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147-516: The first Elfquest story, "Fire and Flight", appeared in February 1978 in the underground comic book Fantasy Quarterly , published by Lansing, Michigan -based IPS (Independent Publishers Syndicate). That company closed after publishing the first issue of Elfquest . Sandwiched between the two parts of the Elfquest story was a brief story written by T. Casey Brennan and illustrated by Cerebus

294-483: A quest with his soul-brother, Skywise , seeking other elf tribes as allies against humanity. Later, Cutter's son, Suntop , receives a warning from the Sun Folk's elder Savah, The Mother of Memory, about an evil which Cutter must avoid. Savah, who is close to being a High One herself, possesses a magical ability known as "going out", where her spirit leaves her body in attempts to connect to other Elves. In this way she

441-665: A reverse merger deal with Mountain Crest Acquisition Corp.—a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). In February 2021, the stock of a combined company, PLBY Group, began trading on the Nasdaq exchange as "PLBY". In 1971, Playboy had a circulation rate base of seven million, which was its high point. 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

588-558: A Wolfrider who was magically brought to Xanth from Abode after a tragic accident. Jenny Elf, by the author's own admission, is a tribute to a young girl who was paralyzed by a drunk driver. Jenny Elf continues to be a character in subsequent Xanth novels. Warp Graphics published the first volume of a graphic novel adaptation of Isle of View entitled Return to Centaur . In 1982, the Pinis announced in Elfquest that talks had been initiated by Nelvana to produce an animated film based on

735-529: A bunny. Joyful, joking. Consider the girl we made popular: the Playmate of the Month . She is never sophisticated, a girl you cannot really have. She is a young, healthy, simple girl - the girl next door ... we are not interested in the mysterious, difficult woman, the femme fatale , who wears elegant underwear, with lace, and she is sad, and somehow mentally filthy. The Playboy girl has no lace, no underwear, she

882-641: A certain function. Winnowill manipulated Voll so that his plans to leave Blue Mountain again never grew to fruition. Lord Voll came to believe that the elves were doomed to wither, and that there would never be any children born. Only the arrival of the Wolfriders with their children and the Preservers could wake him up. He was then determined to return to the Palace of the High Ones as soon as possible – but

1029-494: A cover photo representing gender and sexual fluidity. 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. In autumn 2020, Playboy announced

1176-510: A female artist/writer ( Wendy Pini ) was the creative principal of the series was also notable. The original series – generally referred to as "The Original Quest" or "OQ" – ran for 20 magazine-size issues (spanning about seven to eight years in terms of the main storyline), released three times a year. Color compilations followed, published by the Donning Company under its Starblaze imprint as Books 1-4. Two more series were published in

1323-511: A feral, wolf-like mentality (known as the Way), the Wolfriders are the only elves who can, eventually, die of old age. In addition to the close bonds with their wolves, the Wolfriders also have some basic psychic powers like telepathy (known as "sending"), healing, and plant manipulation. Because of the hybridization, their wolves also possess powers of telepathy, allowing Wolfriders to "send" with their wolves. The central storyline, beginning with

1470-444: 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 , as opposed to more traditional competitors GQ and Maxim . 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

1617-476: A less inappropriate image in India and China, where the brand is a popular item on apparel and thus generates significant revenue. 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. Hefner, himself

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1764-673: A liberal editorial stance, although it often interviews conservative celebrities. After a year-long removal of most nude photos in Playboy magazine, the March–April 2017 issue brought back nudity. By spring 1953, Hugh Hefner—a 1949 University of Illinois psychology graduate who had worked in Chicago for Esquire magazine writing promotional copy; Publisher's Development Corporation in sales and marketing; and Children's Activities magazine as circulation promotions manager —had planned out

1911-528: A long history of publishing short stories by novelists such as Arthur C. Clarke , Ian Fleming , Vladimir Nabokov , Saul Bellow , Chuck Palahniuk , P. G. Wodehouse , Roald Dahl , Haruki Murakami , and Margaret Atwood . With a regular display of full-page color cartoons, it became a showcase for cartoonists such as Jack Cole , Eldon Dedini , Jules Feiffer , Harvey Kurtzman , Shel Silverstein , Doug Sneyd , Erich Sokol, Roy Raymonde , Gahan Wilson , and Rowland B. Wilson . Art Paul designed

2058-567: A major publisher of alternative and underground cartoonists' work. As of the 2010s, reprints of early underground comix continue to sell alongside modern underground publications. The 2010s Foreskin Man , a comic book published to protest against circumcision , has been referred to as "comix" by some reviewers. British cartoonists were introduced in the underground publications International Times ( IT ), founded in 1966, and Oz founded in 1967, which reprinted some American material. During

2205-427: A more sophisticated culture with greater knowledge, while the Sun Folk benefit from a band of strong hunters and defenders of their desert refuge from humanity. Six years later, the oasis sanctuary of Sorrow's End is breached by a handful of starving humans who approach the oasis. Although they are sent on their way (probably to die of thirst), Cutter realizes that more could follow and decides to take action. He goes on

2352-450: A new front cover and full-color portrait print for the rear cover. This series was one of the early successes that marked the establishment of a phase in underground comics in which a new genre of alternative independent comic books emerged that were closer in content to mainstream comics. Elfquest was also one of the first comic book series that had a prearranged conclusion. It was highly praised for its innovative themes. The fact that

2499-488: A new name, considering "Top Hat", "Gentleman", "Sir'", "Satyr", "Pan", and "Bachelor" before Sellers suggested "Playboy". 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 kitchen. The first centerfold was Marilyn Monroe , although the picture used initially was taken for a calendar rather than for Playboy . Hefner chose what he deemed

2646-586: A reduced comic book-size format, but still in black and white: Siege at Blue Mountain (8 issues) and Kings of the Broken Wheel (9 issues), later collected and published in color by Warp Graphics under its Father Tree Press imprint as part of a second edition of the graphic novels as Books 5-8. The stories take place three years after the original quest. In the 1990s, the Pinis rebranded slightly (WaRP became Warp) and then began to publish multiple titles concurrently, many with overlapping storylines, showcasing

2793-707: A renaissance in the genre in the United Kingdom , through titles like Brain Damage , Viz , and others. After the death of King Features Syndicate editor Jay Kennedy , his personal underground comix collection was acquired by the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum in Ohio. The University of California, Berkeley 's Bancroft Library has a large underground comix collection, especially related to Bay Area publications; much of it

2940-592: A safe home, thus their rockshapers built a home inside Blue Mountain after the memories of the Palace of the High Ones. After Lord Voll's lover and confidant Winnowill created the Chosen Eight – a group of hunters that rode the Giant Hawks that nested in Blue Mountain – no one but those hunters left the mountain. They are a conservative community that has degenerated into insular decadence, dominated by

3087-540: A single 64-page anthology series introduced by the one-shot Metamorphosis . The new series was simply titled Elfquest (Volume 2), and ran for 33 issues. The series has also served as the basis for three novelizations ( Journey to Sorrow's End , The Quest Begins, and Captives of Blue Mountain ) and five Blood of Ten Chiefs short story anthologies (some of which served as the basis of scripts in Blood of Ten Chiefs comic book series). The music CD A Wolfrider's Reflections

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3234-469: 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. In

3381-413: A spin-off of Playboy ) and Gallery in the 1970s; later from pornographic videos ; and more recently from lad mags such as Maxim , FHM , and 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

3528-480: A strip about a trio of "freaks" whose time is spent attempting to acquire drugs and avoid the police, both of which first appeared in the self-published Feds 'N' Heads in 1968. Wilson's work is permeated by shocking violence and ugly sex; he contributed to Zap and created the infamous The Checkered Demon , a portly, shirtless being who is frequently called upon to kill the various demented bikers, pirates, and rapists who populate Wilson's universe. Spain worked for

3675-679: A vessel to leave the World of Two Moons . This plan is foiled by the Wolfriders. The already re-shaped Blue Mountain shatters, and nearly all Gliders are killed; as a people and a tribe, the Gliders no longer exist. What follows is a difficult but enlightening journey, in which the elves' most basic assumptions about the world are turned upside down as they meet humans who are more good than they ever hoped, elves more evil than they ever imagined, and trolls more aggressive than they ever feared. Throughout these adventures, Cutter and his companions learn about

3822-476: A visit to London, American comics artist Larry Hama created original material for IT . The first UK comix mag was Cyclops , started in July 1970 by IT staff members. In a bid to alleviate its ongoing financial problems, IT brought out Nasty Tales (1971), which was soon prosecuted for obscenity. Despite appearing before the censorious Old Bailey Judge Alan King-Hamilton , the publishers were acquitted by

3969-579: A war party of trolls in a snow-bound tundra, the Go-Backs are arctic-dwelling elk-herders, bearing about the same resemblance to the Sámi as the Wolfriders do to the Iroquois and the Sun Folk to Mesoamericans (that is to say, mainly in costume). They are highly warlike and hardened, being locked in continual strife with the trolls who bar their way to the Palace. They have a prejudice against magic, but not to

4116-464: A wolf to hunt food for the starving elves around her. She sank very deeply into her wolf-form and eventually forgot her original identity, even mating with a native wolf to produce a half-wolf chimeric son whom she handed over to the Elves after teaching him as much as she could as a wolf. They gave him the name Timmorn Yellow-Eyes and he became the first Chief of the Wolfriders, bringing the wolf pack and

4263-511: Is an album of folk songs based on elements from the original quest. Several collectibles, calendars, apparel, a role-playing game, and figurines have been sold over the years. The full-length novel ElfQuest: Journey to Sorrows End , which included both text and several black-and-white illustrated plates, was published in Playboy in 1982, and by Berkley in March 1984. In 1985, the original series

4410-533: Is funny about rape and murder?" Because of his popularity, many underground cartoonists tried to imitate Crumb's work. While Zap was the best-known anthology of the scene, other anthologies appeared, including Bijou Funnies , a Chicago publication edited by Jay Lynch and heavily influenced by Mad . The San Francisco anthology Young Lust ( Company & Sons , 1970), which parodied the 1950s romance genre, featured works by Bill Griffith and Art Spiegelman . Another anthology, Bizarre Sex (Kitchen Sink, 1972),

4557-481: Is known as the Gliders . They treated humans like any other prey, until a human shaman made her way near the peak of Blue Mountain and sang and talked to them. The Gliders then agreed not to hunt humans, if they in turn received offerings and worship. The humans then worshiped them as "spirit-gods". The Gliders claim to be original High Ones and are nominally led by an ancient elf named Lord Voll. He wanted them to have

Elfquest - Misplaced Pages Continue

4704-451: Is marginally similar. There are some unusual prehistoric survivals among the fauna, and in early storylines Abode could have been described as Earth with two moons, hence its original name. As the story moves forward and Abode's history develops, it becomes apparent that its human culture and technology is distinguished by the twenty thousand years of influence by the elves, who have left an indelible mark on human society (though their existence

4851-489: Is naked, well washed with soap and water, and she is happy. The jaunty rabbit quickly became a popular symbol of extroverted male culture, becoming a lucrative source of merchandizing revenue for the company. In the 1950s, it was adopted as the military aircraft insignia for the US Navy's Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Four (VX-4). Besides its centerfold, a major part of Playboy for much of its existence has been

4998-399: Is the main focus of much of the first part of the story. Cutter and Leetah eventually become lifemates; bested by Cutter in a ritual trial and displaced as sole hunter and protector by the Wolfriders, Rayek leaves the village. Once this conflict is resolved, the two tribes quickly unite with each side willing to adjust to the other for their mutual benefit. The Wolfriders enjoy the benefits of

5145-526: Is unacknowledged and unofficially suppressed by Abode's world government). The elves of Elfquest are descended from highly advanced humanoid aliens called High Ones by their descendants. When their homeworld's natural resources became depleted due to overpopulation, they went spacefaring in order to find new planets to settle. Some of them returned to their dead homeworld, and ended up awakening their immense psycho-kinetic psychic powers and biological immortality . They eventually resumed spacefaring to explore

5292-591: The Bijou Funnies book highlighted comics by Lynch, Green, Crumb, Shelton, Spiegelman, Deitch, Skip Williamson , Jay Kinney , Evert Geradts , Rory Hayes , Dan Clyne, and Jim Osborne. Similarly, and around this time, the publishing cooperative And/Or Press published The Young Lust Reader (1974), a "best-of" collection from Griffith and Kinney's Young Lust anthology, and Dave Sheridan and Fred Schrier 's The Overland Vegetable Stagecoach presents Mindwarp: An Anthology (1975). And/Or Press later published

5439-526: The East Village Other before becoming known within underground comix for Trashman and his solo titles Zodiac Mindwarp and Subvert . Williamson created his character Snappy Sammy Smoot , appearing in several titles. Underground horror comics also became popular, with titles such as Skull (Rip Off Press, 1970), Bogeyman (San Francisco Comic Book Company, 1969), Fantagor (Richard Corben, 1970), Insect Fear (Print Mint, 1970), Up From

5586-409: The Elfquest saga to the big screen, with Rawson Thurber serving as writer and director. The format (live action, CGI, or traditional animation) is yet unknown. However, Elfquest ' s official Facebook page confirmed that Warner Bros. ultimately said "no"; the ostensible reason given that Warner Bros. didn't want the film competing with their film The Hobbit . In 2013 there were rumors of recapping

5733-563: The Playboy Interview, an extensive (usually several-thousand-word) discussion between a publicly known individual and an interviewer. Writer Alex Haley served as a Playboy interviewer on a few occasions; one of his interviews was with Martin Luther King Jr. ; he also interviewed Malcolm X and American Nazi Party founder George Lincoln Rockwell . The magazine interviewed then-presidential candidate Jimmy Carter in

5880-646: The Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles) for $ 18 m ($ 10 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. In December 2009, the publication schedule

6027-624: The Print Mint , Rip Off Press , Last Gasp , and Krupp Comic Works (Kitchen Sink Press). For much of the 1970s, Rip Off Press operated a syndication service , managed by cartoonist and co-owner Gilbert Shelton , that sold weekly comix content to alternative newspapers and student publications . Each Friday, the company sent out a distribution sheet with the strips it was selling, by such cartoonists as Shelton, Joel Beck , Dave Sheridan , Ted Richards , Bill Griffith , and Harry Driggs (as R. Diggs). The syndicate petered out by 1979; much of

Elfquest - Misplaced Pages Continue

6174-827: The U.S. Supreme Court , in Miller v. California , ruled that local communities could decide their own First Amendment standards with reference to obscenity. In the mid-1970s, sale of drug paraphernalia was outlawed in many places, and the distribution network for these comics (and the underground newspapers) dried up, leaving mail order as the only commercial outlet for underground titles. In 1974, Marvel launched Comix Book , requesting that underground artists submit significantly less explicit work appropriate for newsstands sales. A number of underground artists agreed to contribute work, including Spiegelman, Robbins and S. Clay Wilson , but Comix Book did not sell well and lasted only five issues. In 1976, Marvel achieved success with Howard

6321-605: The Wavedancers (sea-dwelling hunter-gatherers). The High Ones' evolved-simian servants also fled, mainly into networks of caverns where they became larger and established themselves as the subterranean race of Trolls, treasure-seeking miners and metalsmiths whose original links to the High Ones were forgotten. The main story begins 10,000 years later, with elves and other beings having adapted with great difficulty to their home. Each tribe of elves has its own set of adaptations and traditions, and most of them are unaware that any of

6468-575: The environmental movement . Anarchy Comics focused on left-wing politics , while Barney Steel's Armageddon focused on anarcho-capitalism . British underground cartoonists also created political titles, but they did not sell as well as American political comics. Artists influenced by the underground comix scene, who were unable to get work published by better-known underground publications, began self-publishing their own small press, photocopied comic books, known as minicomics . The punk subculture began to influence underground comix. In 1982,

6615-437: The simian -descended Trolls. After journeying to many different worlds, one of these vessels came to Abode (known to its inhabitants as the World of Two Moons ), where human civilization had reached a level that was almost identical to Europe's medieval period on Earth. Observing the humans, the High Ones saw the humans' artwork and literature depicted angels , deities , spirits and other ethereal beings which suggested to

6762-549: The underground newspaper the Berkeley Barb and his full-length comic Lenny of Laredo was published in 1965. Another underground paper, the East Village Other , was an important precursor to the underground comix movement, featuring comic strips by artists including Crumb, Shelton, Kim Deitch , Trina Robbins , Spain Rodriguez , and Art Spiegelman before true underground comix emerged from San Francisco with

6909-499: The " Playboy Interview". 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). 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

7056-402: 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. 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. The first issue sold out in weeks. Known circulation was 53,991. The cover price

7203-590: The 1960s, the magazine added "The Playboy Philosophy" column. Early topics included gay rights, women's rights, censorship, and the First Amendment. Playboy was an early proponent of cannabis reform and provided founding support to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws in 1970. From 1966 to 1976, Robie Macauley was the fiction editor at Playboy . During this period

7350-538: The 1980s, sexual comics came into prominence, integrating sex into storylines rather than utilizing sexual explicitness for shock value. The first of these features was Omaha the Cat Dancer , which made its first appearance in an issue of the zine Vootie . Inspired by Fritz the Cat , Omaha the Cat Dancer focused on an anthropomorphic feline stripper. Other comix with a sexual focus included Melody , based on

7497-423: The 1980s; he could be considered part of a "second generation" of underground-type cartoonists, including such notables as Mike Diana , Johnny Ryan , Bob Fingerman , David Heatley , Danny Hellman , Julie Doucet , Jim Woodring , Ivan Brunetti , Gary Leib , Doug Allen , and Ed Piskor . Many of these artists were published by Fantagraphics Books , which was founded in 1977 and through the 1980s and '90s became

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7644-575: The Aardvark creator Dave Sim titled "Doorway to the Gods". The quality of the publication was disappointing to Wendy and Richard Pini. The interior was printed on newsprint, and the cover was printed, in a very limited color palette, on only slightly heavier, uncoated paper stock. The poor quality of this publication convinced the Pinis that they could produce a higher quality publication on their own. After borrowing money in order to start WaRP Graphics ,

7791-458: The Cat , and Mr. Natural . Crumb also drew himself as a character, caricaturing himself as a self-loathing, sex-obsessed intellectual. While Crumb's work was often praised for its social commentary, he was also criticized for the misogyny that appeared within his comics. Trina Robbins said: "It's weird to me how willing people are to overlook the hideous darkness in Crumb's work... What the hell

7938-589: The Deep (Rip Off Press, 1971), Death Rattle (Kitchen Sink, 1972), Gory Stories (Shroud, 1972), Deviant Slice (Print Mint, 1972) and Two Fisted Zombies (Last Gasp, 1973). Many of these were strongly influenced by 1950s EC Comics like Tales from the Crypt . The male-dominated scene produced many blatantly misogynistic works, but female underground cartoonists made strong marks as well. Edited by Trina Robbins , It Ain't Me, Babe , published by Last Gasp in 1970,

8085-831: The Duck , a satirical comic aimed at adult audiences that was inspired by the underground comix scene. While it did not depict the explicit content that was often featured in underground comix, it was more socially relevant than anything Marvel had previously published. By the mid-1970s, independent publishers began to release book-length collections of underground comics. Quick Fox/Links Books released two important collections, The Apex Treasury of Underground Comics , published in 1974, and The Best of Bijou Funnies , released in 1975. The Apex Treasury featured work by Crumb, Deitch, Griffith, Spain, Shelton, Spiegelman, Lynch, Shary Flenniken , Justin Green , Bobby London , and Willy Murphy ; while

8232-1372: The Elves, Trolls, and Preservers. Various artists and writers have contributed to Elfquest over the years, including the following, as listed on the Elfquest Reader's Collection page. Wendy Pini, Sonny Strait, Carol Lyon, Delfin Barral, Brandon McKinney, Barry Blair, Jerry Braccia, Jeff Zugale, Janine Johnston, Paul Bonanno, Ken Hooper, Steve Blevins, Craig Taillefer, Barb Kaalberg, Charles Barnett, Daniel Shelton, Mat Nastos, Bill Neville, Al Nickerson, Jen Marrus, Rick Ketcham, Paul Abrams, John Byrne, Terry Beatty, O.F. Roko, Lorraine Reyes, Justin Bloomer, David Boller, Dennis Fujitake, Kathryn Bolinger, Colin Chan, Wendi Strang-Frost, Carla Speed McNeil, Chris Schenk. Wendy & Richard Pini, Sonny Strait, Brandon McKinney, Bern Harkins, Christy Marx, Andy Mangels, Terry Collins, Joellyn Auklandus, Kim Yale, Sara Byam, Wendi Lee, John Ostrander, Barry Blair, Vickie Murphy, Kathryn Bolinger, Christopher Lane, Pam Fremon, Bill Neville, Carla Speed McNeil. Besides an unofficial homage in Marvel's X-Men #153 ( Kitty Pryde wears an Elfquest T-shirt throughout

8379-462: The High Ones that others of their kind had previously visited that world. In order to facilitate contact with the humans, before landing on the world, the High Ones deliberately formed themselves like elves and reshaped their egg-vessel to resemble a beautiful floating castle that matched the native architectural idiom, so that they could stay long enough to seek out more information about the previous visitors. The palace itself consists of two main parts:

8526-418: The High Ones. In turn, there are some psychic phenomena which have remained more common among the Wolfriders than among the Sun Folk, such as sending and "Recognition", a powerful involuntary compulsion to mate with another elf; this mating is guaranteed to produce offspring who are more powerful than either parent. This powerful impulse can be resisted with difficulty, but at the cost of great personal stress. If

8673-497: 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

8820-488: The November 1976 issue, in which he stated "I've committed adultery in my heart many times." David Sheff 's interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono appeared in the January 1981 issue, which was on newsstands at the time of Lennon's murder; the interview was later published in book format. Another interview-type section, entitled "20Q" (a play on the game of Twenty Questions ), was added in October 1978. Cheryl Tiegs

8967-472: The Pinis started publishing with Elfquest #2. It was printed magazine-size with glossy full-color covers and a character portrait print on the back cover by Wendy, a format that continued throughout the series' entire run. This story continued the Elfquest tale started in Fantasy Quarterly . Later, the Pinis' company WaRP Graphics reprinted the story from Fantasy Quarterly as Elfquest #1 with

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9114-609: 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. 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". However, in

9261-456: The Rings (1978) and Forbidden Zone (1980). The animation sequences – created by Help! contributor Terry Gilliam – and surrealistic humor of Monty Python's Flying Circus have also been partly attributed to the influence of the underground comix scene. Despite the form's influence on the culture at large, however, by 1972, only four major underground publishers remained in operation:

9408-470: The United States. The 1975 average circulation was 5.6 million; by 1981, it was 5.2 million and by 1982 down to 4.9 million. Its decline continued in later decades and reached about 800,000 copies per issue in late 2015, and 400,000 copies by December 2017. In 1970, Playboy became the first gentleman's magazine printed in braille . It is also one of the few magazines whose microfilm format

9555-611: The alternate press. Wally Wood published witzend in 1966, soon passing the title on to artist-editor Bill Pearson . In 1969, Wood created Heroes, Inc. Presents Cannon , intended for distribution to armed forces bases. Steve Ditko gave full vent to his Ayn Rand -inspired philosophy in Mr. A and Avenging World (1973). In 1975, Flo Steinberg , Stan Lee's former secretary at Marvel Comics , published Big Apple Comix , featuring underground work by ostensibly "mainstream" artists she knew from Marvel. Film and television began to reflect

9702-562: The appeal of underground comix was their lack of censorship: "People forget that that was what it was all about. That was why we did it. We didn't have anybody standing over us saying 'No, you can't draw this' or 'You can't show that'. We could do whatever we wanted". Between the late 1920s and late 1940s, anonymous underground artists produced counterfeit pornographic comic books featuring unauthorized depictions of popular comic strip characters engaging in sexual activities. Often referred to as Tijuana bibles , these books are often considered

9849-595: The base of the mountain surviving on the humans' unknown generosity. Dewshine, much to the dismay of her tribe (and herself), becomes Recognized by one of the Gliders named Tyldak. Tyldak has been reshaped by Winnowill to resemble a bird himself. Both fight the Recognition at first, but eventually give in and Dewshine becomes pregnant. Winnowill puts all Gliders but the Chosen Eight into deep sleep, and attempts to use their magic powers to shape Blue Mountain into

9996-410: The broader realms of artistic and literary culture. Arcade lasted seven issues, from 1975 to 1976. Autobiographical comics began to come into prominence in 1976, with the premiere of Harvey Pekar 's self-published comic American Splendor , which featured art by several cartoonists associated with the underground, including Crumb. Comics critic Jared Gardner asserts that, while underground comix

10143-478: The bunny logo. Leroy Neiman drew the Femlin characters for Playboy jokes. Patrick Nagel painted the headers for Playboy Forum and other sections. Playboy features monthly interviews of public figures, such as artists, architects, economists, composers, conductors, film directors, journalists, novelists, playwrights, religious figures, politicians, athletes, and race car drivers. The magazine generally reflects

10290-540: The character sheets. Underground comic Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books that are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority , including explicit drug use, sexuality, and violence. They were most popular in the United States in

10437-644: The city's Mission District was "underground headquarters": living and operating out of The Mission in that period were Gary Arlington , Roger Brand , Kim Deitch , Don Donahue , Shary Flenniken , Justin Green , Bill Griffith & Diane Noomin , Rory Hayes , Jay Kinney , Bobby London , Ted Richards , Trina Robbins , Joe Schenkman , Larry Todd , Patricia Moodian and Art Spiegelman . Mainstream publications such as Playboy and National Lampoon began to publish comics and art similar to that of underground comix. The underground movement also prompted older professional comic book artists to try their hand in

10584-697: The city, with Ron Turner 's Last Gasp and the Print Mint based in Berkeley . Last Gasp later moved to San Francisco. By the end of the 1960s, there was recognition of the movement by a major American museum when the Corcoran Gallery of Art staged an exhibition, The Phonus Balonus Show (May 20-June 15, 1969). Curated by Bhob Stewart for famed museum director Walter Hopps , it included work by Crumb, Shelton, Vaughn Bodé , Kim Deitch , Jay Lynch and others. Crumb's best known underground features included Whiteman , Angelfood McSpade , Fritz

10731-718: The closet, along with bong pipes and love beads, as Things Started To Get Uglier". One of the last major underground titles was Arcade: The Comics Revue , co-edited by Spiegelman and Bill Griffith . With the underground movement encountering a slowdown, Spiegelman and Griffith conceived of Arcade as a "safe berth", featuring contributions from such major underground figures as Robert Armstrong , Robert Crumb , Justin Green , Aline Kominsky , Jay Lynch , Spain Rodriguez , Gilbert Shelton , and S. Clay Wilson (as well as Griffith and Spiegelman). Arcade stood out from similar publications by having an editorial plan, in which Spiegelman and Griffith attempted to show how comics connected to

10878-576: The continuity of the second edition of graphic novels). Selected stories from the first ten issues of New Blood were collected as New Blood and Bedtime stories . Towards the end of their runs, in the mid-1990s, most of these titles reverted to black and white in North America, though some were published in color in Europe. In large part as a response to the shrinking direct market in the mid-1990s, continuing storylines were collapsed together into

11025-416: The decision. 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. The move would not affect PlayboyPlus.com (which features nudity at a paid subscription). Josh Horwitz of Quartz argued that the motivation for the decision to remove nudity from the magazine was to give Playboy Licensing

11172-479: The distribution of underground comix changed through the emergence of specialty stores. In response to attempts by mainstream publishers to appeal to adult audiences, alternative comics emerged, focusing on many of the same themes as underground comix, as well as publishing experimental work. Artists formally in the underground comix scene began to associate themselves with alternative comics, including Crumb, Deitch, Griffith, Lynda Barry , and Justin Green . In

11319-668: The dream she had while encased for 10,000 years by the Preservers. A newer book, Elfquest: The Searcher and the Sword , was published in July 2004. Critical reaction was generally favorable; the major criticism leveled at the book is that it is overpriced for its size (96 pages). After the four-issue comic series Elfquest: Discovery , published in 2006, no more new stories appeared until the Final Quest , beginning in 2012. In March 2008, Warp Graphics began uploading previously published stories to elfquest .com . They intended to make

11466-665: The drug culture, and imitated LSD -inspired posters to increase sales. These titles were termed "comix" in order to differentiate them from mainstream publications. The "X" also emphasized the X-rated contents of the publications. Many of the common aspects of the underground comix scene were in response to the strong restrictions forced upon mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority , which refused publications featuring depictions of violence, sexuality, drug use, and socially relevant content, all of which appeared in greater levels in underground comix. Robert Crumb stated that

11613-411: 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. Hefner was succeeded by company director and media veteran Jerome H. Kern as interim CEO, who

11760-501: The elements of his magazine, that he would call Stag Party . He formed HMH Publishing Corporation, and recruited his friend Eldon Sellers to find investors. Hefner eventually raised just over $ 8,000, including from his brother and mother. However, the publisher of an unrelated men's adventure 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. Hefner, his wife Millie, and Sellers met to seek

11907-399: The entire series available online over the course of 2008, but the issues proved too numerous to upload within the year. Uploading of all comics was completed on March 13, 2009. In September 2012, the latest series' Final Quest prologue story began publication at a rate of one page per week at Boing Boing . Only about half of the prologue appeared there, deliberately, as a teaser leading to

12054-536: The extent of persecuting its users. The Go-Backs, so removed from magic, no longer rely on Recognition to procreate. They provided the bulk of the military strength that allowed the completion of the first quest, and lost half their numbers in doing so. The High Ones were an advanced race, resembling the aliens known as Greys ; they were stranded on Abode after their ship, the Palace, was sabotaged from within and crash-landed. There are few, if any, known High Ones remaining on Abode, though they live on in their descendants,

12201-566: The feminist Miss America protest , symbolically feminine products were thrown into a "Freedom Trash Can". These included copies of Playboy and Cosmopolitan magazines. 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; it compared the pageant to Playboy ' s centerfold as sisters under

12348-641: The first issue of Zap Comix . Zap and many of the first true underground comix publications began with reprints of comic strip pages which first appeared in underground papers like the East Village Other , the Berkeley Barb , and Yarrowstalks . In February 1968, in San Francisco, Robert Crumb published (with the help of poet Charles Plymell and Don Donahue of Apex Novelties ) his first solo comic, Zap Comix . The title

12495-420: The first issue of Elfquest with new computer coloring and lettering by Wendy Pini and two short interviews with the Pinis. This was a teaser for The Elfquest Archives , hardcover color compilation volumes which were released beginning in November. This series planned to reprint the first eight graphic novel collections in glossy format with new coloring and lettering. Fans complained that the publication schedule

12642-486: The first paperback collections of Griffith's Zippy the Pinhead comics. By this time, some artists, including Art Spiegelman , felt that the underground comix scene had become less creative than it had been in the past. According to Spiegelman: "What had seemed like a revolution simply deflated into a lifestyle. Underground comics were stereotyped as dealing only with Sex, Dope and Cheap Thrills. They got stuffed back into

12789-475: The first underground comic. Shelton's own Wonder Wart-Hog appeared in the college humor magazine Bacchanal #1-2 in 1962. Jack Jackson 's God Nose , published in Texas in 1964, has also been given that title. One guide lists two other underground comix from that year, Vaughn Bodē 's Das Kampf and Charles Plymell 's Robert Ronnie Branaman . Joel Beck began contributing a full-page comic each week to

12936-406: The first volume of the book, it consists of color still images taken straight from the comic, some minor animation, and spoken dialogue. The animated video is available for free on the official ElfQuest website. Stephanie Thorpe and Paula Rhodes produced a short web trailer entitled Elfquest: A Fan Imagining . The Pinis donated original art for the fundraising campaign, and lent an original dress to

13083-509: The influence of underground comix in the 1970s, starting with the release of Ralph Bakshi 's Crumb adaptation, Fritz the Cat , the first animated film to receive an X rating from the MPAA . Further adult-oriented animated films based on or influenced by underground comix followed, including The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat and Down and Dirty Duck . The influence of underground comix has also been attributed to films such as The Lord of

13230-527: The issue, and a sprite named "Pini" appears on p.16), Elfquest has been adapted into a range of media. A scene from Elfquest between Cutter and Leetah in Sun Village was also performed as part of a theater rehearsal in Fantastic Four #242. While not an adaptation in the strictest sense of the term, Piers Anthony's 13th Xanth novel Isle of View introduces a character named Jenny Elf,

13377-482: The jury. In the wake of its own high-profile obscenity trial, Oz launched cOZmic Comics in 1972, printing a mixture of new British underground strips and old American work. When Oz closed down the following year cOZmic Comics was continued by fledgling media tycoon Felix Dennis and his company, Cozmic Comics/H. Bunch Associates, which published from 1972 to 1975. While the American underground comix scene

13524-430: The late 1960s and 1970s, and in the United Kingdom in the 1970s. Robert Crumb , Gilbert Shelton , Barbara "Willy" Mendes , Trina Robbins and numerous other cartoonists created underground titles that were popular with readers within the counterculture scene. Punk had its own comic artists like Gary Panter . Long after their heyday, underground comix gained prominence with films and television shows influenced by

13671-479: The life story of Sylvie Rancourt and Cherry , a comedic sex comic featuring art similar in style to that of Archie Comics . In 1985, Griffith's comic strip Zippy the Pinhead — which originally appeared in underground titles — was syndicated as a daily feature by King Features . Between 1980 and 1991 Spiegelman's graphic novel Maus was serialized in Raw , and published in two volumes in 1986 and 1991. It

13818-414: The magazine every month. 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 image for testing image processing algorithms. It is known simply as the " Lenna " (also "Lena") image in that field. In 1972, Playboy was the ninth highest circulation magazine in

13965-499: 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 . In 1968, at

14112-437: The magazine. 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. 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. The buyout

14259-416: The magical material of which it is made, and two magic scrolls that contain all the history of the High Ones. The palace is also where the souls of dead elves come together to spend the rest of their existence. Also by this time, the evolved simians (proto-Trolls) had become resentful of their subservient status and wished to permanently remain on the world. As the High Ones began to make the 'castle' descend,

14406-537: The massacre outside of the palace -shaped vessel, many of the initial elf survivors soon died, unable to adapt to the new, hostile environment; the others gradually gathered into several widely scattered tribes. The known tribes include (in order of introduction) the Wolfriders (forest-dwelling hunter-gatherers), Sun Folk (desert-dwelling farmers), Gliders (mountain-dwellers, only a few of whom hunt), Go-backs (formerly hunters, now primarily reindeer herders), and

14553-561: The massive birds for food. Enraged at the death of their mount, the Gliders attack the Wolfriders and imprison most of the tribe within Blue Mountain. Winnowill then tortures Strongbow for the death of the bird, while Leetah, Ember, and Suntop hide in the Forbidden Grove which is the home of the Preservers. Nightfall and Redlance also manage to escape imprisonment, and stumble upon Cutter and Skywise shortly after Cutter and his family are re-united. One-Eye, also not captured, lurks around

14700-472: The material produced for it was eventually published in the company's long-running anthology Rip Off Comix , which had debuted in 1977. Griffith's strip, Zippy , which had debuted in 1976 as a weekly strip with the syndicate, was eventually picked up for daily syndication by King Features Syndicate in 1986. Critics of the underground comix scene claimed that the publications were socially irresponsible, and glorified violence, sex and drug use. In 1973,

14847-600: 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 . 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

14994-516: The movement and with mainstream comic books, but their legacy is most obvious with alternative comics . The United States underground comics scene emerged in the 1960s, focusing on subjects dear to the counterculture : recreational drug use , politics, rock music , and free love . The underground comix scene had its strongest success in the United States between 1968 and 1975, with titles initially distributed primarily though head shops . Underground comix often featured covers intended to appeal to

15141-578: The other tribes even exist. The central characters are the Wolfrider elves, a tribe of ferocious hunter/warriors closely allied with wolves who serve as mounts, hunting partners, and friends. Their culture is roughly comparable to the Iroquois Native American nation. Within their founder group, a female High One named Timmain had been the only member to retain her shape-shifting ability. When winter came, Timmain shape-shifted into

15288-545: The physically smaller manga format, which sometimes involved Wendy Pini adding extensions to the original artwork. Some sections of the original artwork are not included, for example in ElfQuest: The Grand Quest Volume 11 , a standalone story involving Tyleet and her adopted human son Little Patch is not in the volume, though later in Volume 13 Tyleet mentions Little Patch constantly while discussing

15435-568: The pornographic anthologies Jiz and Snatch (both Apex Novelties, 1969). The San Francisco Bay Area was an epicenter of the underground comix movement; Crumb and many other underground cartoonists lived in San Francisco 's Haight-Ashbury neighborhood in the mid-to-late 1960s. Just as importantly, the major underground publishers were all based in the area: Don Donahue 's Apex Novelties , Gary Arlington 's San Francisco Comic Book Company , and Rip Off Press were all headquartered in

15582-494: The predecessors of the underground comix scene. American comix were strongly influenced by 1950s EC Comics and especially magazines edited by Harvey Kurtzman , including Mad (which first appeared in 1952). Kurtzman's Help! magazine, published from 1960 to 1965, featured the works of artists who would later become well known in the underground comix scene, including R. Crumb and Gilbert Shelton . Other artists published work in college magazines before becoming known in

15729-469: The print and digital publication planned for 2013 by Dark Horse Comics . In October 2013, Elfquest Special: The Final Quest was published as a one-shot by Dark Horse Comics. It included the material originally seen at Boing Boing plus the rest of the Final Quest prologue. The Final Quest series began publication by Dark Horse Comics, with the first issue released on January 22, 2014. The entire Final Quest series ran for 24 issues. The final issue, #24,

15876-597: The production. The short premiered at the Screen Actors Guild in April 2011 and the cast featured Taryn Southern , Casey McKinnon , Jessica Lee Rose , and more. A licensed tabletop Elfquest role playing game was produced by Chaosium in 1984, utilizing the Basic Role-Playing system which had first appeared in the game RuneQuest and some original illustrations by Wendy Pini, including

16023-425: The project on behalf of the producers of a fanmade trailer which appeared a few years prior. In the early 1990s, an ad for a multi-volume animated adaptation of Elfquest appeared in the comic. A few issues later, the Pinis told readers they'd withdrawn from the deal, and that readers should ask for refunds. Those who didn't eventually received a 50-minute VHS tape from Abby Lou Entertainment, copyright 1992. Covering

16170-593: The rabbit for its "humorous sexual connotation" and because the image was "frisky and playful". In an interview, Hefner explained his choice of a rabbit as Playboy ' s logo to the Italian journalist Oriana Fallaci : The rabbit, the bunny, in America has a sexual meaning; and I chose it because it's a fresh animal, shy, vivacious, jumping - sexy. First it smells you then it escapes, then it comes back, and you feel like caressing it, playing with it. A girl resembles

16317-450: The seductive, sinister Winnowill, who was once Voll's consort but who now has her own agenda. Cut off from new impulses, the Gliders' culture turned in on itself. They created intricate art, such as the Egg of Six Spheres, which recorded the elves' history, but stopped growing. For millennia no children were born. Some of the rockshapers were put into permanent trance, and do nothing but fulfill

16464-516: The series known as the Grand Quest or Original Quest , focuses on the tribe during the leadership of their eleventh chief Cutter. At the start of the story, the Wolfriders' regular forest life – intermittently interspersed by conflict with superstitiously genocidal humans – is lost when the humans set fire to the forest in retaliation for a previous battle. The Wolfriders seek refuge in the caverns of their sullen, greedy, cowardly trade partners,

16611-442: The simians violently rebelled, disrupting the High Ones' telekinetic controls enough to hurl the entire vessel and its contents back through time to Abode's paleolithic era. Staggering out from the crash-landing, the High Ones found that their psychic powers were greatly weakened on Abode, leaving many of them unable to defend themselves from the prehistoric cave-dwelling humans who fearfully attacked them. Forcibly dispersed away from

16758-403: The skin, describing this as "The Unbeatable Madonna–Whore Combination". Macauley contributed all of the popular Ribald Classics series published between January 1978 and March 1984. 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 , then from Oui (which was published as

16905-424: The story into chronological order for the first time, beginning around 600 years before the events in the original series. Wolfrider Volume 2 is followed chronologically by Elfquest: The Grand Quest Volume 1 , the first in a series reprinting the original storyline, including the additional art drawn for the Marvel version. In this series, the original artwork has been rearranged into new panel layouts for clarity in

17052-402: The story, which was contemplated to open after issue #20's anticipated release in late 1984. While described as being in the "very early planning stages", nothing further was ever mentioned about this project. The Pinis signed a development deal with film producer Edward Pressman in 1994, with Jeremiah Chechik planned as the director. In 2008, Warner Bros. announced its intention to bring

17199-453: The stranded elves together to form a close symbiotic alliance. Because of his mixed blood, Timmorn was mortal, unlike his progenitors. Timmorn then went on to sire many children, with both wolves and elves; as a result, the entire tribe and their bonded wolf pack can all trace their bloodline back to Timmorn in some way by the point at which the series begins. This mingling of wolf and elf blood produces unexpected results; aside from maintaining

17346-410: The trolls. The elves claim that the trolls owe them sanctuary because of all the ways the Wolfriders have helped them over the years, but the corrupt troll king, Greymung, feels humiliated for being held at knifepoint by an elf and plots revenge. The elves are taken down a long tunnel toward what the trolls claim will be a land of bright promise, but is actually a trackless desert . Then their guide seals

17493-463: The tunnel behind them. Desperately inspired by a piece of "magic" lodestone they obtained from the trolls' caves that acts as a crude compass , they make an arduous journey across the wasteland until they encounter an oasis called Sorrow's End, populated by a tribe of sedentary, agrarian elves called the Sun Folk . Compared to the Wolfriders, the peaceful Sun Folk have retained more knowledge about

17640-467: The two individuals are not temperamentally compatible, they may part ways again as soon as a child has been produced, but otherwise they may form a lifelong pair-bond as "lifemates". Cutter's partner in Recognition is the Sun Folk's beautiful and powerful healer, Leetah . She initially rejects him as a savage barbarian, especially since she is already partnered to her village's haughty chief hunter, Rayek . The love triangle between Cutter, Leetah, and Rayek

17787-494: The underground scene. Early underground comix appeared sporadically in the early- and mid-1960s, but did not begin to appear frequently until after 1967. The first underground comix were personal works produced for friends of the artists. Perhaps the earliest of the underground comic strips was Frank Stack 's (under the pseudonym Foolbert Sturgeon ) The Adventures of Jesus , begun in 1962 and compiled in photocopied zine form by Gilbert Shelton in 1964. It has been credited as

17934-409: The wider universe, using telekinesis to create egg-shaped vessels and pilot them to new worlds, adapting to any ecosystem by shifting their own shapes and metabolisms. As companions, they brought two of the last surviving animal species from their home, both of which gradually evolved during the journey (and subsequent events) into two more races of sapient near-immortals: the insectoid Preservers and

18081-492: The work of new artists and writers on the series. The (initially) color titles New Blood , Hidden Years , and Shards for the most part carried the main storyline forward from the prehistoric to the medieval period of the World of Two Moons (now named Abode), occasionally featuring non-canonical stories. The historical background of the Wolfriders was filled out in Blood of Ten Chiefs , Two-Spear , and Kahvi . The future of Abode

18228-512: The world and themselves in profound ways. The Go-Backs are the fourth and last Elf tribe encountered during the Original Quest. Originally a migrating tribe, the Go-Backs are named after a sudden desire to "go back" to the Palace of the High Ones. The Palace has a strong pull on all elves once in range, and the Go-Backs were the first to stumble on it since the High Ones were driven away. First appearing to save Cutter and his followers from

18375-496: The years. This list is only a small portion of those who have posed. Some of them are: Film: Music: Sports: Television: The success of Playboy magazine has led PEI to market other versions of the magazine, the Special Edition s (formerly called Newsstand Special s), such as Playboy's College Girls and Playboy's Book of Lingerie , as well as the Playboy video collection. The National Library Service for

18522-709: Was Brainstorm Comix (1975–1978), which featured only original British strips (mostly by Bryan Talbot ). Hassle Free Press was founded in London in 1975 by Tony and Carol Bennett as a publisher and distributor of underground books and comics. Now known as Knockabout Comics , the company has a long-standing relationship with underground comix pioneers Gilbert Shelton and Robert Crumb , as well as British creators like Hunt Emerson and Bryan Talbot . Knockabout has frequently suffered from prosecutions from UK customs, who have seized work by creators such as Crumb and Melinda Gebbie , claiming it to be obscene. The 1990s witnessed

18669-401: Was 50¢. Copies of the first issue in mint to near-mint condition sold for over $ 5,000 in 2002. The novel Fahrenheit 451 , by Ray Bradbury , was published in 1953 and serialized in the March, April and May 1954 issues of Playboy . An urban legend started about Hefner and the Playmate of the Month because of markings on the front covers of the magazine. From 1955 to 1979 (except for

18816-515: Was already completed, so none of the sequels followed suit. Most of the additional material (bridging pages and panels) was incorporated into subsequent print collections and the online edition. In March 2003, after 25 years of self-publication, the Pinis licensed all publishing and merchandising rights in the series to DC Comics , although the Pinis retained ownership and creative control. DC's publication of Elfquest material began in July 2003 with The Elfquest 25th Anniversary Special , reprinting

18963-419: Was also able to briefly contact Rayek after he left Sorrow's End. The majority of the Wolfriders escort Leetah, Suntop, and his twin sister Ember on their journey to deliver Savah's warning to Cutter and Skywise. Continuing their quest, Cutter and Skywise learn of the existence of another elf tribe dwelling in a place called Blue Mountain. This previously unknown tribe, consisting of tall, thin, graceful elves,

19110-450: Was associated with countercultural iconoclasm, the movement's most enduring legacy was to be autobiography. In the late 1970s, Marvel and DC Comics agreed to sell their comics on a no-return basis with large discounts to comic book retailers; this led to later deals that helped underground publishers. During this period, underground titles focusing on feminist and Gay Liberation themes began to appear, as well as comics associated with

19257-592: Was beginning to decline, the British scene came into prominence between 1973 and 1974, but soon faced the same kind of criticism that American underground comix received. UK-based underground cartoonists included Chris Welch, Edward Barker , Michael J. Weller , Malcolm Livingstone, William Rankin (aka Wyndham Raine), Dave Gibbons , Joe Petagno, Bryan Talbot , and the team of Martin Sudden, Jay Jeff Jones and Brian Bolland . The last UK underground comix series of note

19404-492: Was built by a deposit account at Gary Arlington 's San Francisco Comic Book Store. The collection also includes titles from New York, Los Angeles, and elsewhere. The Rhode Island School of Design 's Fleet Library acquired a thousand-item collection of underground comix through a donation by Bill Adler in 2021. Playboy (magazine) Playboy (stylized in all caps) is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and online since 2020. It

19551-647: Was completed in March 2011. This is what I always intended Playboy Magazine to look like. — Hugh Hefner , when asked about ending nudity in Playboy In October 2015, Playboy announced the magazine would no longer feature full-frontal nudity beginning with the March 2016 issue. 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". Hefner agreed with

19698-441: Was disappointingly slow. Volume 2 was originally scheduled to appear in fall 2004 but after some delays was finally released in March 2005, 16 months after Volume 1. Part of the reason for the delay is that Wendy Pini was undergoing hip replacement surgery . Meanwhile, September 2003 saw the publication of Elfquest: Wolfrider Volume 1 , beginning a series of bimonthly manga -sized black-and-white reprint collections which arrange

19845-565: Was explored in The Rebels and Jink , set at a time when humans have reached space and colonized other worlds and the elves have all but disappeared. A fifth tribe of elves, the WaveDancers, was introduced only to be redacted from continuity. A one-shot issue re-introduced the sea elves with a new cast of characters. The first ten issues of Hidden Years were collected in two color volumes, Hidden Years and Rogue's Challenge (Book 9 in

19992-601: Was financially successful and almost single-handedly developed a market for underground comix. Within a few issues, Zap began to feature other cartoonists — including S. Clay Wilson , Robert Williams , Spain Rodriguez , and Gilbert Shelton — and Crumb launched a series of solo titles, including Despair , Uneeda (both published by Print Mint in 1969), Big Ass Comics , R. Crumb's Comics and Stories , Motor City Comics (all published by Rip Off Press in 1969), Home Grown Funnies ( Kitchen Sink Press , 1971) and Hytone Comix ( Apex Novelties , 1971), in addition to founding

20139-471: Was followed by an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art and a Pulitzer Prize for Spiegelman in 1992. The novel originated from a three-page story first published in an underground comic, Funny Aminals [ sic ], (Apex Novelties, 1972). Alternative cartoonist Peter Bagge was strongly influenced by underground comics, and was reciprocally admired by Crumb, for whom Bagge edited Weirdo magazine in

20286-580: Was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ 1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. Known for its centerfolds of nude and semi-nude models ( Playmates ), Playboy played an important role in the sexual revolution and remains one of the world's best-known brands, with a presence in nearly every medium. In addition to the flagship magazine in the United States, special nation-specific versions of Playboy are published worldwide, including those by licensees, such as Dirk Steenekamp's DHS Media Group. The magazine has

20433-416: Was in color, not black and white. Playboy ' s enduring mascot, a stylized silhouette of a rabbit wearing a tuxedo bow tie , was created by Playboy art director Art Paul for the second issue as an endnote , but was adopted as the official logo and has appeared ever since. A running joke in the magazine involves hiding the logo somewhere in the cover art or photograph. Hefner said he chose

20580-581: Was in turn succeeded by publisher Scott Flanders . The magazine celebrated its 50th anniversary with the January 2004 issue. Celebrations were held at 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. The printed magazine ran several annual features and ratings. One of

20727-452: Was influenced by science fiction comics and included art by Denis Kitchen and Richard "Grass" Green , one of the few African-American comix creators. Other important underground cartoonists of the era included Shelton, Wilson, Deitch, Rodriguez, Skip Williamson , Rick Griffin , George Metzger , and Victor Moscoso . Shelton became famous for his characters Wonder Wart-Hog , a superhero parody, and The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers ,

20874-511: Was killed before reaching it, leaving Winnowill as new Lord of the Gliders. The Gliders rarely venture out of their mountain except for the Chosen Eight, the tribe's hunters and (if need be) warriors. Although they have their own powers of psychic levitation , the Eight ride massive birds with whom they share a strong bond, similar to that of the Wolfriders and their wolves. As the Wolfriders search for Cutter and Skywise, Strongbow shoots down one of

21021-454: 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

21168-509: Was released on February 28, 2018, exactly 40 years after issue #1 of the Original Quest was first released. In November 2019, a new series debuted from Dark Horse Comics. Titled Elfquest: Stargazer's Hunt , the story focuses on Skywise. The world in which the series takes place – eventually called Abode by its human inhabitants, but originally referred to as the World of Two Moons – superficially resembles Earth , with geography that

21315-413: Was republished by Marvel Comics ' Epic imprint in 32 installments. Distributed on newsstands, this gave the series much-desired mass-market exposure. Because of Marvel's 22-page format, these new editions featured additional bridging pages which broke the narrative at different points than in the original Warp comics, which contained 32 pages of story. Marvel's license was only for the original series, which

21462-405: Was the first all-female underground comic; followed in 1972 by Wimmen's Comix (Last Gasp), an anthology series founded by cartoonist Patricia Moodian  [ fr ] that featured (among others) Melinda Gebbie , Lynda Barry , Aline Kominsky , and Shary Flenniken . Joyce Farmer and Lyn Chevli 's Tits & Clits Comix all-female anthology debuted in 1972 as well. By 1972–1973,

21609-1229: Was the first interviewee for the section. "Rock the Rabbit" was an annual music news and pictorial feature published in the March edition. The pictorial featured images of rock bands photographed by music photographer Mick Rock . Fashion designers participated in the Rock the Rabbit event by designing T-shirts inspired by Playboy ' s rabbit head logo for each band. The shirts were sold at Playboy ' s retailers and auctioned off to raise money for AIDS research and treatment at LIFEbeat: The Music Industry Fights AIDS. Bands who were featured include: MGMT , Daft Punk , Iggy Pop , Duran Duran , Flaming Lips , Snow Patrol , and The Killers . The photographers who have contributed to Playboy include Mario Casilli , Ana Dias , Richard Fegley , Arny Freytag , Ron Harris , Tom Kelley , Annie Leibovitz , Ken Marcus , David Mecey , Russ Meyer , Helmut Newton , Pompeo Posar , Suze Randall , Herb Ritts , Ellen von Unwerth , Stephen Wayda , Sam Wu , and Bunny Yeager . Many celebrities (singers, actresses, models, etc.) have posed for Playboy over

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