Legendary men’s magazine editor Art Cooper rocked the magazine world yesterday, saying he would step down from his beloved GQ.
Cooper, 65, spent two decades building the title into an urbane, prize-winning magazine known for highly-paid writers who spun sartorial tales on jocks, celebrities, CEOs and assorted oddities.
Cooper told The Post he’ll finish his 600-page roman a clef, “The Pink Tower,” based on life at the giant Conde Nast empire.
“It’s fun, and I’ve found a great way to tell it without getting sued.”
GQ, a standard bearer for men’s magazines, had lost ground in the past year to lower-brow “beer ‘n’ babes” magazines such as Maxim, whose circulation roared past GQ’s respected 800,000 circulation to a stunning 2.3 million.
Some insiders at the magazine’s parent, Conde Nast, think Cooper had been pressured to dumb down his magazine to keep up with Maxim and the surge of such Maxim knockoffs as FHM.
Last month, Cooper was inducted into the Magazine Editors Hall of Fame, the industry’s highest honor.
Rumors of his retirement swirled in recent weeks, but all were vehemently denied by Conde Nast brass and Cooper himself.
“It is so much b.s.,” CEO Steve Florio said at the time. “It keeps rearing its head. I’m sure some day it will happen and it will be a mutual decision, but it’s not today and it’s not tomorrow.”
However, Conde Nast put out a statement yesterday that Cooper walked into the office of Conde Nast chairman S.I. Newhouse Jr. at 7 a.m. and informed his boss he would be retiring in June.
It would be just two months shy of his 20-year anniversary. Cooper arrived at Conde Nast from Sunday newspaper insert Family Weekly to re-launch the withering men’s fashion magazine into a vibrant general-interest title for males.
Under his editorship, GQ received 27 nominations for National Magazine Awards and won three.
One insider said, “I can’t see Art walking out without a big push. He loved that magazine. I believe he was tired of all the game-playing behind his back.”
Rumors spread at Conde Nast that Cooper would be replaced by a younger editor. Most frequently mentioned was Dylan Jones, currently running the racy British version of GQ. Also said to be in the running is David Zinczenko, editor in chief of Rodale’s Men’s Health, whose newsstand sales are up 14 percent.