Trivia

As editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan from 1965-1996, Brown published readers' confessions on the most unusual places they were intimate, an article entitled "How I'd steal the president (Richard Nixon) away from Pat," and the Burt Reynolds centerfold. Betty Friedan called Cosmopolitan under Brown's sex-drenched stewardship "quite obscene and quite horrible."

Her father died in an elevator accident when Helen was 10 years old.

Until her death, Girley Brown was known for coming into her pink corner office nearly every day.

Born to Ira and Cleo Gurley, both school teachers.

The family moved to Little Rock when Ira was elected to the state legislature.

Cleo Gurley moved the family to Los Angeles in the late 1930s.

Gurley Brown excelled socially and academically, graduating from high school as class valedictorian.

Gurley Brown went on to earn a business degree at Woodbury Business College, and began her career in 1941 with a series of secretarial jobs.

She was said to bring her lunch to work almost every day for the more than 30 years she spent at Hearst.

Mentor to Bonnie Fuller.

Friend of Hugh Hefner, Erica Jong.

Born at 3:0am-CST