Chuck Bennett
Bennett was helping people dress their best long before Hollywood stars determined that a good stylist was a must-have. “I’d always be late to major events, because instead of dressing myself, I was on the phone telling everyone else what to wear and how to wear it,” says Bennett, who writes the Society Confidential column for The Detroit News and hosts the daily Style Minute on Smooth Jazz 98.7. Throughout the year, Bennett notes the names of those who always rise to the occasion with sartorial splendor. Using that list, along with suggestions from some of his more fashionable friends (boutique and restaurant owners, personal shoppers, and even a few local stylists), he developed this year’s Best Dressed list. Their portraits, along with the fashion wisdom they shared with Bennet.
Calef Brown
A first-time illustrator for Hour Detroit, Brown is no stranger to the publishing field. His work has appeared in Time, Newsweek, and Rolling Stone, and on CD covers for Capitol and Virgin Records. Brown also is a writer and illustrator for children’s books — his most recent being Soup for Breakfast, which came out last fall. In this issue, he illustrated a list on how to embrace darkness in this month of dialing back our clocks. “I hope [readers] see my personality, sense of humor, and my love of painting,” he says. “I’m not sure I’d recommend stargazing while bicycling, though.”
Craig LaRotonda
LaRotonda is an illustrator and fine artist who lives in Buffalo, N.Y., where he owns and operates Revelation Studios. His work is owned by collectors in Europe and North and Central America. LaRotonda’s illustrations have appeared in three feature-length films, as well as such publications as Time, The Washington Post, The Village Voice, Juxtapoz, and The New York Times. In this issue, he created an image to accompany the story on Sophie Lyons, a colorful character from Detroit’s past, whose prolific illegal acts inspired LaRotonda to create an action-filled illustration. “The hardest thing was to narrow down all the crazy things she did into one image,” LaRotonda says. “I hope it gives readers a feeling for the kind of strong and wild personality Sophie had.”
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