text:
Marilyn Manson

Brian Hugh Warner (born January 5, 1969), known professionally as Marilyn Manson, is an American rock musician. He came to prominence as the lead singer of the band that shares his name, of which he remains the only constant member since its formation in 1989. Known for his controversial stage personality, his stage name (like the other founding members of the band) was formed by combining the names of two opposing American cultural icons: actress Marilyn Monroe and cult leader Charles Manson.

His music released in the 1990s, including the albums Portrait of an American Family (1994), Antichrist Superstar (1996) and Mechanical Animals (1998), earned him a reputation in mainstream media as a controversial figure and negative influence on young people. In the U.S. alone, three of the band's albums have been awarded platinum status and three more went gold, and the band has had eight releases debut in the top 10, including two No. 1 albums. Manson has been ranked at No. 44 on the list of the "Top 100 Heavy Metal Vocalists" by Hit Parader and, along with his band, has been nominated for four Grammy Awards – Manson himself earned an additional Grammy nomination for his work on Kanye West's Donda (2021). Manson made his film debut as an actor in David Lynch's Lost Highway (1997), and has since appeared in a variety of minor roles and cameos. In 2002, his first art show, The Golden Age of Grotesque, was held at the Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions center.

Manson is widely considered one of the most controversial figures in heavy metal music, and has been involved in numerous controversies throughout his career. His lyrics were criticized by American politicians and were examined in congressional hearings. Several U.S. states enacted legislation specifically banning the group from performing in state-operated venues. In 1999, news media falsely blamed Manson for influencing the perpetrators of the Columbine High School massacre. His work has been cited in several other violent events; his paintings and films appeared as evidence in a murder trial, and he has been accused of inspiring several other murders and school shootings. In 2021, multiple women, including his former partner Evan Rachel Wood, accused Manson of psychologically and sexually abusing them, allegations he denied.

Early life
Brian Hugh Warner was born in Canton, Ohio, on January 5, 1969, the son of Barbara J. Wyer (died 2014) and Hugh Angus Warner (died 2017). He is of English, German, Irish, and Polish descent, and has also claimed that his mother's family (who hailed from the Appalachian Mountains in West Virginia) had Sioux heritage.

As a child, he attended his mother's Episcopal church, though his father was a Roman Catholic. He attended Heritage Christian School from first to tenth grade. In that school, his instructors tried to show children what music they were not supposed to listen to; he thus fell in love with what he "wasn't supposed to". He later transferred to GlenOak High School and graduated in 1987.

After relocating with his parents, he enrolled at Broward Community College in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in 1990. He was working toward a degree in journalism, gaining experience in the field by writing articles for the music magazine 25th Parallel. He also interviewed musicians and soon met several of the musicians to whom his own work was later compared, including Groovie Mann from My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult and Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails. The latter became his mentor and produced his debut album.

Music
The band was formed in 1989 by Warner and guitarist Scott Putesky, with Warner writing lyrics and Putesky composing the majority of music. Warner adopted the stage name Marilyn Manson and, alongside a revolving lineup of musicians, recorded the band's first demo tape as Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids in 1990. The group quickly developed a loyal fanbase within the South Florida punk and hardcore music scene, primarily as a result of their intentionally shocking concerts; band members often performed in women's clothing or bizarre costumes, and live shows routinely featured amateur pyrotechnics, naked women nailed to crucifixes, children locked in cages, as well as experiments in reverse psychology and butchered animals remains. Within six months of forming, they were playing sold-out shows in 300-capacity nightclubs throughout Florida. They signed a record deal with Sony Music in early 1991, although this deal was rescinded before any material was recorded for the label. The band instead used the proceeds of this deal to fund the recording of subsequent demo tapes, which were released independently.

The name of the group was shortened to Marilyn Manson in 1992, and they continued to perform and release cassettes until the summer of 1993, when Reznor signed the act to his vanity label Nothing Records. Their debut studio album, Portrait of an American Family, was released in July 1994. Manson later criticized Nothing Records and its parent label Interscope for a perceived lack of promotion. While recording b-sides and remixes for the album's proposed third single, "Dope Hat", the band decided to issue the resultant material as a standalone release titled Smells Like Children. The record included their cover version of the Eurythmics's "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)", which established the band as a mainstream act. The song's music video was placed on heavy rotation on MTV, and earned the band their first nomination for Best Rock Video at the 1996 MTV Video Music Awards. Their second studio album, 1996's Antichrist Superstar, sparked a fierce backlash among Christian fundamentalists. The album was an immediate commercial success, debuting at number three on the Billboard 200 and selling almost 2 million copies in the United States alone, and 7 million copies worldwide. Lead single "The Beautiful People" received three nominations at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards, where the band also performed.

For 1998's Mechanical Animals, Manson said he took inspiration from 1970s glam rock, and adopted a wardrobe and hairstyle similar to David Bowie. He said he did this to avoid being portrayed as a "bogeyman", a role which had been ascribed to him by mainstream media following the band's commercial breakthrough. Interscope's promotion of the album was massive, with the label erecting enormous billboards of Manson as an androgynous extraterrestrial in Times Square and the Sunset Strip. Lead single "The Dope Show" was nominated for Best Hard Rock Performance at the 41st Annual Grammy Awards. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, but was the lowest-selling number-one album of 1998 in the United States, with sales of 1.4 million copies in the country as of 2017. The album was not well received by longtime fans, who complained about its radio-friendly sound and accused the vocalist of "selling out", and Interscope were reportedly disappointed with its commercial performance.

Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) was a return to the band's industrial metal roots after the glam-influenced Mechanical Animals, and was the vocalist's response to media coverage blaming him for influencing the perpetrators of the Columbine High School massacre. The album was a critical success, with numerous publications praising it as the band's finest work. Despite being certified gold in the United States for shipments in excess of half a million units, mainstream media openly questioned the band's commercial appeal, noting the dominance of nu metal and controversial hip hop artists such as Eminem. A cover of "Tainted Love" was an international hit in 2002, peaking at number one in several territories.

The Golden Age of Grotesque was released the following year, an album primarily inspired by the swing and burlesque movements of 1920s Berlin. In an extended metaphor found throughout the record, Manson compared his own often-criticized work to the Entartete Kunst banned by the Nazi regime. Like Mechanical Animals in 1998, The Golden Age of Grotesque debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, but was the lowest-selling studio album to debut at number one that year, selling 527,000 copies in the United States as of 2008. The album was more successful in Europe, where it sold over 400,000 on its first week of release to debut at number one on Billboard's European Top 100 Albums. Manson began his collaboration with French fashion designer Jean-Paul Gaultier during this period, who designed much of the elaborate attire worn by the band on the supporting "Grotesk Burlesk Tour". The greatest hits compilation Lest We Forget: The Best Of was released in 2004.

After a three-year hiatus, in which the vocalist pursued other interests, the band returned with 2007's Eat Me, Drink Me. The album's lyrical content largely related to the dissolution of Manson's marriage to Dita Von Teese and his affair with 19-year-old actress Evan Rachel Wood. Seventh studio album The High End of Low was released in 2009, and was their final album issued by Interscope. While promoting the record, Manson made a series of disparaging comments about the label and its artistic censorship, as well as its president Jimmy Iovine. Manson signed a lucrative recording contract with British independent record label Cooking Vinyl in 2011, with the band and label sharing profits equally after the label recouped costs associated with marketing, promotion and distribution. The first album released under the deal was 2012's Born Villain. Lead single "No Reflection" earned the band their fourth Grammy nomination. Subsequent albums were released in the United States by Loma Vista Recordings, beginning with 2015's The Pale Emperor, which was widely seen as a return to form and was a commercial success upon release.

Heaven Upside Down followed in 2017, with its single "Kill4Me" becoming the band's highest-peaking single ever on Billboard Mainstream Rock. While touring in support of the record, Manson was injured by two large falling stage props as he performed on stage at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, breaking his fibula in two places, requiring a plate and ten screws to be inserted in the bone, as well as another screw in his ankle, which he had sprained during a show in Pittsburgh. "God's Gonna Cut You Down" was released as a non-album single in 2019, and is the band's highest-peaking single on Billboard Hot Rock Songs and Rock Digital Songs. Their most recent studio album, 2020's We Are Chaos, was the band's tenth top ten release on the Billboard 200.

According to Nielsen SoundScan, the band sold 8.7 million albums alone in the United States as of 2011. Three of their albums received platinum awards from the Recording Industry Association of America, and a further three received gold certifications. Ten of their releases debuted in the top ten of the Billboard 200, including two number-one albums. In the United Kingdom, the band are certified for sales of almost 1.75 million units. Marilyn Manson has sold over 50 million records worldwide.

Musical collaborations
In addition to his work with the band, Manson has collaborated extensively with other musicians. Cello rock act Rasputina opened for the band throughout the "Dead to the World Tour", the controversial tour supporting Antichrist Superstar. Lead vocalist Melora Creager performed cello and backing vocals for the band, most notably for renditions of "Apple of Sodom", a live version of which appeared as a b-side on Manson's 1998 single "The Dope Show". Manson also created three remixes of the song "Transylvanian Concubine", two of which appeared on their 1997 EP Transylvanian Regurgitations. Manson befriended The Smashing Pumpkins vocalist Billy Corgan in 1997, and performed renditions of "Eye" and "The Beautiful People" alongside that band at the 1997 edition of Bridge School Benefit concert. Manson frequently consulted Corgan during the early stages of recording Mechanical Animals. Referring to its inclusion of glam rock influences, Corgan advised Manson that "This is definitely the right direction" but to "go all the way with it. Don't just hint at it". In 2015, Marilyn Manson and the Smashing Pumpkins embarked on a co-headlining tour titled "The End Times Tour".

To promote Mechanical Animals in 1998, the band embarked on their first co-headlining concert tour: the "Beautiful Monsters Tour" with Hole. The tour was problematic, with Manson and Hole vocalist Courtney Love frequently insulting one another both on-stage and during interviews. Private disputes also arose over finances, as Hole were unwittingly financing most of Manson's production costs, which were disproportionately high relative to Hole's. The tour was to consist of thirty-seven dates, although Hole left after nine. When Hole departed from the tour, it was renamed the "Rock Is Dead Tour", with Jack Off Jill announced as one of the support acts. Manson had produced many of Jack Off Jill's demo recordings in the early 90s, and later wrote the liner notes to their 2006 compilation Humid Teenage Mediocrity 1992–1996.

Manson launched his own vanity label in 2000, Posthuman Records. The label released two albums – the 2000 soundtrack to Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 and Godhead's 2001 album 2000 Years of Human Error – before being dissolved in 2003. The latter album sold over 100,000 copies in the United States, and featured him performing vocals on the track "Break You Down". He performed vocals on "Redeemer", a song written by Korn vocalist Jonathan Davis that featured on the 2002 album Queen of the Damned: Music from the Motion Picture. Davis had been prevented from singing the song due to contractual issues with his record label. Manson also contributed a remix of the Linkin Park song "By Myself" to that band's remix album Reanimation, and collaborated with Marco Beltrami to create the score for the 2002 film ''Resident Evil.

He performed vocals on the Chew Fu GhettoHouse Fix remix of Lady Gaga's "LoveGame", which was featured as a b-side on the song's single in 2008. He was a featured vocalist on "Can't Haunt Me", a track recorded in 2011 for Skylar Grey's unreleased album Invinsible. He appeared on "Bad Girl", a song from Avril Lavigne's 2013 self-titled album, and featured on the song "Hypothetical" from Emigrate's 2014 album Silent So Long. New Orleans brass ensemble the Soul Rebels performed "The Beautiful People" alongside Manson at the 2015 edition of the Japanese Summer Sonic Festival. Manson recorded vocals on a cover of Bowie's "Cat People (Putting Out Fire)" for country musician Shooter Jennings's 2016 album Countach (For Giorgio). The two were introduced in 2013 by Manson's then-bassist Twiggy Ramirez, and the pair first collaborated that same year on a song for the soundtrack to television series Sons of Anarchy. Their version of the song, "Join the Human Gang", remains unreleased, but the track was eventually rewritten and released by The White Buffalo as "Come Join the Murder". Jennings later produced Manson's 2020 album We Are Chaos.

Manson has collaborated with numerous hip hop artists. In 1998, he featured on "The Omen (Damien II)", a track on DMX's album Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood. Following the Columbine High School massacre, Manson was mentioned in the lyrics to Eminem's "The Way I Am" from The Marshall Mathers LP, in the lyric "When a dude's getting bullied and he shoots up the school and they blame it on Marilyn". Manson appeared in the song's music video, and a remix created by Danny Lohner and featuring Manson appeared on special editions of The Marshall Mathers LP. Manson also joined Eminem on-stage for several live performances of the track, one of which featured on Eminem's 2002 video album All Access Europe. He featured on "Pussy Wet", a song on Gucci Mane's 2013 mixtape Diary of a Trap God, and provided vocals on the song "Marilyn Manson" on the 2020 mixtape Floor Seats II by ASAP Ferg.

Alongside DaBaby, Manson co-wrote and was a featured artist on "Jail pt 2", a song on Kanye West's 2021 album Donda. Manson and DaBaby appeared alongside West - aka Ye - at several events promoting the album, including at a listening event held at Soldier Field in August, and at one of Ye's Sunday Church Services in October. The appearances attracted significant media attention and controversy. Ye said the trio collaborated on a total of five songs. The album was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album, which entitled Manson to a co-nomination credit for his work on the song. Manson continued his collaboration with Ye for the follow-up album, Donda 2. Ye collaborator Digital Nas said Manson was in the recording studio "every day" while the album was recorded, and explained that Ye "doesn't want Marilyn to play rap beats. He wants Marilyn to play what he makes, and then Ye will take parts of that and sample parts of that and use parts of that, like he did [generally when making] Yeezus." Manson band-member Tim Skold has confirmed he was involved in the process.

While with The Spooky Kids, Manson teamed with Jeordie White (also known as Twiggy Ramirez) and Stephen Gregory Bier Jr. (also known as Madonna Wayne Gacy) in two side-projects: Satan on Fire, a faux-Christian metal ensemble where he played bass guitar, and drums in Mrs. Scabtree, a collaborative band formed with White and then girlfriend Jessicka (vocalist with the band Jack Off Jill) as a way to combat contractual agreements that prohibited Marilyn Manson from playing in certain clubs.

Film and television

Manson made his film debut in 1997, as an actor in David Lynch's Lost Highway. Since then he has appeared in many minor roles and cameos, including Party Monster; then-girlfriend Rose McGowan's 1999 film Jawbreaker; Asia Argento's 2004 film The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things; Rise; The Hire: Beat The Devil, the sixth installment in the BMW films series; and Showtime's comedy-drama TV series Californication in 2013, in which Manson portrayed himself. He also appeared on HBO's Eastbound & Down, of which Manson is reportedly a longtime fan, and had lobbied to appear on for years; and ABC's Once Upon a Time, for which he provided the voice of the character "Shadow".

He was interviewed in Michael Moore's political documentary Bowling for Columbine (2002) discussing possible motivations for the Columbine massacre and allegations that his music was somehow a factor. He has appeared in animated form in Clone High and participated in several episodes of the MTV series Celebrity Deathmatch, becoming the show's unofficial champion and mascot; he often performed the voice for his claymated puppet, and contributed the song "Astonishing Panorama of the Endtimes" to the soundtrack album. In July 2005, Manson told Rolling Stone that he was shifting his focus from music to filmmaking – "I just don't think the world is worth putting music into right now. I no longer want to make art that other people – particularly record companies – are turning into a product. I just want to make art." Johnny Depp reportedly used Manson as his inspiration for his performance as Willy Wonka in the film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

He had been working on his directorial debut, Phantasmagoria: The Visions of Lewis Carroll, a project that has been in development hell since 2004, with Manson also set to portray the role of Lewis Carroll, author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Initially announced as a web-only release, it was later decided to give the estimated $4.2 million budget film a conventional cinema release, with a slated release date of mid-2007. The film was to have an original music soundtrack with previously unreleased songs. Production of the film had been postponed indefinitely until after the Eat Me, Drink Me tour. In 2010, studio bosses shut down production on the project, reportedly due to viewers' responses to the violent content of clips released on the internet. The film was later officially put on "indefinite production hold".

According to a 2010 interview with cowriter Anthony Silva about the hold, the film was still on and the talk of it being shut down was just a myth. In a June 2013 interview, Manson stated that he had "resurrected" the project, and that Roger Avary would direct it. In a separate interview during the previous year, he said a small crew similar to what he used for his "Slo-Mo-Tion" music video would be used, and would rather film the movie on an iPhone than not film it at all. In a Reddit AMA with Billy Corgan on April 4, 2015, Manson commented that he had withdrawn from the project because the writing process for the film was "so... damaging to my psyche, I've decided I don't want to have anything to do with it", and further commented that the only footage that had been created thus far had been content created for the trailer, which was made in order to promote the film.

Manson appeared in the final season of the TV series Sons of Anarchy, portraying white supremacist Ron Tully. In January 2016, it was announced that Manson would be joining the cast for season 3 of WGN's Salem. He played Thomas Dinley, a barber and surgeon described as "the go-to man in Salem, from a shave and a haircut to being leeched, bled, sliced open or sewn up". In 2020, Manson was a guest star on the HBO television series The New Pope, in which he has a personal audience with the series' Pope and recommends that he visit the prior Pope that lies unconscious in a coma.

Art
Manson stated in a 2004 interview with i-D magazine to have begun his career as a watercolor painter in 1999 when he made five-minute concept pieces and sold them to drug dealers. On September 13–14, 2002, his first show, The Golden Age of Grotesque, was held at the Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions Centre. Art in America's Max Henry likened them to the works of a "psychiatric patient given materials to use as therapy" and said his work would never be taken seriously in a fine art context, writing that the value was "in their celebrity, not the work". On September 14–15, 2004, Manson held a second exhibition on the first night in Paris and the second in Berlin. The show was named 'Trismegistus' which was also the title of the center piece of the exhibit – a large, three-headed Christ painted onto an antique wood panel from a portable embalmers table.

Manson named his self-proclaimed art movement Celebritarian Corporation. He has coined a slogan for the movement: "We will sell our shadow to those who stand within it." In 2005 he said that the Celebritarian Corporation has been "incubating for seven years" which if correct would indicate that Celebritarian Corporation, in some form, started in 1998. Celebritarian Corporation is also the namesake of an art gallery owned by Manson, called the Celebritarian Corporation Gallery of Fine Art in Los Angeles for which his third exhibition was the inaugural show. From April 2–17, 2007, his works were on show at the Space 39 Modern & Contemporary art gallery in Fort Myers, Florida. Forty pieces from this show traveled to Germany's Gallery Brigitte Schenk in Cologne to be publicly exhibited from June 28 – July 28, 2007. Manson revealed a series of 20 paintings in 2010 entitled Genealogies of Pain, an exhibition showcased at Vienna's Kunsthalle gallery which the artist collaborated on with David Lynch.

Video games
Manson has made an appearance in the video game Area 51 as Edgar, a grey alien. His song "Cruci-Fiction in Space" is featured in a commercial for the video game, The Darkness. His likeness is also featured on the Celebrity Deathmatch video game for which he recorded a song for the soundtrack (2003). The song "Use Your Fist and Not Your Mouth" was the credits score of the game Cold Fear as well as Spawn: Armageddon. The song "Four Rusted Horses" had an alternate version used in trailers for the video game Fear 3. A remix of the song "Tainted Love" appears in the debut trailer for the 2010 video game, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit and in the launch trailer of the 2012 video game Twisted Metal. Manson's song "The Beautiful People" was featured in WWE SmackDown! Shut Your Mouth, KickBeat and Brütal Legend. The song "Arma-goddamn-motherfuckin-geddon" is also featured in Saints Row: The Third. His music video to the song "Personal Jesus" was used in some parts of the Buzz! game series.

Hell, etc.
Hell, etc. was Manson's third art exhibition, held in Athens, Greece. The exhibition was open to the public from April 28, 2010 until May 2, 2010. Manson's more recent artworks and newly revealed pieces at the time, were displayed. The art exhibition was scheduled to run until April 25, 2010, however due to a volcanic ash cloud, it was postponed to run from April 28, 2010 until May 2, 2010. The exhibition was held at the Athenian Cultural Centre. The exhibition opened at 10:00 daily and was open until 22:00. Flash photography was prohibited inside the exhibition, as the watercolor paintings were extremely sensitive to the flash.

Other ventures
Manson launched "Mansinthe", his own brand of Swiss-made absinthe, which has received mixed reviews; some critics described the taste as being "just plain", but it came second to Versinthe in an Absinthe top five and won a gold medal at the 2008 San Francisco World Spirits Competition. Other reviewers, such as critics at The Wormwood Society, have given the absinthe moderately high praise. In 2015, Manson stated he was no longer drinking absinthe.

Vocal style
Manson predominantly delivers lyrics in a melodic fashion, although he invariably enhances his vocal register by utilizing several extended vocal techniques, such as vocal fry, screaming, growling and crooning. In one interview he claimed his voice has five different tones, which mixing engineer Robert Carranza discovered can form a pentagram when imported into a phrasal analyzer. He possesses a baritone vocal type, and has a vocal range which spans three octaves. His lowest bass note of A1 can be heard in "Arma-goddamn-motherfuckin-geddon", while his highest note, an E6 — the first note of the whistle register — can be heard on the Born Villain song "Hey, Cruel World...".

Name
The name Marilyn Manson is formed by a juxtaposition of two opposing American pop cultural icons: Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson. Monroe, an actress, was one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and continues to be a major icon over 50 years after, while Manson, a cult leader, was responsible for the murder of actress Sharon Tate, as well as several others; and served a life sentence on murder and conspiracy charges until his death in 2017.

Manson has mentioned on at least two occasions that he trademarked the name Marilyn Manson. In an interview at the 2015 Cannes Lions Festival, he said: "I trademarked the name 'Marilyn Manson' the same way as Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse. It's not a stage name. It's not my legal name. ... Marilyn Manson is owned by Brian Warner, my real name." He also mentioned this in a 2013 interview with Larry King. The records of the United States Patent and Trademark Office show that he registered four trademarks of the name between 1994 and 1999, protecting entertainment services, merchandising and branding.

Manson says he used those trademark registrations to issue cease and desist orders to media outlets who wrongly blamed him for the Columbine High School massacre. One journalist had erroneously reported the shooters were "wearing Marilyn Manson makeup and t-shirts", although the reports were soon proved incorrect. He said "Once the wheels started spinning, Fox News started going." As a result of these accusations, Manson's career was seriously harmed. He was shunned by many venue owners and received numerous death threats.

Manson generally uses the name in lieu of his birth name. Though his mother referred to him by his birth name of Brian, his father opted to refer to his son as simply "Manson" since about 1993, saying: "It's called respect of the artist."

Lawsuits
In September 1996, former bassist Gidget Gein negotiated a settlement with Manson where he would receive US$17,500 and 20 percent of any royalties paid for recordings and for any songs he had a hand in writing and his share of any other royalties or fees the group earned while he was a member and he could market himself as a former member of Marilyn Manson. This settlement was not honored.

Former guitarist and founding member Scott Putesky (a.k.a. Daisy Berkowitz) filed a $15 million lawsuit in a Fort Lauderdale court against the singer, the band and the band's attorney (David Codikow) in January 1998 after his departure from the group in the spring of 1996. Berkowitz claimed "thousands of dollars in royalties, publishing rights, and performance fees" and filed an attorney malpractice suit against Codikow, alleging that "Codikow represented Warner's interests more than the band's and ... gave Warner disproportionate control". By October of that year, the suit had been settled out of court for an undisclosed amount.

On November 30, 1998, a few days after the band accumulated "[a] total [of] more than $25,000" in backstage and hotel room damages during the Poughkeepsie, New York, stop of their Mechanical Animals Tour, SPIN editor Craig Marks filed a $24-million lawsuit against Manson and his bodyguards. On February 19, 1999, Manson counter-sued Marks for libel, slander and defamation, seeking US$40million in reparation. Marks later dropped the lawsuit. Manson apologized for the Poughkeepsie incident and offered to make financial restitution.

In a civil battery suit, David Diaz, a security officer from a concert in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on October 27, 2000, sued for US$75,000 in a Minneapolis federal court. The federal court jury found in Manson's favor. In a civil suit presented by Oakland County, Michigan, Manson was charged with sexual misconduct against another security officer, Joshua Keasler, during a concert in Clarkston, Michigan, on July 30, 2001. Oakland County originally filed assault and battery and criminal sexual misconduct charges, but the judge reduced the latter charge to misdemeanor disorderly conduct. Manson pleaded no contest to the reduced charges, paid a US$4,000 fine, and later settled the lawsuit under undisclosed terms.

On April 3, 2002, Maria St. John filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court accusing Manson of providing her adult daughter, Jennifer Syme, with cocaine and instructing her to drive while under the influence. After attending a party at Manson's house, Syme was given a lift home; Manson claims she was taken home by a designated driver. After she got home, she got behind the wheel of her own vehicle and was killed when she crashed it into three parked cars. Manson is reported to have said there were no alcohol or other drugs at the party; St. John's lawyer disputed this claim.

On August 2, 2007, former band member Stephen Bier filed a lawsuit against Manson for unpaid "partnership proceeds", seeking $20 million in back pay. Several details from the lawsuit leaked to the press. In December 2007, Manson countersued, claiming that Bier failed to fulfill his duties as a band member to play for recordings and to promote the band. On December 28, 2009, the suit was settled with an agreement which saw Bier's attorneys being paid a total of $380,000.

Philanthropy
Manson has supported various charitable causes throughout his career. In 2002, he worked with the Make-A-Wish Foundation to collaborate with a fan who had been diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. 16-year-old Andrew Baines from Tennessee was invited into the band's recording studio to record backing vocals for their then-upcoming album, The Golden Age of Grotesque. His website read: "Yesterday, I spent the afternoon with Andrew, who reminded me the things I create are only made complete by those who enjoy them. I just want to simply say, thank you to Andrew for sharing such an important wish with me." He contributed to Oxfam's 2013 "Rumble in the Jumble" event, which raised money to aid victims of domestic and sexual abuse in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He has supported various organizations – such as Music for Life and Little Kids Rock — which enable access to musical instruments and education to children of low-income families. He has also worked with Project Nightlight, a group that encourages children and teenagers to speak out against physical and sexual abuse. In 2019, he performed alongside Cyndi Lauper at her annual 'Home for the Holidays' benefit concert, with all proceeds donated to Lauper's True Colors United, which "works to develop solutions to youth homelessness that focus on the unique experiences of LGBTQ young people".

Relationships

Manson was engaged to actress Rose McGowan from February 1999 to January 2001. McGowan later ended their engagement, citing "lifestyle differences".

Manson and burlesque dancer, model, and costume designer Dita Von Teese became a couple in 2001. He proposed on March 22, 2004, and they were married in a private, non-denominational ceremony officiated by Chilean film director Alejandro Jodorowsky. On December 30, 2006, Von Teese filed for divorce due to "irreconcilable differences". Von Teese also eventually stated she did not agree with Manson's "partying or his relationship with another girl". Manson's "heavy boozing" and distant behavior were also cited as cause for the split. A judgment of divorce was entered in Los Angeles Superior Court on December 27, 2007.

Manson's relationship with actress, model, and musician Evan Rachel Wood was made public in 2007. They maintained an on-again, off-again relationship for several years. He proposed to Wood during a Paris stage performance in January 2010, but the couple broke off the engagement later that year.

In the March 2012 issue of Revolver magazine, American photographer Lindsay Usich was referred to as Manson's girlfriend. The article referenced a new painting by him featuring her. Usich is credited as the photo source for the cover art of Manson's 2012 album, Born Villain. It was later confirmed that the two were romantically involved. In February 2015, Manson told Beat magazine that he is "newly single".

In October 2020, Manson revealed in an interview with Nicolas Cage on ABC News Radio that he was married in a private ceremony during the COVID-19 pandemic. The person he married was revealed to be Usich after she changed her social media name to "Lindsay Elizabeth Warner".

Manson is the godfather of Lily-Rose Depp.

Beliefs
Manson claims he was a friend of Anton LaVey, and early on had also claimed LaVey inducted him as a minister in the Church of Satan. Later in his career, Manson downplayed this, saying he was "not necessarily" a minister: "that was something earlier... it was a friend of mine who's now dead, who was a philosopher that I thought I learned a lot from. And that was a title I was given, so a lot of people made a lot out of it. But it's not a real job, I didn't get paid for it." The Church of Satan itself later confirmed Manson was never ordained as a minister in their church, explaining "he was given an honorary priesthood for his real world accomplishments at the time".

Manson has been described as "the highest profile Satanist ever" with strong anti-Christian views and social Darwinist leanings.

"I'm not a misanthrope. I'm not a nihilist. I'm not an atheist. I believe in spirituality, but it really has to come from somewhere else. I learned a long time ago, you can't try to change the world, you can just try to make something in it. I think that's my spirituality, it's putting something into the world. If you take all the basic principles of any religion, it's usually about creation. There's also destruction, but creation essentially. I was raised Christian. I went to a Christian school, because my parents wanted me to get a better education. But when I got kicked out I was sent to public school, and got beat up more by the public school kids. But then I'd go to my friend's Passover and have fun."

Manson is also familiar with the writings of Aleister Crowley and Friedrich Nietzsche. He quotes Crowley throughout his autobiography, including Thelema's principal dictum: "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law." Crowley's esoteric subject matter forms an important theme in much of Manson's early work.

Controversies
Marilyn Manson has been referred to as one of the most iconic and controversial figures in heavy metal music,    with some referring to him as a "pop culture icon". Paste magazine said there were "few artists in the 90s as shocking as Marilyn Manson, the most famous of the shock-rockers". In her book Music in American Life: An Encyclopedia of the Songs, Styles, Stars, and Stories That Shaped Our Culture, author Jacqueline Edmondson writes that Manson creates music that "challenges people's worldviews and provokes questions and further thinking". Manson, his work, and the work of his eponymous band, have been involved in numerous controversies throughout their career.

On May 30, 1996, the co-directors of political advocacy group Empower America organized a bipartisan press conference with Republican William Bennett and Democrats Joseph Lieberman and C. Delores Tucker, in which the record industry was admonished for selling "prepackaged, shrink-wrapped nihilism". The three largely targeted rap music, but also referenced Manson; Tucker called Smells Like Children the "dirtiest, nastiest porno record directed at children that has ever hit the market" and said distributing record labels had "the blood of children on their hands", while Lieberman said the music "celebrates some of the most antisocial and immoral behaviors imaginable". They also announced that Empower America would be launching a $25,000 radio advertising campaign to collect petitions from listeners who wanted record companies to "stop spreading this vicious, vulgar music".

The release of Antichrist Superstar in 1996 coincided with the band's commercial breakthrough, and much of the attention received by Manson from mainstream media was not positive. Empower America organized another press conference in December 1996, where they criticized MCA—the owner of Interscope—president Edgar Bronfman Jr. for profiting from "profanity-laced" albums by Manson, Tupac Shakur and Snoop Doggy Dogg. The band's live performances also came under fire during this period; the "Dead to the World Tour" was followed by protesters at nearly every North American venue it visited. Opponents of the band claimed the shows featured elements of Satanism, including a satanic altar, bestiality, rape, the distribution of free drugs, homosexual acts, as well as animal and even human sacrifices. Anonymous affidavits compiled by the Gulf Coast division of the American Family Association made various other claims about the live shows. Students in Florida were threatened with expulsion for attending the band's concerts.

Several state legislatures, including the Utah State Legislature, South Carolina Legislature and the Virginia General Assembly, enacted legislation specifically targeting the group, banning them from performing at state-operated venues. These laws would later be repealed, following separate lawsuits from fans and the American Civil Liberties Union. Ozzy Osbourne sued the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority after they forced the cancelation of the New Jersey date of the 1997 Ozzfest at Giants Stadium; Manson's appearance had been cited as the reason for the cancelation. In November 1997, Manson's lyrical content was examined during congressional hearings led by Lieberman and Sam Brownback, in an attempt to determine the effects—if any—of violent lyrics on young listeners. The subcommittee heard testimony from Raymond Kuntz, who blamed his son's suicide on Antichrist Superstar—specifically the song "The Reflecting God". Lieberman went on to claim that the band's music was driving young listeners to commit suicide, and called the band the "sickest group ever promoted by a mainstream record company".

Columbine High School shooting
On April 20, 1999, Columbine High School students Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed thirteen people and wounded twenty-four others before committing suicide. In the immediate aftermath of the massacre, media reports surfaced that were heavily critical of Goth subculture, alleging the perpetrators were wearing Marilyn Manson T-shirts during the massacre, and that they were influenced by violence in entertainment, specifically movies, video games and music. Five days after the incident, William Bennet and Joseph Lieberman – longtime critics of the vocalist – appeared on Meet the Press, where they cited his music as a contributing factor to the shooting. Soon after, sensationalist headlines such as "Killers Worshipped Rock Freak Manson" and "Devil-Worshipping Maniac Told Kids To Kill" began appearing in media coverage of the tragedy. Despite confirmation that the pair were fans of German industrial bands such as KMFDM and Rammstein, and had "nothing but contempt" for Manson's music, mainstream media continued to direct the majority of blame for the shooting at Manson.

The Mayor of Denver, Wellington Webb, successfully petitioned for the cancelation of KBPI-FM's annual "Birthday Bash", at which Manson was scheduled to appear on April 30. Webb said the concert would be "inappropriate" because the two gunmen were thought to be fans of Manson. Coloradoan politicians Bill Owens and Tom Tancredo accused Manson of promoting "hate, violence, death, suicide, drug use and the attitudes and actions of the Columbine High School killers". On April 29, ten US senators led by Brownback sent a letter to the head of Seagram, the conglomerate which owned Manson's record label, requesting they stop distributing music to children that "glorifies violence". The letter named Manson, accusing him of producing songs that "eerily reflect" the actions of Harris and Klebold.

Manson canceled the final four dates of the Rock Is Dead Tour out of respect for the victims while criticizing the media for their irresponsible coverage of the tragedy. He elaborated on this point in an op-ed written for Rolling Stone titled "Columbine: Whose Fault Is It?". In the article, Manson castigated America's gun culture and the political influence of the National Rifle Association, but was heavily critical of news media. He argued the media should be blamed for the next school shooting, as it was them who propagated the ensuing hysteria and "witch hunt", and said that instead of debating more relevant societal issues, the media instead facilitated the placing of blame on a scapegoat.

On May 4, Brownback chaired a congressional hearing of the United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on the distribution and marketing of supposedly violent content to children by the film, music, television and video-game industries. The committee heard testimony from Bennett, the Archbishop of Denver Charles J. Chaput, as well as professors and mental health professionals; they criticized Manson, his label mates Nine Inch Nails, and the 1999 film The Matrix for their alleged contribution to a cultural environment enabling violence such as the Columbine shootings. Recording Industry Association of America executive Hilary Rosen said she refused to participate in the hearing as it was "staged as political theater. They just wanted to find a way to shame the industry, and I'm not ashamed." The committee eventually requested the Federal Trade Commission and the United States Department of Justice investigate the entertainment industry's marketing practices to minors. The lyrical content of the band's 2000 album Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) was largely inspired by the massacre, with Manson saying it was a rebuttal to the accusations leveled against him by mainstream media. He also discussed the massacre and its aftermath in Michael Moore's 2002 documentary Bowling for Columbine.

Other alleged incidents
In 2000, an elderly nun was murdered by three schoolgirls in Italy, with their diaries reportedly containing numerous references to and pictures of Manson. Soon after, he was arrested following a concert in Rome for allegedly "tearing off his genitals". Manson said the arrest was politically motivated following his implication in the murder by Italian tabloids. In 2003, French media blamed Manson when several teenagers vandalized the graves of British war heroes in Arras, France.

On June 30, 2003, 14-year old schoolgirl Jodi Jones was brutally murdered in Scotland. Her mutilated body was discovered in woodland near her home, with her injuries said to closely resemble those of Elizabeth Short, commonly referred to by media as the Black Dahlia. Ten months later, Jones's boyfriend Luke Mitchell, then-fifteen years old, was arrested on suspicion of her murder. Police confiscated a copy of The Golden Age of Grotesque containing the short film Doppelherz during a search of Mitchell's family home, which had been purchased by Mitchell two days after Jones's death. A ten-minute excerpt from the film, as well as several paintings created by Manson depicting the Black Dahlia's mutilated body, were presented as evidence during the trial. Mitchell was found guilty of her murder and was sentenced to a minimum of twenty years in prison. In his closing summation, Lord Nimmo Smith said he believed Mitchell "carried an image of [Manson's] paintings in your memory when you killed Jodi". Mitchell continues to profess his innocence.

The controversy connecting Manson to school shootings continued on October 10, 2007, when fourteen-year old Asa Coon shot four people at SuccessTech Academy in Cleveland, Ohio, before committing suicide. While exiting a bathroom, Coon was punched in the face by another student, and responded by shooting his attacker in the abdomen. Coon then walked down the hallway and shot in to two occupied classrooms – wounding two teachers and a student – before entering a bathroom and committing suicide. Coon was wearing a Marilyn Manson T-shirt during the shooting. A photograph of Coon's dead body was circulated online by Cleveland police officer Walter Emerick. On May 18, 2009, Justin Doucet, a fifteen-year-old student at Larose-Cut Off Middle School in Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, entered the school with a semi-automatic pistol. After a teacher refused to comply with Doucet's demand to say "Hail Marilyn Manson", he fired two shots that narrowly missed the teacher's head, before shooting himself. Doucet died from his injuries a week later.

In September 2023, Manson plead no contest - without admitting guilt - to a misdemeanor count of simple assault stemming from an incident where he allegedly blew his nose on a videographer during a concert at the Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion in Gilford, New Hampshire on August 19, 2019. He received a sentence of 20 hours community service and was fined a little more than $1,400 as part of the deal, with $200 suspended.

Abuse allegations
Several of Manson's former acquaintances began communicating with one another in September 2020. In a letter dated January 21, 2021, California State Senator Susan Rubio wrote to the director of the FBI and the U.S. Attorney General, asking them to investigate allegations several women had made against Manson. On February 1, former fiancée Evan Rachel Wood wrote on Instagram and in a statement to Vanity Fair, accusing Manson of being abusive during their relationship a decade earlier. Four other women simultaneously issued statements also accusing Manson of abuse. Wood continued to make allegations against Manson and his wife Lindsay Usich on Instagram, claiming that his alleged abuse included antisemitism, and said she filed a report with the Los Angeles Police Department against Usich for threatening to leak photographs of Wood dressed in a Nazi uniform while wearing an Adolf Hitler-style toothbrush moustache. A total of sixteen people have made various allegations against Manson, including five accusations of sexual assault.

Manson was immediately dropped by distributing record label Loma Vista Recordings, his talent agency Creative Artists, and his long-time manager Tony Ciulla. He was also removed from future episodes of TV series American Gods and Creepshow, in which he was scheduled to appear. On February 2, Manson issued a statement via Instagram, saying, "Obviously, my art and my life have long been magnets for controversy, but these recent claims about me are horrible distortions of reality. My intimate relationships have always been entirely consensual with like-minded partners", and claimed the accusers were "misrepresenting the past". His former wife Dita Von Teese said "the details made public do not match my personal experience during our 7 years together as a couple". Former girlfriend Rose McGowan said that Manson was not abusive during their relationship but that her experience had "no bearing on whether he was like that with others before or after". On February 3, the LAPD performed a "welfare check" at Manson's home after receiving a call from a purported friend who was concerned for his wellbeing. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department confirmed on February 19 that they were investigating Manson due to allegations of domestic violence.

Five women filed civil lawsuits against Manson in the months that followed Wood's allegations: Esmé Bianco, Ashley Morgan Smithline, Ashley Walters, and two Jane Does. Manson's legal team issued statements denying the allegations. They filed a motion to dismiss these lawsuits, calling the claims "untrue, meritless" and alleging that several of the accusers "spent months plotting, workshopping, and fine-tuning their stories to turn what were consensual friendships and relationships with Warner from more than a decade ago, into twisted tales that bear no resemblance to reality". The lawsuit filed by the anonymous woman was initially dismissed because it exceeded the statute of limitations, although an amended complaint was refiled soon after. Manson's legal team also sought to have Bianco's lawsuit dismissed because it exceeded the statute of limitations, although a federal judge denied that motion. Walters's lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice in May. Smithline's lawsuit was also dismissed by a federal judge, after her lawyer withdrew from her case and she did not meet a court-ordered deadline regarding her representation in the case. Bianco and Manson reached an out-of-court settlement in January 2023 with undisclosed terms of agreement.

In January 2023, another plaintiff identified as Jane Doe filed a lawsuit against him, alleging that he groomed and sexually assaulted her in the 1990s. The lawsuit also named defunct record label Nothing Records and its parent company Interscope as co-defendants, accusing them of being aware of Manson's alleged abuse. Smithline recanted her allegations in legal documents in February 2023, claiming she was "manipulated" and "pressured" by Wood and her associates to make allegations against Manson that were "not true". In September 2023, Manson settled the first Jane Doe lawsuit. The settlement was reached in the Superior Court of California in Los Angeles and was made the week before his trial was scheduled to begin.

Manson filed a lawsuit against Wood and Ashley "Illma" Gore for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, violations of the California Comprehensive Computer Data Access and Fraud Act, as well as the impersonation of an FBI agent and falsifying federal documents. In the suit, it is alleged that Wood and Gore spent three years contacting his former girlfriends and provided "checklists and scripts" to prospective accusers in order to corroborate Wood's claims, and that the pair impersonated and falsified documents from an FBI agent. The suit additionally claims Gore hacked into Manson's computers and social media, and created fake email accounts to manufacture evidence he had been distributing "illicit pornography". It is also alleged that Gore swatted Manson by calling the FBI claiming to be a friend concerned about an "emergency" at his home. As a result of the call, several police officers were dispatched to his property, where "there was no emergency". He is seeking a jury trial. A portion of the defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress claims of the lawsuit, specifically Warner's allegation that Wood and Gore forged an FBI letter and publicly spread false claims regarding his unreleased short film Groupie, were dismissed after the two filed anti-SLAPP notices. Warner's attorney said he plans to appeal the decision.

The LACSD presented the findings of their 19-month investigation of the sexual assault allegations made against Manson to California district attorney George Gascón in September 2022. Gascón called the file "partial" and said more evidence was needed in order to file charges.

Discography
Studio albums
 * Portrait of an American Family (1994)
 * Antichrist Superstar (1996)
 * Mechanical Animals (1998)
 * Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) (2000)
 * The Golden Age of Grotesque (2003)
 * Eat Me, Drink Me (2007)
 * The High End of Low (2009)
 * Born Villain (2012)
 * The Pale Emperor (2015)
 * Heaven Upside Down (2017)
 * We Are Chaos (2020)

Guest appearances in music videos

 * 1992: Nine Inch Nails – "Gave Up"
 * 2000: Nine Inch Nails – "Starfuckers, Inc."
 * 2000: Eminem – "The Way I Am"
 * 2002: Murderdolls – "Dead in Hollywood"
 * 2010: Rammstein – "Haifisch"
 * 2011: D'hask – "Tempat Ku"
 * 2014: Die Antwoord – "Ugly Boy"
 * 2017: Elton John – "Tiny Dancer"
 * 2020: Corey Taylor – "CMFT Must Be Stopped"

Tours

 * 1996–1997 Dead to the World Tour: Began October 3, 1996, in Kalamazoo, MI, and ended on September 16, 1997, in Mexico City, Mexico. Supporting acts included: NY Loose, Fluffy, Drill, Hocico, L7, Rasputina, Pist.on, and Helmet.
 * 1998–1999 Mechanical Animals Tour: Opened up October 25, 1998, in Lawrence, KS, and finished January 31, 1999, in Perth, Australia. Manson experienced major protest from legislation during this time.
 * 1999 support for Hole's Beautiful Monsters Tour: Started February 28 in Spokane, WA and ended March 14 in Los Angeles, CA.
 * 1999 Rock Is Dead Tour: Started March 21 in Houston, TX, and ended on August 8 in Fuji-Yoshida, Japan. Supporting acts included: Hole, Jack Off Jill, Monster Magnet, and Nashville Pussy. The last 5 shows had to be cancelled due to the Columbine incident's backlash.
 * 2000–2001 Guns, God and Government Tour: Began on October 27, 2000, in Minneapolis, MN, until September 2, 2001, in Hildesheim, Germany. Supporting acts included: Godhead, The Union Underground, Disturbed, and Professional Murder Music.
 * 2003–2004 Grotesk Burlesk Tour: Began April 11, 2003, in Lisbon, Portugal, and ended on January 3, 2004, in Camden, NJ. Supporting acts included: Apocalyptica, Mudvayne, Peaches, and Queen Adreena.
 * 2004–2005 Against All Gods Tour: Started October 27, 2004, in Las Vegas, NV, and ended in Dublin, Ireland, on August 31, 2005.
 * 2007–2008 Rape of the World Tour: Opened May 26, 2007, in Landgraaf, Netherlands and finished March 2, 2008, in Houston, TX.
 * 2009 The High End of Low Tour: Started June 3 in Brno, Czech Republic, and ended December 21 in Paris, France.
 * 2012–2013 Hey, Cruel World... Tour and Twins of Evil Tour: Began in Brisbane, Australia, on February 24, 2012, and wrapped up in Las Vegas, NV, on February 23, 2013.
 * 2013 Masters of Madness Tour: From May 29 in San Antonio, CA to July 21 in Rockford, IL. Supporting act included Alice Cooper.
 * 2013 Marilyn Manson 2013 North American tour: The tour started in Milwaukee, WI, and wrapped up in Las Vegas, NV. Alice Cooper performed alongside Marilyn Manson during the majority of this tour.
 * 2014 Summer 2014 Tour 2014/06/27 Moscow, Russia – 2014/08/14 Gampel-Bratsch, Switzerland.
 * 2015 Hell Not Hallelujah spring tour: The tour began in Washington, DC, on January 21 and wrapped up in Las Vegas, NV, on February 14.
 * 2015 co-headlining North American 2015 End Times Tour With The Smashing Pumpkins: The tour began in Concord, CA, at the Concord Pavilion on July 7 and wrapped with a concert in Cincinnati, OH, at the Riverbend Music Center on August 8.
 * 2015 Hell Not Hallelujah fall tour: The tour started in Santa Ana, CA on October 20 and ended in Shreveport, LA on November 1.
 * 2016 Slipknot / Marilyn Manson / Of Mice & Men 2016 summer tour: The tour begins in Salt Lake City, Utah and ends off in St.Louis, Missouri.
 * 2017–2018 Heaven Upside Down Tour – on September 30, 2017, the third date of the tour, at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, was abandoned when part of the stage set fell on top of him, causing him a fractured leg and concussion, postponing the rest of the tour until November 5.

Filmography and TV roles

 * Lost Highway (1997)
 * Howard Stern (1997–2004)
 * Celebrity Deathmatch (1998)
 * Jawbreaker (1999)
 * Clone High (2002)
 * Bowling for Columbine (2002)
 * Beat the Devil (2002)
 * Party Monster (2003)
 * The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things (2004)
 * Born Villain (2011)
 * Wrong Cops (2013)
 * Californication (2013)
 * Celebrity Ghost Stories
 * Once Upon a Time (2013) Voice of Peter Pan's shadow
 * Phantasmagoria: The Visions of Lewis Carroll (cancelled)
 * Sons of Anarchy (2014) (Ron Tully)
 * Let Me Make You a Martyr (2016) (Pope)
 * Salem (2016–2017) (Thomas Dinley)
 * The New Pope (2020) cameo
 * The New Mutants (2020) Voice of the Smile Man
 * American Gods (2021) Johan Wengren

Books

 * The Long Hard Road Out of Hell. New York: HarperCollins division ReganBooks, 1998 ISBN 0-06-039258-4.
 * Holy Wood. New York: HarperCollins division ReganBooks, Unreleased.
 * Genealogies of Pain. Nuremberg: Verlag für moderne Kunst Nürnberg, 2011 ISBN 978-3-86984-129-8.
 * Campaign. Calabasas: Grassy Slope Incorporated, 2011.

title: Marilyn Manson


text:
Western New York

Western New York (WNY) is the westernmost region of the U.S. state of New York. The eastern boundary of the region is not consistently defined by state agencies or those who call themselves "Western New Yorkers". Almost all sources agree WNY includes the cities of Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Jamestown, and the surrounding suburbs, as well as the outlying rural areas of the Great Lakes lowlands and Niagara Frontier, and Chautauqua-Alleghany (or the western Southern Tier). Many would also place Rochester and the Genesee Valley in the region, while some would also include the western Finger Lakes within the region. Others would describe the latter three areas as being in a separate Finger Lakes region.

The State of New York sometimes defines the WNY region as including just five counties: Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, and Niagara. The state's Empire State Development Corporation and state health authorities have both mapped the region this way. The state has also used this regional boundary to set policy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

More commonly, WNY has been defined to include at least Genesee, Orleans, and Wyoming counties as well. Almost all descriptions of WNY in the Buffalo media market define it as this 8 county area. Most organizations that use WNY in their name including the WNY College Consortium, the WNY Genealogical Society, WNY PRISM, the Psychological Association of WNY, and the WNY Land Conservancy describe themselves as working in these 8 counties.

Others, such as Clarion Publications, the publisher of the WNY Travel Guide and WesternNY.com, have used the term Western New York to describe a much larger area consisting of 17 counties. In addition to those counties mentioned, they add Chemung, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne, and Yates as well.

The rest of this article uses that definition. The 17 counties have a land area of 11764 sqmi. They include the area of the Holland Purchase and the Phelps and Gorham Purchase.

The area is primarily served by Buffalo and Rochester media markets, although there is considerable overlap between these two markets, as well as other American and Canadian media markets (particularly from nearby Toronto). In terms of the combined statistical areas used by the United States Census Bureau, Western New York consists of the Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Olean, NY area, the Rochester-Batavia-Seneca Falls, NY area, and the Elmira-Corning, NY area.

Western New York is in some contexts considered a sub-region of "Upstate New York" (when that term is used to describe all of New York State outside Long Island and the New York City metropolitan area); in most cases however, New Yorkers identify by specific regionalities such as Western New York or Central New York in preference to the vague and broader term Upstate New York.

Subregions
Western New York is generally considered to have 2-4 subregions:
 * 1) Greater Niagara
 * 2) Chautauqua-Allegheny
 * 3) Genesee
 * 4) Western Finger Lakes (sometimes considered part of Central New York)

The Greater Niagara Region (or the Niagara Frontier), comprises Niagara and Erie counties and parts of Genesee and Wyoming counties. It is named for its major features, the Niagara river and Niagara Falls. Buffalo is its largest urban center.

The Chautauqua–Allegheny Region (also known as Southwestern New York or the Western Southern Tier) comprises Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, and Allegany counties. The region is mountainous. The largest urban center is Jamestown, and Lake Chautauqua and Allegany State Park are major geographical features.

The third region, the Genesee Region, comprises Monroe, Livingston, Wayne, Orleans, Ontario, and Yates counties and parts of Genessee and Wyoming counties. Rochester is its largest urban center. Letchworth State Park is a major geographical feature.

The fourth region is that of the western Finger Lakes Region composed of parts of Seneca, Steuben, Schuyler, and Chemung counties. While parts of the Finger Lakes are considered within Western New York (as either a region or quadrant) the eastern portions are typically considered a part of Central New York.

The Genesee region and Western Finger Lakes region are often combined and described as the Finger Lakes region.

Western New York also includes several Seneca Nation enclaves.

Population
If it were counted as a single area, the population of Western New York would number just over 2.6 million, and would rank as the 24th largest metropolitan area of the United States, between the Pittsburgh metropolitan area and the Sacramento, California metropolitan area. However, the U.S. Census Bureau has classified the Buffalo and Rochester areas as two different metropolitan areas. If it were counted as a state, the population of Western New York would rank as the 37th most populated state in the United States.

 * Allegany County, population 48,357
 * Cattaraugus County, population 79,458
 * Chautauqua County, population 133,539
 * Chemung County, population 88,911
 * Erie County, population 954,236
 * Genesee County, population 59,977
 * Livingston County, population 64,810
 * Monroe County, population 759,443
 * Niagara County, population 215,124
 * Ontario County, population 108,519
 * Orleans County, population 42,836
 * Schuyler County, population 18,514
 * Seneca County, population 35,305
 * Steuben County, population 99,063
 * Wayne County, population 92,962
 * Wyoming County, population 41,892
 * Yates County, population 25,344

Incorporated places
The following cities are found in the 17 western counties:

Batavia, Buffalo, Canandaigua, Corning, Dunkirk, Elmira, Geneva, Hornell, Jamestown, Lackawanna, Lockport, Niagara Falls, North Tonawanda, Olean, Rochester, Salamanca, Tonawanda.

The following villages are found in the 17 western counties:

Addison, Akron, Albion, Alden, Alexander, Alfred, Allegany, Almond, Andover, Angelica, Angola, Arcade, Arkport, Attica, Avoca, Avon, Barker, Bath, Belmont, Bemus Point, Bergen, Blasdell, Bloomfield, Bolivar, Brockport, Brocton, Burdett, Caledonia, Canaseraga, Canisteo, Cassadaga, Castile, Cattaraugus, Celoron, Cherry Creek, Churchville, Clarence, Clifton Springs, Clyde, Cohocton, Corfu, Cuba, Dansville, Delevan, Depew, Dresden, Dundee, Dunkirk, East Aurora, East Randolph, East Rochester, Eden, Elba, Ellicottville, Elmira Heights, Fairport, Falconer, Farnham, Forestville, Franklinville, Fredonia, Gainesville, Geneseo, Gowanda, Hamburg, Hammondsport, Hilton, Holley, Honeoye Falls, Horseheads, Interlaken, Kenmore, Lakewood, Lancaster, Le Roy, Leicester, Lewiston, Lima, Limestone, Little Valley, Livonia, Lodi, Lyndonville, Lyons, Lockport, Macedon, Manchester, Mayville, Medina, Middleport, Millport, Montour Falls, Mount Morris, Naples, Newark, Newfane, North Collins, North Hornell, North Tonawanda, Nunda, Oakfield, Odessa, Orchard Park, Ovid, Painted Post, Palmyra, Panama, Pavilion, Penn Yan, Perry, Perrysburg, Phelps, Pike, Pittsford, Portville, Randolph, Red Creek, Richburg, Riverside, Rushville, Savona, Scottsville, Sherman, Shortsville, Silver Creek, Silver Springs, Sinclairville, Sloan, Sodus, Sodus Point, South Corning, South Dayton, Spencerport, Springville, Tonawanda, Van Etten, Victor, Warsaw, Waterloo, Watkins Glen, Wayland, Webster, Wellsburg, Wellsville, Westfield, Williamsville, Wilson, Wolcott, Wyoming and Youngstown.

Climate
Western New York has a humid continental climate heavily influenced by both Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Winters are long and cold, often lasting from around mid-November to early April. There are often snows before and after that period, as well. Western New York is known for its lake effect snows, which can result in highly localized, sometimes intense and even historic snow events. Lake effect storms are a result of cold air picking up water vapor as it blows over warm lake waters. Lake effect snows are usually most active between November and February and typically diminish when Lake Erie freezes over. Generally, the heaviest amount of snow in Western New York during the winter falls near the southern end of Erie County as well as in Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, and Wyoming counties. Spring and fall in Western New York are usually short and changeable. The presence of the lakes allows for fruit growing and wine production along areas adjacent to both lakes, which retard the development of damaging spring and fall frost, thereby extending the growing season. Lost in its famed winters, Western New York summers are among the sunniest in the Northeast🇨🇦 and are generally very pleasant. Thanks in part to breezes blowing over Lakes Erie and Ontario (which are usually cooler than the air temperature in the summer), most of Western New York enjoy generally cooler and more comfortable summers than other regions in the same climatic zone.

Major highways
Interstate System
 * [[Image:I-90.svg|20px]] [[Image:NYS Thruway Sign.svg|20px]] Interstate 90, also known as the New York State Thruway.
 * [[Image:I-86.svg|20px]] Interstate 86 in the Southern Tier.
 * [[Image:I-190.svg|20px]] Interstate 190 in the Buffalo-Niagara Falls Metropolitan area.
 * [[Image:I-290.svg|20px]] Interstate 290 in the Buffalo-Niagara Falls Metropolitan area.
 * [[Image:I-390.svg|20px]] Interstate 390 (the former U.S. Route 15) in the Genesee Valley region.
 * [[Image:I-490.svg|20px]] Interstate 490 in the Rochester Metro area.
 * [[Image:I-590.svg|20px]] Interstate 590 in the Rochester Metro area.
 * [[Image:I-990.svg|20px]] Interstate 990 in the Buffalo-Niagara Falls Metropolitan area.

U.S. Routes
 * [[Image:US 20.svg|20px]] U.S. Route 20
 * [[Image:US 20A (NY).svg|20px]] U.S. Route 20a
 * [[Image:US 62.svg|20px]] U.S. Route 62
 * [[Image:US 219.svg|20px]] U.S. Route 219

Major airports
Western New York has two airports that provide significant regular passenger service, Buffalo-Niagara International Airport and Greater Rochester International Airport. Buffalo-Niagara International Airport is the most patronized airport facility in Western New York. While it primarily serves as the regional airport for the Buffalo-Niagara Falls Metropolitan Area, the facility doubles as a gateway to Canada, and a good portion of its passengers (33%) are Canadian. The second major airport in Western New York, Greater Rochester International Airport, does not see as much traffic as Buffalo-Niagara International Airport. Still, located just three nautical miles southwest of Downtown Rochester, the facility provides convenient access to airline service for many residents of the Rochester Metropolitan Area.

Railroad service
The northern part of Western New York features four railroad stations in service on the Empire Corridor: Rochester, Buffalo-Depew, Buffalo-Exchange Street and Niagara Falls. The Buffalo-Exchange Street and Niagara Falls stations do not see as much rail service as the other two Western New York stations due to the fact that, west of Depew Station, Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited leaves the Empire Corridor en route to the Midwest. For a period of time, there were proposals to service these four stations with high-speed rail. A major objective of implementing high-speed rail service was to better connect Western New York as well as the rest of Upstate New York with New York City. However, little of substance has come of these proposals.

Service to other parts of Western New York ended from the mid-1960s to 1970. The Erie Lackawanna's Phoebe Snow served on a southeastern trajectory from Buffalo to Elmira, Binghamton, Scranton and Hoboken; service ended in 1966. The E-L's Lake Cities originated in Chicago, passing through Western New York's Jamestown, then through the rest of the Southern Tier, Orange County and terminating at Hoboken, NJ; service ended on January 6, 1970. The Pennsylvania Railroad's Buffalo Day Express was another route serving Western New York, traveling south to Baltimore via Olean and Harrisburg; this train was discontinued in 1967, but an unnamed Penn Central (PC) successor lasted through April 30, 1971, when AMTRAK assumed most of the remaining U.S. rail passenger service but declined to serve the Baltimore-Harrisburg-Buffalo route of the former PRR/PC.

The Buffalo and Pittsburgh Railroad and WNY&P both operate freight service in the region. A few shortline railroads also offer rail service, including the New York and Lake Erie Railroad and the Arcade and Attica Railroad.

Bus service
The Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority runs regular bus service throughout the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Rochester-Genesee Regional Transportation Authority serves Rochester and surrounding counties, and the Chautauqua Area Regional Transit System serves Chautauqua County. First Transit contracts with the Seneca Nation of Indians, the Olean Area Transit System and Access Allegany to provide public transportation to most of the Southern Tier.

In addition to the public transportation authorities, which provide limited intercity connections, several commercial intercity bus services also operate. Coach USA operates a loop service between Buffalo, Jamestown and Olean; the bus connects to a route to New York City in Olean and to Megabus service to Toronto and New York City in Buffalo. Fullington Trailways operates a daily rural route between Buffalo and various locations in Pennsylvania; New York Trailways also serves Buffalo and Rochester, connecting to various locations, as does Greyhound Bus Lines. One discount "Chinatown service" operates in Western New York; Ocean Travel runs an overnight express service between Buffalo, Rochester and New York City.

History
In its early history, Western New York was settled by native cultures including the Hopewell. The territory of Western New York, until the 17th century, was held by the Neutral Nation in the northern Niagara region and the Wenrohronon and Erie Indians around the Allegheny River. The Seneca nation and their allies in the Iroquois Confederacy eliminated those tribes in wars during the Beaver Wars between 1638 and 1701, with any survivors being assimilated into the Senecas (in the case of the Erie and Neutral) or Huron (in the case of the Wenro). The Neutral territory is currently held by Tuscaroras, who moved up from the Carolinas while refugees from the Erie tribes moved south to the Carolinas.

French forces settled in parts of what is now Western New York through much of the 17th century, beginning with Étienne Brûlé's pass-through of the region in 1615 and Joseph de La Roche Daillon's missionary journeys in the 1620s; some relics of their presence, including Fort Niagara and a portage road that follows modern New York State Route 394 between Lake Erie and Chautauqua Lake, are still visible in the region.

Western New York's land was acquired from the Iroquois through the Nanfan Treaty, which ceded the territory to England at the end of the Beaver Wars in 1701. At the time, four of the British colonies (Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut) laid claim to the unsettled territory, as did New France until the Seven Years' War. Most of Western New York was officially off-limits to all of the colonies as a result of the establishment of an Indian Reserve over the area following the Seven Years' War. By the 1780s, only New York and Massachusetts still maintained their claims to the territory, which was separated from mainland New York by a Preemption Line.

Under federal policy designed to extinguish the states' Revolutionary War debts, the states were required to extinguish their western land claims. Massachusetts extinguished its claim to the territory in exchange for receiving the profits from its sale to settlers. New York was the only colony not to extinguish its western claim, and by way of the 1786 Treaty of Hartford, the land, with the exception of a small triangle that was ceded to Pennsylvania in 1792, officially became Western New York. (Had New York extinguished its claim, it would have likely become part of the Northwest Territory established the next year and formed part of a new state.) Native title, with the exception of several reservations, was extinguished in the Treaty of Canandaigua in 1794, while the Phelps and Gorham Purchase and Holland Purchase opened the territory for settling. During the War of 1812 Western New York was part of the borderland frontier between the United States and British Canada and became the scene of various military actions.

The two major Western New York cities, Buffalo and Rochester, benefited greatly from the opening of the Erie Canal. With its strategic position at the western end of the Erie Canal, the eastern end of Lake Erie and proximity to Niagara Falls and Canada, Buffalo emerged as a major port. Niagara Falls provided Buffalo with a ready supply of power, so much so that one of its enduring nicknames is "The City of Light". Buffalo experienced steady growth during the 19th century and at one point was one of the 10 most populated cities in the United States. According to some, Rochester was "America's First Boomtown" and was a key player in the flour industry (hence its initial nickname "Flour City"). Its growth was attributed to both the completion of the Erie Canal and its resulting significance in the flour industry. Olean was originally planned to be a similar major hub, but it proved to be at a major disadvantage: located near the headwaters of the Allegheny River (a factor its planners had hoped would make the city a gateway to the Midwest), the river was too shallow to support large boat travel or shipping on a consistent basis. As a region, Western New York played a significant role in the American economy during the 19th century. Large scale immigration from Ireland, Italy, Poland, Great Britain and Germany soon followed into the region.

The New Religious Movement known as Spiritualism was among several that arose in the early 19th century burned-over district of Western New York. Its major center is Lily Dale, one of the largest spiritualism communities in the United States. The original house of the Fox sisters was relocated to Lily Dale in 1916. Joseph Smith Jr., founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, reported receiving the Book of Mormon in Palmyra, Wayne County. The women's civic organization Zonta was founded in Buffalo in 1919.

In the late 20th century this area became part of the Rust Belt of the United States, being a focal point for the transportation of grain, steel, and coal. The opening of the Welland Canal in 1957 effectively rendered the narrower Erie Canal obsolete, further exacerbating economic problems in the region. The area saw an economic decline during the period of deindustrialization, leaving many empty steel mills including those of Bethlehem Steel, which was the 2nd largest steel mill in the world. The plant located in Lackawanna, New York provided nearly 25,000 jobs to the local economy. Republic Steel also had a large integrated steel mill located in South Buffalo. General Motors in Tonawanda is the largest vehicle engine plant in the world, which still is a major contributor to the Buffalo area economy. Ford Motor Company also maintains a large manufacturing facility in Woodlawn, New York, which is just south of Buffalo.

Culture
Western New York is culturally a Great Lakes/Interior Northeastern area, with a dose of Appalachia in the Southern Tier, an overlapping region of the state. Buffalo appears to have similarities to other Great Lakes cities/areas, while having Northeastern proclivities. The similarities with Chicago and Milwaukee run the list from sharing a common industrial base traditionally built around steel and automobile manufacturing. The cities were both developed during the same period in American history, so the street patterns, architecture, and ethnic communities share a similar appearance. Linguistically, Western New York is part of the Inland North region of American English, which means it is subject to the Northern Cities vowel shift; a distinct variant of that accent, "Buffalo English", is heard in many parts of the region.

Finally, most Western New York sports fans support the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres. Team loyalties of sports fans in the rest of upstate New York are more divided. Most baseball fans support the Cleveland Guardians, New York Yankees and New York Mets, although the Toronto Blue Jays have seen an increase in support due to the influx of Canadians in the area - as well as the region's proximity to Toronto, the Blue Jays' increased on-field success in the mid-2010s, and the affiliation with the longstanding minor league Buffalo Bisons. The Pittsburgh Pirates have some following in southwestern New York, and teams with national fanbases such as the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs also have followings. The region has no clear favorite professional basketball franchise, with the Brooklyn Nets, Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks and Toronto Raptors all claiming parts of the region as part of their regional broadcasting territories. (Western New York puts more emphasis on college basketball, where the "Big 4" Division I programs—Canisius, Niagara, St. Bonaventure and UB—all have strong followings and rivalries; while most attention has been centered around the men's college basketball teams, the recent success of UB and St. Bonaventure's women's teams has led to increased attention to women's basketball in the region. The college basketball scene once had enough clout to help drive Buffalo's NBA team, the 1970s-era Buffalo Braves, out of the city.) Syracuse University sports, being the closest major-conference school to the region, also has a sizable following in western New York, particularly in basketball. College football interest is minimal, with no team having a major following (not even UB, who has struggled to maintain its Division I football program despite modest success). For hockey, other than the Buffalo Sabres, the region is also home to a number of Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers and Pittsburgh Penguins supporters.

Region-wide
"Friday night fish fry" is also regionally popular, a holdover from when Catholics were forbidden to eat meat on Fridays. It is usually skinless cod although most restaurants in the area claim they use the higher quality haddock, and is frequently beer-battered, deep fried, and served with French fries and cole slaw. Numerous restaurants in Western New York have a Friday fish fry special. The fish fry retains particular popularity during Lent, when Catholics are still barred from eating meat on Friday.

Italian-American food is a specialty in western New York. Most towns in the region have pizzerias. The Texas hot, introduced by Greek immigrants in the 1920s, has a strong following in the region, and several hot dog stands offer the dish. Longstanding Texas hot stands include Ted's Hot Dogs in Buffalo (1927), Rigas Texas Hot in Wellsville (1921), and Johnny's Lunch in Jamestown (1936; the Colera family is also tied to several other Jamestown stands such as AJ Texas Hots, which launched in 1968, and Michael's, which operated from 1976 to 2021).

The region produces many agricultural products, including milk, maple syrup, apples, cherries, potatoes, sweet corn, strawberries, raspberries, peaches, and grapes. As with the rest of Upstate New York, dairy farming is an important part of the economy. New York State is a leading producer among the states of dairy, maple, and wine.

Buffalo area
Perhaps the best-known food specialty of Western New York is Buffalo chicken wings (known locally simply as 'wings' or 'chicken wings'). The two best-known places to get wings are Duff's and the Anchor Bar, which have a strong local rivalry in Buffalo and both are expanding outside the city.

At the 1885 Erie County Fair (known as the Hamburg Fair) in Hamburg, New York, Frank and Charles Menches sold a ground beef sandwich, which is one of the earliest claims of the invention of the hamburger.

Beef on Weck is a regional favorite and a local invention in which sliced warm roast beef is piled high on a Kummelweck roll topped with caraway seeds and large grained salt, au jus and horseradish are often added to the sandwich.

Butter lambs are a popular tradition in Buffalo during the Lenten season leading into Easter. The Broadway Market, a market in Buffalo, is famous for this product.

Rochester area
The Rochester area is known for the Garbage Plate. It was created and continues to be served by Nick Tahou Hots on West Main Street. The name "Garbage Plate" is trademarked by Nick Tahou's, but other Rochester restaurants serve the same or similar dish under other names, usually containing the word "plate". The Rochester Red Wings baseball team concessions at Frontier Field, for example, offer the "Home Plate".

A component of the garbage plate and many other local dishes is a topping known in Rochester as "hot sauce." The term in this context does not refer to a pepper sauce, but to a spiced sauce containing bits of meat.

Another food associated with the Rochester area is the "white hot", a hot dog with a slight variation of ingredients that appears without the distinctive pink color of most hot dogs; when ordering a hot dog in Rochester it is common to be asked to clarify whether it should be "red or white".

Economy
In urban areas in Western New York, education, business, light manufacturing and tourism have replaced heavy manufacturing which left the area at the end of World War II. Rochester and Buffalo were especially hard-hit with the exodus of manufacturing jobs to other areas of the United States and nations like China and Mexico. Niagara Falls was also hard-hit and has shed half of its population since its peak in 1960. Today, major corporations in Western New York include Kodak, Wegmans, Bausch & Lomb, Xerox, M&T Bank, KeyBank and Moog, among many others. General Motors continues to operate three facilities in the region. Rochester Components Operations, formerly known as Rochester Division, produces fuel system components. Lockport Operations, formerly Harrison Thermal Systems, produces cooling system components and was awarded $154 million for additional and future products in 2022. Finally, Tonawanda Power Train originally opened in 1938 as a Chevrolet engine plant and continues producing 4 and 8 cylinder engines in the Buffalo area.

Outside of the cities, agriculture has always been a major factor in the economy, especially dairy farming.

Ski country runs through Western New York. Glenwood and Ellicottville both have multiple ski resorts within their boundaries; Ellicottville, in particular, has seen massive gentrification from the development of the large ski resorts within the town boundaries and has attempted to build on that growth by branding itself as a year-round destination with numerous festivals. At their peak in the 1960s, over a dozen ski resorts were in Western New York, most of them in Cattaraugus County.

In Niagara County, viticulture, or wine culture, is also becoming a driver of the economy. In order to take advantage of this, the state has created the Niagara Wine Trail. To a certain extent, viticulture is also prominent in Chautauqua County, where Welch's has a long history; the western Finger Lakes also have a wine industry.

American Rock Salt, the largest operating salt mine in the United States, is located in Livingston County.

During the late 1990s, then-Governor George Pataki signed an agreement granting the Seneca Nation of New York the right to acquire and build three full-scale casino gaming operations. The three casinos (Seneca Niagara Casino in Niagara Falls, Seneca Allegany Casino in Salamanca and the controversial Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino in Buffalo) are the only casinos that operate over all of Western New York as part of the agreement, for which the Senecas pay a portion of revenues to the state of New York (which, in turn, returns part of that money to the host municipalities). Twice over the course of the compact's history have the Senecas stopped paying their exclusivity payments: once in a dispute over whether video lottery terminals constituted the breach of the agreement, and again in 2017 after the Senecas claimed they are no longer required to pay the exclusivity payments but still maintain exclusivity under the language of the agreement.

The three native tribes in the region (Seneca Nation, Tonawanda Band and Tuscarora) also have a large influence in the convenience store sector. The tribes have long maintained that they are exempt from state excise taxes on gasoline and tobacco products, which allows native-owned convenience stores to provide lower prices than their non-native counterparts. Gasoline tax advantages were most pronounced in the 1990s, when low overall gas prices made the tax advantage far more noticeable. In the 1990s and 2000s, a mail-order tobacco industry thrived on Seneca reservations, an industry that has mostly been cut off since then. Increasing regulations now prohibit Senecas from receiving or selling name-brand cigarettes without taxes, sending tobacco products by mail (Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act) or private delivery, or accepting credit cards for remote purchases; the Senecas still sell native-produced tobacco products in brick-and-mortar stores on the reservations. Large tobacco farms can be seen in much of the Cattaraugus Reservation to meet the demand for native-grown, tax-exempt tobacco.

Major businesses
Western New York is home to many small, medium and large corporations, including:

 * Bausch & Lomb
 * Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus
 * Computer Task Group, Incorporated
 * Cutco
 * Delaware North Companies
 * Ellicott Development Co.
 * Fisher Price
 * Kaleida Health
 * Kodak
 * M&T Bank
 * Merchants Insurance Group
 * Moog Inc.
 * New Era Cap Company
 * Rich Products
 * Sodexo
 * Tops Markets
 * Wegmans Food Markets
 * Xerox

Major attractions
Western New York is home to two significant scenic attractions. Niagara Falls is undoubtedly the most famous attraction in Western New York. Forming part of Western New York's border with Canada, the Falls has evolved into a major destination for tourists and locals alike.

Another, less famous scenic attraction, is Letchworth State Park. Located 35 miles south of Rochester, Letchworth State Park has been termed "The Grand Canyon of the East".

Allegany State Park in southern Cattaraugus County offers 65,000 acres of recreation space for camping, hiking, cabin rentals, swimming, and (during the winter) snowmobiling and cross-country skiing. It is mostly surrounded by the Allegany Indian Reservation and to the south by the Allegheny National Forest.

Western New York is also known as the home of the Chautauqua Institution near Jamestown, New York. Jamestown is also home to the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Museum.

A small, but important, historic site is the Holland Land Office in Batavia, New York.

Many towns along a nationally-important historic site, the Erie Canal, have lovely waterfront parks and bike trails.

The Genesee Country Village and Museum in Mumford, New York is a well-known living history museum.

The George Eastman House is in Rochester, and is the world's oldest photography museum.

The Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site, known locally as the Wilcox Mansion, is in Buffalo. It is the site of the first presidential inauguration of Theodore Roosevelt following the assassination of President William McKinley who had been attending the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo in 1901.

Darien Lake, a theme park and concert venue in Genesee County, is also a popular summertime destination, drawing in crowds from all over Western and Central New York, as well as from southern Ontario. It has benefited from its location about halfway between Buffalo and Rochester and is one of the region's most successful concert venues.

Major professional teams
Western New York is represented by two major league sports teams: the Buffalo Bills of the NFL and the Buffalo Sabres of the NHL. The Bills play their home football games at Highmark Stadium, the largest sports stadium in all of New York State, located just south of the city of Buffalo in Orchard Park. The Bills are the only team to reach the Super Bowl in four consecutive seasons (1990–1993) in NFL history.

The Buffalo Sabres also have a strong following in Western New York, and are consistently ranked among the highest-rated local TV hockey markets and the highest-rated markets for NBC/NBCSN regular season games. Primarily because of the strong regional interest in the team, in 2016 MSG Western New York was launched. The regional sports network is a sub-feed of the MSG Network, but is tilted towards Western New York sports and controlled by Pegula Sports and Entertainment. The Sabres reached the Stanley Cup Finals in 1975 and 1999. The Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators are the Sabres' biggest rivals. On January 1, 2008, the Sabres played the Pittsburgh Penguins in the inaugural Winter Classic at Ralph Wilson Stadium (now Highmark Stadium). This was the first ever regular-season NHL game held outdoors to be played in the United States.

Rochester is the 10th largest metropolitan area in the United States to not include a major professional team.

Baseball
Three Minor League Baseball teams play in Western New York: the Buffalo Bisons and Rochester Red Wings, both in the Triple-A International League North Division, and affiliates of the Toronto Blue Jays and Washington Nationals, respectively.

Collegiate summer baseball has an extensive presence in the area. The New York Collegiate Baseball League has several teams in Western New York (the Niagara Power, Wellsville Nitros, Alfred Thunder, Geneva Red Wings, Olean Oilers and Webster Yankees), as does the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League (the Jamestown Tarp Skunks and the formerly-professional Batavia Muckdogs).

Football
Western New York has several teams that participate in semi-professional and amateur football. The Northeastern Football Alliance hosts teams in Buffalo, Jamestown, Olean and Lyndonville; the Premier Amateur Football League operates a team in South Buffalo.

Hockey
The Buffalo Sabres minor league affiliate, the Rochester Americans, play in the American Hockey League.

Lacrosse
Lacrosse, the national sport of the native Iroquois, is popular in the region, with the Buffalo Bandits and Rochester Knighthawks both perennial contenders in the National Lacrosse League. From 2008 to 2017 lacrosse fans could also watch the Rochester Rattlers of Major League Lacrosse during the summer months or attend box lacrosse games in arenas on the Seneca reservations.

Soccer
Western New York currently does not have a team in Major League Soccer (occasionally considered the fifth major league on the American sporting landscape), although Rochester had been mentioned in the past as a candidate for a new expansion franchise and previously hosted the Rochester Lancers in MLS's predecessor, the NASL. The speculation of Rochester getting an MLS team was due to the relative success of the Rochester Rhinos. However, the Rhinos later a downturn in attendance due to a number of factors leading to the team going dormant in 2018 and re-emerging as Rochester, NY FC in a lower division of soccer in 2022. Such speculation has also decreased in the 21st century, in part because of MLS's refusal to put teams in metropolitan areas without any other major league teams and greatly increased competition for MLS expansion franchises. The former Rhinos franchise are best known as being the only non-MLS team to win the US Open Cup since that competition was opened to MLS teams.

Western New York was represented in National Women's Soccer League by the Western New York Flash, a team that originally began play in the W-league in 2008. The Flash, like the Rhinos, played its home games at Sahlen's Stadium in Rochester but were based out of suburban Buffalo. U.S. soccer star Abby Wambach was a member of the Flash. In 2017 the team transferred its NWSL rights to North Carolina and self-relegated to an amateur team. The Western New York region is home to FC Buffalo and the current incarnation of the Rochester Lancers, both of whom compete in the NPSL.

No indoor soccer teams currently play in the region. The region had previously been represented by the Buffalo Stallions, Buffalo Blizzard and another Rochester Lancers.

Golf
Western New York is home to many different golf coursees and country clubs including: Oak Hill Country Club, Grover Cleveland Golf Course, Niagara Falls Country Club, Hyde Park Golf Club, The Park Country Club, Beaver Island State Park Golf Course, and River Oak Golf Club, Locust Hill among others.

Motorsports
A number of Motorsports tracks operate in Western New York. The most prominent of these is Holland Speedway, a NASCAR-sanctioned track (currently hosting races in the Whelen All-American Series). Other, generally dirt, tracks include Stateline Speedway in Busti, Little Valley Speedway in Little Valley, Freedom Raceway in Freedom, Chapel Hill Raceway in Humphrey, Ransomville Speedway in Ransomville and Canandaigua Motorsports Park in Canandaigua. The last of these is the location in which NASCAR driver Tony Stewart ran over and killed rival racer Kevin Ward Jr. in 2014 during a sprint car race.

College and high school sports
College hockey also has a following, with Canisius College, Niagara University, and Rochester Institute of Technology competing at the Division I level and several other teams (including most of the SUNY schools) competing in Division III and/or the ACHA.

College basketball has several teams in the area. The four teams in Division I are known as the "Big 4" and include the Canisius Golden Griffins, Niagara Purple Eagles, UB Bulls, and St. Bonaventure Bonnies. Prior to UB's ascension to Division I, the three other schools—all Roman Catholic institutions—were known as the Little Three. In addition to the men's teams, the women's basketball teams of UB and St. Bonaventure have earned national success in the 2010s.

College football is much more sparse; only one team competes at the Division I Bowl Subdivision, the State University of New York at Buffalo's UB Bulls. Erie Community College fields a team in junior college football known as the Kats, while Buffalo State, Brockport State, The University of Rochester, St. John Fisher College, Alfred State and Alfred University field teams at the Division III level.

Greater Rochester is the largest metropolitan area in the United States to not include a college or university with a full NCAA Division I athletic program. Rochester Institute of Technology competes in Division I only in men's and women's ice hockey, and therefore cannot offer athletic scholarships.

Public high school athletic teams compete in sections 5 (Rochester area) and 6 (Buffalo area) of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association. Western New York Roman Catholic high schools compete in the Monsignor Martin Athletic Association.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Western New York