Graydon Carter facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Graydon Carter
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Carter at the Vanity Fair celebration for the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival
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| Born |
Edward Graydon Carter
July 14, 1949 Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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| Occupation | Magazine editor |
| Title | Editor-in-chief, U.S. Vanity Fair (1992–2017) |
| Spouse(s) |
Cynthia Williamson
(m. 1982; div. 2000)Anna Scott
(m. 2005) |
| Children | 5 |
| Awards | Order of Canada |
Edward Graydon Carter (born July 14, 1949) is a famous Canadian journalist. He is best known for being the editor of the magazine Vanity Fair for 25 years, from 1992 to 2017. He also helped create the funny magazine Spy in 1986. More recently, in 2019, he started a weekly online newsletter called Air Mail.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Graydon Carter was born in Toronto, Canada. After finishing high school, he worked for a short time at Canadian National Railways. He later attended the University of Ottawa and Carleton University, but he did not graduate with a degree from either school.
Career in Magazines and Writing
Starting Out in Canada
In 1973, Carter helped start a magazine called The Canadian Review. It became a popular and award-winning magazine in Canada. However, the magazine ran out of money and had to close in 1978.
Moving to the United States
After his first magazine closed, Carter moved to the U.S. in 1978. He got a job as a writer at Time magazine. He wrote about business, law, and entertainment for five years. After that, he worked for Life.
In 1986, Carter and his friend Kurt Andersen started Spy, a magazine known for its humor. It was published for 12 years. After Spy, Carter worked as an editor for The New York Observer.
Editor of Vanity Fair
In 1992, Carter became the editor of Vanity Fair, one of the most famous magazines in the world. He stayed in this important role for 25 years. Under his leadership, the magazine mixed stories about famous celebrities with serious news articles. During his time as editor, Vanity Fair won 14 National Magazine Awards.
In 2017, Carter announced he was leaving Vanity Fair. For his work in media, he was given the Order of Canada, one of Canada's highest honors.
In 2019, Carter started a new project called Air Mail, an online newsletter he created with journalist Alessandra Stanley.
Author and Memoir
Carter wrote a book in 2004 called What We've Lost, which looked at the U.S. government at the time. In March 2025, he published his memoir, When the Going was Good: An Editor's Adventures During the Last Golden Age of Magazines.
Work as a Producer
Besides his work with magazines, Carter has also produced movies and plays.
Documentary Films
Carter helped produce several documentary films. A documentary is a movie that tells a true story about real people and events. Some of the documentaries he produced include:
- 9/11: A film about the September 11 terrorist attacks. It won two major awards, an Emmy Award and a Peabody Award.
- The Kid Stays in the Picture: A film about the life of Hollywood movie producer Robert Evans.
- Chicago 10: A film about protests that happened in 1968.
- Public Speaking: A film about the writer Fran Lebowitz, directed by the famous Martin Scorsese.
- His Way: A film about the producer Jerry Weintraub.
Theater Producer
Carter was a producer for a Broadway play called I'll Eat You Last. The play was about the life of a famous Hollywood agent named Sue Mengers and starred the actress Bette Midler.
Personal Life
Graydon Carter has been married three times. He was first married to a Canadian woman. His second marriage was to Cynthia Williamson, and they had four children together. In 2005, he married Anna Scott, and they have one daughter. In total, Carter has five children.
Carter lives in New York City and Connecticut. He has also been a part-owner of two restaurants in New York City, The Waverly Inn and the Monkey Bar.
In an interview, Carter said he considers himself a libertarian. This is a political belief that focuses on personal freedom and having less government control.
