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So Edwards writes that it was a sin for moto manufactures to have been objectifying women in their 60's and 70's advertising.
Well the 60's were slightly ahead of my time, but i recall the later years very well. And i recall
the anxiety i felt when Cycle World (under editor Edwards) and other "straight" moto magazines started to clean out attractive women from both their magazine cover shots and advertising content. Mind you, the covers of these magazines were never as racey as the Norton Girls , et al, but they still appealed to the young American males perusing news stands for motorcycle lit. i actually was a subscriber to Cycle World since they bought out Cycle magazine and rolled over my subscription. I was a big fan of Edwards and Pete Eagan and read them with enthusiasm every month. That enthusiasm was dampened when they so called cleaned up their objectifying content. i remember there was one ad for aftermarket Harley type merchandise whom kept their enticing female ad in the magazine for a few months still. i imagine it was contract related. But yet it was a stark reminder of how the magazine just gave up on folks such as myself. Young men.
And perhaps even those men still young at heart. i tried to console myself that their reason was to trying to attract more female readers. But of course the real reason was political correctness. Basically the first salvo against the American male in society.
So how did they do? None of these magazines including Cycle World are in print today. Talk about dismissing the hand that feeds you. And they cant use the print is dead excuse as several counter culture type moto mags are readily available in print today. God bless them!
I also care to point out what may appear as a certain amount of hypocrisy involved. The LeeAnn Cycle World cover in 1999 was blatant use of a returning staffer seductively poised with a Dreer Commando with the heading "She's Back" , presumably hyping the return of Norton motorcycles. Yeah right! LOL!
And what about Edwards himself? One cant really tell from the printing above his heading in our club magazine, but one can easily check out his motorcycle called Behind the Eightball on the internet. Check out how it traveled the country in the Guggenheim Art of the Motorcycle show sporting objectifying tank graphics.A sexy lady showing a lot of leg.
Oh but its supposedly a take on period WW2 nose art? Come off it David!
You are not the protector of women in the wind , or in print, you make yourself out to be. I respect you contributions to motorcycling over the years. I have had rewarding conversations with you on the once popular Cycle world Forums. You have done a great job on things like the von Dutch bike and others. As a former Indian bobber owner myself i love your Scout. But this issue i am writing about here has bugged me for decades.
Well the 60's were slightly ahead of my time, but i recall the later years very well. And i recall
the anxiety i felt when Cycle World (under editor Edwards) and other "straight" moto magazines started to clean out attractive women from both their magazine cover shots and advertising content. Mind you, the covers of these magazines were never as racey as the Norton Girls , et al, but they still appealed to the young American males perusing news stands for motorcycle lit. i actually was a subscriber to Cycle World since they bought out Cycle magazine and rolled over my subscription. I was a big fan of Edwards and Pete Eagan and read them with enthusiasm every month. That enthusiasm was dampened when they so called cleaned up their objectifying content. i remember there was one ad for aftermarket Harley type merchandise whom kept their enticing female ad in the magazine for a few months still. i imagine it was contract related. But yet it was a stark reminder of how the magazine just gave up on folks such as myself. Young men.
And perhaps even those men still young at heart. i tried to console myself that their reason was to trying to attract more female readers. But of course the real reason was political correctness. Basically the first salvo against the American male in society.
So how did they do? None of these magazines including Cycle World are in print today. Talk about dismissing the hand that feeds you. And they cant use the print is dead excuse as several counter culture type moto mags are readily available in print today. God bless them!
I also care to point out what may appear as a certain amount of hypocrisy involved. The LeeAnn Cycle World cover in 1999 was blatant use of a returning staffer seductively poised with a Dreer Commando with the heading "She's Back" , presumably hyping the return of Norton motorcycles. Yeah right! LOL!
And what about Edwards himself? One cant really tell from the printing above his heading in our club magazine, but one can easily check out his motorcycle called Behind the Eightball on the internet. Check out how it traveled the country in the Guggenheim Art of the Motorcycle show sporting objectifying tank graphics.A sexy lady showing a lot of leg.
Oh but its supposedly a take on period WW2 nose art? Come off it David!
You are not the protector of women in the wind , or in print, you make yourself out to be. I respect you contributions to motorcycling over the years. I have had rewarding conversations with you on the once popular Cycle world Forums. You have done a great job on things like the von Dutch bike and others. As a former Indian bobber owner myself i love your Scout. But this issue i am writing about here has bugged me for decades.
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