Crystal McCrary McGuire

Producer and author Crystal McCrary McGuire was born on October 24, 1969, in Detroit, Michigan. McCrary McGuire received her B.A. degree in English language and literature from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor in 1991 and her J.D. degree from the New York University School of Law in New York City, New York in 1995.

After graduating from law school, McCrary McGuire joined Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison as a legal associate in entertainment law. McCrary McGuire left law in 1997 to focus on being a full-time author. McCrary McGuire collaborated with Rita Ewing to write Home-court Advantage, a novel about the wives of professional basketball players published in 1998 by William Morrow Publishing, that became a New York Times bestseller. McCrary McGuire then worked with Tonya Lewis Lee on Gotham Diaries, another New York Times bestselling novel published by Hyperion in 2004. In 2012, McCrary McGuire published Inspiration: Profiles of Black Women Changing Our World with co-author Nathan Hale Williams and photographer Lauri Lyons through Stewart, Tabori, and Chang publishing. In addition, McCrary McGuire made appearances as a legal analyst on networks such as CNN, Court TV, the Fox News Channel, and The View. McCrary McGuire made her debut as a producer on the independent film Dirty Laundry, directed by Maurice Jamal in 2006. Dirty Laundry received the Blockbuster Award for Best U.S. Feature at the American Black Film Festival in 2006 and a GLAAD Media Award Nomination in 2008. McCrary McGuire also worked as a producer for Black Entertainment Television (BET). In 2008, McCrary McGuire founded Crystal McCrary Media and Get to Yes Productions.

McCrary McGuire served on the advisory board of JumpStart, the board of directors for Hyperion Books (now Hachette Books), and the board of directors for the New 42nd Street.

McCrary McGuire received numerous awards and honors including the Blackboard Fiction Book of the Year Award from Blackboard: African American Best Sellers for Gotham Diaries in 2005 and a feature on Crain’s New York Business’ “40 Under 40” list in 2007.

McCrary McGuire lives in New York City, New York with her husband, Raymond J. McGuire. They have three children: Cole, Ella, and Leo.

Crystal McCrary McGuire was interviewed by The HistoryMakers on February 15, 2023.