Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Quick Cooking

Taste of Home's Quick Cooking appears to have two Premiere Issues, both published in 1998. The covers are different, but the only content that is different is that one is Premiere Issue 1998 (3) and the other is Premiere Collector's Issue 1998 (5); the pagination and recipes are identical.

I'm guessing the one on the left was first, because its price is $2.99; the other is $3.95. I picked them up at the library sale for 50 cents, but wouldn't you be mad if you bought the second one on the basis of the cover and discovered you'd just paid for one you already had?

"Almost from the day we began publishing Taste of Home bimonthly, its readers began pleading with us to publish another cooking magazine on the months "in between" each issue. . . so they could receive this practical kind of food magazine monthly. . . Finally we s=responded, with the Premiere Issue you're now reading. . . The main difference is that Quick Cooking puts a huge premium on time. It's aimed at families where busy parents return home after a stressful day at work and want to put a good meal on the table fast."

I think I just might try that peach cake on p. 22 (see cover on the left above). Based on the publisher's web page, this title has been changed to Simple and Delicious.

Taste of Home's Quick Cooking; rapid recipes with homemade taste
Premiere Edition 1998 and Premiere Collector's Issue 1998
ISSN: 1099-632X (supplied)
Canadian GST No. R123204331
Subject: Cooking, recipes
Publication schedule, bimonthly
Reiman Publications
5400 S. 60th St.
Greendale WI 53129-1404
$2.99 for Premiere Issue; $3.95 for Premiere Collector's Issue
Subscription $17.98/year; $29.98 for 2 years
http://www.reimanpub.com
Executive editor: Kathy Pohl
Food Editor: Coleen Martin
Publisher: Roy Reiman

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Friday, May 09, 2008

Not a first, but. . .


From the AIArchitect This Week site: "Better Homes and Gardens, the country’s leading “enthusiast” magazine reaching more than 39 million people monthly, and Wells Fargo & Company announced the 2008 Home Improvement Challenge on April 14. The annual contest continues an 86-year tradition of seeing first-hand how America tackles home improvement projects. (And one question entails whether they employed an architect!) Better Homes and Gardens editors award the most innovative efforts in nine categories. Entries for projects of any size and scope are accepted in the following categories: additions, bath, decorating, exterior face lifts, green improvements, kitchen, outdoor improvement, projects under $5,000, and renovation. One winner in each category will be awarded a $2,500 cash prize. The Grand Prize Winner will receive $40,000 in cash and will be featured in Better Homes and Gardens. Entries are accepted through January 31, 2009. Visit the magazine’s Web site for details and entry forms.

E.T. Meredith, the founder of the company that publishes BHG went into publishing as a teenager. He was the Secretary of Agriculture under President Woodrow Wilson. He ran for senator and governor of Iowa, but lost. In 1928 he was considered as a Democratic nominee for president, but he died that year at age 51. His bio at his Iowa archives reports, "He was a champion of farm relief, tax reform, prohibition, military preparedness, tariff reform, arid land development, the World Court, and the League of Nations. Fruit, Garden and Home published by Meredith became Better Homes and Gardens magazine in 1924 as more and more town folk wanted a home magazine, but didn't have farms. The first issue cost a dime on the newsstand, and a one-year subscription cost 35 cents.

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Monday, May 05, 2008

Players Club; Keep Living the Dream

No price on this Premiere Issue, which I picked up for $.50 at the Friends of the Library sale cart--it's "niche" publishing and will probably have a distribution of 20,000 to a very elite group, depending on advertising of luxury goods (actually all magazines depend on advertising).

Lenny Dykstra, "a star outfielder for the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies in the 1980s and 1990s, has teamed up with Doubledown Media to produce The Players Club, a magazine aimed at helping players manage their millions.

The idea behind the magazine is this: professional athletes are often scorned for their out-size contracts and lifestyles. But once their playing days are over, more than a few of them have trouble finding new jobs, struggle to keep their families together and find that they have spent their savings." (NYT, Dec. 7, 2007)

The relationship between Dykstra and Doubledown Media may be brief, according to a May 1, 2008 story at Porfolio.com. "Now Dykstra and Doubledown are in a legal battle over control of the second, yet-to-be-published issue, with Doubledown accusing the baseball great of skipping out on his debts.

Dykstra struck the first blow, filing suit in federal court on April 25 accusing Doubledown of breaching their contract by withholding the issue and interfering with the magazine's business relationships. On Tuesday, Doubledown, which publishes Trader Monthly and The Cigar Report, hit back with a counterclaim alleging that it was Dykstra who breached their agreement in failing to pay more than half a million dollars he owed."

It's tough starting a magazine. Not a good plan to sue your partner if you're giving out financial advice. I just checked the Doubledown webpage, and Players Club isn't listed as one of their products. Sigh.

Dykstra's "From the Founder" article on p. 19 states:
    "We will address the issues encountered by athletes in a non-threatening, non-judgmental fasion--and showcase those taking charge of their lives off the field.

    We will also provide monthly educational information regarding finances, with the goal of enhancing every player's ability to make informed career and life decisions."
Players Club
Premiere Issue, April 2008
issn: 1941-7128
subscription information 815-734-5821
Subject: athletes, investments, celebrities
Doubledown Media
240 West 35th Street, 11th Floor
New York, NY 10001
http://doubledownmedia.com
Players Club
245 Park Avenue, 39th Floor
New York, NY 10167
Founder: Lenny Dykstra
Editor-in-chief: Randall Lane

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