Photoplay.
Celebrities fade in and out of fashion, and so do the magazines that cover them. Enjoy these 11 retro celebrity magazines, which covered the movie, music, radio, and television stars of their day.
1.
Confidential // 1952–1978
Confidential was one of the first magazines to feature lurid gossip, exposés, and celebrity scandals. In 1954, the magazine’s scoop on the breakup of Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio’s marriage gave a boost to its circulation. Publisher Robert Harrison would later boast of a readership of over 4 million.
As the scandal rag grew in popularity, celebrities and film studios became increasingly worried by the damaging coverage it generated. In 1957, California attorney Jerry Giesler decided to sue, vowing, “The smut is going to stop.” Libel cases started flowing. Celebrity witnesses including Mae West and Liberace testified in front of a grand jury against the magazine, but the jury could not agree and it was ruled a mistrial. The cases ha