The American Society of Magazine Editors has named the Top Magazine Covers of the Last 40 Years. Coming in at #7 is my personal favorite of all time: National Lampoon's "Death" Issue from January 1973, better known by its simple but effective headline: "If You Don't Buy This Magazine, We'll Shoot This Dog." It's one of the greatest examples of copy EVER. It strikes fear, horror, paranoia ("how will..they KNOW whether I buy it or not...I don't underst..") and disgust at the same time (and, no, I am not advocating the harming of animals in any way). Ironically, no editor in the world would green light this cover today.
Here are some other picks from the fabulous 40. Some you may remember (John Lennon's last Rolling Stone cover [the last one featuring a new photo of him, anyway], Demi Moore's pregnant belly on Vanity Fair), and some you might not, like 90% of them (Man on The Moon? That made the cover of LIFE? I'm kidding). And, there seems to be a 2-way tie for 29th and 33rd place and a 5-way tie for 37th place. When there's a 5-way tie for 37th place, you know you're living in the age of mediocrity.
Enjoy:
1. Rolling Stone, Jan. 22, 1981, John Lennon and Yoko Ono.
2. Vanity Fair, August 1991, Demi Moore.
3. Esquire, April 1968, Muhammad Ali.
4. The New Yorker, March 29, 1976, Saul Steinberg drawing of Manhattan.
5. Esquire, May 1969, Andy Warhol.
6. The New Yorker, Sept. 24, 2001, Illustration of World Trade Center.
7. National Lampoon, January 1973, "If You Don't Buy This Magazine, We'll Kill This Dog."
8. Esquire, October 1966, "Oh my god -- we hit a little girl."
9. Harper's Bazaar, September 1992, "Enter the Era of Elegance."
10. National Geographic, June 1985, Afghan refugee.
11. Life, April 30, 1965, 18-week-old fetus.
12. Time, April 8, 1966, "Is God Dead?"
13. Life, Special Issue, 1969, man on the moon.
14. The New Yorker, Dec. 10, 2001, illustration of New York City map.
15. Harper's Bazaar, April 1965.
16. The Economist, Sept. 10-16, 1994, photo of camels, "The trouble With mergers."
17. Time, June 21, 1968, "The Gun in America."
18. ESPN, June 29, 1998, Michael Jordan.
19. Esquire, December 2000, Bill Clinton.
20. Blue, October 1997.
21. Life, Nov. 26, 1965, Vietcong prisoner with eyes and mouth taped.
22. George, October/November 1995, Cindy Crawford.
23. The Nation, Nov. 13, 2000, George W. Bush.
24. Interview, December 1972, Andy Warhol.
25. Time, Sept. 14, 2001, World Trade Center.
26. People, March 4, 1974, Mia Farrow.
27. Entertainment Weekly, May 2, 2003, The Dixie Chicks.
28. Life, April 16, 1965, dying pilot and helicopter crew chief.
29. (tie) Playboy, October 1971.
29. (tie) Fortune, Oct. 1, 2001, man covered in ashes near World Trade Center.
31. Newsweek, Nov. 20, 2000, image of Al Gore/George W. Bush.
32. Vogue, May 2004, Nicole Kidman.
33. (tie) Newsweek, July 30, 1973, Nixon White House and tape recorder
33. (tie) Wired, June 1997, "Pray."
35. New York, June 8, 1970, "Free Leonard Bernstein!"
36. People, Sept. 15, 1997, black-and-white portrait of Princess Diana.
37. (tie) Details, February 1989, Cyndi Lauper.
37. (tie) Fast Company, August/September 1997, "The Brand Called You."
37. (tie) Glamour, August 1968, Katiti Kironde II
37. (tie) National Geographic, October 1978, gorilla with camera.
37. (tie) Time, April 14, 1997, Ellen DeGeneres.
-Top Magazine Covers of the Last 40 Years [AP]
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