Penthouse (magazine)

Lore & Background

The Guccione era, 1965–2004. Penthouse magazine began publication in the UK in March 1965. Its symbol was a skeleton key, or three keys in some applications. The magazine started on a shoestring, and it took Guccione twenty months to produce his first twelve 'monthly' issues.

By the late 1960s, it was firmly established. The magazine sold well on the Continent as well as in the UK. This success, and reports that British Penthouse was outselling Playboy among American troops in Vietnam, inspired Guccione to produce an American edition, with the first issue appearing in September 1969.

Pictorial style

Guccione offered editorial content that was more sensational than that of Playboy, with investigative stories about government cover-ups and scandals. Due to Guccione's lack of resources, he personally photographed most of the models for the magazine's early issues, establishing a diffused, soft focus look. The magazine's pictorials offered more sexually explicit content than what was commonly seen in most openly sold men's magazines of the era.

It was the first to show female pubic hair, followed by full-frontal nudity, and eventually, the exposed vulva and anus. The September 1984 issue caused controversy because its centerfold, Traci Lords, was later revealed to be underage (16) when she posed. The same issue also caused controversy with nude pictures of Vanessa Williams that caused her to be stripped of her Miss America crown. In 1997, Penthouse changed its format and began featuring sexually explicit pictures (actual oral, vaginal, and anal penetration), beginning with photos from the Stolen Honeymoon sex tape featuring Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee.

It also began to regularly feature pictorials of female models urinating. In a desperate attempt to boost sales, the magazine featured hardcore material, which led to companies removing their advertising. Observers have commented that Guccione created an empire and also destroyed it. A different approach was attempted by the British version in 1997: under editor Tom Hilditch, the magazine was rebranded as PH.UK and relaunched as a middle-shelf 'adult magazine for grown-ups'.

The experiment failed to generate a significant increase in sales. PH.UK closed in late 1998. Unable to compete with the internet, the British edition folded in 1999 (an attempt to revive it in 2001 was short-lived).

A Legacy Spanning Nearly Six Decades

Penthouse holds a distinctive position in the global landscape of adult printed publications, having maintained continuous publication since 1965 through the present day. This remarkable run places it among the most enduring titles in a field where many competitors have come and gone over the decades. The magazine is catalogued under the United Kingdom's entries in international listings of pornographic periodicals, indicating its presence in that market.

As a printed publication that is widely available, Penthouse meets the standard criteria for inclusion in comprehensive catalogs of adult magazines: it contains material of a sexual nature, spanning both hardcore and softcore imagery, and is distributed as a physical periodical rather than existing solely in digital form. Its longevity since the mid-1960s means it has outlasted numerous contemporaries and predecessors, surviving through multiple shifts in publishing technology, cultural attitudes, and the broader media environment. The fact that it continues to be published while many peers from the same era have ceased operations speaks to its sustained commercial viability and reader base over nearly sixty years of continuous output.

Audience and Content Orientation

Penthouse is squarely positioned within the segment of adult periodicals marketed primarily to heterosexual male readers. Like other titles in this category, its content may encompass both male-female and female-female material, reflecting the broader conventions of the genre. The publication is classified as pornography in the standard sense: it features imagery of a sexual nature that falls within the spectrum from softcore to hardcore presentation.

This places it in the same category as titles ranging from the long-running Playboy (1953–2020) to Hustler (1974–present) and numerous other American and British publications that have defined the heterosexual male adult magazine market over the past century. The emphasis on printed, widely available distribution distinguishes Penthouse from purely digital or niche publications, anchoring it in the tradition of physical magazine retail. Its content orientation follows the established pattern of the genre, where the primary purpose is to present sexualized imagery to a defined demographic, with the specific mix of male-female and female-female material serving to broaden the appeal within that target audience.

The Penthouse Publishing Ecosystem

Beyond the flagship Penthouse title, the brand extends into a broader publishing ecosystem that includes at least two additional recognized publications. Penthouse Variations is listed alongside the main title in the United Kingdom's catalog of adult magazines, suggesting a line of related or spin-off publications that expand upon the core brand's offerings. In the United States, Penthouse Forum appears as a separate entry in the list of heterosexual male–targeted periodicals, indicating that the brand has maintained a distinct presence in the American market through a dedicated publication.

This multi-title strategy reflects a pattern seen among other major players in the adult publishing space, where a single brand name spawns multiple imprints to reach different reader preferences or market segments. The geographic spread of these publications—spanning both the UK and US markets—demonstrates that Penthouse has operated as an international brand rather than a single-country venture. The existence of these companion titles alongside the main magazine suggests a publishing operation of considerable scale and organizational complexity, capable of sustaining multiple concurrent publications under a unified brand identity.

Penthouse in the Global Catalog of Adult Periodicals

Penthouse occupies a specific niche within an extraordinarily diverse global catalog of adult printed publications that spans multiple continents and decades. The list also encompasses publications targeting gay and bisexual men, heterosexual women, and lesbian women, as well as lads' magazines, illustrating the full spectrum of adult periodical publishing. Penthouse's 1965 launch date situates it in the same era as several landmark titles, and its continued publication through the present day makes it one of the few entries in this vast catalog that has maintained unbroken operation from the mid-twentieth century into the current era.

Reader's Guide

The magazine's pictorials offered more sexually explicit content than what was commonly seen in most openly sold men's magazines of the era. It was the first to show female pubic hair, followed by full-frontal nudity, and eventually, the exposed vulva and anus. Penthouse has also featured a number of authorized and unauthorized photos of celebrities, such as Madonna and Vanessa Williams. In both cases, the photos were taken earlier in their careers and sold to Penthouse only after they became famous.

Did You Know?

• In 1975, Guccione was honored by Brandeis University for focusing his editorial attention on issues such as the welfare of the Vietnam veteran and problems of criminality in modern society.
• In March 1975, Penthouse published an article about La Costa Resort that led to a $522 million libel lawsuit; the magazine was absolved by a jury in 1982, and the case settled in 1985.