Playgirl from the 1970s through 2008

  It's official. Playgirl Magazine will cease publication of its magazine with the January-February 2009 issue due in November. However Playgirl will live on at Playgirl.com. Nicole Caldwell, Playgirl's editor-in-chief confirmed the rumors that the magazine was folding and stated that it was going all-web. It's not clear yet how the new online version will work since Playgirl has had a membership site going for several years now. It could be that the cost of the magazine will remain the same or it could run cheaper and be downloadable, separate from the membership site which also has video content. Undoubtedly we'll learn more later. 

  And another era ends. It will probably sound strange to many of you reading this but we feel a bit of sadness and nostalgia at hearing the news. Sure, in this day and age most gay men have a great deal of choices and opportunities when it comes to male erotica. But for many who grew up and came of age in the 70's and early 80s Playgirl Magazine was one of the few accessible outlets for those exploring their newfound sexuality. Oh sure, the magazine was published by and geared towards women but it was generally known that it had a very high gay readership too. And other new gay magazines like Mandate, Honcho, etc  weren't that easy to find. Of course if you were looking for erections forget it. Playgirl didn't get there until Brian Buzzini sported one in 1986.

                 
                                                                            What a difference a year makes

 Playgirl Magazine changed its look in the late 70's trying to look more like the female equivalent of Playboy. A new logo, celebrity covers and interviews certainly didn't broaden its gay appeal even though there were still male centerfolds. But Playgirl Magazine had lots more of competition in the 1980s with the flourishing gay porn industry. Now there were more magazines, video tapes, adult video stores, etc that were produced by gay men FOR gay men. Playgirl was viewed as almost quaint by comparison and in many ways it's a tag that has stuck.  We even viewed it humorously when we'd see gay porn stars appear in Playgirl and talk about the type of woman that they like. 

  In 1986 Playgirl went through some really tough times. It was bought out by a new publisher that moved the magazine to NYC. The "Man of the Month" featured remained but the new publisher took out the nudity! It wouldn't return until the November 1987 issue. And when it did the magazine started to move away from celebrity studded covers and more towards beefcake. In fact with each succeeding year, the magazine covers got more sexy and suggestive so that in the 1990s it was undistinguishable from other gay publications---except for the occasional celebrity on the cover.

                  

  Playgirl was still marketed towards women while it acknowledged its gay audience so it had to tread that a thin line in making it attractive to both audiences. The Playgirl site found a way to do this in the same way that many gay sites have done--the "straight men for a gay audience" method. 

  Given that so much entertainment and news is available online there have been other magazines folding, newspapers losing circulation, etc so it's not too shocking to see this happen to Playgirl Magazine. But it's a loss nonetheless.