Alexandra Joel

Alexandra Joel (born Susan Lea Joel in 1953) is an Australian author and the former editor of Harper's Bazaar.[1]

Alexandra Joel
OccupationAuthor
NationalityAustralian
EducationAbbotsleigh, University of Sydney, Australian College of Applied Psychology
GenreNon-Fiction, Fiction
Years active1984–present
Website
www.alexandrajoel.com

Early life and education

Joel was born at St Margaret's Hospital, Darlinghurst in 1953 and was formerly known as Susan Lea Joel.[2] She is the daughter of The Hon Sir Asher Alexander Joel KBE, AO. Alexandra attended Abbotsleigh School for Girls from 1962 to 1971 and completed her Arts degree with Honours in Government at the University of Sydney in 1976.[3]

In 2002 she was awarded a graduate diploma from the Australian College of Applied Psychology, subsequently establishing a counselling and psychotherapy practice.[4]

Career

Alexandra Joel spent six months as an international intern on the staff of Congressman James H. Scheuer (D) in Washington DC, returning to Australia to work as a reporter and newsreader on a regional television station in Queensland.[3]

In 1978 she became the Executive Director of ITQ8. At the time she was the only female board member of an Australian television station.[3]

She was also a director of Mason Stewart Publishing[4] (prior to its acquisition by British company Emap in 1997) and a director of the Asher Joel Media Group.[5]

From 1979 to 1998 she contributed feature articles, interviews and reviews for major national and metropolitan publications including The Australian, Sydney Morning Herald Good Weekend Magazine, Cleo and Harper's Bazaar.[4]

She was appointed editor of Harper's Bazaar in 1988. In 1991 she became the editor of Portfolio, Australia's first magazine for working women.

Her appointments have included:

Bibliography
  • 1984: Best Dressed: 200 Years of Fashion in Australia [6]
  • 1998: Parade: The Story of Fashion in Australia [7]
  • 2017: Rosetta: A Scandalous True Story[8]
  • 2020: The Paris Model[9]

Her book, Rosetta: A Scandalous True Story, was a biography of her unknown great-grandmother who ran away with a Chinese fortune teller named Zeno the Magnificent.[10][11] It has been optioned for a mini-series by Matchbox Pictures, a subsidiary of NBCUniversal.

Rosetta: A Scandalous True Story was described by the Sydney Morning Herald as a 'thrilling study of reinvention'.[12] The Australian called Joel herself 'a mesmerising storyteller'.

Her previous two books, Best Dressed: 200 Years of Fashion in Australia and Parade: The Story of Fashion in Australia both detailed the development of fashion, style and national identity.

Joel's most recent book, an historical novel titled The Paris Model, was published by Harper Collins Australia on 20 January 2020.[9]

References
  1. "Three-book deal with former Harper's Bazaar editor". Books + Publishing.
  2. Joel, Alexandra (5 August 1953). "LIFE OF SYDNEY". Daily Telegraph (Sydney, NSW : 1931 - 1954). p. 15. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  3. "Vivacious Tycoon who Works Hard to Stay at the Top". Trove National Library of Australia.
  4. "Literary Luncheon 'Rosetta'". Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron.
  5. "Miss Alexandra Joel from Asher Joel Media Group photographed at the Company Board room". Getty Images.
  6. "Best dressed : 200 years of fashion in Australia / Alexandra Joel". Trove National Library of Australia.
  7. "Parade : the story of fashion in Australia / Alexandra Joel". Trove National Library of Australia.
  8. "Rosetta by Alexandra Joel". www.penguin.com.au. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  9. "The Paris Model". HarperCollins Australia. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  10. "How my great-grandmother was seduced by a fortune teller". ABC Radio National.
  11. "New book tells: my great-grandmother who ran off with a fortune teller". The Age.
  12. "Rosetta review: Alexandra Joel's thrilling study of reinvention in Australia". Sydney Morning Herald.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.