A Glock will never do you wrong and even though I don't think they are the best pistols in the world (for me), I'm hard pressed to find anything truly bad or even sort of bad with a Glock. I'm not that big into 1911s but I do know you can buy one from Rock Island Armory without having to drop a grand, and I can't name too many other manufacturers that don't want $650 to $1200 for their 1911s and that's not even getting into the even more expensive ones.
Another pistol brand I suggest you take a look at is CZ. CZ makes excellent steel-frame and poly-frame pistols, almost all of them are based on the CZ 75 design. The CZ 75 is an absolute joy to shoot, accurate, easy to clean (not as easy as a Glock, but easier than a 1911) and are extremely durable. If you're gonna buy a CZ, I suggest the tried and true steel frame 75B or 75BD (the 75B has a 1911 style thumb safety, the 75BD has a decocker but no safety) or the smaller CZ 75 Compact or the PCR that comes with a few bells and whistles.
Good hunting!!