Experience

WHERE Traveler®

• United States
• Book and Periodical Publishing
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Contributing Editor

  • May 2016 - Present

  Millions of hotel visitors rely on monthly WHERE MAGAZINE and the annual WHERE GUESTBOOK hardback to discover where to stay, where to play, where to dine, and where to buy. My lifestyle cover stories and features focus on L.A.'s most interesting people, places, and things. Just one celebrity interview per monthly print issue (naming names in traffic-driving celebrity endorsements), and a priveleged 2-3 features per annual Where Guestbook: Madchen Amick, Sheryl Crow, Lisa Edelstein, Josh Groban, Chef Ludo Lefevbre, Idina Menzel, Gordon Ramsay, Dita Von Teese, plus in-depth looks at the best of L.A. and Las Vegas. Show less



Daily Meal

• United States
• Internet Publishing
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Travel Editor

  • Apr 2017 - Present

  As the at-large L.A. Travel Editor for The Daily Meal, I eat and drink my way around the world, chasing cultural adventure beyond her SoCal backyard from Guatemala to Hong Kong. Currently ramping up travel coverage of international and domestic destinations, hotels and resorts, spas, cruises, airlines, automotive, rail, guided tours, and bucket-list itineraries including go-to-the-source destinations for the world’s best food, drink, and cultural events. My on-the-road interviews with celebrities and CEOs have been conducted while cruising the Caribbean, flying 37,000 feet in the air, and driving Porsches and Lamborghinis at 170 miles per hour. Show less



DaySpa Magazine

• Los Angeles

• Contributor

  • Jul 2015 - Present

  DaySpa Magazine is the premiere spa business magazine, and was the first to focus on the needs of the day spa industry. Our mission is to enlighten, enrich and empower spa professionals: the owners, managers and customers of day spas, wellness centers, skincare salons and resort/hotel destination spas throughout the world. We inform readers on the latest treatment trends, while we support them with relevant news, profiles, and expertise concerning the management, marketing, and legal aspects of their businesses. After 15 years, DAYSPA continues to reflect the complexity of the spa business world in a voice and format that’s compatible with the time-challenged lives of our readers. www.DAYSPAmagazine.com Show less



JustLuxe

• United States
• Online Audio and Video Media
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Contributing Editor

  • Jan 2013 - Present

  Travel, lifestyle, fashion, and entertainment news, reviews and feature articles. JustLuxe is the #1 luxury web publication, reaching more than 1.5 million monthly visitors. It is singularly focused on the affluent consumer’s wants, needs, desires and expectations by providing objective reviews and news to assist readers with their decision making, purchasing and booking. Articles are published daily in more than 40 luxury categories including: Travel, Food, Drink, Jewelry, Fashion, Beauty, Art, Design, and Entertainment. JustLuxe.com combines quality editorial content, travel information, video and photography with luxury directory organization. Follow us on Twitter at @JustLuxe and @VickiArkoff Show less



DC Comics

• United States
• Entertainment Providers
• 400 - 500 Employee

• Usual Gang of Idiots

  • Jan 2004 - Present

  West Coast idiot for DC Comics’ MAD Magazine and MAD Kids. Writer and photographer specializing in skewering media through film/TV/music spoofs, photo gags, celebrity interview parodies and interpretive dance. Most recently co-authored the bestselling book INSIDE MAD (Time Home Entertainment) -- named among the Top 10 best books of 2013 by The Washington Post -- collaborating with Judd Apatow, Roseanne Barr, George Lopez, Whoopi Goldberg, Ken Burns, David Lynch, Ice-T, Matt Weiner (Mad Men), Paul Feig (Bridesmaids), Todd McFarlane (Spawn), Pendleton Ward (Adventure Time), John Stamos, Tony Hawk, Penn Gillette, Jeff Probst, Harry Hamlin, and more. Show less



HarperCollins, Disney-Hyperion, DK Books, Modern Publishing, PIL, Virgin Books

• Author

  • 2001 - Present

  Book author and editor specializing in best-selling authorized biographies, film/TV/music property tie-ins, pop culture and humor. Bestsellers include "Inside MAD" (a Washington Post Top 10 Book of the Year), "The Holiday Goddess Handbag Guide to Paris, London, New York, Rome" and "Sinatra." Book author and editor specializing in best-selling authorized biographies, film/TV/music property tie-ins, pop culture and humor. Bestsellers include "Inside MAD" (a Washington Post Top 10 Book of the Year), "The Holiday Goddess Handbag Guide to Paris, London, New York, Rome" and "Sinatra."



MAD, Girls Life, Nickelodeon, Susie, www.HolidayGoddess.com, Midwest Book Review

• Editor / Writer

  • 2000 - Present

  Contract magazine editor, journalist, authorized biographer, ghostwriter, book author and editor. Specialties: entertainment, pop culture, and humor writing for the youth market. Authorized bios, press kits and websites for The Cheetah Girls, Hilary Duff, Jesse McCartney, Disney.com, Sweet16.com, GirlsLife.com, HowStuffWorks.com, more. Contract magazine editor, journalist, authorized biographer, ghostwriter, book author and editor. Specialties: entertainment, pop culture, and humor writing for the youth market. Authorized bios, press kits and websites for The Cheetah Girls, Hilary Duff, Jesse McCartney, Disney.com, Sweet16.com, GirlsLife.com, HowStuffWorks.com, more.



Holiday Goddess

• Greater Los Angeles Area

• Editor

  • 2008 - Nov 2017

  Holiday Goddess is from the editors of Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Grazia, Conde Nast Traveler, Lonely Planet, and BBC. The HolidayGoddess.co e-zine and bestselling Holiday Goddess books (HarperCollins, iTunes) is beloved by an active international readership of women booking travel based on our travel experiences and "chiconomical" recommendations for leisure holiday itineraries, lodging, cruises, cultural and cuisine tourism, spa and wellness getaways, and adventure at home and abroad. Our first travel book -- “The Holiday Goddess Guide to New York, Paris, London and Rome” -- spent 9 months in the travel Top 10, and 4 following e-book editions were each named “books of the month” by iTunes. Follow us on Twitter at @HolidayGoddess and @VickiArkoff Show less



Holiday Goddess, Just Luxe, CNN, Holiday Goddess travel books (HarperCollins)

• Editor/Author

  • 2004 - 2014



SCBWI

• Editor

  • 1999 - 2009



DK Publishing

• US Editor

  • 2001 - 2002

  U.S. Editor of NY Times bestseller "Sinatra" U.S. Editor of NY Times bestseller "Sinatra"



MGM, Miramax, MTV Films, Paramount, Showtime, Universal

• Music Supervisor: "Election," "Lolita," "A Walk on the Moon," "Mercury Rising," "At First Sight" etc

  • 1996 - 2002

  Music Supervisor and Soundtrack Album Producer for major motion pictures including the Academy Award winning "Election." Other projects include: "A Walk on The Moon," "Lolita," "Mercury Rising," "At First Sight," "Montana," and "The Brave" (Johnny Depp's directorial debut). Music Supervisor and Soundtrack Album Producer for major motion pictures including the Academy Award winning "Election." Other projects include: "A Walk on The Moon," "Lolita," "Mercury Rising," "At First Sight," "Montana," and "The Brave" (Johnny Depp's directorial debut).



American Film, Circus, CREEM, Variety, Entertainment Weekly, L.A. Weekly, Film Music, TV Hits, etc

• Magazine Editor & Contributor

  • 1980 - 2000



NARAS / Grammys

• Board of Governors, Film Committee Chair, Liner Notes Nominations Committee

  • 1994 - 1998



Capitol Records

• Musicians
• 300 - 400 Employee

• Director, Media & Artist Relations

  • 1990 - 1995

  Authorized biographer for Beastie Boys, Joe Cocker, Crowded House, Everclear, Paul McCartney, MC Hammer, Megadeth, Yoko Ono, Donny Osmond, Poison, Radiohead, Frank Sinatra, Bonnie Raitt, Smithereens, Tina Turner, Capitol catalog artists, Blue Note roster artists, blah blah blah... Authorized biographer for Beastie Boys, Joe Cocker, Crowded House, Everclear, Paul McCartney, MC Hammer, Megadeth, Yoko Ono, Donny Osmond, Poison, Radiohead, Frank Sinatra, Bonnie Raitt, Smithereens, Tina Turner, Capitol catalog artists, Blue Note roster artists, blah blah blah...