Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2009. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
The New York Times - August 20, 2009
Mr. Hilferty committed suicide while suffering from complications of a head injury he received in March, said Fabio Toblini, his companion.
In the late 1980s, while he was active in the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (Act Up), Mr. Hilferty produced and directed a 24-minute film, "Stop the Church," documenting a demonstration at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan by gay rights and abortion rights advocates. More than 4,500 people gathered outside while 134 went inside and collapsed in the aisles to symbolize death.
PBS initially planned to broadcast the film in August 1991 as part of its "P.O.V." series of independently made documentaries. It then canceled the broadcast, citing the film's numerous denunciations of the Roman Catholic Church and calling it "inappropriate for distribution because of its pervasive tone of ridicule." A month later PBS reversed its decision and showed the film.
Mr. Hilferty was a freelance writer for many publications, including New York magazine, Playbill, The Village Voice, Opera News, Artforum, Bloomberg News and The New York Times. He wrote about classical music, architecture, acting, fashion and gardening.
Born in Teaneck, N.J., on Dec. 14, 1959, Mr. Hilferty was a son of Robert and Joan Massa Hilferty. He graduated from Princeton in 1982.
Besides his companion of 16 years, Mr. Toblini, Mr. Hilferty is survived by his father; four sisters, Lois Forte, Veronica Baraldi, Joan Carluccio and Susan Hilferty; a brother, James; a half-sister, Alicia Hilferty; and a half-brother, Matthew.
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