Men's Adventure Magazines in Postwar America

Fifty years ago, all a man had to worry about was the Soviet secret police, swarms of man-eating weasels, and, naturally, the Nude Love Dolls of Nympho Ranch. With this definitive collection of men's adventure - a.k.a. "sweat" - magazines from the 1950s, 60s, and 70s, step into his adrenalin-soled shoes and race away from near-disaster. As part of TASCHEN's Bibliotheca Universalis series, this homage to the hunky heroes and outrageous exploits of the mid-century man offers an at once hilarious and fascinating perspective on the male role models of yesteryear. As one protagonist after another fights his way out of a high-risk predicament to save himself and, more often than not, his buxom female companion, from a gruesome or tragic end, these pumped-muscle periodicals are as much vintage entertainment as they are historical testament. With an in-depth introduction as well as chapter-by-chapter essays and an interview with artist Norm Eastman, one of the genre's leading artists, the book explores the socio-political implications of these tall stories of ferocious lions, venomous snakes, and prison shackles, from the role of women to the portrayal of Nazis and Communists.