Inside Argosy

OK, so here's my first attempt at scanning: some pages from this September 1958 issue of Argosy.  This is one of a batch I bought cheaply on eBay a couple of years ago - vintage US magazines seem to have little market in the UK, so when they turn up they can often be obtained at reasonable cost.  Argosy was one of the first all fiction pulp magazines, but, as the market for pulps began to dry up, it changed format to become a sort of upmarket man's magazine, printed on slick paper. This issue is pretty typical of that format.

This is representative of the sort of ads you'd find in the magazine during this period, emphasising its attempts to appeal to the 'rugged' male demographic interested in hunting and fishing.  Indeed, the issue includes several shooting and fishing related articles.

But just in case your man wasn't the energetic outdoor type.you could also order some 'high potency capsules' to 'perk' him up.  Although, I have to say that sleeping all day Sunday is my idea of a good time these days, so maybe I'm the target demographic...

This is one of the cover stories - 'Missile With a Man in It' - which is about the then new Lockheed F104 Starfighter, which, at the time of its introduction was considered pretty cutting edge in terms of jet fighter design.  Over the years of its service with the USAF, Canadian air force, Italian Air Force and Luftwaffe, it earned another nickname - 'The Flying Coffin', due to its high loss rate. Apparently, it wasn't an easy aircraft to fly, particularly at low altitudes and low speeds, (the short wingspan being ab issue).  Nevertheless, it remained in service with the Italians until at least the 1980s, so it must have had some virtues.

 

This is one of the supposedly 'true' stories carried by men's magazines.  This one falls into the 'Red Scare' category, chronicling the supposed torture methods of Hungary's then Communist regime.  It is illustrated with one of the magnificent paintings used in this genre of magazine.  Unusually for an interior illustration, it is in full colour - a characteristic feature of Argosy during this period.

Now we have an example of the sort of 'shock expose' beloved of men's magazines, this one concerning 'problem drinking'.  Mind you having highlighted the rising tide of alcoholism in the US, Argosy was still happy to [lug booze with full page, full colour ads:

Seen from a modern perspective, the prevalence of ads for alcohol, cigarettes and guns in these old magazines seems quite startling, but back then it was the norm.  (Well, in the US - in the UK we had the booze and fags, but not the firearms).

Speaking of guns, here's Argosy's regular column on the subject, reviewing some of the latest releases.  I know this just shows my prejudices here, but doesn't the column's author's name - Jeb Cole - just scream hillbilly?  I mean, I know that I've obviously been watching the wrong sorts of movies set in the US backwoods, but that just sounds like the kind of guy you'd find sat in a rocking chair on his porch, cradling the shotgun he's just reviewed.  Anyway, time to wrap this up with a look at the back cover, an advertisment for, well, guns:

This is just a sampling of pages from the September 1958 Argosy, but hopefully they give a flavour of the publication.  Maybe I'll do this again in the foreseeable future.  We'll see.