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egory of the men's magazine. While the former mostly sold sex,
the latter sold everything else, from suits to sedans (with a little
many
sex left in just to be safe), and a lifestyle was born.
But lifestyles are like potato chips: it's hard to have just one.
This late-breaking fact has led to a decade-long surge in men's
magazine start-ups, most of which share the conviction that the
good life longed for by the modern male lies somewhere near the
rags, intersection of Christina Applegate and Sportscenter. The propor-
tions may vary, but the ingredients remain the same: Liberal por-
tions of ass and attitude, blended together and garnished with
ads hawking toys to men. Oh-and somewhere along the line,
rock-hard abs got thrown into the mix. Here, then, are a few of
so the more common recipes.
Maxim
Maxim's motto is "The Best Thing to Happen to Men since
Women," and we all know how well that worked out. According to
little Maxim, what men want are a) plots to extract revenge from boss-
es and co-workers, b) endless techniques for tricking women into
sleeping with them, c) new ways to get liquored up, and d) meth-
ods for meaningfully ranking the size of their penises among
those of the general population. In other words, Maxim may be
difference the most thoughtful men's magazine of all time.
Gear
Although the inaugural issue of Bob Guccione, Jr.'s new magazine
features a shout out to Playboy in the form of an interview with
founder Hugh Hefner- whom Junior credits with inventing the
"modern men's magazine"-don't be fooled. Gear is pure Esquire.