Perhaps not everyone can fully understand and appreciate when things are sounding good. But EVERYONE knows (and notes) when things do not sound good.
It's our job to keep things sounding pleasant to the ear.
Jingles for Radio and T.V.
We engineer and produce audio recordings.
Talk to us about your audio recording needs.
"I spent 20 years on staff at a major Los Angeles recording studio. Starting out, the industry was still at the height of the analog era. Some of the golden years of music recording. Then came the advent of digital technology, which ended up putting a great sounding recording studio into the laptops of the masses. I feel lucky to have experienced both eras and technologies. I draw from both as I work, now."
I do enjoy it all."


text:
Headboard (in italiano: Testata del letto) è il secondo singolo del rapper statunitense Hurricane Chris estratto dal secondo album Unleashed. Prodotto dal team The Inkredibles, vede la partecipazione del cantante R&B Mario e di Plies.

Informazioni
La canzone è composta da tre strofe, la prima delle quali è rappata da Hurricane Chris, la seconda da Plies e la terza nuovamente da Hurricane Chris. Mario canta invece il ritornello e introduce brevemente la canzone.

Nelle charts, Headboard ha ottenuto risultati inferiori a quelli del precedente singolo Halle Berry (She's Fine), raggiungendo la posizione n. 63 nella Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs e non classificandosi all'interno della Hot 100.

Videoclip
Il videoclip è stato pubblicato il 16 ottobre 2009.

Classifica

Note

Voci correlate
 Unleashed (Hurricane Chris)
 Halle Berry (She's Fine)

Singoli di Mario
Singoli di Plies

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Q: Api to lock a branch in Azure git I have a script I need to lock a branch in azure git
How to use lock api in a powershell script to lock a branch in azure git

A: The API documentation can be found here: locking a branch in Azure DevOps.
An example is:
PATCH https://dev.azure.com/{organization}/{project}/_apis/git/repositories/{repositoryId}/refs?filter={filter}&api-version=6.0

The branch you wish to lock is in the {filter} variable.
Here's a working example I just tested using curl from within Git Bash:
 curl
 --header "Content-Type: application/json"
 --data '{"isLocked": true}'
 --user username:password
 --request PATCH "https://dev.azure.com/{organization}/{project}/_apis/git/repositories/{repositoryId}/refs?filter=heads/my-branch-name&api-version=6.0"

In my case, for password, I used a personal access token.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Energy Healing, offering Reiki and Aromatherapies, is now open above Qdoba at 66 Elm St. 814.244.0695.
Daisy's Taste of Cuba is expanding from a food truck in Garwood, NJ to open a restaurant in Westfield at 301 South Ave W. (corner of Boulevard). 908.232.3187.
Boxwood Coffee Roastery is coming to 143 E. Broad St. (in the location formerly Panera). Boxwood Coffee is a family run coffee shop and roaster based in Summit, NJ established in 2014 by husband and wife team Stephen and Erin Bellamy.
Nick's Pizzeria & Restaurant, featuring pizza and Italian food, is opening soon at 311 South Ave. W., 908.233.9300.
Spice Bazaar, a restaurant with casual Indian Dining, will open at 114-116 Quimby St. (formerly Asian Fusion).
Westfield Businesses on "George to the Rescue"


text:
What Happens When The Adopted Kids Of Anti-Gay Parents Come Out?
Evangelical Christians are the religious group most likely to adopt but are also most likely to oppose homosexuality, which can make life complicated for gay adopted kids.
By Keri Williams
Keri Williams BuzzFeed Contributor
Posted on August 20, 2019, at 10:54 a.m. ET
Swikar Patel for BuzzFeed News
Keri Williams and her daughter Kayla Williams at home in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Late one night a few years ago, my 14-year-old daughter, Kayla, texted me.
911 Kayla: i need to talk to u
She'd prefixed her contact name in my cellphone to read "911," a way of asserting her significance in my life. Seeing it always made me smile. It was after midnight, but I dutifully responded.
Me: Can we talk tomorrow? You have school in the morning.
911 Kayla: stop using punctuation in texts its weird
Me: It's not weird.
911 Kayla: ur such a mom
Text bubbles danced for long moments on my screen before her next message popped up:
911 Kayla: i don't know how to tell u this but im gay
I blinked. My finger hovered uncertainly over my iPhone screen as I read and reread her text.
My husband and I had adopted Kayla and her brother, Devon, out of foster care over a decade earlier. When she first came to live with us, she was 2, with dimples, gobs of curly hair, and an offbeat sense of humor. Her freckle-faced brother, Devon, was 3. Kayla didn't yet have a conscious awareness of her sexual identity, and it didn't occur to me she might be gay. I was far more concerned about her low self-esteem and difficulties with attachment as she adjusted into our family.
I was raised in the heady, evangelical Christian movement of the '80s and '90s. For many years, I unquestioningly accepted the belief that homosexuality was wrong and a behavioral choice, but during my thirties, I became disenchanted with the religion of my youth. I reconsidered the tenets of my faith and the shortfalls of organized religion and its anti-abortion, anti-gay, pro-gun political agenda.
During that time, my conservative ideology shifted, including my stance on LGBTQ issues. I worked from home and often chatted over IM with my coworker Brian about our kids. He had an adopted teenage son, a few years older than my kids, and was the most devoted and involved dad I knew. I imagined his family — his wife and son — to be happy and close just like my own family.
But Brian didn't have a wife. I eventually discovered he had a partner named Chris. They'd been together for more years than most married couples I knew, defying the evangelical stereotype of gay men as unfit parents, incapable of monogamy. Despite the prejudice against same-sex couples, they were successfully raising a happy and healthy adopted son. Witnessing this reality, I was compelled to evaluate my beliefs about the LGBTQ community and my positions on issues like gay marriage and adoption.
After years of soul-searching, I left the evangelical church behind. I embraced a more progressive Christianity — one that would prepare me for the late-night texting with my daughter only a couple years later.
Portrait of Kayla Williams and her dog, Pocket, in her Charlotte home on July 28. Pocket can only walk for a little bit, so Williams often carries her most of the way.
That night, when Kayla nervously texted me, I wasn't conflicted about her sexuality. The only reason my finger hovered over my iPhone screen was that I wasn't sure how to formulate a response that would adequately assure her of my love and acceptance.
Afraid to let the seconds stretch into a message of their own, I responded:
Me: I will always love you. I'm fine with you being gay.
Kayla has since had two girlfriends and has come out to friends and family. As I've watched her blossom into her authentic self, I'm haunted by how things could have gone so differently for her if my religious convictions had not evolved.
Our situation is not unique. According to the Adoption Network, there are 135,000 children adopted each year, most from foster care, like Kayla was. And based on a 2014 UCLA School of Law study, more than 1 in 5 kids in the foster care system is LGBTQ.
Conservative Christians are the religious group most likely to adopt, but also the group most likely to oppose homosexuality. Many Christian adopters are licensed by faith-based agencies like the one I adopted through.
These agencies, which historically do not work with LGBTQ couples, are the cornerstone of the child welfare system in the US. For example, according to a 2017 story in the Arkansas Times, a single faith-based organization recruits over half the state's foster homes. Faith-based agencies' ubiquity has led to ongoing legal battles over whether faith-based agencies who refuse to work with same-sex couples should continue to receive government funding.
In the meantime, LGBTQ adoptees placed in anti-gay families by faith-based agencies face all sorts of difficulties — and significant long-term impacts to their health and well-being.
Keri Williams (right) and her daughter Kayla Williams in their Charlotte home on July 28.
Every adoption, no matter how positive, starts with separation and loss. Some situations are more challenging than others. For example, children adopted out of foster care or orphanages may have been neglected, abused, or abandoned. According to a report by the Child Welfare Information Gateway, trauma like this, especially during the first five years of life, when the brain is most vulnerable, can cause a child's brain not to develop optimally.
"Children who are abused and neglected early in life can internalize loss and betrayal. They view the world as unsafe and unpredictable," say Forrest Lien of Lifespan Trauma Consulting. "Adoption doesn't erase these impacts. Even in the most nurturing and loving of homes, healing these deep hurts takes years as well as effective professional intervention." Research shows children with early childhood trauma are at higher risk for substance abuse, incarceration, mental health issues, and chronic physical diseases than their peers.
Adoptees have a lot stacked against them even if they don't have to wrestle with their sexual identity in a family that might be anti-gay. "A sense of rejection is already present for the adopted foster child. Being rejected for a fundamental part of 'self' cuts even deeper," explained Kelly Crenshaw, a reverend based in Maryland who advocates for LGBTQ youth. "It's another piece of baggage to carry through life that just makes things more complicated: Are people going to accept me? Will I be allowed to date? Do I have to hide my real self? What if my family doesn't want me anymore?"
When we went through the process to adopt Kayla, a toddler at the time, our Christian agency didn't ask how we would feel if we later discovered she was LGBTQ. Like Kayla, many children are adopted too young to be aware of their sexual orientation or gender identity, and it's the furthest thing from the minds of their adoptive parents when they jump in heart-first.
That said, conservative Christians don't necessarily shy away from adopting children who think they are gay. Many view homosexuality as a behavior they can help the child overcome — like overeating or lying. These adopters are confident that with proper parenting and religious instruction, they can keep their child from the "homosexual lifestyle." This is the sincere, albeit ignorant, belief of most conservative Christians.
Unfortunately, even the most sincere convictions, by the most well-intentioned people, can be incredibly damaging.
Leah Hogsten / AP Images
Taryn Hiatt, Utah and Nevada chapter director with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, wipes away tears as members of the House Judiciary Committee opt to modify the conversion therapy bill in Salt Lake City on March 5.
Alex was adopted into a loving family and attended a Christian school from kindergarten through 12th grade. He appeared to have it all — a private school education, devoted parents, and the affluence to go on expensive vacations. Alex was also gay.
He first began to grapple with his sexual identity in third grade when his Christian school classmates mocked his seemingly effeminate behavior. Even though he knew he likely was gay, he sensed it was something to be ashamed of. He'd heard his mother make snarky comments like, "Don't act like such a girl." And in school and church, the message was loud and clear: Christians can't be gay.
Alex became convinced something was intrinsically wrong with him. He was uncomfortable at school, church, and home. "I didn't want to be gay. For the longest time I suppressed who I was. I tried to ignore it," he told me in an interview in June. "I would pray about it and beg God to change me." He even tried masturbating while imagining girls, but nothing worked.
In high school, Alex's teacher cornered him one day after their Marriage and Family class. She had spent the last few weeks teaching about "the life cycle of the homosexual man" and the unavoidable, tragic consequences faced by those who acted on same-sex attraction. She asked Alex if he was struggling with homosexual feelings and said it was common for adopted kids, especially if they had domineering mothers and passive fathers. While pressuring him to confess, the teacher assured Alex that he could be fixed.
Despite her persistence, Alex adamantly denied he was gay. After all, the "fix" for gayness would have included prayer, Bible study, being forced to embrace "correct" gendered behavior, and school discipline — including possible expulsion.
These are common approaches among many conservative Christian parents, churches, and other institutions. Focus on the Family, an evangelical organization that's a leading authority in conservative Christian circles, says on its website, "Homosexual behavior is just one of the many sins God forgives and brings people out of." Based on this ideology, some evangelical parents may enroll their LGBTQ kids in classes or programs designed to help those "confused about their sexuality" accept "God's best" for their lives — heterosexuality.
Conversion therapy is another destructive practice, explored in recent films like Boy Erased and The Miseducation of Cameron Post. While the recently reintroduced "Every Child Deserves a Family Act" includes protections to safeguard adopted children from conversion therapy, it continues to be a frightening option in most states.
According to the Trevor Project, the world's largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ young people, these damaging practices are startlingly common. "In some cases, adoptive parents who are not supportive of their LGBTQ children may attempt to change their sexual orientation or gender identity," says Amy E. Green, director of research for the Trevor Project. "In fact, 2 in 3 LGBTQ youth reported that someone tried to convince them to change their sexual orientation or gender identity, which resulted in almost triple the rate of youth attempting suicide in the past year."
Alex kept his secret throughout high school and only began to understand being gay wasn't dirty or wrong when he was exposed to a wider swath of people and ideas during college. He began to live openly with his friends but still kept the secret from his parents. He says, "I was nervous if they found out, they'd cut me off and I'd be on my own. I avoided spending a lot of time with them because I had to act differently around them. I was always afraid of slipping up."
Now 23 years old, Alex has earned a college degree and recently started a new job. He asked that I not use his real name for this story because he still hasn't come out to his adoptive parents. He is uncertain what their response will be but says he won't breathe easy until he knows he's able to independently support himself.
Family photos line the walls of the Williamses' home in Charlotte.
According to a 2015 Pew Research survey, only 30% of the members of the largest Protestant denomination, the Southern Baptists, believe homosexuality should be accepted in society. This statistic might drop even lower if the respondents were asked if they believe homosexuality should be accepted in their own family.
"When LGBTQ young people see their sexual orientation or gender identity up for public debate using harmful rhetoric, they can feel that their lives are worth less than their straight or cisgender peers," says Green. The statistics bear this out with disproportionately higher suicide rates and soaring homelessness among LGBTQ youth.
"Until they really get to know LGBTQ people — including LGBTQ Christians — and hear our stories, some Christians have mistaken beliefs about us and our lives," says Justin Lee, an LGBTQ Christian activist and the author of 2012's Torn: Rescuing The Gospel From the Gays-vs.-Christians Debate. "In many cases, they think they're showing 'tough love' and actually helping us with their hurtful language. But because they've never walked in our shoes, they don't realize how their words push people away from their own families and even from their faith."
Over the last handful of years, many conservative Christian churches and institutions have recognized how alienating their anti-gay agenda can be and have consequently changed their language around the issue. Some nonaffirming church denominations, including the International Pentecostal Holiness Church, Southern Baptist Convention, and Assemblies of God, offer programs for those struggling with "unwanted" same-sex attraction but are unwilling to accept for membership those who are out and plan to remain so.
Others, like the popular megachurch Hillsong, "welcome" members of the LGBTQ community, while not actually affirming them. LGBTQ people are encouraged to attend, but they cannot occupy roles of leadership in the church. And while Hillsong does not list its belief that homosexuality is sinful clearly on its website, it is documented in its statement of faith. While the language used by some of these churches has changed, their fundamental beliefs have not.
These same churches are active in the adoption movement. Crenshaw said, "I believe that many people honestly desire to help neglected and abused children. And many of those who want to help come from faith communities that promote reaching out into their communities. Unfortunately, many of these faith communities turn out to be among the more conservative of our Christian brothers and sisters."
Keri Williams in her home in Charlotte.
Like many Christians, I became a foster parent and later adopted based on an appeal from the pulpit. The pastor of our Florida megachurch called on the congregation of more than 20,000 to single-handedly end the "orphan crisis" in our county by becoming foster parents or adopting.
The adoption mandate for Christians is rooted in James 1:27, which says pure religion is caring for orphans in distress. Many Christians view adoption as a way to walk out their faith. In addition, adoption is considered a way to offer a religious upbringing to adoptees.
Christians began to champion adoption in the early 2000s by forming adoption ministries and throwing their support behind faith-based agencies, including the agency I used. Over time, they've come to monopolize the adoption market, given their access to highly motivated and passionate recruits. This led to a boom in expensive and ethically dubious international adoptions, which tapered off over the last decade due to new international restrictions. However, Christians remain passionate about adopting, particularly adopting children domestically out of foster care.
Churches and faith-based organizations provide valuable support — often not found elsewhere — to adoptive families, including childcare and financial services, support, community groups, and advocacy. Each year, thousands of well-meaning Christians invest their money, time, energy, and other resources into adoption.
However, their compassion is lost in translation when it comes to LGBTQ young people. "They often don't realize how much pain they're inflicting on LGBTQ people by refusing to accept them, but they are. It's incredibly damaging," says Lee.
Comedian Joel Kim Booster was born in South Korea and adopted as an infant by a conservative Christian couple from the Midwest. When Booster realized he was gay as a young child, he knew his parents would not be accepting. "I had no idea what their response would be," he says, "but when you're 16, you sort of assume the worst. That was the narrative at the time around conservative parents: They find out, they kick you out, and you're fucked, or they send you to conversion therapy and you're fucked in a whole different set of ways. I was worried about both of those outcomes." Once they found out, Booster knew the relationship was too toxic to remain living at home, so he left.
Far too often, adopted LGBTQ children, like Booster, become the collateral damage of the anti-gay convictions of their well-meaning Christian parents. "I have worked with so many kids and teens who don't fit in with the parents who raise them," says Crenshaw. "They did their best to fit in, but like a square peg in a round hole; it never quite worked out."
Jason Kempin / Getty Images
Comedian Joel Kim Booster performs onstage during the TBS Comedy Festival in 2017.
It's difficult to come up with an easy solution for adopted LGBTQ kids in nonaffirming, conservative Christian families. Booster recognizes this problem and says of his own adoptive parents, "Them handling things differently would've meant them drastically altering their worldview, and that's a big ask of someone."
Now that children are coming out as LGBTQ at younger and younger ages, many are actively exploring their sexual orientation or gender identity when they are adopted. If we had known Kayla identified as LGBTQ when we first adopted her, what might we have done with that information? Using an ideological standard to approve adoptive parents is a slippery slope, akin to what faith-based agencies have done by excluding same-sex couples from adopting. Furthermore, there are ethical and practical concerns with collecting information about the sexual orientation of kids who are being adopted.
The Family Acceptance Project (FAP) of San Francisco State University is working to change the discourse around LGBTQ acceptance from "right and wrong" to "health and wellness." Its evidence-based research has shown this can protect the well-being of LGBTQ youth even in families where the parents believe homosexuality is wrong.
"We have found that families can learn to support their LGBTQ children when information is presented in ways that resonate with their values and beliefs — to protect their children and to help them have a good life, to strengthen and keep their families together. In essence, what we have done is to give families a different way of thinking about their LGBTQ children by shifting the discourse on homosexuality from morality to health and well-being," wrote FAP's director, Caitlin Ryan, in a 2014 report.
Lee grew up in a Southern Baptist family and remains a devout Christian. He educates conservative Christian parents about the needs of their LGBTQ children and is hopeful there is a way forward for these families. He says, "Parents and children may not always agree on morals and theology, but they can still have a healthy relationship if they have healthy, open lines of communication."
With hundreds of thousands of children waiting in foster care to be adopted, and thousands of conservative Christian families stepping up to help, these are the types of approaches needed to ensure LGBTQ adoptees grow up in healthy and nurturing homes.
I'm glad Kayla felt safe to come out to me, even if it was through a late-night text message. Now 16, she says, "First I told some of my friends and then my brother. I wanted to tell you because I felt uncomfortable whenever you talked about me dating boys. It was hard because it's a big thing and I didn't know what you would say."
Kayla told me she's relieved she doesn't have to hide being gay from me because she's seen how it affects her LGBTQ friends. "It stressed me and my ex-girlfriend out because her parents don't know she is gay. She feels like she can't tell them until she is able to move out."
Coming out can be a scary moment for any young person, but even more so for adopted kids. By coming out, they risk losing their tenuous, budding relationships with new family members. They may be risking everything.
Alex says he's felt emotionally disconnected from his parents for a long time. "Our relationship could have been different if I didn't have to hide who I was. No kid deserves to live in a family where they aren't accepted and loved for who they are." ●
Keri Williams lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her family. She's a mental health and adoption advocate. She blogs at www.raisingdevon.com and you can find her on social media @RaisingDevon.
Keri Williams is a mental health and adoption advocate who lives in Charlotte, NC with her family.
Contact Keri Williams at keri.rose.williams@gmail.com.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Selak's supposed brushes with death started in January 1962 when he was riding a train through a cold, rainy canyon and the train flipped off the tracks and crashed in a river. Someone pulled Selak to safety, while 17 other passengers drowned. Selak suffered a broken arm and hypothermia. The next year, during his first and only plane ride, he was sucked out of a malfunctioning plane door and landed in a haystack; the plane crashed, killing 19 people. However, there is no report of any plane crash in Croatia in 1963.Three years after that, in 1966, a bus that he was riding skidded off the road and into a river, drowning four passengers. Selak swam to shore with a few cuts and bruises. You always get a Destin taxi!
In 1970 his car caught fire as he was driving and he managed to escape before the fuel tank blew up. Three years later, in another driving incident, the engine of his car was doused with hot oil from a malfunctioning fuel pump, causing flames to shoot through the air vents. Selak's hair was completely singed in this incident, but he was otherwise unharmed. In 1995, he was struck by a bus in Zagreb, but sustained only minor injuries. In 1996 he eluded a head-on collision with a United Nations truck on a mountain curve by swerving into a guardrail, which gave way under the force of his car; he was ejected from the car when the door flew open (he wasn't wearing a seatbelt) and watched his car plummet down 90 metres (300 ft) into a gorge. As of this date, none of Selak's claims have been independently verified. In 2003 he wins $1 million from the lottery, most of the money he spends among friends!


text:
The 20 Best Games of 2016 (10-1)
Let's just have it said and done: 2016 was a shit year in almost every conceivable way. Divisive political stances have never been at a higher slant, the right and left are more split than ever, every news link has lead to more and more bad news, and a laundry list of our favorite celebrities have bit the dust in a ridiculous procession of what amounts to some of our favorite humans being snatched away by a very sadistic reaper.
With that said, it's no surprise that 2016 has been a banner year for gaming. I think we all needed to escape from the harsh truths of reality just a little bit more this year, and we were not wanting for options in that regard. So, without further (depressing) ado, here are the 10 games that most kept us distracted from the encroaching apocalypse in 2016. Click here for the top 20.
May 2017 offer brighter days. (Mike Worby)
10) Hyper Light Drifter
Hyper Light Drifter is the perfect example of style and substance working in perfect harmony. Developer Heart Machine's action/RPG managed to merge the best aspects of beloved titles like The Legend of Zelda and Dark Souls while still forming an identity uniquely its own. Beautiful 16 bit art and a vibrant array of colors helped to capture a dark yet luscious apocalyptic environment.
While the finer details of Hyper Light Drifter's story tended to get lost in translation due to a lack of dialogue, the overarching themes of genocide, religious fanaticism, and the environmental costs of nuclear war are clearly painted throughout the game. The story of the Drifter itself is a flawed and broken one, highlighted by the character's quest to find a cure for its fatal disease, no matter the cost. This creates a moody and intense atmosphere as the Drifter fights through hordes of mutated creatures and once-powerful mechanical beings of the past.
Hyper Light Drifter excels at offering an engaging and fluid gaming experience. Sporting a tight control scheme and strong but brutal combat system, the game offers players a challenging yet rewarding gameplay experience. For those looking for a classic take on the Dark Souls formula, Hyper Light Drifter fits right in your wheelhouse. (Carston Carasella)
9) Darkest Dungeon
Anyone that's ever played pen and paper or tabletop gaming has probably had that DM. The kid that only wanted to be DM so they could screw over your entire group. They throw traps and monsters at your group in endless succession, and because of that winning against them feels so much sweeter, not only overcoming the challenge of the campaign itself, but beating this kid at their own game.
That's what Darkest Dungeon is about, beating an angry, cynical, and downright mean DM at their own game and looking great doing it. The setup has you attempting to reclaim your familial grounds, guided by the writings of your ancestor, who also serves as a narrator to your adventures (and is voiced by the amazing Wayne June). To clear the lands of darkness you'll need to hire adventurers from a variety of classes and create parties of up to four to run randomly generated campaigns into the heart of evil below your estate.
Where Darkest Dungeon really manages to deviate from other rogue-likes is the implementation of a stress system. As your heroes delve into the underground their morale will be tested, and when they hit a breaking point they can either power through and become beacons of hope or, more likely, become broken husks that slowly erode the rest of the party. This adds an extra layer of depth and tragedy as you'll need to contend with your best fighters becoming shells of their former selves after particularly nasty fights.
Darkest Dungeon isn't for everyone. It's a game that has no problem beating you down and spitting on you, and the end-game grind gets downright insane. For those who get into it though, this is one of the best representations of proper tabletop RPGs yet, and a definite must for gamers that enjoy a challenge. (Andrew Vandersteen)
8) The Last Guardian
With the release of The Last Guardian, Fumito Ueda has cemented his position as one of the greatest video game directors/designers of all time, putting him in league with the likes of Shigeru Miyamoto, Hideo Kojima, and Hidetaka Miyazaki.
The fact that The Last Guardian shares more with Ico than it does with Shadow of the Colossus will immediately turn away a significant chunk of people, and that's a shame, because not only is it one of 2016's best games, but it's also one of the best action-adventure titles released in recent memory.
Yes, it's true, the game's controls can feel unintuitive and downright archaic at times, it does suffer from some technical issues, and its camera has the propensity to be infuriating, but despite its flaws The Last Guardian's triumphs are monumental. Its setting is both grand and captivating; the sheer size of the environments in combination with how well the areas are crafted create a memorable and awe-inspiring journey. The game's puzzles and platforming are fluid, at times even ingenious, and the narrative is presented cleverly through the world's architecture, as lore-drenched hallways give insight into what seems to be the relics of an ancient civilization. And, of course, the game's crowning achievement, the beast itself, Trico.
Within just the first few hours of gameplay Trico establishes itself as the best animal companion in gaming history, bar none. Animated to the point of near perfection, the giant bird-cat-dog moves so realistically, and behaves so naturally, that it'll remind you of your real life furry friends. But the way Trico moves isn't even its most impressive trait; the way it thinks, the way it reacts and emotes, the way it analyzes and understands, to sum up the creature's artificial intelligence in just a couple of words: it's simply astounding. The bond between boy and beast is forged through a realistic series of events and interactions, creating a heartfelt and emotional experience. There will be times where Trico ignores your commands, instances where you'll spend minutes trying to convince him to perform a certain action, and you'll get frustrated, but that feeling of frustration is an essential part of the experience. Unlike the vast majority of animal companions from other games, Trico isn't simply a tool, it's a living creature, and like any relationship you form with another independent being, there will be hardships, but it's through those hardships and frustrations that a special friendship is born. Trico's authenticity alone is reason enough to play this game. (Matt De Azevedo)
7) Pokémon Sun and Moon
Every iteration within Pokémon's 20 year long history has brought small, subtle changes to prevent the franchise from getting stale. No generation of games has done quite so upstanding a job as Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon and, from the outset, Pokémon Sun and Moon celebrates that twenty-year history while distinguishing themselves as something different. For starters, the experience is far more cinematic, allowing for moments of quality, subtle character building while frequently raising tension and excitement with brief action sequences. Likewise, the setting of the game, the Alola Region, is far more realized than previous regions. Based on Hawaii, Alola is comprised of four unique islands each exuding their own atmosphere. Despite taking place on islands, the game is fairly landlocked; so don't worry about too much water. In game, Alola is described as being a far stretch away from the original Pokémon region of Kanto, and that's exceptionally demonstrated. Unlike other regions, Alola doesn't have gyms. Instead, players embark on an Island Challenge in which they go on a series of trials. While similar to gyms in that they culminate in a fierce Pokémon battle, each trial sets the player on a completely different task that teaches and celebrates the history of Alola. Gone also is the linear, X-axis, Y-axis, top down, grid style map. Alola is a free flowing, 3D world where the variety of Pokémon changes for each section of tall grass, even on the same route.
Pokémon Sun and Moon are as notable for their quality of life improvements. Quick access to Poké Balls amidst wild Pokémon encounters, move effectiveness listed for Pokémon previously battled, and fully customizable menus are just a few. That's not to say the games don't have outstanding new additions. Poke Pelago and Festival Plaza are welcome distractions from the main game, but represent the typical, expected additions to a new Pokémon generation. Unprecedented are what fans are calling SOS battle encounters where wild Pokémon can call for aid resulting in two on one battles. On top of stacking the odds against the player in exciting ways, these SOS encounters can result in rare Pokémon encounters including evolutions, Pokémon with hidden abilities, and shiny Pokémon. In fact, some Pokémon can only be encountered this way, resulting in some thrilling, unexpected discoveries. Sun and Moon also include Z-moves, powerful moves that can only be used once per battle between all Pokémon in the party. While often overpowering the player, when battling enemies capable of Z-moves, these powerful moves can actually shift the tides of battle in interesting ways. For all that is new, Pokémon Sun and Moon are also a celebration of twenty years of Pokémon. Some of this takes the obvious shape of Alolan Forms of original Pokémon, some of which are cool as ice while others are intentionally laughable. At other times it's as subtle as a Cubone calling on a Kangaskhan for help in battle, a call back to Pokémon lore and a legend of the original games. Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon represent the best Pokémon has to offer: some brilliant new Pokémon, celebratory riffs on the originals, countless quality of life improvements, and an abundance of character and charm from the cast within, both villains and heroes alike, and even the region itself. Do yourself a favor and take a vacation to Alola and the wonderful world of Pokemon Sun and Moon. (Tim Maison)
6) Final Fantasy XV
After a long and tumultuous design cycle, one so long that it actually became a running joke for fans and industry pundits alike, Final Fantasy XV emerged this year to a surprising chorus of almost universal acclaim, though that acclaim did come with a laundry list of certain caveats.
Despite FFXV's echoes of praise, the game does have some troubling elements, including parts of the game that seem to either underperform or fail entirely (I'm looking at you Costlemark Tower). However, the many problems with Final Fantasy XV are actually badges of pride when you look at the scores it's garnered from publications big and small.
How, you ask? Well, only a truly exceptional effort could overcome the sometimes game-breaking flaws of Square-Enix's latest to become one of the best games of the year. Whether through the bonds of the characters, the unconventional approach of the narrative, the mix-and-match of a dozen ideas from a dozen games, or the simple splendor of it's jaw dropping environs, Final Fantasy XV clears the gates as what would be the surprise success story of any other gaming year, but in 2016, of course, must share that honor with DOOM and The Last Guardian.
Still, as the best Final Fantasy in years, despite its flaws, credit must be given where credit is due. (Mike Worby)
5) DOOM
While it wasn't in the oven for as long as Owlboy, and certainly not scrutinized as much as Final Fantasy XV, 2016's DOOM is another title that spent the better half of a decade in development, yet rose to not only meet, but exceed expectations.
Similar to 2014's Wolfenstein: The New Order, id Software's rebirth of DOOM succeeds not through innovation or excess, but via refinement and respect for the series' roots.
From the legendary Chainsaw to the fabled Super Shotgun, DOOM's classic weapons feel as long time fans would expect. The game is bloody, visceral, and intense. Levels are filled to the brim with Hell spawn, but the DOOM Marine has never been known to back down from a challenge. The constant feeling of being overwhelmed is counterbalanced by the sense of power instilled in the player by their arsenal of weapons and their ability to rip and tear through demons at a breakneck pace. Gameplay is fast and frenetic; kills can be stringed together seamlessly either with bullets or via gruesomely animated melee finishers known as "glory kills". The game's level design further emphasizes its focus on kinetic and fast-paced encounters, as airlifts and double jumps quickly propel the player around each zone, keeping the pace at a near constant 100 miles per hour.
After spending just a few minutes with DOOM's multiplayer you may think to yourself "this feels like it was developed by a completely different studio", and that's because it was. Unfortunately, Certain Affinity's work fails to make the grade, as the game's multiplayer is both shallow and easily forgettable, but don't let this blemish turn you away from the game entirely. DOOM is a fantastic single player FPS, with engaging environments, solid shooting mechanics, and a surprisingly entertaining narrative. It's hard to believe that Doom 3 came out well over a decade ago, but the gates to Hell have finally been re-opened, so suit up and jump in. (Matt De Azevedo)
4) Inside
2016 might have been an appalling year in terms of celebrity deaths and political facepalms, but for gamers it's been a stellar year packed with quality titles. You'll find fantastic games from back to front throughout our Best Of 2016 list, but there's likely no other game released this year that was as impeccably designed as Playdead's Inside.
The true beauty of Inside lies not in the spectacular attention to detail in the environments, or the engrossing narrative it manages to convey without uttering a single word, but in the finely crafted puzzles that are difficult enough to make you think for a minute but never hard enough to disrupt the flow of the game for any longer than that. You're always moving, whether you're being chased by ruthless guards or just trying to get to the next area hoping to find out what the hell is going on here, and that sense of urgency coupled with the disconcerting feeling that something is very wrong in the world Playdead has created, results in a palpable sense of tension.
It's got top notch animation, an unnerving, minimalist soundtrack, a dystopian future setting that oozes atmosphere, and a constant sense of impending doom that should keep you glued to the edge of your seat for the three or four hours it'll take to see the game through to the end. And the end? If there's a more surreal, horrific, jaw-dropping finale to any game other than Inside in 2016, then we'll eat our collective hats. (John McCormick)
3) Dark Souls III
The community of From Software's now infamous Souls series is known to be home to some of the most die-hard, dedicated and sadomasochistic fans in the realm of gaming, and as such the purported "final entry" in the Souls franchise had a pretty high bar to clear in order to impress them.
Lucky for us all, it was mission accomplished from the aces over at From. Dark Souls III was well received by critics and fans alike, providing an excellent send-off for the series, loaded with a metric ton of fan service, while offering enough new twists and turns to the scheme of things to keep things fresh for even the most stalwart of Souls fans.
The level design is gorgeous, with From Software clearly taking a page from the eerie, haunting locales of their previous effort, Bloodborne, and incorporating them into their already varied satchel of tricks. In addition, there are enough layers of the other three preceding titles interspersed in the final product to make this the ultimate Souls game in a lot of ways. No matter which of the previous games is your favorite, Dark Souls III has something to offer, and if you're a virgin to the series then, well, you've got a lot to learn, but the loose narrative of the game will leave you right at home with the rest of us, having no idea what the hell is going on until you've done a bit of research.
All jokes aside, as sad as this writer is to see Dark Souls taking a break, it's better than the alternative of it being run into the ground (see Assassin's Creed, Call of Duty, et al) and fans could do a lot worse than this absolutely stellar, and exceedingly memorable tribute to what might be the best new franchise of the decade. (Mike Worby)
2) Overwatch
Games like Overwatch only come around once in a blue moon. Blizzard has created a masterpiece that takes the team-based shooter formula and transforms it into so much more. The gameplay is perfect across the board, but what makes Overwatch a truly incredible title is the amazing and diverse cast of characters. Every single character offers up a unique and engaging gameplay experience that requires hours of playtime to master. Spending so much time with these characters is made more enjoyable through Blizzard's treatment of their respective stories. It's hard not to get attached to these characters, with each of them having their own backstories and personality traits to discover.
Overwatch is the perfect multiplayer experience. While the game can certainly be played in a highly competitive fashion (just look at its growing esports league), there are plenty of casual modes for gamers looking to just have fun. The icing on the cake comes in the form of free updates for years to come. No season passes, no dlc, just new maps and characters all at no cost to the player. It really doesn't get much better than this. (Zack Rezak)
1) Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Naughty Dog has once again crafted a breathtaking adventure that can stand alone as the best game on PlayStation 4, yet. A Thief's End may not have that big, iconic set piece moment found in previous Uncharted games but it succeeds as a collection of smaller sequences that help set a new benchmark for the way video games can communicate a narrative.
A Thief's End is a fitting send-off for Nathan Drake and one that perfectly balances the action-packed extravaganza we've come to expect with the slow and heavy emotional toll of Naughty Dog's other hit title, The Last of Us. Uncharted 4 might just be the best title developed by Naughty Dog, and not just because of the stunning graphics, but because of how the sum of all it's parts come together in a brilliantly cohesive whole. Everything from the dialogue, character actions, visual motifs, audio cues, art direction, sound effects, artistic presentation, tone and setting help create a breathtakingly efficient, immaculately constructed game that is a sheer joy to play. (Ricky D)
Related Topics:Dark Souls IIIDarkest DungeonDoomfinal fantasy xvHyper Light DrifterInsideOverwatchPokemon Sun and MoonThe Last GuardianUncharted 4
Humans by birth. Gamers by choice. Goomba Stomp is a Canadian web publication that has been independently owned and operated since its inception in 2016.
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A Definitive Ranking of the Soulsborne Games


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Archive for the 'A Mr. Magazine™ Musing' Category
Celebrating The Magazine Media Centennial Club… Mr. Magazine™ Identifies 54 Magazine Media Brands That Are Now 100 Years or Older.
How many media brands you know of are celebrating at least one hundred years of existence? Four magazines join the magazine media centennial club this year: Reader's Digest (started Feb. 1922), The Ring and The Magazine Antiques that were also started in January of 1922, and Better Homes & Gardens which started as Fruit, Garden And Home in July 1922, and Harvard Business Review that celebrates its centennial in October of this year.
I have compiled a list of 54 magazine media brands that are at least 100 years old. Some are even 200 years plus. To be included in my list the magazine must still be published in print and is still available for the general public to subscribe to it or to buy it on the newsstands. All the magazines listed are United States of American based and published magazines.
Here is what I call the Magazine Media Centennial Club in alphabetical order:
Magazine Name Year It Was Founded
American Cinematographer 1920
American Legion 1919
Architectural Digest 1920
Barron's 1921
Bed Times 1917
Better Homes & Gardens 1922
Billboard 1894
Bowlers Journal International 1913
Cosmopolitan 1886
Farm Journal 1877
Good Housekeeping 1885
Harper's 1850
Harper's Bazaar 1867
Harvard Business Review 1922
House Beautiful 1896
National Defense 1920
National Geographic 1888
New Jersey League of Municipalities 1917
Philadelphia magazine 1908
Popular Mechanics 1902
Popular Science 1872
Progressive Farmer 1866
Reader's Digest 1922
San Diego magazine 1886
Scholastic 1920
Scientific American 1845
Signs of the Times 1874
Scout Life (Boys Life) 1911
Scouting 1913
Success 1897
Successful Farming 1902
The Atlantic 1857
The Crisis 1910
The Furrow 1895
The Magazine Antiques 1922
The Nation 1865
The New Republic 1914
The New York Times Magazine 1896
The Progressive 1909
The Ring 1922
The Rotarian 1905
The Saturday Evening Post 1821
The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography 1893
The Watchtower 1879
Town & Country 1846
Vanity Fair 1913
Variety 1905
Vogue 1892
Westways 1909
Writer's Digest 1920
Yachting 1907
I welcome any additions, notes, or corrections regarding my attempt to document the Magazine Media Centennial Club. Feel free to email me at samir.husni@gmail.com Last update Jan. 20, 2022
Until next time, join me wishing Reader's Digest, The Ring, The Magazine Antiques, Harvard Business Review, and Better Homes & Gardens a happy 100th birthday and Success magazine a happy 125th birthday. Onward and forward.
Samir "Mr. Magazine™" Husni, Ph.D.
samir.husni@gmail.com
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Jet magazine. Issues from 1953 to 1969. From the collection of Samir "Mr. Magazine™" Husni
Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2022 will be observed on Monday, Jan. 17. As a magazine person, the only way I know how to celebrate any event, holiday, birthday, is through going into my boxes of magazines and finding reasons to celebrate. MLK's birthday is no exception. I am working on my collection of pocket magazines of the 40s, 50s, and 60s of the last century. Pocket magazines are the little tiny magazines (4×6) that were inspired by the mini devotional magazines like Daily Word and The Upper Room and were made popular by Fleur Cowles who helped launch Quick magazine in 1949. More than 70 other titles followed Quick, including but not limited to Jet, Tempo, Focus, Picture Week, and many others.
For this blog I searched my collection of pocket magazines and decided to showcase my collection of African American pocket magazines and the magazines that carried African Americans on their covers back in the 40s, 50s, and 60s of the last century. It should be noted that Quick magazine (1949 – 1953) carried 10 covers from its 200+ covers with African American on their front page.
Quick magazine (1949 -1953). The African American Covers. From the collection of Samir "Mr. Magazine™" Husni.
Join me on a pictorial journey in time as we look at those covers and keep in mind if it is not ink on paper, it is not a magazine.
The Negro Review, then the New Review 1954. From the collection of Samir "Mr. Magazine™" Husni
The variety of African American magazines that were published in the 50s. From the collection of Samir "Mr. Magazine™" Husni.
A Pocket Celebrity Scrapbook magazine celebrating Nat King Cole and Lena Horne. From the collection of Samir "Mr. Magazine™" Husni.
Tempo magazine's solo African American cover in my collection. Tempo was launched June 8, 1953 that was launched right after Quick stopped publishing on June 1, 1953. From the collection of Samir "Mr. Magazine™" Husni.
Until the next blog, be sure to head to a newsstand near you and pick up a magazine or two. You will be living and holding history in your hands, one magazine at a time. All the best…
Posted in A Mr. Magazine™ Musing, From the Vault, Innovation in print, Magazine Power, News and Views | Leave a Comment »
From Content Providers To Experience Makers In Seven Easy Steps… A Mr. Magazine™ Musing.
Almost every magazine and magazine media company today has a Chief Content Officer and Chief Revenue Officer. I think those media companies need to have a Chief Experience Maker instead. Don't misunderstand me, content is important. I will venture to say revenue is even more important. However, if you are in, and plan to stay in, the magazine media business, you will need to, without delay, appoint a Chief Experience Maker.
Magazines have always been experience makers. Take a look at some of the titles of the "mini pocket magazines" of the 1950s. Experience making at its best. From the collection of Samir "Mr. Magazine™" Husni, Ph.D.
What role does the Chief Experience Maker play? Here are my seven steps to change from a content provider to an experience maker:
Step 1: Know your audience. Let me be clear: really know your audience. We live in the digital age; that means the audience data is at your fingertips. Study the data, make it priority number one. Find out everything and anything about the audience your brand is going to engage with and carry on a long-lasting relationship. Audience first means your audience is your customers. Customers always want to be heard, whether right or wrong, so study and analyze the data. Experience makers are matchmakers.
Step 2: Humanize your magazine media brand. Your brand needs to be much more than ink on paper or pixels on a screen. Your brand needs to be humanized, i.e., having the magic touch that changes the brand to a living breathing human being. If your brand is a human being, who will it be? What type of person will it be? Determine the voice, the values, and the vision that person has in mind. People engage with people. It will make the experience much easier to start, continue and last for a good amount of time.
Step 3: Create and curate habitual addictive content that is edited, vetted, and presented in a time and energy saving manner. This is where the editor, a good editor, is needed to combine the creation with the curation. As I always advise my clients and anyone else who is willing to listen, "If your audience can find the information on Google, that piece of information does not belong in your magazine media."
Step 4: Focus on what I call the MVP of the magazine media business: meet and exceed the audience expectation, validate all the information, and preview the near future to them. Achieving that expectation through the creating and curating will help you take a step in the right direction of becoming an experience maker.
Step 5: Make sure that your content is relevant to the audience, necessary to the audience, and on top of it all, sufficient to the audience. Your audience should not need another brand or platform to finish, fulfill, or lose themselves in that experience. No one would enjoy a movie if you keep asking them every few minutes to change from theater 1 to theater 3 and then back to 1 or 4.
Step 6: Once the aforementioned steps are secured, you can start with step 6: Dating your audience. No relationship or experience exists in vacuum, and in order to start an experience or a relationship, you need to think about it as if you are dating. Start with one date, then another, and once the relationship develops, you are ready now for your engagement, and long-lasting partnership. The experience making is just starting.
Step 7: What is an experience without a dash of luck? Well, you always need that dash of luck in any relationship and in any experience. So, here's some good luck wishes to you and yours. We look forward to a great magazine media experience making business that only the Chief Experience Maker can deliver. Are you ready?
So, what are you waiting for? Go for it, you can easily be the Chief Experience Maker. Good luck!
Questions or comments, feel free to reach out to Mr. Magazine™ at samir.husni@gmail.com
Posted in A Mr. Magazine™ Musing, Innovation in print, Magazine Power, News and Views | 2 Comments »
What If Digital Was First And Print Became The Revolution? A Mr. Magazine™ Musing…
What if I tell you that regardless of what area you're interested in, I can save you time, money, effort, energy, and provide you with all the information you want at your fingertips? What if I tell you that I can save you an entire week of Googling and digitally searching and sifting through all kinds of information to give you what you're looking for?
What if I tell you that there's an invention that will put all the information that you're looking for at your fingertips at a fraction of the cost that you would pay for an iPad or an iPhone or any other smart digital device?
What if I tell you that this invention needs no batteries, no electrical connections, no solar power; nothing whatsoever except your hands to activate its power? What if I tell you that this new device is portable; it will fit in your purse or your coat pocket and you can take it anywhere with you? You can engage with it without worrying about losing power or anything else.
What if I tell you that with this device you can mark it, clip it, tear it, read it and use it at your own pace? What if I tell you that this device is so innovative that it can surprise you with even more information than you originally wanted to know about? It will not only give you what you need and what you want, but also will give you things you didn't know you needed or wanted.
What if I tell you that once you engage with this device, you will have the time of your life because you'll lose yourself, you'll escape into a world that immerses you? There will be no popup moments; no uninvited content, everything in this device will be coherent and relevant, necessary and sufficient.
What if I tell you that this device will become a longtime friend, something that you have been anticipating forever? So enough with the What Ifs, I can tell you now that this device is already here and it's called a magazine? You can name the subject that you're interested in and you will find a title on that topic with this new device, this magazine. It will answer and provide everything you're looking for on that subject matter and so much more.
Is it a dream of the future? Lucky for you, no it's not. It's actually something current; something that is now and available. So what are you waiting for? Head to the newsstand, pick up a magazine, sit down and enjoy. Then let me know your thoughts on what if magazines were not invented until after the digital age…don't you think print would start a revolution?
Mr. Magazine™ sits, reading a magazine, and waiting on your response…
Until the next time…
The True Nature Of Magazines… A Mr. Magazine™ Musing…
Magazines are experience makers whether they were the ones published in 1938 like Ken above or the ones published in 2021. (Ken's complete first year is part of Mr. Magazine's™magazine collection).
The True Nature Of Magazines…
Digital delivers content; magazines deliver experiences.
In a nutshell, that's the premise of my blog today.
Magazines are more than content provider; they are experience makers.
No experience can be developed without repetition regardless of whether that repetition is weekly, monthly or even annually. Think of it as a weekday, a month, or a holiday.
Bookazines are not magazines yet they are invading the newsstands… they are paperbacks printed on better quality paper or as one publisher says, "they are the poor-man's hardback books." Bookazines do not provide repetition, and without repetition there is no habit creation, and without habit creation there is no engaging experiences and without engaging experiences readers never turn into customers, and without customers there is no marketplace.
Magazines have in them a built in expected pleasant surprise that is based on continuity and change. Readers/customers are always looking for that surprise in the midst of the familiarity of the nature of the magazine… they know there will be a diet article or a cooking feature, but the surprise is in what is the diet this time or what is the meal plan in this issue? An expected surprise…
As you know, it's my postulate, if it is not ink on paper; it is not a magazine. Magazines are in your face, no need to search for them or Google them. You can see them at the newsstands or you can invite them to your home. Like a trusted friend they will visit you issue in and issue out. There are no interruption or pop-up notifications, guaranteed.
Even the original definition of the word magazine (from the Arabic or French word Maghzen) means a place where goods and supplies are stored: a warehouse. The store rarely changes its physical appearance but always changes the goods inside the store. However, the goods are kept in areas where repeat customers can easily locate the goods they need. The same is true with the magazine. The readers can easily locate the regular departments, their favorite columnist, and always be surprised by the ever-changing yet constant themed content regardless of the subject matter.
In fact, some magazines are like an apartment building and others are like a mansion. One can actually count the apartments in the building or the rooms in the mansion. Everything is quantifiable. The size, the width, the depth, all the dimensions are there. You see the front door and you see the backdoor. You enter the first floor and you can move up to the top floor. It is one complete beautifully designed building or one gorgeous mansion. You move from floor to floor or from room to room without ever leaving the building or the mansion. Everything in it is connected like a perfectly done jigsaw puzzle, some are 100 pieces and others are 1,000 pieces. Digital is more like a maze. You enter at your own risk and you hope to find the right exit without being caught in its web (pun intended).
The content and the ads reside in the same real estate without feeling out of place. They complement each other to create one experience for the customer. Unlike digital, the ads in a magazine relate to the topic and nature of the magazine. Unlike digital, you will not find an ad about dog food in a food magazine or vice versa. The majority of the ads in magazines are endemic to the content of the magazine, and unlike digital the ads are not foreign to the contentmatter that one is reading on the digital devices. Ads in magazines are part of the experience; ads in digital are an eyesore. The ads on digital devices don't add anything to the experience or to the content matter. They are only after you and your data.
To put it bluntly, ads in magazines are like inviting friends and their friends to your house; ads in digital are like a thiefinvading your house when you least expect it.
And lest we forget, you can actually own the magazine, show the magazine, and display the magazine since it is a physical entity. As for digital, even if you pay for it, you own nothing, and you can show nothing, all what you've paid for is in a virtual world. The magazine is private and is yours. You can hide it or display it, you can toss it or collect it, and you can share it or recycle it. In short, it is yours and you can do whatever you want with it.
So, what are you still waiting for? Head to a newsstand or bookstore, pick up a magazine or two, and come back home and lose yourself in an experience any other medium can provide. Happy experience making…
President and CEO, Magazine Consulting & Research, Inc.
Posted in A Mr. Magazine™ Musing, Magazine Power, News and Views | Leave a Comment »
Music And Entertainment 1953 Style… The Magazines And I, Chapter 12, Part 2.
Music and Entertainment Magazines … is the 12th chapter from the serialized book I am writing on the magazines of 1953, specifically March 1953, the month I was born. This is chapter 12 part two. Feel free to back track for chapters one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten and eleven in previous blogs. Enjoy.
In March 1953 magazines that covered music and entertainment offered a great service to fans by providing current gossip of their favorite actors, singers, heartthrobs, many song lyrics and melodies, plus other pertinent information for people clamoring to be in-the-know.
We have to remember that at this time, television was still in its infancy, basically still a "talking piece of furniture" that many were trying to adjust to and get to know. And while TV Guide was published in April 1953, and was a very big title, it did have regional predecessors that covered the infant television scene before the launch of the national edition on April 3, 1953.
Music and entertainment magazines were the eyes and ears for fans, doing what the Internet and television does today for many people. In March 1953 there was a "channel" for every aspect of a fan's interest, from honing their own musicality by learning lyrics to their favorite songs to enhancing their knowledge of popular movies and their stars. Magazines were the Internet of the times once again…and March 1953 had some of the best.
Let's take a look, shall we?
MODERN SCREEN
For over 50 years, Modern Screen was an American fan magazine that featured articles, images and personal interviews with movie stars, and later on many television personalities. The magazine debuted in the fall of 1930 and was founded by Dell Publications. Soon it became the direct competition for Photoplay and was one of the most popular "screen" magazines around, boasting the tagline America's Greatest Movie Magazine.
The March 1953 issue was certainly eye-catching with the lovely Rita Hayworth on the cover. The Talk of Hollywood was older wives with younger husbands, so there was an article on that and a romantic love story about actress Ann Blyth and her one true love. It was a time of Hollywood magic and this issue glittered that starlit path splendidly.
MOTION PICTURE AND TELEVISION MAGAZINE
This title was a Fawcett Publication, which had a bevy of magazines, comic books and "Gold Medal" books, a line of paperback originals, which became a defining turning point in paperback publishing. Motion Picture And Television Magazine was an original movie fanzine full of gossip and romance for Hollywood fans of the '50s. The magazine promised to incorporate screen life, Hollywood and movie story magazines, which was actually its tagline.
The March 1953 issue had Janet Leigh on the cover (a very young Janet Leigh) and declared that there were things us fans didn't know about her personal life. Hmm… well of course, we just had to know. There were surprising true confessions of the stars – a very popular feature, I'm convinced. All in all, the magazine was another addition to satiate the cravings people had about Hollywood and all she entailed. It was a terrific read.
Movies magazine came from Ideal Publishing Corporation and Publisher William Cotton, who was known for his pulp magazines. Cotton was about building circulation and serving his demographic. He courted advertisers from a general perspective. He didn't expect Chanel or Cadillac to advertise with him, but the more down-market products were right there with him. And in turn, publishing pulp made Cotton a very wealthy man. From Hollywood to personal romances, William Cotton ran the gamut of titles.
The February/March issue of Movies featured the usual talk-of-the-town. Marilyn Monroe's Doctrine, an article by actor Robert Wagner and Debbie Reynolds, along with other scrapbook items for fans. The cover showcased the lovely Marilyn Monroe and offered her Secret Code for Life. You couldn't get more Hollywood than Marilyn.
MOVIELAND
Hillman Publications created this Hollywood monthly, competing directly with Bernarr Macfadden and Fawcett Publications. The magazine was another leg on the stool of celebrity entertainment, offering exclusive interviews, images and features.
The March 1953 edition had a magical picture of Doris Day on the cover in a pink chiffon dress that billowed out from her body as though in flight. One cover line beckoned for you to meet the new and sexy June Allyson and absorb five pages of Marilyn Monroe pin-ups.
MOVIE LIFE
Movie Life was published by Ideal and William Cotton, another Hollywood title so popular in those days. Celebrity magazines have always been big sellers and eye-catchers, so no wonder Cotton kept adding to his stable of titles. Movie Life was a magazine filled with great images of movie stars, such as Esther Williams and Tony Curtis. The life the stars lived was something we all wanted and what better way to get it than from the pages of a vivid magazine.
March 1953 saw Lana Turner on the cover with picture scoops of Esther Williams, Howard Keel, Debra Paget and Dale Robertson. Actress and singer Gail Davis showed us the make-up styles of the day and how to apply them properly and we could read all about life with Lana in the cover story. It was a nice addition to the genre.
MOVIE PIN-UPS
Here comes another Ideal Publishing title from Mr. Cotton. This one was filled with sexy Hollywood sirens, both male and female, in various modes of poses. All in perfect form to clip the pictures from the magazine and hang on your wall. This title was just another in a long list of pulp-type magazines that made a small fortune for William Cotton.
The March/April 1953 issue had a beautiful image of Arlen Dahl that fans were sure to love, along with pictures of Debra Paget, Virginia Mayo and many others. The images and the poses were very tastefully done and just beckoned to be clipped out and hung up. Great photography.
Posted in A Mr. Magazine™ Musing, From the Vault, Innovation in print, Magazine Power, News and Views, The Magazines And I Book | Leave a Comment »
The Past, The Present, And The Future: Everything Will Change Except The Experience And Ink On Paper…
In 2009 I was asked to write an article for the German magazine GIT VERLAG in celebration of their 40th anniversary. My article focused on magazines in 2049. Here is, for the first time, the English version of the article that appeared in the German magazine… Keep in mind this article was written in 2009 and is published here with no editing or changes. Hope you enjoy this journey through memory lane.
It's a daunting task to try and think about what the world of print will look like in 40 years. While trying to see the future of this industry I began to think back to 40 years ago and tried to imagine the changes I have seen happening all over again.
Forty years ago I was a teenager in Tripoli, Lebanon when I befriended the wholesaler for all of Tripoli. As a schoolboy I would go by his shop once a day in the morning before school. I would look at all the magazine's being distributed to shop owners and news- agents and admire the many magazines getting ready to leave the warehouse and head to the stands. Ultimately this would make me late for school. One day he decided to take pity on me and told me to come by the night before so that I wouldn't get in trouble at school for being late over and over again.
I was a kid in a candy store. Each week I would be able to see the magazines before anyone else in town, and my friend the wholesaler would even let me take copies home with me. I became his newsagent who will order only one copy of each magazine. The wholesaler allowing me early access to the day's publications was a part of the experience that those magazines created with me. The paper, the ink, the photos; all of it formed an interactive relationship with me that got me hooked and kept giving me reasons to return week after week after week.
Fast forward 40 years, I am in the United States sitting in my house in new home country, far away from my home in Lebanon, and reading a paper from Lebanon. Yes, reading the same paper published in Lebanon on the same day of publication. If you told me that 40 years ago, I would have laughed at you and accused you of being crazy. I never would have believed you. But today, with the eight-hour time difference I can sit at my computer in the evening and see the next day's newspaper from Lebanon before it hits newsstands over there. Once I download the paper, hit print, I know it will be sitting in the printer at my office the next morning. Whom are you calling crazy now?
Since I first picked up a copy of a Superman comic book when I was a boy and got hooked on ink on paper, I have always wanted to pick up a magazine to lose myself in its pages. No changes in technology can ever replace that. So instead of talking about technology and how it will change our industry over the next 40 years, editors and publishers need to continue to ask the question how can I provide quality content in my magazine, newsletter, newspaper or other publication for those readers who are looking for a complete experience without having to travel to another medium to get it all. We have to ask that question because each time our prospective customers pick up our product they ask themselves the exact same thing: what is in this for me?
All this is to say that while many things have changed in the last 40 years, and while many things will change over the next 40, the experience will always stay the same. Compared to when I was a teenager, printing quality is better, publications may be more specialized, magazine dimensions have greater range and marketing may be more exact and targeted, but I still go to magazines for the experience I can only have with ink on paper. The ONLY experience that I "lose myself" through it and in it.
And this is why I have created the Magazine Innovation Center. The sole purpose of this organization is to AMLIFY the future of print. We are not a dead medium with nothing to offer and we should stop bemoaning our own demise. We have become stagnant in an economy that calls for movement and change. It just takes the right thinking to get there. Because there will be changes. There is no way around it. Change is the only constant in our lives.
Progress will be made, but progress for the sake of progress moves us no closer to a better future. We are already seeing progress in the forms of smaller printers, more advanced office printers, virtual publications, immediate and instant delivery of printed products to your desktop and personal printer and even a drastic decline in waste in the printing and distribution world. With all of this our industry can stay current with technology and the like, but it still doesn't change the fact that we are based off of experiences our customers have with us, and when we lose sight of that we can't regain ground with gimmicks on the internet or special inks on our covers.
One of the biggest changes will be a change in our mentality about everything. We will change the way we think about how we do publications and how we conduct business. I have been saying for quite some time now that the way we do business is outdated and acting as an anchor for our industry. We cannot continue to give content away for a devalued price or for free while advertising reigns as the make or break factor in our publications. If we create good content, people will want to read it and also want to pay for it.
For the last 60 years in the United States of America we have relied on a publishing model that devalued subscribers and focused heavily on the customers supplying the advertising, but not the customers we were actually supposed to reach: the readers themselves.
I know it may be disappointing to some of you that my forecast for the next 40 years is based on the last 40 years, but would I have believed when I was walking to the wholesaler in Tripoli that 40 years later I would be reading magazines and newspapers from thousands of miles away in the exact same way today?
There are three things that the future will benefit from if we constantly consider. First, we must make sure we focus on the present. For all the talk about tomorrow and next year, there is no point planning for the future if we can't survive today.
Second, we must create the complete experience. As everything changes around us, our publications must provide a total package. We don't need to create something that relies on another medium to finish our job. Readers shouldn't have to go to another outlet or source to get the rest of our stories. Henry Luce recognized this 80 some years ago when he started Time magazine. With over 20 newspapers in New York City at the time, he saw that readers wanted a one-stop alternative to get their news in less time and less space.
Third, there will be more need to know our readers. With increased technology, it is becoming easier and easier to know more and more information about out readers. We have to start treating them like customers: know what they want, who they are, what the like to read and what they like to buy. The more we let technology help us learn about our readers, the better we can serve them as customers.
I know you expected me to write about the future and create a vision of the next 40 years, but as I have said before, there are only two people who can tell the future: God and a fool. I know I am not God, but if you want to read it, here is a future scenario of a fool. Everything I have written to this point I can guarantee, but feel free to read the rest at your own risk.
In 2049 I will receive a box in the mail. I place the box on my desk, open it and find a magazine called Samir's, the magazine about my lifestyle. The cover has a striking image of exactly what I am wearing except in a different color. It is trendy, hip and relevant. In big type below the title is a tagline that screams "The magazine you can read, listen to and watch." I open the cover and turn to the first of the 90 high quality glossy pages. As I open it I am greeted by a screen in the middle of the pages, a disposable screen with a menu that allows me to interact with the magazine in different ways unique to the articles I have flipped through. After I have read a great review about the latest Britney Spears Golden Oldies music collection, I have the option of bringing up the interactive screen to view videos from her years gone by. The paper provides me with the experience I have always loves and cherished. I am able to touch and feel the pages while the disposable, interactive screen hooks me with its multimedia experience. With all the benefits of this publication it still remains under 15 dollars ensuring that I won't feel guilty leaving the magazine behind somewhere after I have enjoyed it, exactly like a chocolate bar I am able to eat and leave the wrapper when I'm done. Inside the magazine are subscription offers for Samir's sister publication Elliott, the magazine for grandchildren
Time to wake up. Forty years from now I will be still reading the magazines the same way I read them today and the same way I read them 40 years ago. Others maybe engaged in other types of new media, but as for me the past, the present and the future are all summed in that wonderful "lose myself" experience while reading the printed magazine. You don't have to take my word for it, just see me 40 years from now and we will see if my present is still my future.
John Mack Carter: A Magazine Legend Remembered By His Daughter Jonna On The Women's Sit-In 51st Anniversary At Ladies' Home Journal…
John Mack Carter was not only a legendary editor with the distinction of editing all of the "Big Three" women's magazines of his time: McCall's, Ladies' Home Journal and Good Housekeeping, but he was also a mentor and a friend.
I first met him in the early 1980s when he came to the University of Missouri's School of Journalism School to speak to our class. It was a dream come true and the beginning of a lengthy mutual friendship and professional relationship.
March is Women's History Month, designated by a presidential proclamation to recognize the importance of the role of women in American history. In March 1970, an 11-hour sit-in happened in the Ladies' Home Journal office of John Mack Carter. It became a defining moment for him. He was always a man who believed in listening to the ideas of people, but on that day when a large group of women stormed his office and demanded he listen to them personally, he did just that. What started as a volatile protest turned into something different; it became a turning point for his thinking when it came to the role of women in society and especially in the world of magazines.
What follows is an essay written for Mr. Magazine™ blog and newsletter by his daughter Jonna Carter, who today is a writer and columnist at her local newspaper in New Hampshire. Jonna reflects on growing up in the 1960s and '70s as the daughter of a magazine editor for the top three women's magazines of the time. As her father helped to transform the world of women's magazines during the feminist era, Jonna longed to be a part of the movement and watched as her father basically changed history in women's service journalism.
On this anniversary, March 18, of the infamous Ladies' Home Journal sit-in, please enjoy the essay from John Mack Carter's daughter, Jonna Carter and relive a moment of pivotal history in women's magazines.
By Jonna Carter
Jonna Carter with her father the magazine legendary editor John Mack Carter (Photo courtesy of Jonna Carter)
March is Women's History Month, so designated since 1987 by Presidential proclamation to honor the role of women in American history. I've never paid much attention in the past, but this year I'm feeling especially reflective.
I have my own unique historical perspective growing up as I did during the second wave of feminism of the 1960s and 70s. Out of the social upheaval of the 1960s, i.e. the Civil Rights movement, the Vietnam War protests and the sexual revolution, evolved the women's liberation movement. Not only did I grow up during this pivotal era, I grew up in the thick of it with a father who was both a target and a champion of the women's movement.
My father was a women's magazine editor, and he moved his young family to New York where over the course of his editing career he would achieve an unprecedented trifecta as he took the helm first at McCall's, then Ladies' Home Journal, and lastly Good Housekeeping, the powerhouse women's magazines known in the publishing world as the "Big Three." In my father's 2014 New York Times obituary Leslie Kaufman wrote, "John Mack Carter, a Kentucky-born journalist…had the singular distinction of editing all of the so-called Big Three women's magazines and, in doing so, helped transform the genre during the feminist era."
At age 33 my father became the editor in chief of McCall's and began revamping its content from predominantly fluff pieces to more substantive articles about issues affecting women. This was 1961, two years before Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique sparked the women's liberation movement. In a 1963 New York Times interview he said, "Women's magazines were badly behind the times…They were failing to keep up with the rising educational levels in this country." I credit him with being cognizant, if not indoctrinated.
John Mack Carter and daughter Jonna (Photo courtesy Jonna Carter)
In the late 1960s the women's movement became organized and noisy, especially in New York City where radical feminist activists were attracting a great deal of attention as they strove to be heard and to effect societal changes through various avenues. The likes of Germaine Greer, Angela Davis, Bella Abzug, and the dynamic and glamorous Gloria Steinem, were all over television news and the front pages of the newspapers piled on our suburban kitchen counter. My father was acquainted at least peripherally with many of the heavy hitters, and he was paying close attention as women were integral to his livelihood. He had by this time transitioned to the Ladies' Home Journal.
I was living a cloistered suburban childhood, minutes from the very demonstrations demanding and creating change, and yet impossibly removed. I secretly longed to be if not Gloria Steinem, then recreated in her image. I was desperately shy and lacking in any degree of self-esteem, and to be possessed of the ferocity and determination, the overall confidence and composure of Gloria, was my dream. These women were absolutely consequential fighting for equality and eliminating hurdles in my future. I desperately wanted to be in the game and not merely a kid on the sidelines. Until it got personal. And scary.
In March 1970, in a demonstration designed to expose sexism and oppression in women's magazines, somewhere between one and two hundred feminist activists led by Susan Brownmiller, Ti-Grace Atkinson and Shulamith Firestone, stormed the editorial department of Ladies' Home Journal and held my father hostage during an 11-hour sit-in in his office. They were protesting the magazine's articles and columns, the role of women on the editorial staff, and advertising deemed offensive from companies profiting from the subservience and objectification of women. The protesters came armed with a list of demands, among them that editorial content be radically altered, that advertising be overhauled, that the magazine provide free daycare facilities on the premises, and that my father resign and be replaced by a woman. The demonstration was volatile, and negotiations in fits and starts continued into the night.
At home we were glued to the TV as the New York stations were broadcasting live footage and updates from his office. Overall things remained peaceful, but there were moments of physical aggression with protesters pushing their way onto his desk and helping themselves to his cigars. Shulamith Firestone actually lunged at him across the desk, but was blocked by her peers and talked down. At one point there was discussion by a few of the most extreme of throwing him out his fifth floor office window. Tensions were high in that office, and tensions were high in our home. Late that night when this exhausted man walked through our front door I wept with relief.
My father was a brilliant man, but there are many. The quality contributing to my father's unique success was that he was genuinely interested in people's ideas and he listened. On March 18, 1970, he listened. The sit-in had a profound impact on him, and he later credited it as a turning point in his thinking. He began to balance and expand content so as to span the gamut of women's concerns and choices, and he became a vocal advocate for women's issues such as sexual harassment, job discrimination and women's health. Ironically, the Ladies' Home Journal slogan was "Never Underestimate the Power of a Woman," and he did not.
The sit-in had been a defining moment for my father, and such was reflected in the coming years as it drastically altered his magazines, and others followed suit. Eventually he was wooed by Hearst to Good Housekeeping, and management knew and always appreciated their prize. What they got was not the young spitfire, but the seasoned and compassionate feminist who had embraced a movement and an era.
As the sit-in had been a defining moment for my father, so it had been for me as well. It altered and expanded his thinking, his relationships with women, and his relationship with me. John Mack Carter was a southern gentleman and would never be a radical activist, but he was a feminist to the core, and this is the torch he so proudly passed on to me.
I overheard my mother once tell my college age children that their mother was a "radical feminist." I smiled to think how proud that would have made my dad!
Posted in A Mr. Magazine™ Musing, Inside the Great Minds of Magazine Makers, Magazine Power, News and Views | 1 Comment »
It's A Birthday, It's An Anniversary, Magazine Celebrations Are Aplenty… A Mr. Magazine™ Musing.
Celebrating an anniversary or birthday in print is far different than celebrating one on television or online. How do you celebrate the 50th anniversary of a TV show? You may do a special TV program, one of those "now you see it, now you don't" reflections on past episodes. How do you celebrate the 10th anniversary of a website or an E-newsletter? Good question. Maybe with a podcast or special advertisements or even some birthday swag for loyal customers.
But when it comes to a magazine's anniversary or birthday (keeping in mind my definition of a magazine, "if it is not ink on paper, it is not a magazine," that celebration is reflected in the pages of the magazine. It's a physical celebration that you can feel and touch. It's an edition you can collect and show off; one that reverberates long after the actual date of the anniversary issue.
Since my last post about the life's blood of the magazine industry, the new launches, I thought it would be fun to celebrate some milestones within the world of print magazines. Have you ever asked yourself why we celebrate our birthdays every year? I believe it's reaffirmation that we are still above ground; still among the living.
And it's the same for magazines that are celebrating these days. Some of them are still living 200 years later like The Saturday Evening Post, some are celebrating a 175-year anniversary, such as Town & Country and Scientific American (which celebrated its 175th last year), and then a few just celebrated one year like Different Leaf, so regardless of the celebration, whether one year or 200 years, it's a frozen moment in time that only print can capture and that stays with you as a reminder no matter the circumstances. It's there to nudge you in the ribs with laughter or to simply say life is good and magazines are going strong. Either way, ink on paper is still a viable and relevant way to communicate with an audience.
And as you open the pages of those celebratory magazines, it's as though you are opening a birthday card or an anniversary wish. And during this pandemic that we all find ourselves coping with, celebrating a healthy and happy birthday or anniversary is much-needed.
So take a look at some of the magazines I picked up this week that are celebrating milestones in their printed lives. I guarantee you'll smile and recall a few memories you've shared with some of these titles. Along with the beautiful covers you see, there is also a quote or two from some of the editors and publishers as they offer up these anniversary issues. And as is the habit with magazines, there is a special connection with the reader in the editors' words, that engagement that beckons you to sit a while and relax. Get away from the screen and all the notifications that live in the digital world and just enjoy a respite in time and all the extra things these commemorative issues offer. And remember, whether it's 200 years or 63 years, every year counts when a magazine celebrates a happy and healthy anniversary. So enjoy and…
Welcome to the party!!
Archie – Celebrating 80 years
"For Archie's 80th anniversary, we welcome back an Archie tradition in 2021… The Editor's Notebook! This special feature is your monthly go-to spot to learn about cool behind-the-scenes info, enjoy great art, get sneak peeks at upcoming projects, read special interviews with the talent that make the stories you love, and even have a chance to meet super fans showcasing their Archie collections!" Mike Pellerito, Editor…
Sporting Classics – Celebrating 40 years
"It is hard to believe, but 2020 represented the end of our third decade of publishing Sporting Classics. It was a decade of challenge that became even more challenging as it sputtered into history. But Sporting Classics has done better than survive, done better than most small publishers. And as the giant hands of the universe's timepiece TikTok us into 2021, it it with great pride that we celebrate our 40th anniversary and look forward to the next 40." Duncan Grant, Publisher…
Tea Time – Celebrating its 100th issue
"As you picked up this issue, I hope you noticed something a little different about it. I hinted in our previous issue that there would be a "huge surprise" coming in this one. Not only is this our 100th regular issue, but it also has 100 pages. That isn't just to celebrate our centennial issue, though it certainly is serendipitous." Lorna Reeves, Editor…
Town & Country – Celebrating 175 years
"There are many things I miss about our offices on the 27th floor of Hearst Tower, and the T&C archive closet is high on the list. There, in bound volumes of varying condition, is the history of Town & Country, almost all of the 175 years of it. This issue is the first in a big anniversary year for us, and if we were back at the tower we would all be combing through those black-and-white photographs, studying how we wrote about the Spanish flu pandemic a century ago, marveling at those outrageously wonderful cover lines from the 1960s, looking for people we know in the wedding announcements." Stellene Volandes, Editor in Chief…
The Saturday Evening Post – Celebrating 200 years
"The Long and Winding Road. The Post celebrates its 200th birthday this year. When I mentioned that fact to a young person I know, he gasped, "That's like, really old, man!" As the most recent editor in this long history, I often feel equally amazed and honored to be part of this legacy. Over two centuries, the Post morphed from a four-page weekly newspaper into a full-color magazine, ultimately gaining a readership of six million at its peak, and becoming one of America's most popular and successful magazines ever published." Steven Slon, Editorial Director and Associate Publisher…
And now in alphabetical order – the complete list:
Atlanta – Celebrating 60 years
Different Leaf – Celebrating 1 year
Dogster – Celebrating 50 years
Kingdom – Celebrating its 50th issue
Marvel – Celebrating 80 years
Maui – Celebrating 25 years
Owl – Celebrating 45 years
Rock & Gem – Celebrating 50 years
Simply Pets – Celebrating 4 years
SkyNews – Celebrating 25 years
Sport Rocketry – Celebrating 63 years
Star Wars Insider – Celebrating its 200th issue
The Humanist – Celebrating 80 years
Vintage Guitar – Celebrating 35 years
Watch – Celebrating 15 years
These magnificent magazines with their longevity and relevance really drive home the point of how powerful print is when it comes to stamina and engagement with the reader. Celebrating these milestones is no small feat in this age of digital and instantaneous information. These are milestone commemorations, with many of the titles having been handed down through the generations.
And in this time of quarantines and social distancing and mask-wearing, the comfort these printed magazines can bring can't be lost on any of us.
See you at the newsstands…
In A Digital World, Magazine Covers Still Carry Tremendous Weight. My Column From Poynter.
From Vice President Kamala Harris' Vogue photos to former first lady Melania Trump's invisibility, the impact of magazine covers remains significant.
The following column appeared on The Poynter Institute website on Feb 1, 2021. Click here to see the original column.
Magazine covers from Vogue, Time and Der Spiegel that have captured the public's attention, despite the shift to a digital-first media world.
Magazine covers are in the news again. Vogue's cover of Vice President Kamala Harris is just the latest to capture widespread audience attention. It won't be the last. The power of the magazine cover in print has always been significant.
The editors I speak with regularly say that when politicians or celebrities are interviewed, they never fail to ask if they're cover material. They don't care about being featured on the web, on social media, on an app, on in any kind of digital space. All they care about is whether they will be on the cover of the printed magazine.
High-profile people, it's clear, know the power of the magazine cover.
The publisher of People en Español, Monique Manso, recently told me that the promise of a print cover was key to getting access to important people. "It's the print piece that makes them want to give that exclusive," she said.
The magazine's editor-in-chief, Armando Correa, described a celebrity exclusive where the person's child would be photographed publicly for the first time, but being on the printed cover of the magazine was a precondition.
But as I told Scarlet Fu on Bloomberg's Quicktake, the decision of what goes on the cover is still the editor's prerogative, though the audience may not like it.
Vogue's choice of cover photos for its February 2021 edition, with Harris wearing jeans and sneakers, was met by a tsunami of comments on social media accusing the magazine of "whitewashing" the vice president and showing disrespect for her by publishing such a casual, informal image.
In my interview with Fu, she asked why Vogue didn't do a split cover — publishing different covers for the same issue — with the vice president. (Her question came before Vogue announced it would print a limited edition split cover featuring another photo that they had previously slated only for digital.)
Split covers are not a novel idea. I have a collection of magazines dating back to 1963 with split covers. They were used to test different names, images, cover lines — you name it. In other cases, magazines produced multiple covers as collectible items. For example, TV Guide issued collectors' covers celebrating Star Trek's 35th anniversary.
In its heyday, Redbook would have different covers — one for subscribers and one for the newsstands. For the newsstand edition, people would get a cover line with the word "sex" in it. For subscribers, that word would be changed to "love." Same cover line, but different wording.
A newsstand edition of Redbook, left, and a subscriber edition, right.
Men's Health often did the same, highlighting sex and secrets for building abs on the single-copy sales covers.
A newsstand edition of Men's Health, left, and a subscriber edition, right.
The thinking in both cases was that the word "sex" would grab the attention of the newsstand buyers and lead them to pick up the magazine. That extra emphasis is not needed for subscribers, who already have a relationship with the magazines.
And the trend continues today. InStyle magazine is a perfect example. Look at its February issue — subscribers get one cover with minimal cover line treatment, a title that you can barely see, and a full-body shot of actress and director Regina King. Newsstands get another cover with a very large and bold cover line and a large, close-up shot of King.
A newsstand edition of InStyle, left, and a subscriber edition, right.
In January, InStyle featured former President Barack Obama on the subscriber cover, while the newsstand featured actress Jodie Comer.
But a new question may be emerging. Does there have to be another cover to tame the social media beast?
Look at former first lady Melania Trump, who certainly knows the power of the magazine cover as she was a professional model for many years. From Vogue to British GQ, Trump graced the covers of many top fashion magazines. But as first lady, she had no such exposure. In her four years in the White House not once did she pose for a cover. Many other first ladies were offered that cover privilege: Michelle Obama and Laura Bush, to name two, but not Trump.
Were editors making a political statement by ignoring her? Or were they afraid of the social media pushback the audience isn't shy to dole out?
The magazine cover is still a powerful tool. Just look at the Jan. 25 cover of The New Yorker, or the January cover of New York magazine.
Recent covers from The New Yorker, left, and New York Magazine, right.
Or compare the cover of Time magazine and its editorial statements. When they chose former President Donald Trump as Person of the Year in 2016, the cover line read "President of the Divided States of America." Yet when they chose President Joe Biden and Vice President Harris as the Person of the Year 2020, the cover line read "Changing America's Story."
Time Person of the Year covers featuring President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, left, the 2020 selection, and former President Donald Trump, right, the 2016 selection.
One wonders, is the country less divided today than it was four years ago?
Social media is now a battering ram that can force editors to change their minds and produce covers to placate those on social platforms. My question is, are those people commenting on social media actually customers of the magazine?
There is a danger that the power of editing may be surrendered to masses that are not reflective of the magazine audience at all. When everybody is an editor, nobody is an editor.
Posted in A Mr. Magazine™ Musing, Innovation in print, Magazine Power, News and Views | 1 Comment »
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