David Marchese

David Marchese is a Canadian journalist who is known for his celebrity interviews in publications including Vulture, Spin, and The New York Times.

Early life and education

Marchese grew up in Toronto. As a teenager, he briefly played in a band called Scream and Die.[1]

He attended the Cultural Reporting and Criticism program at New York University.[2]

Career

After graduating from New York University, Marchese interned at Salon.com.[3] He went on to edit and write for Spin magazine and Rolling Stone.[2]

Marchese became culture editor of New York magazine in 2014. Two years later, he became contributing editor for the publication's culture site Vulture, where he authored the In Conversation series, interviewing celebrities including Erykah Badu and Julian Casablancas.[4][5] His 2018 interview with Quincy Jones, in which the subject criticized Michael Jackson and the Beatles and alluded to an alleged affair between Marlon Brando and Richard Pryor, went viral on social media.[5][6][7]

In 2019, Marchese began writing The New York Times Magazine's Talk column, which featured long-form interviews with cultural figures and other notable people.[8]

In 2024, Talk transitioned into a weekly podcast and interview franchise, The Interview, hosted by Marchese and Lulu Garcia-Navarro.[9]

Media critics have praised Marchese for his ability to elicit unexpected, vulnerable, and profound answers from interview subjects.[10][11] He has said he spends up to six weeks preparing for an interview by reading everything available about an interviewee, including material not accessible via the Internet.[10] He comes to interviews with three to five pages of questions prepared in advance.[4]

In October 2024, Marchese claimed in an article that he wrote for the New York Times that as early as seven years old, he watched a film featuring Al Pacino and was able to appreciate that, "That's great acting."[12]

Personal life

Marchese lives in suburban New Jersey.[2] He is married and has two children. He is Jewish and an atheist.[1][13]

References

  1. ^ a b Nechamkin, Sarah (25 July 2019). "David Marchese on Death, Diet Coke, and Wayne Gretzky". Interview Magazine. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  2. ^ a b c "David Marchese". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  3. ^ "David Marchese: A very public mistake..." Definitely Not the Opera. CBC Radio. 2011. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  4. ^ a b Ozzi, Dan (11 April 2018). "In Conversation with the Guy Behind the Internet's Favorite Celebrity Interviews". Vice. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  5. ^ a b Starke, Lauren (8 February 2018). "Vulture's David Marchese on His Quincy Jones Interview, How He Prepares and More". New York. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  6. ^ Marchese, David (7 February 2018). "Quincy Jones on the Secret Michael Jackson and the Problem With Modern Pop". Vulture. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  7. ^ Mumford, Gwilym (8 February 2018). "Richard Pryor and Marlon Brando were lovers, Pryor's widow confirms". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  8. ^ Silverstein, Jake (10 March 2024). "What David Marchese Learned Talking to the World's Most Interesting People". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  9. ^ Weprin, Alex (23 April 2024). "Inside The New York Times' Next Big Bet: 'The Interview' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  10. ^ a b Rotinwa, Ayodeji (1 November 2023). "Q&A: David Marchese on the art of the interview". Columbia Journalism Review. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  11. ^ Jerde, Sara (15 February 2019). "How David Marchese Will Transform The New York Times Magazine's Talk Column". Adweek. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  12. ^ Marchese, David (5 October 2024). "Al Pacino is Still Going Big". The New York Times.
  13. ^ "David Marchese". Religion Dispatches. 3 July 2009. Retrieved 30 July 2024.