Paper Magazine, the oral history: ‘They were wide open’

Maggie McCormick, office manager, 1985-1993: There were so many moments at Paper when you knew the world was changing. I saw one of the first performances of LL Cool J.

Fenton Bailey, producer, former Paper columnist: The vibe was, “Hip-hop is a fashion thing. It will come and go.” And that was not Paper’s attitude.

Dennis Dermody, film critic, 1986-2017: I got a call from David Hershkovits. He said, ‘Listen, we need a movie critic, and I hear you go to the movies all the time. We don’t pay.” And I said, “Well, that sweetens the pot.” But who else would let me publish an article entitled “How to Cook and Eat Macaulay Culkin”?

Christine Muhlke, editor-in-chief, 1994-2000: I need to ask Bell Hooks if she’ll write a column for us. I said, “I can only pay you $100 a month, but I promise I won’t change a word.” She said, “Honey, that’s the nicest, sweetest thing I’ve ever heard in my life. Yes!”

Eileen Myles, poet, activist: I had just run for president, so I had an inordinate sense of who I was, and I didn’t know where to go, and those guys offered me this opportunity to be in their web. I wrote what the hell was on my mind – millennial cults, labor movements, being queer in the countryside. They were wide open.

Dennis Dermody: We did an April issue in 1995, the year Disney released “Pocahontas.” So I wrote this funny article about how I saw a showing of it and it was depraved, nasty and was going to get an NC-17 rating. La Stampa, in Rome, ran a big article: “Scandal Rocks Disney!” Disney held a press conference to say it was just a joke. David called me and said, “You need to come here because your article is an international incident.” I couldn’t stop laughing.