Mr. Magazine

You may judge a book by its cover, but you definitely can judge a magazine by its cover price! Recently, I was at the newsstand, which is of course my second home, when I discovered two magazines that may not be new, but are new to my area of the magazine world: “Tokewell” and “Stay Wild.” Tokewell, based in Alhambra, California, celebrates the cannabis and music lifestyle and Stay Wild, based in Portland, Oregon, proclaims that we should make the here and now beautiful, while the articles explore feelings, climate change, meditations, and personal adventures of every kind.

Mr. Magazine™ has always said that magazines are the best reflectors of our society, and I’m not about to change that statement now. In fact, these two magazines are perfect examples of that proclamation, right down to both titles’ cover price in the U.S.: $4.20.

Just for your information, assuming you don’t know, 420 is a code-term in cannabis culture that refers to the consumption of cannabis, especially smoking cannabis around the time 4:20 p.m., and smoking and celebrating cannabis on the date April 20, which according to an article published on 4/20/10 by the Huffington Post, dates back to a group of five San Rafael High School friends known as the Waldos who coined the term in 1971.

Regardless of the origins of the term, suffice it to say that a $4.20 cover price certainly reflects the times we live in, with cannabis legal in many states, and possibly becoming legal in others soon. So, Mr. Magazine™ is convinced that the publishers of these two magazines decided on that particular cover price intentionally, because it would be a pretty ironic coincidence if it mirrored that iconic term so perfectly totally by accident.

As for the monikers of the magazines themselves, Tokewell is certainly right on the money (pun intended) with its title, and with much of its content and ads leaning toward that “420” lifestyle. Stay Wild, however, is a bit more subtle, with its content aimed at a more natural and open lifestyle, punctuating the heart of the magazine with the self-made statement that “STAY WILD is an ADVENTURE MAGAZINE.” And while the actual mention of cannabis may be missing from Stay Wild, the free-living and anti-establishment aura that infuses it (right along with the spirited nudity you see scattered throughout its pages), certainly lets you know that the outdoor adventures experienced in this magazine are a bit more than mere hunting and fishing.

So, with that, Mr. Magazine™ offers you, the reader, the magazine lover, an opportunity to look in the mirror that exists at the newsstands and find something that best casts your own reflection. And remember…it’s 420 somewhere; you just have to determine what your “420” is.

Until next time…
See you at the newsstand…