Who

The campy columnist for the Village Voice has been making friends and enemies with his "La Dolce Musto" column for nearly 25 years now.

Backstory

Raised in Bensonhurst, Musto says he was extraordinarily shy as a kid and spent his days watching movies, writing little reviews on index cards "as a cathartic way of expressing myself because I didn't talk." After attending Columbia (he studied ancient civilization) and freelancing for the now-defunct Soho Weekly News (alongside Paper's Kim Hastreiter and David Hershkovits), Musto landed a job at the Village Voice thanks to then-arts editor Karen Durbin. He started writing his nightlife column soon after, and has been entertaining readers with his blend of trash-talk, celebrity gossip and stream-of-consciousness witticism ever since.

Of note

Nearly three decades after starting out, the downtown icon continues to go out nightly to attend parties, premieres, and openings: "I don't want to sit home alone and watch TV and order takeout, I'd rather be out with the fabulous people." Over the years, he's generated a bit of drama for outing various celebrities and public personalities (even though they were usually people who everyone assumed to be gay anyway): In 1997, he called Rosie O'Donnell out for being a lesbian, and she took to Larry King Live to brand him a "gay Nazi." More recently, he's been picking away at Jodie Foster, Anderson Cooper, and Clay Aiken. Musto's also a frequent sight on TV, turning up on MSNBC, VH1 and E! to crack wise.

In print

In 2007, Musto released La Dolce Musto: Writings by the World's Most Outrageous Columnist, a collection of his favorite (that is, bitchiest) columns.

Personal

Musto lives alone in Kips Bay, but can be seen bicycling to and from work in the East Village. He's often spotted around town with his doll-like Voice coworker Lynn Yaeger.