CHARLES COPELAND MAGAZINES

NOTE: All of the illustrations shown on this checklist are thumbnails.
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MAGAZINES SECTION DIRECTORY

I.  SWANK & BACHELOR

May 1957 - cover by Charles Copeland

SWANK

SWANK magazine has had a long and varied life. It started in the 1940s as an Esquire-style men's mag, and was purchased in the mid-1950s by Martin Goodman. His first SWANKs are pocket-sized, but with the success of PLAYBOY and its imitators Goodman switched to standard magazine size with Vol. 2, No. 4 in December 1955. Goodman's SWANK is a microcosm of the late 1950s, overflowing with talent from the brilliant editor Bruce Jay Friedman and gifted art director Larry Graber to the well-known authors and a staff of talented young artists - like Charles Copeland, whose work appears in 13 of the 20 Goodman issues of SWANK.  The only constant in magazine publishing is change, and by the January 1960 issue Martin Goodman had sold SWANK to a new group headed by Irwin Stein and Walter Zacharius (who would later become the publishers of Lancer Books).  The early 1960s issues of SWANK continued the men's magazine line with nude pin-up photography and articles geared to affluent male readers.  But now the art, which was so colorful and eye-catching in the 1950s, became uninteresting and often downright ugly. None of the artists are known to us. SWANK continued on, gradually improving the artwork. Then, as tastes shifted, it became a skin magazine and, under new owners, devolved into the XXX hardcore porno mag it has been for some years now.  This SWANK checklist - with emphasis on the appearances of Charles Copeland - covers the Martin Goodman era only:

SWANK pocket-sized magazine, July 1955. Vol 2, No 3.  There may have been a Vol. 2, No. 1 and No. 2 but if so I've never seen them.  Let me know if you have one.

December 1955. Vol. 2, No. 4.  First standard magazine-sized issue.  "The New Man's Magazine". Editor:  Bruce J. Friedman.  Photo covers except as noted. Cover by Robert J. Lee shows the new SWANK mascot, a hound. A great new series starts called "SWANK dines out with..." with a new interview in each issue, topped with a small illustration of the SWANK hound interviewing the celebrity. The first is Louis Armstrong, with art by Robert J. Lee. New stories by Saroyan, Steve Frazee, Erskine Caldwell. This issue also contains Simenon fiction with art by Clark Hulings.

February 1956. Vol. 3, No. 1.  "SWANK dines out with Anita Ekberg" (artist unknown). Tina Louise photographed by Peter Basch. Fiction by Erskine Caldwell, James T. Farrell, Fan Nichols. Artists include Clark Hulings & Fred Freeman.

May 1956. Vol. 3, No. 2.  Cover by Bob Maguire and Al Werner.  Photography by Peter Basch, Russ Meyer and Weegee. Fiction by W.L. Heath and Graham Greene.  "SWANK dines out with Jayne Mansfield" (artist uncredited, probably Lee). First SWANK appearance of artist Charles Copeland (a month after his first men's adventure magazine appearance in the April 1956 issue of Goodman's MEN) with a two-page illustration for "The Strange Courtship of Ethel Jones".

August 1956. Vol. 3, No. 3.  Cover by Mauro Scali and Al Werner. "SWANK dines out with Cleo Moore" (artist uncredited).  Henry Kuttner fiction illustrated by an uncredited Rudy Nappi.  And fantasy story "The Second Mrs. Gilbert" by Walter Wager, with brilliant half black & white / half duotone art by Charles Copeland, signed C.C. 

August 1956

November 1956. Vol. 3, No. 4.  Cover by Arthur Saroff. "SWANK dines out with Sophia Loren" (artist uncredited, possibly Lee). Baseball by Charles Einstein. Illustrators include Clark Hulings, Arthur Sussman, Jim Meese, Mort Kunstler and David Stone.

February 1957. Vol. 4, No. 1.  Cover by Peter Hawley (also used on Lion LL168, THE BEDSIDE BACHELOR). Charles E. Fritch science fiction "Lhassa Come Home" illustrated by Copeland.  "SWANK dines out with Frank Lloyd Wright" (artist unknown). Fiction by William Saroyan and Henry Kane, Julie Newmar photographed by Peter Basch.

May 1957. Vol. 4, No. 2. Cover by Copeland. And "The French Touch" by Jack Iams with delirious half-color illustration by Copeland. All of the pastels on the French artist's palette appear again in the painting. Plus: "SWANK dines out with Zsa Zsa Gabor" (artist unknown). Fiction by Graham Greene and Robert Sheckley, photography by Peter Basch. John Huston profile. Cover shown above. (Note: The April 1957 issue of BACHELOR includes an ad for this issue of SWANK showing a different cover intended to make "How to Get a Babe In the Woods" the cover story.  It's fairly silly - it shows a woman hunter and a man dressed as a moose. At some point late in the editing, the change was made to the Copeland cover. The SWANK ad in the May 1957 issue of BACHELOR is corrected.  The copy is the same on both covers, only the cover art changes.)

May 1957

August 1957. Vol. 4, No. 3.  Three contributions from Charles Copeland:  article "Midnight Sketchpad of an Artist by Charles Copeland", plus a full-page duotone cartoon (uncredited Copeland) and "SWANK dines out with Monique Van Vooren" (uncredited Copeland).  "SWANK dines out" evolves from great series with clumsy art to an unbeatable one-two punch of Friedman's humor coupled with Copeland's glamorous drawings. Plus: "Cover My Damp Grave" (SCORPION REEF) by Charles Williams, Mike Todd profile, art by Robert Schulz, Dawn Richards by Peter Basch.

August 1957

November 1957. Vol. 4, No. 4.  "SWANK dines out with Mamie Van Doren" (uncredited artist, looks like Ray Johnson to me). "The Sweet Soft Kill" by Lane Kauffmann with terrific illustration by Harry Schaare. Alfred Hitchcock profile.

 January 1958. Vol. 5, No. 1.  "SWANK dines out with Barbara Nichols" (artist?)  Plus art by Paul Rader and William Rose. (Rose art reused for THE RASCAL'S GUIDE by Bruce Jay Friedman, Zenith ZB-12). Howard Hughes profile.

March 1958. Vol. 5, No. 2.  Three contributions from Charles Copeland: "The Switch" (sketch-type black & white illustration), a full page cartoon signed COPELAND in block letters, and "SWANK dines out with Lilo" (uncredited Copeland). Plus: Henry Kane's "Some of my Best Friends are Dead" illustrated by Samson Pollen, and "The Sleeping Redheads" by Robert Bloch illustrated by Ray Johnson. Photography by Mario Casilli, Linda Christian photo.

March 1958

Copeland's original art for "SWANK dines out with Brigitte Bardot"
Bardot gives the sideways look to the SWANK hound.

July 1958. Vol. 5, No. 3.  With two illustrations by Charles Copeland: "SWANK dines out with Brigitte Bardot" (uncredited Copeland) and "How High the Stakes" half-page drawing.  Plus "The Impossible Yen" with art by Paul Rader, "School for Frauleins" with art by Harry Barton, Bardot pictorial.

                             July 1958                                                    September 1958                     

September 1958. Vol. 5, No. 4.  Three contributions from Charles Copeland: "SWANK dines out with Greta Thyssen" (signed); a full page signed cartoon, and two-page color illustration for "The Big Wet Kill" (BIMINI RUN) by Howard Hunt.  Plus art by Bob Stanley and Darryl Greene. Linda Christian profile, Walter Wager on spies.

                   September 1958                                              September 1958 (detail)

December 1958. Vol. 5, No. 5.  "SWANK dines in with Abbe Lane" (signed by Charles Copeland),  cover photo and interior photography by Russ Meyer, "Chicken" with art by Paul Rader, "Who Was That Blonde I Saw You Kill Last Night" (HIS NAME WAS DEATH) by Fredric Brown. Other illustrators include Ray Johnson and Rudy Nappi.

                        December 1958                                                 April 1959


February 1959. Vol. 6, No. 1.  "SWANK dines out with Belinda Lee" (unsigned Copeland illustration) and "Art, Booze & Balloon Girls" with color art signed C. Copeland.  Other illustrators in this issue include Ray Johnson, Rudy Nappi and Julian Paul.

April 1959. Vol. 6, No. 2.  "SWANK dines out with Vikki Dougan" (uncredited art of "The Back" by Copeland), plus art by George Eisenberg and Rudy Nappi. 

June 1959. Vol. 6, No. 3.  "Slay Darling" by Henry Kane, illustration by Ray Johnson.  "SWANK dines out with Corinne Calvet" (artist unknown). Oscar Levant profile. Art by Julian Paul and Rudi Nappi.

August 1959. Vol. 6, No. 4.  Story by Ed Sachs, "The Girl Who Was Wild about Harry" with illustration by Copeland, and "SWANK dines out with Julie Newmar" (uncredited  Copeland).  June Wilkinson cover & pictorial, "Die Now Pay Later" with fabulous two-page illustration by Rudy Nappi, and "I'd Walk a Mile for a Corpse" (BLOOD ON THE DESERT) by Peter Rabe, illustrated by Harry Schaare.

October 1959. Vol. 6, No. 5.  "SWANK dines out with Tina Louise" with uncredited Copeland art, and "Memoirs of an Italian Girl Thief" by John Carlova, illustrated by Copeland.  Plus art by Ray Johnson, Julian Paul, Paul Randall, and an uncredited Robert Maguire. After this issue Martin Goodman sells the rights to the title SWANK to new publishers, who begin in January 1960 with Vol. 6, No. 6.


BACHELOR

Goodman and company published another men's magazine during the years they did SWANK.  The two magazines advertised for each other and shared staff.  Art by Charles Copeland appeared in 8 of the 10 issues. This incarnation of BACHELOR lasted only a couple years.  Martin Goodman sold the rights to a different publisher after the November 1958 issue. BACHELOR continued to flourish as a men's pin-up mag throughout the 1960s and evolved into a slick skin magazine in the 1970s. The checklist that follows covers publisher Martin Goodman's issues only.   

Pocket-sized BACHELOR, September 1956, Vol. 1, No. 2.  Has anyone seen Vol. 1, No. 1?

January 1957. Vol. 2, No. 1.  First standard magazine-size issue.  Photo cover montage includes Marilyn Monroe, Betty Brosnan, Elsa Martinelli, others.  Magazine version of the Lion paperback bestseller FULLY DRESSED AND IN HIS RIGHT MIND by Michael Fessier.  Pictorial of Playmate/actress Sally Todd. Editor: Bruce J. Friedman.

April 1957.  Vol. 2, No. 2.  "The American Bachelor: His Life and Hard Times" with pin-up cartoon-style art by Charles Copeland; plus Salvador Dali profile, Frederick Lorenz story, pirates illustrated by Gil Cohen, Julie Newmar pictorial by Peter Basch.  Newmar is also one of the models on the photo cover.

April 1957

May 1957. Vol. 2, No. 3.  (New issues of BACHELOR normally appeared every two or three months, this is the only time they are dated just one month apart.) "Gamble With My Blood" (THE BIG BITE) by Charles Williams illustrated by Mort Kunstler. Ernest Hemingway profile.  With a full-page unsigned cartoon by Charles Copeland.

August 1957. Vol. 2, No. 4.  "Special Issue for Cads and Bounders". Article "Wenching Around the Watercooler" by Morgan Morris illustrated by Copeland. Plus Fan Nichols, Charles Boswell. Illustrators include Clark Hulings and Gil Cohen.  And "The Well-Dressed G.I. of 1970."

August 1957

November 1957.  Vol. 2, No. 5.  Illustrators include James Bama and Leo Summers. Contributors include Robert Sheckley, Art Buchwald, Frederick Lorenz, Russel Crouse, and Philip MacDonald. Dawn Richards layout.

February 1958.  Vol. 3, No. 1.  "How to Become a Bearded Menace" with full-page illustration by Copeland.  "The Latest in Las Vegas Wildness" has uncredited sketches reminiscent of Copeland's sketches for SWANK. Plus movie monsters by Walter Wager, Clark Hulings art. 

May 1958.  Vol. 3, No. 2.  "Have Corpse Will Travel" by Bill Gault, illustrated by Bob Stanley, plus Errol Flynn profile, Clark Hulings.  And an unsigned full-page blue duotone cartoon with three beautiful women, unmistakably Copeland.


                            May 1958                                                     July 1958

July 1958. Vol. 3, No. 3.  One full-page yellow duotone cartoon signed Copeland. Illustrators in this issue include Charles Frace' and Vic Prezio.  Fiction by Ed Lacy, plus a Bill Wenzel cartoon.

September 1958. Vol. 3, No. 4.  "GIs, Girls & Diggers" with art by Paul Rader. "A Blonde for Marrakesh" with art by Copeland. "Don't Go Away Mad" with art by Samson Pollen. Plus Bill Ballenger, one photo by Russ Meyer.

November 1958.  Vol. 3, No. 5.  "Let's All Go Kill the Red-Haired Man" (WIFE OF THE RED-HAIRED MAN) by Bill Ballenger illustrated by Copeland.  Full-page blue duotone cartoon (unsigned Copeland). "Miss Gentilbelle" by Charles Beaumont, illustrated by Rudy Nappi. Goodman's last BACHELOR. 

November 1958

II. MEN'S ADVENTURE MAGAZINES


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