André Leon Talley, Legendary ‘Vogue’ Editor, Dead At 73

Courtesy of Black Information Network

André Leon Talley has died at the age of 73.

According to TMZ, Vogue‘s former creative director and one-time editor-at-large passed away on Tuesday (January 18) at a hospital in White Plains, NY.

It’s currently unclear why he was in the hospital.

Talley worked as the Fashion News Director at Vogue from 1983 to 1987, then as Creative Director from 1988 to 1995, and Editor-At-Large from 1998-2013.

He will be remembered as a trailblazer in the fashion industry. During his time at Vogue and beyond, Talley, who was considered one of the first mainstream Black American “tastemakers,” pushed designers to have more Black models on the runway.

In addition to being a fashion innovator, Talley was also a stylist for the Obamas at one point during Barack Obama‘s presidency, a judge on America’s Next Top Model, a host of his own radio show, and a member of the Board of Trustees of the Savannah College of Art and Design.

Talley, who identified as “fluid,” was additionally an LGBTQ+ icon. In 2017, he was ranked 45th in Out magazine’s “50 Most Powerful Gay Men and Women in America.”

Photo: Getty Images