Late 1969: on the brink of a transformative decade for Hollywood, Interview magazine’s inaugural issue was launched in true Warholian style – a provocative portrait of Agnès Varda and the cast of ‘Lions Love’, paving the way for many iconic covers to come.

Co-founded by Andy Warhol and journalist John Wilcock as a ‘Monthly Film Journal’ (or as Warhol articulated: a way to get into parties), the publication went on to become a cornerstone of the glittering celebrity culture that permeated Hollywood at the time.

Here, we pay tribute to the enduring legacy of ‘The Crystal Ball of Pop’ and its fame-obsessed vision of 1970s Los Angeles – an era that inspired Cutler and Gross’s AW24 Hollywood Hideaway collection.

Warhol’s Radical Vision

Emerging at a pivotal moment in American culture, Interview’s unconventional format was a radical reflection of a time when the intersection of art and cinema transformed the film industry. The magazine’s candid celebrity-on-celebrity dialogues became a conversational touchstone for a decade defined by the birth of the blockbuster era.

As movies such as ‘The Godfather’, ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Saturday Night Fever’ were drawing global attention, Interview offered a window into the lives of the stars shaping the cultural zeitgeist. Warhol’s vision for the magazine echoed his own obsessions with fame and the power of media. He rejected the polished narratives of mainstream publications and formed a new authenticity – one that blurred the boundaries between public personas and personal lives.

The Factory Days

Over the decades, Warhol’s influence transformed the celebrity magazine into an object of art: each issue captured his spirit of reinvention and avant-garde glamour. From 1972 until the end of his life, he worked closely with artist Richard Bernstein to immortalise the likes of Cher, Mick Jagger and Cutler and Gross customer Grace Jones on the cover: “He makes everyone look so famous,” Warhol once said.

Both regulars at the legendary Studio 54 – the epicentre of 70s hedonism – the two artists were living and thriving in the heart of New York City’s social scene. The debauchery of those heady, disco ball-inflected days could be felt through their work. Famed for its notorious parties, Warhol’s Manhattan studio, internationally known as The Factory, attracted a who’s who of the downtown scene: musicians and models mingled with artists, writers and drag queens, providing plenty of material for the magazine’s storied pages.

Ingrid Sischy’s Influence

Following Warhol’s death in 1987, renowned cultural critic Ingrid Sischy carried Interview into a new era. Her editorial insight and personal network brought an intellectual voice and a renewed buzz to the magazine. Along with stints working for an art publisher and the Museum of Modern Art, her previous role as an editor at Artforum kept her connected to the centre of the art and fashion world – and through her work she chronicled every happening. While Sischy's arrival signalled a significant shift, her fearless approach stayed true to the legacy Warhol left behind.

The cover art from her tenure as editor-in-chief was as memorable as her predecessor’s, resulting in some of the title’s all-time classics: Madonna’s famous crotch grab from 1990; an up-and-coming Leonardo DiCaprio lensed by Bruce Weber on the beach in 1992; a Louis Vuitton-monogrammed Lil’ Kim in 1997; a collector’s edition from 2007 featuring Elizabeth Taylor in a quintessentially Warholian pop art design. Ingrid Sischy’s influential role redefined celebrity, art and fashion media, keeping the magazine relevant in an increasingly crowded landscape.

“The true leaders, of course,

are those who provide the images

and words that speak to us.”

Ingrid Sischy’s Letter From the Editor, June 1995

Sischy’s personal style was as intrinsically iconic as her work. An extension of her distinctive eye, her signature look – a crisp shirt and impeccable tailoring – was defined by a pair of thick-framed optical glasses by Cutler and Gross. Sischy found a kindred spirit in Mr Gross and remained a loyal customer of the brand throughout their close friendship. The ongoing connection between Interview and Cutler and Gross, both professional and personal, reflected a shared ethos of artistic freedom and a commitment to pushing boundaries.

As the creative force behind the magazine from 1990 to 2008, Sischy left an indelible mark on Interview’s history. “I thought I’d stay a few years, devote myself to helping the magazine find its post-Warhol life, and then get back to my writing,” she said in a modest statement when she resigned. However, a later tribute from the publication proved that Sischy’s influence was far more significant, stating she helped “shape the way we saw and understood American pop culture and how we will continue to do so forevermore... Her immeasurable legacy as a beloved editor will live on.”

A Lasting Legacy

Today, Interview continues to influence how we perceive fame and its role in culture. Long before the unfiltered days of social media, its raw approach set a new standard for how media could engage with stars and offered an authentic point of view.

The Hollywood Hideaway collection is a celebration of this defiant spirit: glamorous, bold and unafraid to stand out. Maximalist frames, sleek aviators and cat-eye silhouettes take inspiration from the excess and allure of 1970s Los Angeles – a moment in time that’s so perfectly captured on Interview’s pages.

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