Playgirl magazine

Playgirl Magazine is a monthly magazine which features adult content and photographs of naked men. Published in the United States, it is marketed predominantly to heterosexual women but has gained a strong gay following as well. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playgirl Although it is known as the most predominant women’s magazine featuring naked men, it was not the first to show an undressed male figure in publication. Cosmopolitan was the first magazine to publish a naked man as a centerfold. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_g1epc/is_tov/ai_2419100965/ Playgirl has become similar to the contents of Playboy Magazine, but geared towards women. It features naked men in every issue and has a variety of articles which include general interest, lifestyle, and celebrity news.

Playgirl was founded in June 1973 when the first issue was published. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playgirl The magazine was produced at the height of the feminist movement when women were fighting for equal rights and the removal of double standards. As women looked at erotic men’s magazines such as Playboy and Penthouse, they sought to discover a platform to express their own sexuality and desires. They found that desire met with the publication of Playgirl.

Playgirl is published by a New York company called Blue Horizon Media which also publishes High Society, Hawk, and other pornographic magazines. This is a recent publishing change, as the magazine was previously published by Drake Publishers. In 2000 Drake Publishers was charged by the Federal Trade Commission with over $180 million dollars of online credit card fraud. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playgirl Much of the fraud was conducted on the Playgirl website. As a result, Playgirl was prohibited from conducting any business on the web for five years. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playgirl

In August 2008, Playgirl announced that it would cease publication in print and operate online. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playgirl Between March 2009 and February 2010, Playgirl was only available online. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playgirl However, March 2010 marked a return of Playgirl as a print magazine.