Typo-eliminated: The distributing Playboy, displaying Playboy and buying Playboy problems

[Brian Wallace]

I'm very sorry.  I rushed that email:

I agree with Peggy that these are some of the more
larger issues that the magazine and fans of the maga-
zine have to deal with.  I think that of those three
problems the hardest to overcome is the "stigma" of
BUYING Playboy and not being self-conscious about it. 
It would be nice if everyone could act as natural
buying a copy of Playboy as they do buy a copy of Time
or People, but that just isn't the case.

This will probably come out as sexist, but I think
that women view the purchasing of a copy of
Playboy (whether by a male or female) with a little
more derision than men view it.  I bet at least
some men feel a little more "funny" or embarrassed 
purchasing a copy from a woman than from a man.

The fact is that Playboy has been publishing photos
of nude or semi-nude women for almost fifty years.
I'll go out on a limb and say NO magazine provokes
a mental reaction (either positive or negative) more
than Playboy.  Even people who have never actually
looked at the magazine have some sort of impression of
it.("Time?"  "Ummm...politics, Man of the Year,
economy..." "People?"  "Oh...Oprah's new diet...best/
worst dressed..."  "Playboy?"  ...the floodgates
open.)

Which is both a huge advantage and a huge burden.
The problem is how to lift that burden or stigma.
When it was reported from another source that 
Christina Aguilera was James Kaminsky's "holy grail"
when it came to celebrities, I viewed it that MAYBE
Kaminsky wants Christina Aguilera to show that 
Playboy can be accepted among young females.  MAYBE
(I'm speculating here) he wants X-tina to show that
young women can view Playboy as an exciting vital,
"cool" magazine rather than something "gross".  I 
know of a lot of women who casually read Maxim as
a fun read.  I personally know of no women who
read Playboy for pleasure.

Well, I think commercials could be effective.  I'm
not sure how effective commercials for magazines are
in general (sort of like TV commercials for books) but
I guess you have to innovate to be successful.

My suggestion is maybe to do what Playboy does with
its Jazz festival.  Brand something that has NOTHING
to do with attractive semi-nude women.  Maybe another
magazine that's more of a Men's Health/New Yorker
hybrid.  Or maybe a Playboy published, more literate
sports magazine (like HBO's Real Sports but in a 
magazine).

Larry Flynt publishes a LOT of magazines that have
nothing to do with sex.  Skateboard magazines, womens'
magazines, etc.  If Playboy could do that but keep the
Playboy name on the cover in small print maybe that
could break some of the stigma.

Brian Wallace