Baring the Soul. Cinema and Society in Playmen Magazine (1967–1972) Readers’ Letters

This article examines several trends in the Readers’ Letters column of Playmen, the Italian erotic monthly magazine, during the first five years it was published. In particular, the essay aims to investigate the role of the column and readers’ letters in deciphering the change in male and gender roles in Italian society of that time. We will examine the development of a new readership, users of popular magazines dedicated to men, and a complex network of media products related to eroticism and sexuality as we look at themes and trends arising in each month’s letters. We will observe in detail the role of films and filmmaking, and fan worship fantasies in this period of social change and intermedia exchanges