Lauren Weisberger
Weisberger in 2013
Weisberger in 2013
Born (1977-03-28) March 28, 1977
Scranton, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Occupation
  • Novelist
  • Journalist
EducationCornell University (BA)
Period2003–present
GenreFiction
Notable worksThe Devil Wears Prada
Spouse
Mike Cohen
​
(m. 2008)​
[1]
Children2
Website
www.laurenweisberger.com

Lauren Weisberger (born March 28, 1977) is an American writer and author of the 2003 bestseller The Devil Wears Prada, a roman à clef of her experience as an assistant to Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour. Weisberger worked as a writer and editor for Vogue and Departures magazines prior to authoring The Devil Wears Prada, which was adapted into a film of the same name in 2006. She has since published seven other novels.

Early life and education

Weisberger was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania to a school teacher mother and a department store president turned mortgage broker father. Her family is Jewish, and she was raised in Conservative Judaism and later Reform Judaism.[2] She spent her early youth in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, a small town outside Scranton. At age eleven, her parents divorced and she and her younger sister moved to Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the state, with their mother.

She attended Parkland High School in South Whitehall Township near Allentown, where she was involved in intramural sports, some competitive sports, extra projects, and organizations. She graduated from Parkland High School in 1995[3] and attended Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, where she was an English major, a sorority member of Alpha Epsilon Phi, and graduated in 1999.[4]

After graduating from Cornell University, Weisberger backpacked through much of Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, including Egypt, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Jordan, Nepal, and Thailand.

Career

Vogue magazine

After returning to the United States following her backpacking expedition, Weisberger settled in Manhattan, where she was hired as assistant to Vogue editor Anna Wintour. After ten months, she and Vogue features editor Richard Story left the magazine. Weisberger said she felt out of place at the magazine, though Vogue managing editor Laurie Jones later said, "She seemed to be a perfectly happy, lovely woman".[5]

Departures magazine

Weisberger and Story began working for Departures, an American Express publication, where she wrote 100-word reviews and became an assistant editor. She also published a 2004 article in Playboy magazine.[6]

After mentioning her interest in writing classes to Story, he referred her to his friend Charles Salzberg. She started writing a story about her time at Vogue, and completed it by trying to write 15 pages every couple of weeks. After repeated urgings, she showed the finished work to agents; it sold within two weeks.

The Devil Wears Prada

Weisberger's first book, The Devil Wears Prada, was published by Broadway Books in 2003; it spent six months on The New York Times Best Seller List. By July 2006, The Devil Wears Prada was the best-selling mass-market softcover book in the nation, according to Publishers Weekly.

The Devil Wears Prada is a semi-fictional but highly critical book on the Manhattan elite, and is largely based on Weisberger's experience at Vogue magazine. The book's primary character Miranda Priestly is believed to represent Wintour and the fictional Elias-Clark publishing company in the book is believed to bemodeled on Condé Nast. The book focuses on many comical aspects of a first job in the world of elite fashion.

While commercially successful, the book was not well received at Vogue. Kate Betts, a Vogue editor, criticized Weisberger and the book in The New York Times, writing that Weisberger and Wintour are actually the direct counterparts of their fictional characters. "Andrea is just as much a snob as the snobs she is thrown in with." Betts wrote in April 2003.[7][8]

Film

Film rights to The Devil Wears Prada were acquired by 20th Century Fox, which released a movie of the same name in June 2006, starring Meryl Streep (as Miranda Priestly) and Anne Hathaway (as Andrea Sachs).[9] The film grossed $27.5 million in its opening weekend,[10] and amassed U.S. sales of nearly $125 million and worldwide sales of $326 million,[11] making it one of the top-grossing films of summer 2006.

The film departs from the book in several ways. For example, in the film, Andrea is a graduate of Northwestern University; in the book, she is a graduate of Brown University. The film depicts Miranda asking Andrea to accompany her to Paris when a colleague falls ill. The book, however, has Emily catching mono and being unable to go with Miranda. In the book, Andrea's best friend Lily is an alcoholic who gets into a car crash, leaving Andrea to decide whether to stay with Miranda in Paris or return to assist her friend. The movie does not include any of these details and ends with Andrea and Miranda parting in Paris but viewing each other with mutual respect. In the book, however, Andrea curses Miranda to her face and is consequently fired.

Weisberger made a brief cameo in the film as the twins' nanny.

Television

In October 2006, Fox acquired the television rights to the book, though the series was ultimately never developed.[12]

Everyone Worth Knowing

Weisberger secured a $1 million advance from Simon & Schuster for her second novel, Everyone Worth Knowing, which based on the trials and tribulations of the New York City public relations world; the book was published in fall 2005. It received generally unfavorable reviews. The New York Times Book Review described it as "fatuous, clunky." USA Today called it "lackluster imitation" and Entertainment Weekly said it was a "ho-hum rehash" of The Devil Wears Prada.[13] It debuted on The New York Times Best Sellers List at No. 10, but dropped off the list in two weeks and was ultimately noted for disappointing sales.[13] The audio book was read by actress Eliza Dushku. In some European countries, the novel was released under the separate title Gossip and Gucci.

Chasing Harry Winston

Chasing Harry Winston, Weisberger's third novel, was released May 27, 2008 and on May 19, 2008 in the United Kingdom. The book's main characters are three best friends in New York City, Emmy, Adriana, and Leigh, who are facing fears with turning 30. Recently dumped Emmy promises to make a drastic change and find guys from every continent for casual affairs. Beautiful Brazilian Adriana tries to leave her old lifestyle of sleeping around and living off her father to get a Harry Winston ring on her finger before her first wrinkles begin showing. Leigh, the one with the perfect life, does not know what she needs in order to be happy and relax.

In September 2008, Universal Pictures secured rights to the book, and it was translated into French, Dutch, and Italian. In some European countries, the novel was released under the separate title Chanel Chic. In Italy, the title is Un anello da Tiffany & Co (A ring from Tiffany & Co). In France, the title is Sexe, diamants et plus si affinités (Sex, Diamonds, and maybe more...)

The book was panned by critics and was voted "#1 Worst Book of 2008" by Entertainment Weekly.[14]

Last Night at Chateau Marmont

Last Night at Chateau Marmont was released in August 2010.[15] It debuted at No. 9 on The New York Times Bestseller List on September 5, 2010.[16]

Revenge Wears Prada

Revenge Wears Prada, a sequel to The Devil Wears Prada, was released on June 4, 2013 and debuted at No. 3 on The New York Times Bestseller List.

The Singles Game

The Singles Game was released in 2016.

When Life Gives You Lululemons

When Life Gives You Lululemons, a second sequel to The Devil Wears Prada, was released in 2018. It follows the character of Emily Charlton, Miranda's Priestly's assistant played by Emily Blunt in the movie adaptation. This book has also been published under the title The Wives.

Where the Grass Is Green and the Girls Are Pretty

Where the Grass Is Green and the Girls Are Pretty was released in May 2021. This book has also been published as a paperback in the United Kingdom and Ireland under the title One Little Lie.

Short stories

Her short story "The Bamboo Confessions" is included in the anthology American Girls About Town. It is about a New York City backpacker who travels around the world and, in so doing, begins to view her love life back home in a different light.[17]

Bibliography

  • The Devil Wears Prada (2003)
  • Everyone Worth Knowing (2005)
  • Chasing Harry Winston (2008)
  • Last Night at Chateau Marmont (2010)[15]
  • Revenge Wears Prada (2013)
  • The Singles Game (2016)
  • When Life Gives You Lululemons (2018)
  • Where the Grass Is Green and the Girls Are Pretty (2021)

References

  1. ↑ "'Prada' nips at author Lauren Weisberger's heels – USATODAY.com". usatoday.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  2. ↑ Lauren Weisberger interview | www.somethingjewish.co.uk Archived December 23, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ↑ "Author" at Lauren Weisberger website
  4. ↑ "Alpha Epsilon Phi – Famous Phis". Alpha Epsilon Phi. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved March 13, 2007.
  5. ↑ Oppenheimer, Jerry; Front Row: The Cool Life and Hot Times of Vogue's Editor In Chief, St. Martin's Press, New York, 2005, ISBN 0-312-32310-7, 328.
  6. ↑ "About Lauren" Archived February 13, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, from LaurenWeisberger.com. Retrieved January 29, 2007.
  7. ↑ "Anna Dearest" (Betts's review); retrieved April 21, 2011.
  8. ↑ "When personal assistants attack!" (Interview with Weisberg discussing Betts's piece) Retrieved April 21, 2001.
  9. ↑ "The Devil Wears Prada | 2006 Movie | 20th Century Fox". The Devil Wears Prada | 20th Century Fox. Retrieved October 4, 2017.
  10. ↑ "Box Office Report: 'He's Just Not That Into You' gets lots of love". EW.com. February 8, 2009. Retrieved October 4, 2017.
  11. ↑ "The Devil Wears Prada (2006) - Box Office Mojo". www.boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved October 4, 2017.
  12. ↑ "Fox Brings The Devil Wears Prada to TV". MovieWeb. Retrieved April 22, 2021.
  13. 1 2 Kinetz, Erika "Devil's in the Follow-Up" New York Times, November 6, 2005. Retrieved January 28, 2007.
  14. ↑ "Books: 5 worst of 2008". ew.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  15. 1 2 (August 11, 2010). Book Review, Entertainment Weekly
  16. ↑ (September 5, 2010). Best Sellers:Hardcover Fiction, The New York Times
  17. ↑ Sharon E. Schulz-Elsing. "American Girls About Town -- book review". curledup.com. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
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