Exclusive: Behind the Scenes of GQ's Men of the Year Issue

By Zach Dionne Posted Nov 17th 2010 09:20AM

Another year, another multi-cover production from GQ, marking the 15th Men of the Year issue. This installment is no slouch, with a smokin' cover of Scarlett Johansson, a James Dean-tastic James Franco, a bow-tied Drake, an inventive Stephen Colbert shot, and quite possibly history's finest Jeff Bridges portrait.

Beyond the five covers, the magazine is stacked with material parsing out the start of the new decade. GQ's goal was to "elegantly reflect the year," senior editor Dan Fierman tells PopEater. A year marked, specifically, by, "Creative breakthroughs. Sports heroism. Political upheaval. Great achievements in babeosity."

Here, Fierman delves into the making of GQ's Men of the Year issue.

Do you have a favorite cover this year?
Jeff Bridges. I think that might be the best picture ever taken of the man.

That's the answer I was looking for. No argument here. Can you run me through what it's like to plan out a five-cover issue of GQ versus a typical month?
It's easier. Far easier. If we had to capture the year in just one cover, I haven't a clue what we'd do. Pick just politics? Just sports? Just entertainment? It would be impossible -- and, for 2010, would probably have led to something involving Glenn Beck, which no one wants. (Except maybe Glenn Beck.) Mixing and matching let us take in the scope of a year that, frankly, was totally and completely nuts.

Why makes these five the ambassadors for the year?
With this particular group, I hope we've touched on anything from American greatness to the Great American fracture -- and all of 2010's chaos and beauty and lunacy in-between -- in one set of stories. We decide on the covers pretty much the way I'd guess your readers imagine that we we would; we have a series of (heated) discussions over months and months about the people we love, the people we admire, the people we would want to read about, and the people who had magnificent years. The result is something that can encompass an iconic Oscar winner like Jeff Bridges to a rising hip-hop artist like Drake to the King of Truthiness himself, Stephen Colbert. Our litmus test really is as simple as: "Did they earn it?" and "Do we love them?"

Condense the experience of flipping through this Men of the Year issue. How's it feel?
If we've done our job -- and I really hope we have -- it's something that elegantly reflects the year. Creative breakthroughs. Sports heroism. Political upheaval. Great achievements in babeosity. 2010 was a weird one -- I think every American can agree on that -- but there was still so much to celebrate, whether it was Drew Brees bringing a Super Bowl to New Orleans, Jeff Bridges finally (finally!) winning that Oscar, or the delightful s--- our Vice President says. We hoped to hit all those high points and the more complicated stuff as well, whether it's the meaning of the Tea Party or the fight over gay rights or the increasing, zombie-like hold that social networks like Facebook have over all our lives.

That sounds like 2010 in a pretty decent nutshell.
Oh, and The Situation. Lord knows, you can't talk about 2010 without addressing The Situation. Somehow that's all in there. But I shouldn't let the question go without pointing out that we were hugely lucky this year to have legendary photographers Inez & Vinoodh shoot the covers and a vast, sprawling portfolio for us. They could make me look good in print, and that's saying something.

What are you looking forward to at the Men of the Year party in LA tonight?
Oh, the party is always fun. It's like dropping acid and going to an Oscar after-party: So many famous people, so many odd connections, so, so many free drinks. But mainly, I can't wait to watch people actually hold and read what so many people here have been working so hard on. Not to get all Sally Field on your ass, but it takes a staggering amount of work -- most of it from people who never get nearly enough credit. Our design team (led by the incomparable Fred Woodward) and photo teams, for starters; but also myriad researchers, copy folk, individual editors and reporters and writers. It's always a great moment to see people out in the real world interact with the issue itself. I hope people remember how hard everyone, from our editor-in-chief Jim Nelson on down, worked on it. But personally? I just want to meet The Dude. 'Lebowski' is something of a holy text in my home.

Head to GQ.com for Full Men of the Year Coverage

Tags: GQ, Men of the Year

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Thursday 18 November

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