Someone took the trouble to take a copy of the January 1967 issue of Playboy and to have it signed by contributors Ray Bradbury and Gahan Wilson (in 1996, at least for Bradbury). Today that interesting copy comes to market on AbeBooks, but alas with the centerfold missing. The darn thing must have fallen out.
There, that's so much more satisfying. But what of the missing centerfold? Is there any way for us to get to see that? Well, of course there is. Playboy centerfolds are easily searchable on the internet. (The cartoons, not so much. Go figure.) On inspection the centerfold photograph from January 1967 looks highly doctored—see the suspicious curtain edge, for example—not to mention anatomically improbable, does it not? Well, no wonder it was removed from this copy of the magazine!
You can still buy the book on Amazon, though, where it is cleverly cross-marketed with a banner ad for "Essential school supplies!"
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| Playboy, January 1967 "No CF." Caveat emptor. |
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| "When you're out of Schlitz, you're out of beer." Back cover advertisement |
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| "The Lost City of Mars" signed by Ray Bradbury on December 1, 1996 |
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| Tantalizing detail of published cartoon signed by Gahan Wilson but not dated |
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| Ray Bradbury and Gahan Wilson AbeBooks Listing Retrieved September 10, 2019 |
Well, that won't do. It's frustrating to glimpse just a fragment of a cartoon like that. Fortunately, we can get a better look at Gahan Wilson's full original artwork:
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| "You rang, sir?" Gahan Wilson Original art Playboy, January 1967 |
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| Gahan Wilson Swann Galleries June 5, 2018, Sale 2480, Illustration Art, Lot 221 |
There, that's so much more satisfying. But what of the missing centerfold? Is there any way for us to get to see that? Well, of course there is. Playboy centerfolds are easily searchable on the internet. (The cartoons, not so much. Go figure.) On inspection the centerfold photograph from January 1967 looks highly doctored—see the suspicious curtain edge, for example—not to mention anatomically improbable, does it not? Well, no wonder it was removed from this copy of the magazine!
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| Surrey Marshe Photo by Alexas Urba Playboy, January 1967 |
Surrey Marshe, Miss January, was born Solveig Mellomborgen in Norway. She is the author of The Girl in the Centerfold, published in 1969 to no particular acclaim. She is now 71 and no longer contributes to the literary scene.
You can still buy the book on Amazon, though, where it is cleverly cross-marketed with a banner ad for "Essential school supplies!"
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| https://www.amazon.com/girl-centerfold-uninhibited-memoirs-January/dp/B0007HGWFI |
Me, I'm waiting for the audiobook. Finally, for the benefit of those too young to remember the cultural importance of the Playboy centerfold in its heyday, this music video just may be of help:
"Centerfold"
J. Geils Band
Quick Links to the Attempted Bloggery Archives:
Ray Bradbury
Gahan Wilson
Playboy
Signed magazines
September 11
Attempted Bloggery's Staple-Free Index
03031
