Who

Veteran publicist Susan Blond represents some of the biggest names in the music industry and beyond.

Backstory

The daughter of Maurice Blond, an insurance executive and prominent Jewish philanthropist, Susan arrived on the scene as a member of Andy Warhol's Factory. In 1972, she was hired by the legendary artist to work at his magazine Interview; Blond remained close to the Warhol scene for several years and appeared as the "Baby-killing mother" in Warhol's 1977 movie, Bad. Blond left Interview in the mid-70s to work at CBS Records, where she eventually became the first female VP of a major record studio. After 13 years of dealing with artists like The Clash and Michael Jackson, she started her own firm, Susan Blond, Inc., in 1987.

Of note

The original celebrity music publicist, Blond has repped more musical artists over the years than any other: her clients have included James Brown, Prince, Ozzy Osbourne, Julio Iglesias, Boy George, Toni Braxton, Cyndi Lauper, Usher, Lenny Kravitz, Foxy Brown, Jeff Beck, Alice Cooper, and Britney Spears (before she went nuts), to name just a few. She's also been the PR rep for countless label chiefs, including Clive Davis, Tommy Mottola, Bruce Lundvall, Russell Simmons, Lyor Cohen, Diddy, and Damon Dash. It's not all music, though. She's repped artists like Julian Schnabel, magazines like Spin, clubs (Cain, Duvet, BB Kings) as well as other notables like Marc Ecko, Denise Rich, Star Jones, Hulk Hogan, Bob Guccione Jr., "illusionist" Criss Angel, author Marisa Acocella Marchetto, and furniture heir Eric Villency. The clients from back in the day that Blond might not be too eager to put on her official bio? Debbie Gibson, New Kids on the Block, and O-Town, among many others.

Personal

Blond has been married twice. Her first marriage, to real estate agent (and fellow CBS Records alum) Roger Erickson, was attended by Andy Warhol, Studio 54's Steve Rubell, and Jean-Michel Basquiat. She and Erickson had one son, Jack, before splitting up 13 years later. The marriage fell apart when Erickson left her for his 26-year-old Russian tango instructor from the Fred Astaire Dance Studio, Irina Shpekht. (Sadly, Erickson's dance lessons were a gift from Blond, who had hoped a tango or two would bring the two closer together.) Blond and Erickson remarried within a day of each other; Blond's second husband, an Israeli-born immigration attorney named Michael Feiner, passed away in 2006. She has two children from her marriage to Feiner. Blond lives on the Upper West Side.

True story

Although it's standard operating procedure to thank your flacks when you win an Oscar or Grammy these days, Blond believes she was the first publicist ever thanked in an awards acceptance speech. When Boy George collected a Grammy in the 1980s as part of Culture Club, he imitated her thick New York accent while thanking her by name.