Catching Up With Joe Zee

Photo: Tom Munro/Management Artists

There are some people in this world whose unfaltering ambition, positive attitude, and incredible success might make you hate them -- if they weren't so damn sweet. Joe Zee is definitely one of them. As the creative director for ELLE since 2007, Zee has been a driving force in the magazine's continued popularity, but that's not the fashion maven's only gig. He's also starred on MTV's The Hills and his past is impressively dotted with stints working at or with Allure, W, Details, and Vanity Fair, not to mention helming advertising campaigns for major brands like DKNY, Perry Ellis, Kenneth Cole, Sean John, Banana Republic, H&M, Estee Lauder, M.A.C. Cosmetics, Chanel, and Coty.

Now Zee is bringing his unique vision and voice to the Sundance Channel in his new non-fiction television series All On The Line. In each episode, Zee helps floundering fashion designers find their balance again by sharing his experience, the experience of fashion friends and legends like Viktor and Rolf and Norma Kamali, and a little tough love.

Zee recently dropped by the Out studio to chat about the life-changing Mickey Mouse handbag his grandmother bought him when he was a boy, what he gained from his experience on All On The Line, and more:

All On The Line airs on Tuesdays at 10pm ET/PT on the Sundance Channel. For more details, visit the show's official website. For more on Joe Zee, follow him on Twitter.

-- NOAH MICHELSON

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