Editing Playboy (section)

==Publication history==

===1950s===
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Pb1253.jpg|thumb|The [[Cover art|front cover]] of the first issue of ''Playboy'', featuring [[Marilyn Monroe]], December 1953]] -->
By spring 1953, Hugh Hefner—a 1949 [[University of Illinois]] psychology graduate who had worked in Chicago for ''[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]'' magazine writing promotional copy; Publisher's Development Corporation in sales and marketing; and ''Children's Activities'' magazine as circulation promotions manager<ref name=sumner134 />—had planned out the elements of his magazine, that he would call ''Stag Party''.<ref name=watts62>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m5b_eM3twmEC&q=stag+magazine&pg=PA62 |title=Mr Playboy: Hugh Hefner and the American Dream |author=Steven Watts |page=24 |date=March 23, 2009 |publisher=Wiley |access-date=February 14, 2016|isbn=9780470501375 }}</ref> He formed HMH Publishing Corporation, and recruited his friend Eldon Sellers to find investors.<ref name=watts62 /> Hefner eventually raised just over $8,000, including from his brother and mother.<ref name=watts63>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m5b_eM3twmEC&q=stag+magazine&pg=PA63 |title=Mr Playboy: Hugh Hefner and the American Dream |author=Steven Watts |page=24 |date=March 23, 2009 |publisher=Wiley |access-date=February 14, 2016|isbn=9780470501375 }}</ref> However, the publisher of an unrelated [[men's adventure]] magazine, ''[[Stag (magazine)|Stag]]'', contacted Hefner and informed him it would file suit to protect their trademark if he were to launch his magazine with that name.<ref name=sumner134>{{cite book|title=The Magazine Century: American Magazines Since 1900|first=David E. |last=Sumner|publisher=Peter Lang Publishing|year= 2010|isbn=978-1-4331-0493-0|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J7g9PgL_No0C&q=stag+magazine&pg=PA134|page=134|access-date=February 14, 2016}}</ref><ref name=watts64>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m5b_eM3twmEC&q=stag+magazine&pg=PA64 |title=Mr Playboy: Hugh Hefner and the American Dream |author=Steven Watts |page=64 |date=March 23, 2009 |publisher=Wiley |access-date=February 14, 2016|isbn=9780470501375 }}</ref> Hefner, his wife Millie, and Sellers met to seek a new name, considering "Top Hat", "Gentleman", "Sir'", "Satyr", "Pan", and "Bachelor" before Sellers suggested "Playboy".<ref name=watts64 /><ref>Golden Dreams The Birth of Playboy by Hugh M. Hefner, page 265, ''Playboy'', January 1994</ref>

Published in December 1953, the first issue was undated, as Hefner was unsure there would be a second. He produced it in his [[Hyde Park, Chicago|Hyde Park]] kitchen. The first centerfold was [[Marilyn Monroe]], although the picture used initially was taken for a calendar rather than for ''Playboy''.<ref>Summers, p. 59.</ref> Hefner chose what he deemed the "sexiest" image, a previously unused [[nude study]] of Monroe stretched with an upraised arm on a red velvet background with closed eyes and mouth open.<ref>{{cite book |last=Harding |first=Les |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rvwH7euUccIC&q=playboy&pg=PA75 |page=75 |title=They Knew Marilyn Monroe: Famous Persons in the Life of the Hollywood Icon |isbn=9780786490141 |date=August 23, 2012 |publisher=McFarland}}</ref> The heavy promotion centered on Monroe's nudity on the already-famous calendar, together with the teasers in marketing, made the new ''Playboy'' magazine a success.<ref>{{cite book |last=Gunelius |first=Susan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xL0cGu1ISVEC&q=marilyn+playboy&pg=PA16 |page=16 |title=Building Brand Value the Playboy Way |isbn=9780230239586 |date=September 16, 2009 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan}}{{dead link|date=February 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Jensen |first=Gordon |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7SUqJZXVWLsC&q=marilyn+playboy&pg=PA157 |page=157 |title=Marilyn: A Great Woman's Struggles: Who Killed Her and Why |isbn=9781477141502 |date=July 2012 |publisher=Xlibris Corporation}}</ref>
The first issue sold out in weeks. Known circulation was 53,991.<ref>''Playboy Collector's Association Playboy Magazine Price Guide''</ref> The cover price was 50¢. Copies of the first issue in mint to near-mint condition sold for over $5,000 in 2002.<ref>{{cite web|date=2018-11-05|title=Hugh Hefner's Personal Copy of Playboy #1 Can Be Yours|url=https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/562804/hugh-hefner-personal-playboy-marilyn-monroe-hits-auction-block|access-date=2021-04-25|website=www.mentalfloss.com}}</ref>

The novel ''[[Fahrenheit 451]]'', by [[Ray Bradbury]], was published in 1953 and [[Serial (literature)|serialized]] in the March, April and May 1954 issues of ''Playboy''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2015/10/13/yes-people-did-buy-playboy-articles/73890020/|title=Yes, people DID buy 'Playboy' for the articles|work=USA TODAY|access-date=September 12, 2017}}</ref>

An [[urban legend]] started about Hefner and the [[Playboy Playmate|Playmate of the Month]] because of markings on the front covers of the magazine. From 1955 to 1979 (except for a six-month gap in 1976), the "P" in ''Playboy'' had stars printed in or around the letter. [[Urban legend]] stated that this was either a rating that Hefner gave to the Playmate according to how attractive she was, the number of times that Hefner had slept with her, or how good she was in bed. In truth, stars, between zero and 12, indicated the domestic or international advertising region for that printing.<ref name=snopes>{{cite web |title=Stars Upon Thars |url=http://www.snopes.com/risque/celebrities/hefner.asp |website=Snopes.com |date=June 22, 2006 |access-date=May 20, 2009}}</ref>

===1960s–1990s===
[[File:Playboy Staff in 1970.jpg|thumb|right|The editorial board of ''Playboy'' in 1970. Back, left to right: [[Robie Macauley]], Nat Lehrman, Richard M. Koff, Murray Fisher, Arthur Kretchmer; front: Sheldon Wax, Auguste Comte Spectorsky, Jack Kessie.]]
In the 1960s, the magazine added "The Playboy Philosophy" column. Early topics included gay rights,<ref name="sixties"/> women's rights, censorship, and the First Amendment.<ref name="sixties">{{cite news |last1=Batura |first1=Amber |title=Opinion {{!}} How Hugh Hefner Invented the Modern Man |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/28/opinion/hugh-hefner-playboy.html |work=The New York Times |date=28 September 2017}}</ref> ''Playboy'' was an early proponent of cannabis reform and provided founding support to the [[National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws]] in 1970.{{cn|date=April 2025}}

From 1966 to 1976, [[Robie Macauley]] was the fiction editor at ''Playboy''. During this period the magazine published fiction by [[Saul Bellow]], [[Seán Ó Faoláin]], [[John Updike]], [[James Dickey]], [[John Cheever]], [[Doris Lessing]], [[Joyce Carol Oates]], [[Vladimir Nabokov]], [[Michael Crichton]], [[John le Carré]], [[Irwin Shaw]], [[Jean Shepherd]], [[Arthur Koestler]], [[Isaac Bashevis Singer]], [[Bernard Malamud]], [[John Irving]], [[Anne Sexton]], [[Nadine Gordimer]], [[Kurt Vonnegut]] and [[J. P. Donleavy]], as well as poetry by [[Yevgeny Yevtushenko]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.webdelsol.com/AGNI/ag-08tk.htm |title=Kennedy, Thomas E., "A Last Conversation with Robie Macauley", ''Agnii'', Vol. 45, 1997 |publisher=Webdelsol.com |access-date=December 7, 2011}}</ref>

In 1968, at the feminist [[Miss America protest]], symbolically feminine products were thrown into a "Freedom Trash Can". These included copies of ''Playboy'' and ''[[Cosmopolitan (magazine)|Cosmopolitan]]'' magazines.<ref name=Greenfieldboyce>{{cite web|last=Greenfieldboyce|first=Nell|title=Pageant Protest Sparked Bra-Burning Myth|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=94240375&from=mobile|publisher=NPR|access-date=February 6, 2012|date=September 5, 2008}}</ref> One of the key pamphlets produced by the protesters was "No More Miss America!", by [[Robin Morgan]], which listed ten characteristics of the Miss America pageant that the authors believed degraded women;<ref name="modern">{{cite web|url=http://www.feministezine.com/feminist/modern/No-More-Ms-America.html |title=No More Miss America! |publisher=The Feminist eZine |access-date=February 8, 2012}}</ref> it compared the pageant to ''Playboy''{{'}}s centerfold as sisters under the skin, describing this as "The Unbeatable [[Madonna–whore complex|Madonna–Whore]] Combination".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.redstockings.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=65&Itemid=103 |title=No More Miss America! |publisher=Redstockings.org |date=August 22, 1968 |access-date=May 24, 2018}}</ref>

Macauley contributed all of the popular ''Ribald Classics'' series published between January 1978 and March 1984.{{Citation needed|date=September 2017}}

After reaching its peak in the 1970s, ''Playboy'' saw a decline in circulation and cultural relevance due to competition in the field it founded—first from ''[[Penthouse (magazine)|Penthouse]]'', then from ''[[Oui (magazine)|Oui]]'' (which was published as a spin-off of ''Playboy'') and ''[[Gallery (magazine)|Gallery]]'' in the 1970s; later from pornographic [[Videotape|videos]]; and more recently from [[lad mags]] such as ''[[Maxim (magazine)|Maxim]]'', ''[[FHM]]'', and ''[[Stuff (magazine)|Stuff]]''. In response, ''Playboy'' attempted to re-assert its hold on the 18–35-year-old male demographic through slight changes to the content and focusing on issues and personalities more appropriate to its audience—such as hip-hop artists being featured in the "''Playboy'' Interview".<ref>{{cite web|last=Rosenstiel|first=Thomas B.|date=1986-08-25|title=Magazines in Decline : Sex Losing Its Appeal for Playboy|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-08-25-mn-16028-story.html|access-date=2021-04-25|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US}}</ref> In February 1974, [[Ratna Assan]] became the first women of Indonesian descent to be featured, shortly after a positively received role in the film ''[[Papillon (1973 film)|Papillon]]'' (1973).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bhawono |first=Aryo |title=Ratna Assan, Perempuan Indonesia Pertama di Majalah Playboy |url=https://news.detik.com/berita/d-3664236/ratna-assan-perempuan-indonesia-pertama-di-majalah-playboy |access-date=2023-12-03 |website=detiknews |language=id-ID}}</ref>

[[Christie Hefner]], daughter of founder Hugh Hefner, joined ''Playboy'' in 1975 and became head of the company in 1988. She announced in December 2008 that she would be stepping down from leading the company, effective in January 2009. She said that the election of [[Barack Obama]] as the next President had inspired her to give more time to charitable work and that the decision to step down was her own. "Just as this country is embracing change in the form of new leadership, I have decided that now is the time to make changes in my own life as well", she said.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article5310203.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110515005812/http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article5310203.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 15, 2011 |title=Hefner's daughter Christie walks away from Playboy Enterprises |work=The Times |location=London |first=Christine |last=Seib |date=December 9, 2008 |access-date=May 22, 2010}}</ref> Hefner was succeeded by company director and media veteran [[Jerome H. Kern]] as interim CEO, who was in turn succeeded by publisher [[Scott Flanders]].<ref>{{cite news |title=As Business Falls Off, Playboy Looks For Buyers |publisher=NPR |url=https://www.npr.org/2009/02/20/100906383/as-business-falls-off-playboy-looks-for-buyers |access-date=2022-06-24}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author1=MCN Staff |date=2009-07-08 |title=Jerome Kern Exits Playboy Board |url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/jerome-kern-exits-playboy-board-364258 |access-date=2022-06-24 |website=Multichannel News}}</ref>

===2000–present===
The magazine celebrated its 50th anniversary with the January 2004 issue. Celebrations were held at [[Las Vegas Valley|Las Vegas]], Los Angeles, New York, and Moscow during the year to commemorate this event. ''Playboy'' also launched limited-edition products designed by fashion houses such as [[Versace]], [[Vivienne Westwood]] and [[Sean John]]. As a homage to the magazine's 50th anniversary, [[MAC Cosmetics]] released two limited-edition products: lipstick and glitter cream.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://money.cnn.com/2003/10/15/news/companies/playboy_50/|title=Playboy: 50 years and going - Oct. 15, 2003|first=Parija |last=Bhatnagar|website=money.cnn.com|access-date=September 14, 2017}}</ref>

The printed magazine ran several annual features and ratings. One of the most popular was its annual ranking of the top "party schools" among all U.S. universities and colleges. In 2009, the magazine used five criteria—bikini, brains, campus, sex, and sports—to develop its list. The top-ranked party school by ''Playboy'' for 2009 was the [[University of Miami]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.playboy.com/articles/party-schools-2009-the-stats/index.html|title="Top Party Schools 2009," ''Playboy'' magazine, May 2009.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090509091054/http://www.playboy.com/articles/party-schools-2009-the-stats/index.html|archive-date=May 9, 2009|access-date=December 16, 2012}}</ref>

In June 2009, the magazine reduced its publication schedule to 11 yearly issues, with a combined July/August issue. On August 11, 2009, London's ''[[Daily Telegraph]]'' newspaper reported that Hugh Hefner had sold his English manor house (next door to the [[Playboy Mansion]] in Los Angeles) for $18&nbsp;m ($10&nbsp;m less than the reported asking price) to another American, Daren Metropoulos, the President and co-owner of [[Pabst Blue Ribbon]], and that due to significant losses in the company's value (down from $1 billion in 2000 to $84 million in 2009), the Playboy publishing empire was for sale for $300 million.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/recession/6007514/Hugh-Hefner-sells-LA-property-as-financial-crisis-hits-Playboy.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090814184717/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/recession/6007514/Hugh-Hefner-sells-LA-property-as-financial-crisis-hits-Playboy.html|url-status=live|archive-date=August 14, 2009|title=Hugh Hefner sells LA property as financial crisis hits Playboy | work=The Daily Telegraph | location=London | date=August 11, 2009}}</ref> In December 2009, the publication schedule was reduced to 10 issues per year, with a combined January/February issue.

On July 12, 2010, Playboy Enterprises Inc. announced Hefner's $5.50 per share offer ($122.5 million based on shares outstanding on April 30 and the closing price on July 9) to buy the portion of the company he did not already own and take the company private with the help of Rizvi Traverse Management LLC. The company derived much of its income from licensing rather than from the magazine.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/jul/12/bunny-bid-hefner-offers-to-buy-rest-of-playboy/?page=all|title=Bunny bid: Hefner offers to buy rest of Playboy|last1=Vancore|first1=Andrew|last2=Heher|first2=Ashley|work=The Washington Times|agency=Associated Press|date=July 12, 2010|access-date=July 16, 2010}}</ref> On July 15, ''Penthouse'' owner FriendFinder Networks Inc. offered $210 million (the company is valued at $185 million). However, Hefner, who already owned 70 percent of voting stock, did not want to sell.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thesunnews.com/2010/07/16/1588452/penthouse-bids-for-playboy.html |title=Penthouse bids for Playboy |last=Vancore |first=Andrew |work=[[The Sun News]] |agency=Associated Press |date=July 16, 2010 |access-date=July 16, 2010 }}{{dead link|date=July 2017 |bot=Jennica |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>  In January 2011, the publisher of ''Playboy'' magazine agreed to an offer by Hefner to take the company private for $6.15 per share, an 18 percent premium over the price of the last previous day of trading.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2011-jan-10-la-fi-playboy-20110110-story.html |work=The Los Angeles Times | title=Playboy agrees to Hefner buyout offer|access-date=December 16, 2012}}</ref> The buyout was completed in March 2011.<ref>{{cite news|title=Hefner Completes $208M Playboy Buyout|url=http://www.institutionalinvestor.com/Article/2782377/Hefner-Completes-208M-Playboy-Buyout.html|agency=Institutional Investor|date=March 8, 2011|access-date=December 16, 2012|archive-date=November 5, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105020321/http://www.institutionalinvestor.com/Article/2782377/Hefner-Completes-208M-Playboy-Buyout.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

====2016{{ndash}}2018 changes and brief ending of full-frontal nudity====
{{quote box|width=30em
| quote  = This is what I always intended ''Playboy'' Magazine to look like.
| source = — [[Hugh Hefner]], when asked about ending nudity in ''Playboy''<ref name="nonnude" />
}}

In October 2015, ''Playboy'' announced the magazine would no longer feature full-frontal nudity beginning with the March 2016 issue.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Samaiya|first1=Ravi|title=Playboy says it will no longer print images of nude women|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2015/10/12/playboy-says-will-longer-print-images-nude-women/7pxX8hCPsNNLkS9Jgh8uBP/story.html|website=Boston Globe|access-date=October 13, 2015}}</ref> Company CEO [[Scott Flanders]] acknowledged the magazine's inability to compete with freely available [[internet pornography]] and nudity; according to him, "You're now one click away from every sex act imaginable for free. And so it's just passé at this juncture".<ref name="oldnews">{{cite news|last=Somaiya |first=Ravi | url =https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/13/business/media/nudes-are-old-news-at-playboy.html |title=Nudes Are Old News at Playboy |work=The New York Times| date=October 12, 2015| access-date =October 13, 2015}}</ref> Hefner agreed with the decision.<ref name="guardian">{{cite web | url =https://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/oct/13/playboy-magazine-to-stop-publishing-pictures-of-naked-women|title=Playboy magazine to stop publishing pictures of naked women |work=The Guardian|date=October 13, 2015 | access-date =October 13, 2015}}</ref> The redesigned ''Playboy'', however, would still feature a [[Playmate of the Month]] and pictures of women. Still, they would be rated as not appropriate for children under 13.<ref name="guardian"/> The move would not affect PlayboyPlus.com (which features nudity at a paid subscription).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vox.com/2015/10/13/9523879/playboy-nudity-no |title=The fascinating economics behind Playboy's decision to drop nudes from its magazine |website=Vox.com |date=October 13, 2015 |access-date=February 14, 2016}}</ref> Josh Horwitz of ''[[Quartz (publication)|Quartz]]'' argued that the motivation for the decision to remove nudity from the magazine was to give [[PB Lifestyle|Playboy Licensing]] a less inappropriate image in India and China, where the brand is a popular item on apparel and thus generates significant revenue.<ref name="quartz">{{cite web | url =http://qz.com/522672/china-not-online-porn-is-why-playboy-is-dumping-nude-photographs/|title=China—not online porn—is why Playboy is dumping nude photographs |work=Quartz|date=October 13, 2015 | access-date =October 18, 2015}}</ref>

Other changes to the magazine included ending the popular jokes section and the various cartoons that appeared throughout the magazine. The redesign eliminated the use of jump copy (articles continuing on non-consecutive pages), eliminating most of the space for cartoons.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Karlin |first1=Susan |title=The Playboy Revamp Continues: How The Magazine Is Redrawing Its Cartoon Lines, Too |url=http://www.fastcocreate.com/3057521/the-playboy-revamp-continues-how-the-magazine-is-redrawing-its-cartoon-lines-too |website=Co.Create |publisher=[[Fast Company]] |access-date=March 12, 2016 |date=March 7, 2016}}</ref> Hefner, himself a former cartoonist, reportedly resisted dropping the cartoons more than the nudity, but ultimately obliged. ''Playboy''{{'}}s plans were to market itself as a competitor to ''[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]'', as opposed to more traditional competitors ''[[GQ]]'' and ''[[Maxim (magazine)|Maxim]]''.<ref name="nonnude">[http://www.wtae.com/money/playboy-enters-nonnude-era-sexy-but-safe-for-work/37812748 Playboy enters non-nude era: Sexy but 'safe for work'] [[WTAE-TV]], via [[CNN Money]] (February 24, 2016)</ref>

''Playboy'' announced in February 2017, however, that the dropping of nudity had been a mistake. Furthermore, for its March/April issue, it reestablished some of its franchises, including the Playboy Philosophy and Party Jokes, but dropped the subtitle "Entertainment for Men", inasmuch as gender roles have evolved. The company's chief creative officer made the announcement on [[Twitter]] with the [[hashtag]] #NakedIsNormal.<ref name="Playboy Reinstates Nudity">{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-38963007 |title=Playboy brings back nudity, claiming #NakedIsNormal |date=February 13, 2017 |publisher=BBC }}</ref>

In early 2018, and according to Jim Puzzanghera of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', ''Playboy'' was reportedly "considering killing the print magazine", as the publication "has lost as much as $7 million annually in recent years".<ref>{{cite news|last1=Puzzanghera|first1=Jim|title=Playboy is considering ending its print magazine, report says|url=http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-playboy-magazine-20180102-story.html|work=Los Angeles Times|date=January 2, 2018}}</ref> However, in the July/August 2018 issue a reader asked if the print magazine would discontinue, and ''Playboy'' responded that it was not going anywhere.

Following Hefner's death and his family's financial stake in the company, the magazine changed direction. In 2019, ''Playboy'' was relaunched as a quarterly publication without adverts. Topics covered included an interview with [[Tarana Burke]], a profile of [[Pete Buttigieg]], coverage of [[BDSM]], and a cover photo representing gender and sexual fluidity.<ref name="NYT Millennial" />

====Online-only====
In March 2020, Ben Kohn, CEO of Playboy Enterprises, announced that the spring 2020 issue would be the last regularly scheduled printed issue and that the magazine would publish its content online. The decision to close the print edition was attributed in part to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], which interfered with the distribution of the magazine.<ref name="gibson">{{cite web |last=Gibson |first=Kate |title=Coronavirus kills 66-year-old Playboy |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/playboy-magazine-folds-after-66-years-coronavirus/ |publisher=[[CBS News]] |access-date=2020-03-19 |date=March 19, 2020}}</ref>

==== Publicly traded ====
In autumn 2020, Playboy announced a [[reverse merger]] deal with Mountain Crest Acquisition Corp.—a [[Special-purpose acquisition company|special purpose acquisition company]] (SPAC). In February 2021, the stock of a combined company, PLBY Group, began trading on the [[Nasdaq]] exchange as "PLBY".<ref>{{cite web|last=Osman|first=Jim|title=Playboy Could Be The King of SPACs - Here Are Three Picks|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimosman/2020/10/20/playboy-could-be-the-king-of-spacs-here-are-three-picks/|access-date=2021-08-18|website=Forbes}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Jasinski|first=Nicholas|title=Playboy Has Gone Public. Here's What to Know.|url=https://www.barrons.com/articles/playboy-is-set-to-go-public-heres-what-to-know-51613003981|access-date=2021-08-18|website=www.barrons.com|language=en-US}}</ref>

In August 2024 it was announced that the magazine would relaunch in print in February 2025; it will now be published annually.<ref name="back">{{Cite web |last=Breslin |first=Susannah |title=Playboy To Bring Back Its Print Magazine With Annual Edition |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/susannahbreslin/2024/08/08/playboy-to-bring-back-its-print-magazine-with-annual-edition/ |access-date=2024-12-04 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref>

==={{anchor|Circulation}}Circulation history and statistics===
In 1971, ''Playboy'' had a circulation rate base of seven million, which was its high point.<ref name="peak">Dougherty, Philip H. (2 November 1982). [https://www.nytimes.com/1982/11/02/business/advertising-playboy-to-cut-circulation-rate-base.html Playboy to Cut Circulation Rate Base], ''[[The New York Times]]''</ref> The best-selling individual issue was the November 1972 edition, which sold 7,161,561 copies. One-quarter of all American college men were buying or subscribing to the magazine every month.<ref name="nextdoor">{{cite magazine |title=The Girls Next Door: The New Yorker |url=http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/03/20/060320crbo_books |magazine=The New Yorker |date=March 13, 2006 |access-date=December 16, 2012}}</ref> On the cover was model Pam Rawlings, photographed by [[Rowland Scherman]]. Perhaps coincidentally, a cropped image of the issue's centerfold (which featured [[Lena Söderberg]]) became a ''de facto'' [[Standard test image|standard image]] for testing image processing algorithms. It is known simply as the "[[Lenna (test image)|Lenna]]" (also "Lena") image in that field.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www-2.cs.cmu.edu/~chuck/lennapg/lenna.shtml |title=The Rest of the Lenna Story |publisher=2.cs.cmu.edu |access-date=December 7, 2011}}</ref> In 1972, ''Playboy'' was the ninth highest circulation magazine in the United States.<ref name="list1972">[https://books.google.com/books?id=rYC_WEqUcAUC&pg=PA268 Media and Culture with 2013 Update: An Introduction to Mass Communication], p. 268 (chart posts a list cited from magazines.org in 2010, showing top ten circulation magazines in the United States in 1972 and 2010. The 1972 list was (1) ''Reader's Digest'' (17,825,661); (2) ''TV Guide'' (16,410,858); (3) ''Woman's Day'' (8,191,731); (4) ''Better Homes and Gardens'' (7,996,050); (5) ''Family Circle'' (7,889,587); (6) ''McCall's'' (7,516,960); (7) ''National Geographic'' (7,260,179); (8) ''Ladies' Home Journal'' (7,014,251); (9) ''Playboy'' (6,400,573); (10) ''Good Housekeeping'' (5,801,446))</ref>

The 1975 average circulation was 5.6 million; by 1981, it was 5.2 million and by 1982 down to 4.9 million.<ref name="peak"/> Its decline continued in later decades and reached about 800,000 copies per issue in late 2015,<ref name="oldnews"/> and 400,000 copies by December 2017.<ref name="woke">Bennett, Jessica (2 August 2019). [https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/02/business/woke-playboy-millennials.html Will the Millennials Save Playboy?], ''[[The New York Times]]''</ref>

In 1970, ''Playboy'' became the first gentleman's magazine printed in [[braille]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/08/29/us/blind-win-ruling-on-braille-playboy.html|title=BLIND WIN RULING ON BRAILLE PLAYBOY|work=The New York Times|date=August 29, 1986|access-date=October 16, 2011}}</ref> It is also one of the few magazines whose [[microfilm]] format was in color, not black and white.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ibiblio.org/archives-archivists/msg12465.html |title=Re: Nicholson Baker and NEH |website=Ibiblio.org |date=April 16, 2001 |access-date=February 14, 2016}}</ref>