The Playboy Book
“Playboy and the Making of the Good Life in Modern America.”
Written by Filed under History, Life
Playboy magazine reached its commercial peak 30 years ago. It seems like it has been a victim of its own success.
Playboy has been a victim of its own success. Part of the reason the magazine lost its luster is because the restraints on what one could publicly talk about or view with relation to sex changed considerably. There was a lot more competition in that regard. Also, by the 1970s the values that were at the forefront of important cultural change had already permeated society. So while Playboy was still a good magazine, it was just another entertainment diversion.
How does the agenda of the Playboy of the last ten years differ from that of the early years?
It has always promoted itself as the handbook for the young urban male. Dating, how to make it in the business world, what to buy, how to behave in a restaurant—the magazine is still infused with those kinds of issues. It’s still trying to be true to its roots in that regard. But the tone is a little edgier and the really lengthy articles and interviews have been cut down and cut back because readers today don’t consume long features like they used to.
I understand you interviewed Hefner during the course of your research. What did he have to say about Playboy’s history and its commercial decline?
He sees the magazine as having played an important role in the 1950s and ’60s in questioning conformity and some of the conservatism of society. I think he takes pride in the fact that the magazine was at the forefront of questioning stultifying roles for men and women. I also think he takes issue with critics who think that the magazine’s [commercial] decline is related to quality—that the product itself has been diminished somehow. He believes the quality has always been there, but that society changed so significantly that Playboy’s success couldn’t be sustained.
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