Fran Lebowitz

Fran Lebowitz is an American writer and cultural critic who also works as a public speaker and actor. Her sardonic commentary on American life often reflects a New York City point of view. Born in Morristown, New Jersey, she moved to New York City in 1969 and began writing satirical essays while working at Changes magazine. She later wrote film reviews and columns for Andy Warhol's Interview magazine, including The Best of the Worst. Metropolitan Life, her first book, was published in 1978 and became a New York Times bestseller; Social Studies followed in 1981, and both were collected in The Fran Lebowitz Reader in 1994. Since the mid-1990s she has been known for a decades-long writer's block and has supported herself through speaking engagements and television work. She played Judge Janice Goldberg on Law & Order from 2001 to 2007. Martin Scorsese directed the HBO documentary Public Speaking (2010) and the Netflix series Pretend It's a City (2021).