Playboy Special Editions (formerly known as flats, then Newsstand Specials[1]) are a spin-off series of Playboy magazine devoted entirely to softcore nude photographs of the Playboy models that are found sporadically scattered in the monthly Playboy magazine.
Unlike the monthly magazine, which features a variety of articles, opinion columns, and works of fiction, the only texts found in the Special Editions are captions of the photographs and readers' letters. Approximately two issues are published each month. In addition, the models that appear in the Special Editions are not necessarily former Playmates of the Month, though such Playmates also appear in them.
Early issues, beginning in 1983, featured approximately 100 pages of old reprint and outtake photos of Playmates with no specially-commissioned photos. Issues from the early 1990s began to include a number of "one-shot" models purchased in bulk from glamour photographers. By the mid-1990s, Playboy had established a unique identity for the line by mixing new shots of recent Playmates with new models, some of whom soon became as popular as the Playmates themselves.
[edit] History
Playboy magazine began supplementing its monthly edition in the mid-1960s with irregularly-published special editions devoted to, for example, its cartoons or the Playboy Clubs. The first edition, The Best from Playboy in 1964, was nothing like the present-day specials. Its 120 pages contained a sixteen-page Jayne Mansfield pictorial, but was otherwise filled with articles, including the celebrated 1962 interview with Miles Davis. A 1972 Little Annie Fanny special is highly sought after by Harvey Kurtzman collectors.
In the 1970s, perhaps in conjunction with the appearance of Oui, the special editions would feature somewhat more explicit photography or situations than Playboy itself would run at the time. One release, 1976's Noelle, was quite notorious in its day for its racy content.
In 1984, Playboy published the first volume of its flagship Special Edition, Book of Lingerie, which featured 110 pages of photos of Playmates from the last decade (reprints and outtakes, with no specially-commissioned photos). The magazine sold extremely well, and a second edition, in 1987, proved the market was there for the Newsstand Specials, as they were formally called at this time, to begin a regular, formal sales cycle. Each Newsstand Special would have a two-month shelf life, with two titles published each month.
The greatly increased demand for new photos to fill the 24 editions published annually -- reprints from the early 1970s having little erotic value to readers twenty years later -- required Playboy to look further than their own archives to fill the page count. Newsstand Specials of the late 1980s and early 1990s would often feature previously unpublished outtakes from Playmate pictorials, but also a number of "one-shot" models, possibly posing under a pseudonym or unnamed entirely, bought in bulk from glamour photographers. Sometimes these would resurface in other magazines; outtakes from a 1992-93 shoot with a model named Simone Burkhard which first appeared in Playboy's Girls of Summer '93 were published in Perfect 10 some five years later.
By the mid-1990s, Playboy had formalized its model process to help give the Newsstand Specials their own unique identity. Commissioning regular shoots with Playmates from the last two or three years provided an ongoing source of new photos which increased the models' popularity and won them new fans, but the editions also found new talent popular enough to warrant multiple appearances. Models such as Alley Baggett, Patricia Ford and Sung Hi Lee rarely or never appeared in the monthly Playboy, but were featured in the Special Editions dozens of times.
By the end of the 1990s, the label Newsstand Special had been phased out in favor of Special Edition, and a host of regular publications had joined Book of Lingerie (renamed simply Lingerie) on the shelves. One edition each of Playmate Review, Nude Playmates and Girlfriends, among others, are published annually. College Girls is published three times a year.
By 2005, the Playmates had actually found themselves completely squeezed out of Lingerie. Its 100th edition was the first to feature no Playmates at all; Playboy has such a bank of available, popular models that it no longer needs the Playmates to sell some of its Special Editions.
Since the October/November 2008 issue of Lingerie, Playboy Special Edition switched its bookbinding process from perfect binding (flat format) to saddle-stitching (stapled format), thereby definitely abandoning the moniker flats[2]. Following negative feedback from readers, perfect binding was restored as from the March/April 2009 issues of Hot Housewives and Sexy Girls Next Door[3].
[edit] List of Special Editions
There are several long-running series of Special Editions, as well as short series and one-offs.
[edit] Book of Lingerie/Lingerie
Playboy Special Editions' most popular series is Lingerie (formerly known as Book of Lingerie), which is published on a bimonthly basis. The first issue was released as Book of Lingerie in 1984. It became bimonthly as from November 1988 and had its name changed to Lingerie as from September 2002.
[edit] Book of Lingerie
- Book of Lingerie 1984 (Covergirls: Joan Bennett & Cherie Estee)
- Book of Lingerie 1987 (Covergirl: Shannon Tweed)
- Book of Lingerie 1988 (Covergirl: Brandi Brandt)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1988 (Covergirl: Cher Butler)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1989 (Covergirl: Veronica Gamba)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1989 (Covergirl: Cynthia Kaye)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1989 (Covergirl: Teri Weigel)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1989 (Covergirl: Suzi Schott)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1989 (Covergirl: Eloise Broady)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1989 (Covergirl: Theresa Ann Presley)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1990 (Covergirl: Christina Herbert)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1990 (Covergirl: Tally Chanel)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1990 (Covergirl: Nia Breeon)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1990 (Covergirl: Lori Williamson)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1990 (Covergirl: Laurie Carr)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1990 (Covergirl: Erica Ringstrom)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1991 (Covergirl: Alicia Sanchez)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1991 (Covergirl: Kristine Rose)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1991 (Covergirl: Laura Richmond)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1991 (Covergirl: Michele Smith)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1991 (Covergirl: Lorissa McComas)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1991 (Covergirl: Michelle O'Malley)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1992 (Covergirl: Tera Tabrizi)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1992 (Covergirl: Cindy Margolis)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1992 (Covergirl: Tamika Sherman)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1992 (Covergirl: Heidi Staley)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1992 (Covergirl: Monique Biffignani)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1992 (Covergirl: Christine Cote)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1993 (Covergirls: Jody Hoskins & Kerri Hoskins)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1993 (Covergirl: Margie Murphey)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1993 (Covergirl: Patricia Ford)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1993 (Covergirl: Neriah Davis)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1993 (Covergirl: Samantha Dorman)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1993 (Covergirl: Cheryl Bachman)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1994 (Covergirl: Park Morgan)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1994 (Covergirl: Sue Ethridge)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1994 (Covergirl: Deborah Driggs)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1994 (Covergirl: Suzi Simpson)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1994 (Covergirl: Kimberly Donley)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1994 (Covergirl: Leeann Tweeden)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1995 (Covergirl: Tonya Offer)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1995 (Covergirl: Lisa Boyle)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1995 (Covergirl: Rachel Jeán Marteen)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1995 (Covergirl: Jenny McCarthy)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1995 (Covergirl: Lexie)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1995 (Covergirl: Chloe Jones)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1996 (Covergirls: Tonya Offer, Petra Verkaik, Barbara Moore, Kerri Kendall, Patricia Ford & Lisa Boyle)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1996 (Covergirl: Alley Baggett)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1996 (Covergirl: 1996 Reader's Choice Supermodel Patricia Ford)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1996 (50th issue: cover consists of 25 past covers)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1996 (Covergirl: Sung Hi Lee)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1996 (Covergirl: Claire Louise Hickory)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1997 (Covergirls: Camille Donatacci, Shae Marks, Patricia Ford, Chrissy Ranay, Alley Baggett & Lisa Boyle)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1997 (Covergirl: Lisa Boyle)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1997 (Covergirl: Heather Kozar)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1997 (Covergirl: 1997 Model of the Year Petra Verkaik)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1997 (Covergirl: Shauna Sand)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1997 (Covergirl: Holly Witt)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1998 (Covergirls: Priscilla Taylor, Karin Taylor, Anna Rose Chang, Maria Checa, Petra Verkaik & Alley Baggett)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1998 (Covergirl: Bethany Lorraine)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1998 (Covergirl: Stefanie Hastings)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1998 (Covergirl: 1998 Model of the Year Alley Baggett)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1998 (Covergirl: Christi Taylor)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1998 (Covergirl: Lynn Thomas)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 1999 (Covergirls: Karin Taylor, Victoria Zdrok, Alesha Oreskovich, Brooke Richards, Lisa Marie Scott & Alley Baggett)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 1999 (Covergirl: Katalina Verdin)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 1999 (Covergirl: Victoria Silvstedt)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 1999 (Covergirl: 1999 Model of the Year Christi Taylor)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 1999 (Covergirl: Tiffany Taylor)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 1999 (Covergirl: Angela Little)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 2000 (Covergirls: Katalina Verdin, Amy Miller, Joy Behrman, Julia Brox, Kelly Monaco & Alley Baggett)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 2000 (Covergirl: Samantha Speer)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 2000 (Covergirl: Natasha Podkuyko)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 2000 (Covergirl: 2000 Model of the Year Alley Baggett)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 2000 (Covergirl: Brooke Richards)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 2000 (Covergirl: Amy Russo)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 2001 (Covergirls: Katalina Verdin, Alley Baggett, Joy Behrman, Sydney Moon, Sung Hi Lee & Laurie Wallace)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 2001 (Covergirl: Melissa Arnold)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 2001 (Covergirl: Quinn Koloski)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 2001 (Covergirl: 2001 Model of the Year Heather Christensen)
- Book of Lingerie September/October 2001 (Covergirl: Stephanie Wood)
- Book of Lingerie November/December 2001 (Covergirl: Merritt Cabal)
- Book of Lingerie January/February 2002 (Covergirls: Amy Miller, Madison Marie, Joy Behrman, Heather Christensen & Sandra Westgate)
- Book of Lingerie March/April 2002 (Covergirl: Angel Anderson)
- Book of Lingerie May/June 2002 (Covergirl: Nancy Erminia)
- Book of Lingerie July/August 2002 (Covergirl: 2002 Model of the Year Amy Miller)
[edit] Lingerie
[edit] Playmates
First Playmate Review issue in 1985 featuring Playmate of the Year
Karen Velez [edit] Calendar Playmates
[edit] Celebrating Centerfolds
[edit] Centerfolds of the Century
[edit] Classic Centerfolds
[edit] Facts & Figures
[edit] International Playmates
[edit] Nude Playmates
[edit] Playmate Review
As its name implies, this series features only the Playmates of the month who appeared in the 12 Playboy magazine issues during the past year. The cover of the issue depicts the playmate who is the current Playmate of the year.
[edit] Playmate Tests
[edit] Playmates
- Playmates - The First 15 Years 1983
- Playmates - The Second 15 Years 1984
[edit] Playmates at Play
[edit] Playmates in Bed
[edit] Playmates in Paradise
[edit] Playmates in the Spotlight
[edit] Playmates of the Year
[edit] Pocket Playmates
- Pocket Playmates No. 1 May 1995
- Pocket Playmates No. 2 November 1995
- Pocket Playmates No. 3 March 1996
- Pocket Playmates No. 4 May 1996
- Pocket Playmates No. 5 August 1996
- Pocket Playmates No. 6 February 1997
[edit] Sexiest Playmates
[edit] Twenty-One Playmates
- Twenty-One Playmates Vol.1 1996
- Twenty-One Playmates Vol.2 1997
[edit] Video Playmates
[edit] Wet & Wild Playmates
[edit] College Girls
The models featured in this series are usually selected from the student population of American colleges and universities.
At first, the magazine was published only in the fall to roughly coincide with the beginning of the school year. Each year, the magazine includes a feature on students of an athletic conference, usually from a BCS conference. For instance, the 1997 issue (pictured) featured the Big 12 but also students from other schools.
The 2006 issue caused some controversy at Baylor University, which has a religious affiliation. Baylor declared that associating with the magazine would be a violation of the school's code of conduct.[4]
[edit] College Girls
[edit] Voluptuous Vixens/Vixens
The Voluptuous Vixens / Vixens series features models with prodigious breasts.
[edit] Voluptuous Vixens
[edit] Vixens
[edit] World Wide Nudes
[edit] Features
[edit] Bathing Beauties
[edit] Big Boobs & Hot Buns
[edit] Blondes, Brunettes & Redheads
- Blondes, Brunettes & Redheads 1985 (Covergirls: Penny Baker, Devin DeVasquez & Denise Schwartzlow)
- Blondes, Brunettes & Redheads 1990 (Covergirls: Brandi Brandt, Sandra Wild & Debi Nicolle Johnson)
- Blondes, Brunettes & Redheads 1993 (Covergirls: Suzi Simpson, Renee Tenison & Carol Ficatier)
- Blondes, Brunettes & Redheads 1997 (Covergirls: Anji Evans, Lisa Borghese & Tina Johnston)
- Blondes, Brunettes & Redheads 2002 (Covergirls: Amy Miller, Kelly Monaco & Heather Christensen)
- Blondes, Brunettes & Redheads 2003 (Covergirls: Heather Duval, Erin Connor & Kelly Hargraves)
- Blondes, Brunettes & Redheads June/July 2007 (Covergirl: Nichole Jackson)
[edit] Casting Calls
[edit] Cover Girls
[edit] Exotic Beauties
[edit] Fantasies (For Men and Women)
- Fantasies (For Men and Women) Winter 1991
- Fantasies (For Men and Women) Spring 1991
[edit] Fresh Faces
[edit] Girlfriends/Girls with Girls
[edit] Girls of Summer
[edit] Girls of Winter/Winter Girls
[edit] HardBodies
[edit] Hot Housewives
[edit] Hot Shots
[edit] Natural Beauties
This series features "natural" models in a tacit acknowledgement that some models are unnatural (i.e. have breast implants and other cosmetic surgery).
[edit] Nude Celebrities/Sexy Celebrities
[edit] Playmate Search
[edit] Real Sex
[edit] Sexy 100
[edit] Sexy Girls Next Door
[edit] Sisters
[edit] Supermodels
[edit] The Year in Sex
[edit] Wet & Wild Women/Wet & Wild
[edit] Women of the World/Girls of the World/Sexy Girls of the World
[edit] Working Women
- Working Women 1984 (Covergirls unknown)
- Working Women 1988 (Covergirl: Cynthia Kaye)
[edit] 'One-shots'
First Playboy Special Edition issue in 1983: Bunnies #3
There is a variety of Special Editions that are only single issues.
[edit] 'Personalities'
[edit] List of Playboy Supplements
[edit] The Playboy Cartoon Album
- The Playboy Cartoon Album 1 1963 (Contains cartoons only)
- The Playboy Cartoon Album 2 1965 (Contains cartoons only)
- The Playboy Cartoon Album 3 1969 (Contains cartoons only)
- The Playboy Cartoon Album 4 1971 (Contains cartoons only)
- The Playboy Cartoon Album 5 1972 (Contains cartoons only)
- The Playboy Cartoon Album 6 1973 (Contains cartoons only)
- The Playboy Cartoon Album 7 1980 (Contains cartoons only)
[edit] The Best from Playboy
- The Best from Playboy 1964 (Cover consists of 6 Playboy magazine covers)
- The Best from Playboy 1968 (Cover consists of 6 Playboy magazine covers)
- The Best from Playboy 1969 (Cover consists of 6 Playboy magazine covers)
- The Best from Playboy 1970 (Cover consists of 6 Playboy magazine covers)
- The Best from Playboy 1971 (Cover consists of 6 Playboy magazine covers)
- The Best from Playboy 1972 (Cover consists of 6 Playboy magazine covers)
- The Best from Playboy 1973 (Cover consists of 6 Playboy magazine covers)
- The Best from Playboy (First Printing) 1975 (Cover consists of 6 Playboy magazine covers)
- The Best from Playboy (Second Printing) 1975 (Covergirl unknown)
- The Best from Playboy 1982 (Cover consists of 6 Playboy magazine covers)
- The Best from Playboy 1983 (Cover consists of 6 Playboy magazine covers)
[edit] Playboy's Holiday Album
- Playboy's Holiday Album 1970 (Covergirl: Gwen Wong)
- Playboy's Holiday Album 1971 (Covergirl: Shay Knuth)
[edit] Playboy's Girls of the World
[edit] Playboy Bunnies
[edit] The Girls of Playboy
- The Girls of Playboy (First Printing) 1973 (Covergirl: Barbi Benton)
- The Girls of Playboy (Second Printing) 1975 (Covergirl: Liv Lindeland)
- The Girls of Playboy (Third Printing) 1978 (Covergirl: Claudia Jennings)
- The Girls of Playboy 2 (First Printing) 1974 (Covergirl: Marilyn Cole)
- The Girls of Playboy 2 (Second Printing) Unknown (Covergirl: Christine Maddox)
- The Girls of Playboy 2 (Third Printing) 1978 (Covergirl: Miki Garcia)
- The Girls of Playboy 3 (First Printing) 1978 (Covergirl: Daina House)
- The Girls of Playboy 3 (Second Printing) Unknown (Covergirl: Daina House)
- The Girls of Playboy 4 (First Printing) 1980 (Covergirl: Debra Jo Fondren)
- The Girls of Playboy 4 (Second Printing) 1982 (Covergirl: Debra Jo Fondren)
- The Girls of Playboy 5 1982 (Covergirl: Jeana Tomasino)
[edit] Eve Today
[edit] Playboy's New Holiday Album
[edit] Ecstasy
- Ecstasy (Book One: Women's Sexual Fantasies) 1976 (Covergirl unknown)
- Ecstasy (Book Two: Men's Sexual Fantasies) 1976 (Covergirl unknown)
[edit] Sexy Ladies/More Sexy Ladies
- Sexy Ladies 1977 (Covergirl unknown)
- More Sexy Ladies 1978 (Covergirl unknown)
[edit] Fashion For Men
- Fashion For Men Spring/Summer 1981 (Covergirl unknown)
- Fashion For Men Fall/Winter 1981 (Covergirl: Karen Howard)
- Fashion For Men Spring/Summer 1982 (Covergirl: Tina Turner)
- Fashion For Men Fall/Winter 1982 (Covergirl: Raquel Welch)
- Fashion For Men Spring 1983 (Covergirl: Christie Brinkley)
[edit] 'One-shots'
- Pl*yb*y (Harvard Lampoon Parody) 1966 (Covergirl unknown)
- Playboy's John Dempsey 1970 (See: John Dempsey; contains cartoons only)
- The Sexual Revolution 1970 (Covergirl unknown)
- The Youth Culture 1971 (Covergirl unknown)
- Playboy's Phil Interlandi 1971 (See: Phil Interlandi; contains cartoons only)
- Playboy's Little Annie Fanny 1972 (See: Little Annie Fanny; contains cartoons only)
- Playboy's Alden Erikson 1972 (See: Alden Erikson; contains cartoons only)
- Playboy's Vargas Girls 1972 (See: Alberto Vargas)
- Mirror of Venus 1972 (Covergirl unknown)
- The Sensuous Society 1973 (Covergirl unknown)
- Women by 10 1973 (Covergirl unknown)
- Playboy's Gahan Wilson 1973 (See: Gahan Wilson; contains cartoons only)
- The Pocket Playboy #1 1973 (Covergirl: Paulette Lindberg)
- Love Games 1975 (Covergirl unknown)
- Deborah's Dreams (A Victorian Fantasy) 1976 (Covergirl unknown)
- Love Scenes 1976 (Covergirl unknown)
- Noelle (and the twelve nights of Christmas) 1976 (Covergirl: Noelle)
- Playboy's Buck Brown 1981 (See: Buck Brown; contains cartoons only)
- Leading Ladies 1981 (Covergirl: Bo Derek)
- Dreams (Richard Fegley) 1982 (Covergirl unknown)
- Playbore 1983 (Covergirl: Barbi Benton)
[edit] References
- ^ a b Playboy Special Editions FAQ
- ^ Playboy Mailing List@Yahoo! Groups: Staples are back (Warning: Age-Restricted Area)
- ^ Playboy Special Editions MySpace Blog
- ^ "Playboy back at Baylor". Waco Tribune. April 21, 2001. http://www.uh.edu/ednews/2006/waco/200604/20060421playboy.html. Retrieved 2007-01-26.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links