Former Editors of 'XY' and 'A&F Quarterly' Launch Two New Magazines
Peter Ian Cummings and Savas Abadsidis, the former editors of XY and the Abercrombie & Fitch Quarterly, respectively, have teamed up to launch two new publications for young gay men that will be in sale in bookstores next month, they tell us:
*** B MAGAZINE *** is the "gay magazine of the future." In addition to sexy photos and interesting articles, we are also covering futuristic design. We are also launching a second magazine, All American Guys, all photos, which is a joint project with the allamericanguys model agency in Florida.
Say the publishers in a press release: "XY and the A&F Quarterly were known for their inspiring and daring photography, and Cummings and Abadsidis said they will continue that trend by photographing people across the country, especially in mid-America, as they both did before; and interviewing numerous celebrities — as well as photographing 'inspiring and cool gay people across America.'"
They also have a funky website to accompany B Magazine.
"XY and the A&F Quarterly were known for their inspiring and daring photography, and Cummings and Abadsidis said they will continue that trend by photographing people across the country, especially in mid-America, as they both did before; and interviewing numerous celebrities — as well as photographing 'inspiring and cool gay people across America.'"
Really? Because when I picked up their mag in high school, I thought they basically cared about being vapid and shooting pictures of almost-naked 16 year olds.
Instead, I picked up YGA, which was a gay youth magazine of substance that talked about activism and queer teen life, love, and overall interest instead of just page after page of white twinks with lip piercings in their boxer shorts making out and flipping off the camera and articles about how to masturbate.
YGA, unfortunately, couldn't sustain itself, so it stopped publishing after its 4th issue. So sad.
I think I realized XY wasn't the mag for me when one of its featured stories was about how the author was pissed that a boy he used to make out with when he was in high school ended things with him because he was afraid of his conservative Bible thumping parents would find out. The author's then went on a rant about how the boy who jilted him could have run away from home or stayed at a gay youth shelter instead of ending things with him.
That pretty much summed up XY's perspective to me. But maybe they've grown up since then and B will "b" a little more empowering for queer youth.
But from the description...I'm not holding my breath.
Posted by: luminum | Apr 15, 2011 1:04:38 PM
This is awful.
Again.
Same art direction too!
Whose money is going into this sink hole this time?
Posted by: Paul | Apr 15, 2011 1:07:51 PM
Wait a sec, they are going back into MAGAZINE publishing?! Do they not see the major publishers having trouble hawking their crap in an internet age, let alone the little gay ones?
I'm sorry but the original XY was a rather dumb idea, what with it near impossible for a lot of closeted gay teens to get ahold of a copy. To try again now seems insane.
Maybe something using digital distribution, but not another magazine.
Posted by: brandon h | Apr 15, 2011 1:11:29 PM
I think if the magazine is able to have a strong digital presence supported by ads it can sustain the magazine. Why should we criticize a publisher trying to reach out, provide info, and entertain an under served market? I'll check it out once it comes to my local Barnes and Noble.
Posted by: Brian in Texas | Apr 15, 2011 1:38:52 PM
LOLOL @Brian In Texas ;)
All of the major brick and mortar booksellers are about to go belly up, too! Online content/sales is killing physical content and retailers. Paul is right: Who in the world wants to see this much money burning?
Posted by: WewaBoi | Apr 15, 2011 1:50:39 PM
HEY, for a 16 year old gay kid in 1999, XY was the best form of porn available.
Posted by: Fenrox | Apr 15, 2011 2:10:29 PM
@ Fenrox, Second! The articles were ok, but it was boys that sold it.
Posted by: Joel V | Apr 15, 2011 2:32:22 PM
I noticed the photos on the web for B magazine are the same ones they used in XY when I was a teen. I'm 43 now. No thanks!
Posted by: mikey | Apr 15, 2011 2:44:16 PM
...because young gay men read magazines. Riiiiight.
Besides, if the more, um, "serious" mags already in existence are any indicator, articles will not be of any substance whatsoever, but fluff pieces appealing to consumerism. "Out" is now a comPLETE joke, and "The Advocate"has become a total piece of crap--can't remember the last time I saw a real news or analysis article, or anything at all which ran longer than 2 COMPLETE pages.
I give these new ones 2, 3 at the most, issues and poof, buh-bye.
Posted by: jim | Apr 15, 2011 3:17:49 PM
QUESTION:
Wasn't Abercrombie and Fitch the disgustingly RACIST company that was sued numerous times for racist discrimination in its employment practices while still creating a lily white gay aesthetic of shirtless Nazi-youth looking "boys" in its stores and advertising publications?
ANSWER:
Yes! See http://www.afjustice.com for more information.
QUESTION:
So by "middle America" they mean white, non-phenotypically Jewish, Anglo-Germanic beefcake looking guys and (save one or two TOKENS like the bigoted "Sean Cody") a nightmare march of these Anglo/Germanic looking "all American guys"--is that the kind of racism that these guys are peddling as "gay"?
ANSWER:
Yes! And it's disgusting! Beauty comes in all colors, shapes, and sizes, and young gay boys need a variety of standards of beauty so that they don't feel bad if they aren't twinks.
Fellas, I'm a near-trans dyke that looks and sounds like an Asian twink and even with my groin plugged with my wonderful prosthetic cock (I've never really had big boobs), *I* would not be allowed in one of their photo shoots!
(Last paragraph was intentionally satirical/comedic, yet the information is true.)
Posted by: brenda | Apr 15, 2011 3:20:31 PM
Brenda - you laid it out - Thank you!
Posted by: Schniffy | Apr 15, 2011 4:03:49 PM
THANK YOU BRENDA!! I LOVE YOU!
Posted by: RW | Apr 15, 2011 5:09:00 PM
So basically more softcore porn "aimed" at gay teens but only read by men in their 20s and above. If you were a closeted teen, keeping a copy of XY or these new mags around would be akin to keeping Freshman or Inches or Playgirl or something. (Haven't actually seen printed porn in many years, so those titles took a while to dredge up!) And if your parents are nosy, suspicious, and/or fundamentalist, they will go through your stuff.
Posted by: Paul R | Apr 15, 2011 6:05:33 PM
xy was an amazing magazine when i was a teen. slam it as vapid, but they were the only ones making anything we could relate to back then. xy was important to a lot of us
Posted by: mld | Apr 15, 2011 10:02:53 PM
Right on Brenda ✓✓✓
Posted by: Chaq | Apr 16, 2011 12:27:31 AM
Um, Mikey, if you are 43 now, then you were not a teen (except in your mind) when XY was being published. The youngest you ever were during the XY years was 28. They only started publishing in 1996. Again, you would have been 28 in 1996.
Posted by: Critifur | Apr 16, 2011 1:42:19 AM
Just for the record, I donated a complete set of XY magazine to the Stonewall Library & Museum in Fort Lauderdale. The set is in their archives.
Posted by: David Jarrett | Apr 16, 2011 10:59:44 AM
I would bet money that the first comment posted here is by none other than Benjie Nycum, former XY staffer and creator of YGA. The one whose ex-boyfriend, Mike Glatze, crossed over to the Jesus side a few years back. I wonder how that is working out for him.
Posted by: JohnnyWicked | Apr 16, 2011 3:23:26 PM