Who

The former editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan, Helen Gurley Brown is a magazine industry icon.

Backstory

Born to a poor family in rural Arkansas—her father was killed in an elevator accident when she was 10 and her mom struggled to make ends meet—Helen worked as a secretary in LA before landing a job writing copy for an ad agency. At 37, with a successful ad career underway, she married film producer David Brown; three years later, she achieved fame with her 1962 book Sex and the Single Girl, which challenged the cultural norms of the time and quickly became a bestseller. Her new status as the voice of modern women led her to Hearst, where in 1965 she pitched her idea for a new magazine that would target twentysomething girls. Hearst bit, and handed Brown Cosmopolitan, which was then struggling. She quickly turned it into the women's guide to relationships, jobs, fashion, and friendships, boosting monthly circulation to three million and making Cosmo a household name. In 1997 Brown stepped down as editor; now in her eighth decade, she remains a consultant to Hearst, reportedly earning upwards of $2 million a year for her services.

Of note

In her 30+ years at Cosmo, Brown revolutionized women's media, moving away from what had passed as editorial content for women (recipes for meatloaf in Ladies Home Journal) and making it okay to talk about topics like casual sex and seducing men. Paving the way for the Candace Bushnells of this world—she's been called the "the godmother of the contemporary sexpert industry"—Brown's specific brand of female empowerment was controversial with feminist scholars for years, but there's little question she helped explode cultural taboos for women in America. Brown's famous quote endures some 40 years after she first said it: "Good girls go to heaven, bad girls go everywhere."

In print

Brown's memoir, I'm Wild Again, was published in 2000.

Personal

Brown has been married to David Brown since 1959. A prolific film producer, he was responsible for The Sting, Jaws, and A Few Good Men. The couple lives in the tony Beresford on Central Park West; Brown purchased the pad from Mike Nichols in 1976. The Browns' four-floor apartment—6,500 square feet, with an additional 2,500 square feet of outdoor terrace space—is reported to be one of the most spectacular in the city. Real estate experts say it could be worth as much as $50 million on the market.

No joke

Brown's always known how to empower women and please men at the same time. One tidbit from her memoir: "Spread semen over your face, [it's] probably full of protein as sperm can eventually become babies. Makes a fine mask—and he'll be pleased."

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