Did you read VIVA magazine in the 70s?

It was the "international magazine for women" in the 70s... It was awesome or offensive... It featured full frontal nudity, for dudes and chicks... It tried to incude lesbian and bisexual women in its editorial content, but was read by a lot of gay men. If you read this magazine, I'd love to hear from you for a paper I'm writing at UMass (by SUNDAY MAY 18! :).

 Please respond to any questions that apply to your experience with Viva.

--How did Viva reflect or shape your thinking about gender? Sex? Women?
--Did Viva's tagline, "The international magazine for women," reflect its reality for you? Did that tagline mean anything to you about the kind of publication you were buying?

--Do you remember any scandal around Viva? Both the left and the right seem to have had plenty of ammunition, and plenty to say.
--How did Viva stack up to Playgirl?

--Does the fact that Penthouse mogul Bob Guccione was the man behind the curtain of Viva affect your thinking about the magazine? Does it matter that he spent his career creating Penthouse? Was he able to connect successfully, or was Kathy Keeton, later, when she took the reins, with a more uniquely feminine sexuality?
--Did you have any favorite feature? Why?
--Did you have any favorite celebrity who was featured? Any favorite photographer? Any memorable photo montage?
--What kind of feminism did Viva seem to represent?
--What kind of women did it seem to want to portray/create/represent?

--Did you get the sense it was catering in some way to gay men, though it claimed to cater only to straight women?

--Did you enjoy the magazine alone, or in groups? Was it a community pleasure? Did it create a sense of community?

Thanks for your time. :)
Colleen

In addition to posting your responses, please e-mail them to csflannery@hotmail.com. All responders remain anonymous.