# The 40 best magazine covers of the last 40 years. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 17, 2005, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-40-best-magazine-covers-of-the-last-40-years/326673 "2005-10-17T23:21:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-40-best-magazine-covers-of-the-last-40-years/326673/21 "2005-10-18T16:27:42Z")
> [@Evil Captor](#): > > Did they do Rolling Stone’s nude shot of Jennifer Aniston? (The link won’t work for whatever reason.) It’s not working for me either, but it did last night. Thus, I can tell you that the Aniston photo didn’t make the cut. ---
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-40-best-magazine-covers-of-the-last-40-years/326673/22 "2005-10-18T17:24:58Z")
Has anyone got a link to images of the covers that works? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-40-best-magazine-covers-of-the-last-40-years/326673/23 "2005-10-18T20:28:18Z")
> [@Biffy the Elephant Shrew](#): > > Not only is that not the best magazine cover of the past 40 years; not only is it not the best _Rolling Stone_ cover of the past 40 years; it’s not even the best _Rolling Stone_ cover featuring John Lennon of the past 40 years. That honor would go to the iconic “Lennon Remembers” cover from 1970. (The infamous Jim Morrison “He’s hot, he’s sexy, and he’s dead” cover should be in there too). Perhaps it’s not the most striking cover ever, nor the most innovative, nor a million other things, but I have to say, when somebody says “Number One Magazine Cover of All Time,” that’s the first image that pops into my head. Like it or not, it is just such an iconic magazine cover, and I would argue it’s the most recognized magazine cover ever. Dollars to donuts many more people recognize this cover compared with the “Lennon Remembers” cover (which I had to look up, and have never seen before.) Same with the Demi Moore cover. Pretty iconic. Pretty famous. Pretty powerful in its simplicity. I’ve never even seen the New Yorker and Andy Warhol ones before. This is, after all, a type of pop art and popularity is a valid criterion for determining its greatness. It’s hardly my favorite cover of all time, and from a graphic arts standpoint, it’s not terribly revolutionary or anything, but it is embedded in the collective conscience. ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-40-best-magazine-covers-of-the-last-40-years/326673/24 "2005-10-18T20:43:16Z")
> [@Bippy the Beardless](#): > > Has anyone got a link to images of the covers that works? [Here](http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/files/specials/interactives/_national/magcovers/index.html?SITE=CAPAD&SECTION=HOME) Number 8 absolutely gets my vote. I was just flipping through the covers and then Bam! I see that cover and freeze for a couple of seconds. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2005, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-40-best-magazine-covers-of-the-last-40-years/326673/25 "2005-10-18T20:53:39Z")
Not one SI Swimsuit cover? And the only Playboy cover wasn’t that interesting. Was she the first black playmate? ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2005, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-40-best-magazine-covers-of-the-last-40-years/326673/26 "2005-10-19T00:19:06Z")
No Alfred E. Neuman? (Unless you count #23) Some of those were really… unimpressive. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2005, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-40-best-magazine-covers-of-the-last-40-years/326673/27 "2005-10-19T01:37:20Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > Not one SI Swimsuit cover? > > And the only Playboy cover wasn’t that interesting. Was she the first black playmate? And what was the borderline-dowdy 60s _Glamour_ cover doing in there? Was she the first black woman on a cover that wasn’t wrapped around an _Ebony_ or _Jet_? Suppose there was a head count done after the first round of picks? Those commenting about Lennon: You do know the cover shot was done _the day before he was shot,_ right??? ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2005, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-40-best-magazine-covers-of-the-last-40-years/326673/28 "2005-10-19T02:13:16Z")
Yes, that was the first black Playboy Playmate on _Playboy_; and yes, that _Glamour_ magazine was the first black woman on the cover of a national women’s magazine. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-40-best-magazine-covers-of-the-last-40-years/326673.md?page=1)