# Clever magazine names **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 15, 2018, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378 "2018-09-15T04:27:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/1 "2018-09-15T04:27:32Z")
Two of my favorites, among currently-available magazines are “5280”, which is a magazine by, for, and about the Denver, Colorado area, and “KMT”, which is about Egyptology and is named after what the ancient Egyptians called themselves. My 9th grade history teacher, who taught that unit, is now a Facebook friend, and I made sure to tell him that I remembered at least that much about it. 🆒 “SAIL” magazine has a clever logo, because it looks like a, ahem, sail. I was at a meetup last night and mentioned “Kerrang!” magazine, and didn’t know if it was still published. Yep, it is. > **[Kerrang! — the best in rock music and alternative culture](https://www.kerrang.com/)** > > The world's greatest metal / punk / hardcore / rock music publication. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/2 "2018-09-15T04:30:51Z")
I thought, at the time, ‘George’ was a good name for John Kennedy’s magazine. Alas it didn’t last long. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/3 "2018-09-15T05:00:54Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I thought, at the time, ‘George’ was a good name for John Kennedy’s magazine. Alas it didn’t last long. Funny you should mention George, because someone ordered a copy from me a few days ago. It was memorable because I COULD.NOT.FIND.IT until I looked in a pile of, of all things, vintage sheet music, and there it was. Guess I didn’t go through the whole pile when I filed it. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/4 "2018-09-15T12:03:15Z")
Not too many “clever magazine names”, precisely because most try to be clear what their subject is _(Popular Mechanics, Road&Track,_ even the hippest magazine I ever read was just called _Interview)._ But I saw [a tiny magazine on the rack](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2600:_The_Hacker_Quarterly), at Barnes & Noble of all places, called \ ***2600**. \*And I thought “a 'zine of illegal hacks?” Yep. 2600 is the frequency that, whistled into a phone receiver, would grant you access to the admin level of any phone system. “The magazine’s name comes from the phreaker discovery in the 1960s that the transmission of a 2600 hertz tone (which could be produced perfectly with a plastic toy whistle given away free with Cap’n Crunch cereal) over a long-distance trunk connection gained access to “operator mode” and allowed the user to explore aspects of the telephone system that were not otherwise accessible.” ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/5 "2018-09-15T12:13:15Z")
FourFourTwo - a football [ie soccer] magazine of course. [_Four forwards, four midfielders and two backs is a standard football formation_] ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/6 "2018-09-15T12:51:19Z")
A military history magazine called _Armchair General_ A magazine about meat called _Meatpaper_ A magazine about weather and climate called _Weatherwise_ ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/7 "2018-09-15T13:14:51Z")
I once saw a magazine on an otherwise ordinary newsstand called _Jarry_. I flipped through it trying to figure out what it was about. It seemed to be about food, with articles and recipes. Then I noticed it seemed to be particularly aimed at men. Then I noticed that it was specifically aimed at gay men. I put it back on the shelf and said, “O.K., whatever.” Incidentally, “jarry” is the word for food in Polari (which I learned a little about in a graduate course in linguistics: > **[Polari](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polari)** > > Polari (from Italian parlare 'to talk') is a form of slang or cant used in Britain by some actors, circus and fairground showmen, professional wrestlers, merchant navy sailors, criminals, sex workers and the gay subculture. There is some debate about its origins, but it can be traced back to at least the 19th century and possibly as far as the 16th century. There is a long-standing connection with Punch and Judy street puppet performers, who traditionally used Polari to converse. > Alternate s... I subscribe to _Mythprint_, which is the newsletter of a society for people interested in the Inklings, fantasy, mythology, and similar literature. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/8 "2018-09-15T13:20:52Z")
It’s a newsletter, not a magazine, but the New England Orientaion Club is the NEOC Times. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/9 "2018-09-15T14:14:13Z")
QST is the magazine for ham radio enthusiasts. It means, ‘Calling All Stations.’ ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/10 "2018-09-15T16:38:25Z")
\*Concrete Abstracts. \* ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/11 "2018-09-15T22:33:42Z")
American Mensa has long had a special interest group (SIG) called E_I_E_I_O, with a newsletter. That stands for “Electricians, Inspectors, Engineers, Interested Others.” ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/12 "2018-09-15T23:57:10Z")
> [@Banksiaman](#): > > FourFourTwo - a football [ie soccer] magazine of course. > > [_Four forwards, four midfielders and two backs is a standard football formation_] In the same vein, [11 Freunde](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/11_Freunde) (11 friends, magazine for football culture), of course a football magazine, and one that treasures tradition. It’s from an old German football saying: “11 Freunde müsst ihr sein” (“You have to be 11 friends”) ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2018, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/13 "2018-09-16T02:43:17Z")
IEEE’s general-interest magazine is brilliantly called _Spectrum_, as in the radio spectrum. Minnesota Public Radio’s gift catalog is named _Signals_. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2018, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/14 "2018-09-16T02:48:34Z")
> [@JohnGalt](#): > > Minnesota Public Radio’s gift catalog is named _Signals_. It was distributed nationwide to NPR donors for a while. I loved that catalog! As an offshoot of “5280”, there’s also “417”, which is a magazine about the 417 area code, which encompasses Lake of the Ozarks and the Branson area, in addition to Springfield, MO and the general region. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2018, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/15 "2018-09-16T22:14:51Z")
\*Wigwag. \* An attempt to be a second _New Yorker_. I subscribed. Good writing and stuff and it was a success until the Gulf War started a dip in the economy and ad dollars dried up. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2018, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/16 "2018-09-16T22:20:42Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > I once saw a magazine on an otherwise ordinary newsstand called _Jarry_. I flipped through it trying to figure out what it was about. It seemed to be about food, with articles and recipes. Then I noticed it seemed to be particularly aimed at men. Then I noticed that it was specifically aimed at gay men. I put it back on the shelf and said, “O.K., whatever.” > > Incidentally, “jarry” is the word for food in Polari (which I learned a little about in a graduate course in linguistics: > > [Polari - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polari) > > I subscribe to _Mythprint_, which is the newsletter of a society for people interested in the Inklings, fantasy, mythology, and similar literature. I Googled Jarry Magazine, and you are right. It’s a slick, $20-per-issue twice-a-year magazine “that explores where food and queer culture intersect”. [http://www.jarrymag.com/](http://www.jarrymag.com/) While we’re on the subject, the first known relatively widely circulated LGBT magazine, which debuted in the 1950s, was called “One”. ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2018, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/17 "2018-09-16T22:43:58Z")
**From Parts Unknown** took an entertaining yet scholarly approach “…to all things masked wrestler – pop culture, ring sports, weird media, collectible merch and mask fetish.” I think it only lasted six issues, but it lives on through the website… [http://frompartsunknown.net/](http://frompartsunknown.net/) ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2018, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/18 "2018-09-17T12:46:21Z")
I like the maker magazine _[Make](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Make_(magazine))_. But it is styled “_MAKE:_”. Note that colons play an important role in [makefiles](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Makefile#Rules). ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2018, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/19 "2018-09-17T14:52:45Z")
_ **Grump** _–a short-lived satirical magazine put out by Roger Price (co-creator of Mad Libs). Its tagline was “For people who are against all the DUMB THINGS going on.” ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2018, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378/20 "2018-09-18T17:03:59Z")
I stumbled upon the Wikipedia page of [_Zyzzyva_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zyzzyva_(magazine)) yesterday. Names after a beetle (not a Beatle). It’s last on their [list](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_literary_magazines) of literary magazines. Poor _ZYX_, second to last. I’m guessing it supports people urging that alphabetical order be reversed. From that list I wonder about: _20x20, 3:AM, 32 Poems, n+1, River Styx_, etc. How do you properly phrase a question about _Kwani?_? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clever-magazine-names/821378.md?page=2)