Guyanese fashion journalist passes at 74
Walter Greene’s name is etched into New York’s catalog, which documents the prominent Black scribes who have impacted the landscape.
Born in Guyana, Greene was the youngest of five children.
He moved to New York in the 1970s, choosing the less traveled path in journalism, focussing on fashion.
As the spokesperson for underrepresented Black fashionistas, he dominated Black and Caribbean media with images ignored by dominant commercial outlets.
Establishing a niche at Carib News, he became the go-to specialist to style models and beauty pageant contenders.
He narrated many of those events and schooled newcomers on poise and how to dress to impress.
At times, combining entertainment with runway reports, for 30 years, he devoted pages of coverage to otherwise overlooked individuals. His precise expose provided fashion-forward information to color minority magazines and newspapers with fresh-faced industry aspirants.
Undoubtedly, Greene broadened the rainbow kaleidoscope he perceived as representative of Seventh Ave.
During the 1990s, Greene traversed the record industry.
Among the recording talents he was assigned, he worked significantly with dancehall deejay Buju Banton at Loose Canon/Mercury Records.
But his stint was short-lived, and he returned to styling, emceeing fashion fares, and reporting on the movers and shakers and the novices of the trade.
“I met Walter when I relocated to West Palm Beach, Florida,” Jackie Wilson said.
“Whenever he flew down for fashion shows, he would call me at Mac Cosmetics to assist in providing the appropriate makeup,” Wilson explained.
According to reports, Greene’s lifeless body was discovered on Dec. 2.
He was 74 years old.
Dave Rodney, a Jamaican travel aficionado, was vacationing in Vietnam when he was informed of the tragic news.
Although journeying through Asia thousands of miles away, the adventurous Caribbean national sought confirmation of the transition.
He seemed to provide breaking news to clueless, shocked colleagues in his quest for information.
Rodney, a former representative and current consultant to the Jamaica Tourist Board, said Greene often traveled to Jamaica.
Invited there to report on hotel site openings, jazz and music festivals, cultural gatherings, or for personal relaxation and recuperation escapades, Greene was a staple of the foreign press corps.
In addition to working the beat, Jamaica was where he escaped the rigors of his profession.
“I was flooded with phone calls inquiring about the validity of the news,” Angelo Ellerbee, CEO of DoubleXXposure, said.
“The calls came on the morning of his death, and though I talked to Water regularly, I knew very little about how and when he passed.”
“The news came as a surprise to me.”
Ellerbee shared the passion for fashion with Greene and even honed tutelage in the industry by studying in Paris, France, before integrating his talent with promoting the talents of celebrities.
“I pray he rest in eternal peace,” Ellerbee added.
“I don’t know the details of his funeral arrangements, but I already made a shirt for him,” Donna Dove, a Trinidad and Tobago native, said.
A fashion designer who collaborated with Greene on numerous forays in New York and Florida, she said her deceased friend favored a particular style, and with that in mind for his homecoming, she plans to outfit him in the shirt paired with a tuxedo.
Greene’s imprint is indelible.
He was preceded in death by his parents and three brothers, Winston, Richard, and Ricky.
Colleagues in media representing the myriad genres he reported, his sister Barbara Doornick, Kim Alexander-Moses, Melanie Alexandria-Heusner, and his niece Alana Doornick all grieve his death.
“We thank each and every one… Walter was an amazing individual that touched so many lives in his 74 years…”
“If you are playing a special part in his journey… what a trip it has been.
“One Love.”
The family said funeral services will be held Thursday, Dec. 12, at Unity Funeral Chapel, 2352 Eighth Ave. at 126th St.
Viewing at 9 a.m.
— Catch You On The Inside!
