New York Beat, starring Jean Michel Basquiat (The film was only released in 2000, as “Downtown 81″), with post-production managed by O’Brien and Maripol. From 1978 to 1982, Glenn O’Brien hosted a New York city Public-access television cable TV show called “TV Party,” which featured such then underground figures as David Byrne, Klaus Nomi, August Darnell, Fab 5 Freddy, Jean-Michel Basquiat, John Fekner,Amos Poe, and bands like Blondie, The Clash, DNA, and The Fleshtones. After leaving “TV Party” in addition to continuing his writing career, he attempted a stint as a stand up comedian, and was a contributing editor of Allure, Harper’s Bazaar, and Creative Director of advertising at Barneys New York. For 10 years, he wrote a monthly column for ArtForum Magazine. He edited Madonna’s Sex Book. In January 2008 he was named Editorial Director of Brant Publications, which includes Interview Magazine as well as Art in America and Antiques. In June 2009 it was announced that he had left his position with Brant Publications. He has lent his collection of early Jean-Michel Basquiat works to various exhibitions, including Deitch Projects, and is a co-author of a major work on the artist. In 2009, O’Brien was named one of Top 10 Most Stylish Men in America by GQ Magazine.
checkout O'Briens website: http://glennobrien.com/
How To Be a Man: A Guide To Style and Behavior For The Modern Gentleman
Written by Glenn O'Brien, Illustrated by Jean-Philippe Delhomme
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April 26, 2011
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The ultimate sartorial and etiquette guide
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Rizzoli
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978-0-8478-3695-6
