Viva: was born into a liberal democratic chaotic Catholic family in Syracuse, New York. She was given the name Viva by Andy Warhol before the release of her first film with him. She appeared in several of Warhol's movies and was a frequent guest at The Factory. After Viva began making movies for other directors, and she also began writing. Her first book: Superstar, was an insider's look at the Factory Scene, a partly fictional autobiographical account of her time there. It was distinguished from other "tell-all" memoirs by the virtue of Viva's writing, which incorporated various stylistic effects, including the use of taped conversations, arguably one of the first times such a technique had been used in a novel. She also wrote for various publications, including The Village Voice.
(Warhol Look, Photos by Cecil Beaton, Billy Name, and Avedon)
