W

W is documented here through a single consequential appearance in Andy Warhol’s diary: an exposé about him that made his wealth conspicuous to readers. The entry records not W’s editorial structure or wider aims, but the immediate effect of its coverage—Warhol anticipated that the impression of riches would attract older women, while Fred Hughes judged the piece less damaging than expected.

The Exposé and Its Reception

When the W exposé appeared on February 17, 1984, Warhol discussed it with Fred Hughes. Fred thought it was not so bad. Warhol, meanwhile, focused on the way it made him seem rich and predicted that this portrayal would bring older women after him. His response treats the article not simply as an account to be judged for accuracy, but as a public image with social consequences: appearing wealthy could alter who sought his attention.

Wealth as Public Image

The diary’s brief reaction gives W a specific, limited role in the record: its exposé shaped how readers might perceive Warhol’s money. That concern sits within a broader portrait of Warhol as acutely attentive to fame, beauty, talent, nerve, and especially prominent American wealth. He was thrilled by his own success rather than taking it for granted, yet remained courteous and humble. The W item captures the tension between those qualities and the practical awareness that a published image could make wealth—and the interest it might attract—part of his public identity.

A Media World of Made Images

The diary also records how carefully Warhol participated in other forms of media and image-making, offering context for why an exposé’s portrayal mattered to him. Interview had become a major source of activity and a means of bringing new faces into his orbit; its promise of appearing in the magazine took the place of his earlier offer of a role in a film. For commissioned portraits, Warhol selected among Polaroid photographs, altered the chosen image to flatter the sitter, and worked with screen printers to translate it onto canvas. These accounts concern Interview and his portrait practice, not W’s methods. Against that wider background, the W episode stands out as a moment when Warhol was not arranging an image himself but assessing how another publication’s portrayal might circulate and affect his social life.