

The new owners (see below) significantly softened the content of the magazine starting with the January 2005 issue. The experiment attracted a great deal of press interest but failed to generate a significant increase in sales. The magazine's editorial content included celebrity interviews and tackled issues of sexual politics. Fashion photographers (such as Corinne Day of The Face magazine) were hired to produce images that merged sex and fashion. Under the editorship of Tom Hilditch, the magazine was rebranded as PH.UK and relaunched as middle-shelf "adult magazine for grown-ups". It also began to regularly feature pictorials of female models urinating, which, until then, had been considered a defining limit of illegal obscenity as distinguished from legal pornography.Ī different approach to restoring sales was attempted by the UK version of the magazine in 1997. In 1998 Penthouse decided to change its format and began featuring sexually explicit pictures (i.e., actual oral, vaginal, and anal penetration), beginning with photos from the famed Stolen Honeymoon sex tape featuring Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee.

(There were a few times during the 70's and 80's where Penthouse was even ahead of Playboy for subscriptions and sales.) Move from softcore to hardcore pictorials and back In addition, Penthouse attempted to maintain some level of reading content, although usually of a more sexually oriented nature than Playboy.ĭuring the 1970s and 80's and into the early 90's Penthouse was often regarded as the main rival against Playboy in terms of circulation and popularity. Simulated sex, but not penetration or male genitalia, followed then, several years later, male genitalia, including erections, could be seen. Up until 1973, the depiction of female genitalia offered fuzzy portrayals of the pudenda, without the inner labia parted, after which sharper views of the vulva were shown. Almost from the start, Penthouse pictorials showed female genitalia and pubic hair when this was considered by many to be obscene. This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.įor many years, Penthouse fell between Playboy and Hustler in its explicitness and general attitude toward sexual depictions, with Playboy being visually softer and less focused on female genitals and with Hustler going for a raunchier look and content often consisting of toilet humor.

The first issue of a magazine published 10 to 12 times a year should arrive within 6 to 8 weeks and sometimes up to 10 weeks depending on the publication. For example, the first issue of a weekly or more frequently published magazine should arrive within 4 to 6 weeks of your order. Therefore, the number of times your magazine subscription publishes each year will determine when you will receive your first issue. Once your order is processed, your subscription will be added to the publisher's next production cycle. Renewals can be automatically added to your existing Penthouse subscription to ensure uninterrupted service. If you order a subscription to Penthouse today, your first magazine should arrive before June 10, 2022.
