Playboy to drop nudity as internet fills demand

[Beachlife!]

When I was growing up in the 70s, I'm not even sure I knew the word porn, but Playboy would have been the embodiment of it, if I did know the word.

My porn scale pretty much went JC Penny catalog, National Geographic, Playboy magazine.

[jimmy101_again]

The word "pornographic" seems to have two meanings. In common use it is everything from a statue of a nude to hardcore sex images. Legally though, isn't "pornographic" the level at which it becomes illegal?

[Dr. Winston O'Boogie]

Playboy was always more than just the pictorials, though. Hence the phrase "I only read it for the articles." Yeah, right. Tell me another one, Spanky.

[RichardM]

Hey, I remember a good article from Playboy in the early 70s. It was by Mort Sahl and titled "Charmed by a Snake." It was about him owning an AC Cobra. I'm still looking for a copy.

[overyonder]

Originally Posted by RichardM

Hey, I remember a good article from Playboy in the early 70s. It was by Mort Sahl and titled "Charmed by a Snake." It was about him owning an AC Cobra. I'm still looking for a copy.

It's available online as a PDF if you really need to read it.

OY

[Psihala]

The only time I can remember picking up a Playboy magazine was in the early-mid 80's (I think) to read an interview with one of the former Beatles. It was so memorable, I can't even recall which of them it was being interviewed.

~Psihala
(*Preferred Rolling Stone for musician interviews at the time anyway.)

[Lainie]

I read an exceptional interview with George Harrison in Playboy in the 80s. I don't usually remember specific articles/interviews for 30+ years.

[Sue]

I remember there was a really good interview in Playboy with John Lennon that came out a few months before he was killed. Sad timing .

[crocoduck_hunter]

Originally Posted by jimmy101_again

The word "pornographic" seems to have two meanings. In common use it is everything from a statue of a nude to hardcore sex images. Legally though, isn't "pornographic" the level at which it becomes illegal?

No, when it's illegal it's snuff. Porn is depictions of nudity and/or sexual acts for erotic effect.

[Beachlife!]

I don't think that's true. Snuff is a very specific type of pornographic movie, involving murder. Pornography can be illegal without being snuff.

[queen of the caramels]

Originally Posted by overyonder

And that, friends, is the difference between Ontario and Quebec.

OY

Not round my part of rural Quebec..nor any of the shops* I was in today in dear ole Morryall...

* Supermarches, depanneurs, librairies et magasins de jouets

[queen of the caramels]

Originally Posted by Sue

But on the subject of Quebec vs Ontario we're catching up. We now have beer and wine in some of our grocery stores .

That surprised me when we moved to Quebec..I could buy beer and wine almost everywhere. Even in garages when I'd just filled up my car.

Some supermarkets in the more rural areas round here sell half bottles of spirits (37.5 cl) since they are SAAQ licensed.

[crocoduck_hunter]

Originally Posted by Beachlife!

I don't think that's true. Snuff is a very specific type of pornographic movie, involving murder. Pornography can be illegal without being snuff.

Sure, if it's got minors or something, but most porn is not illegal, at least in the US.

[Beachlife!]

All porn is not illegal, some porn clearly is illegal. You've already managed to list two types.

[crocoduck_hunter]

Do the types I've listed constitute the majority of porn produced? I seriously doubt it.

[overyonder]

Originally Posted by queen of the caramels

Not round my part of rural Quebec..nor any of the shops* I was in today in dear ole Morryall...

* Supermarches, depanneurs, librairies et magasins de jouets

You're saying they DON'T carry it? Because when I worked at depanneurs in Montreal they always had the "upper rack" for adult contents. That may have changed with the Internet.

OY

[overyonder]

Originally Posted by queen of the caramels

Some supermarkets in the more rural areas round here sell half bottles of spirits (37.5 cl) since they are SAAQ licensed.

And depanneurs can be licensed too.

OY

[ChasFink]

Originally Posted by Sue

I haven't seen a Playboy in years but the ones I remember seeing most recently would probably be circa about 2000-2001. They were tasteful and artistic only in comparison to some of the really hardcore porn that was out there at that time (and presumably still is).

That was my point, albeit poorly expressed on my part.

Originally Posted by Seaboe Muffinchucker

Chas Fink, having lived through the 60s and 70s, I can assure you Playboy was considered pornographic, albeit soft porn.

I guess my perception of the same period was shaded by my upbringing. Not sure what that says about my upbringing.

Originally Posted by jimmy101_again

Legally though, isn't "pornographic" the level at which it becomes illegal?

Almost any content is legal in the U.S., but you were probably thinking of obscenity. The following definitions from the FCC define material that may or may not be limited under various laws:

Obscene content does not have protection by the First Amendment. For content to be ruled obscene, it must meet a three-pronged test established by the Supreme Court: It must appeal to an average person's prurient interest; depict or describe sexual conduct in a "patently offensive" way; and, taken as a whole, lack serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.

Indecent content portrays sexual or excretory organs or activities in a way that does not meet the three-prong test for obscenity.

Profane content includes "grossly offensive" language that is considered a public nuisance.

As for Pornography...

Wikipedia: Pornography . . . is the portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purpose of sexual arousal.

However, if you Google the word, you get this definition: "printed or visual material containing the explicit description or display of sexual organs or activity, intended to stimulate erotic rather than aesthetic or emotional feelings." (Emphasis mine.)

I would say that by Wikipedia's definition, Playboy is porn, but by Google's it would arguably be in a gray area.

Originally Posted by Dr. Winston O'Boogie

Playboy was always more than just the pictorials, though. Hence the phrase "I only read it for the articles."

I don't think anyone but the blind get Playboy only for the articles, but the magazine has had quite a lot of quality articles, interviews, and fiction over the years. A magazine with all of the non-nude content would still appeal to many - it just wouldn't be Playboy.

Okay, I've spent far too much time writing about Playboy and porn. I hereby retire from this thread.

[GenYus234]

For me at least, "prurient" is one of those words that sounds like the opposite of what it is. I'm guessing that is because it is close to Puritan maybe?

"Teetotaler" is another (to cover both topics in this thread).

[mbravo]

Originally Posted by GenYus234

For me at least, "prurient" is one of those words that sounds like the opposite of what it is. I'm guessing that is because it is close to Puritan maybe?

"Teetotaler" is another (to cover both topics in this thread).

Yeah, I always associate it with "prudent"