 Cover of Vol. 1, No. 1, dated June 14, 1926 | |
| Categories | Politics, social issues, popular culture |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Twice monthly from June 1926 until July 1931; Monthly from July 1931 until April 1935 |
| Publisher | Martin J. Quigley |
| Paid circulation | Upwards of 20,000 at its peak |
| First issue | June 14, 1926 |
| Final issue | April 1935 |
| Country | United States |
| Based in | Chicago |
| Language | English |
The Chicagoan was an American magazine modeled after The New Yorker published from June 1926 until April 1935. Focusing on the cultural life of the city of Chicago, each issue of The Chicagoan contained art, music, and drama reviews, profiles of personalities and institutions, commentaries on the local scene, and editorials, along with cartoons and original art.
In an early issue, The Chicagoan's editors claimed to represent "a cultural, civilized and vibrant" city "which needs make no obeisance to Park Avenue, Mayfair, or the Champs Elysees." Despite its lofty aims, the stalwart assertions of publisher Martin J. Quigley (who once wrote that "Whatever Chicago was and was to be, The Chicagoan must be and become"), and a circulation that sometimes rose above 20,000, the magazine was largely forgotten after its last issue.[1]
Only two substantial collections remain, one at the University of Chicago's Regenstein Library and the other at the New York Public Library. Cultural historian Neil Harris has written a book on the subject, The Chicagoan: A Lost Magazine of the Jazz Age (the University of Chicago Press).
- ^ Neil Harris, The Chicagoan: A Lost Magazine of the Jazz Age (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2008), 1–27.