{{Short description|Japanese men's fashion magazine}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}} {{Infobox magazine | title = Popeye | logo = Popeye logo.svg | image_file = Popeye magazine cover, July 1976, issue 1.jpg | image_size = | image_alt = Cover of first issue of Popeye magazine from July 1976 showing the magazine's distinctive logo and layout | image_caption = Cover of the first issue (July 1976) | publisher = [[Magazine House|Magazine House Ltd.]] | total_circulation = | circulation_year = | language = [[Japanese language|Japanese]] | country = [[Japan]] | based = [[Tokyo]] | founded = 1976 | firstdate = July 1976 | finaldate = | category = Men's fashion magazine | frequency = Monthly | editor = Ken Miyamoto<ref name="staff">{{cite web |title=Staff |url=https://popeyemagazine.jp/staff/ |website=Popeye Magazine |access-date=16 June 2025 |language=ja}}</ref> | editor_title = Editorial Director | website = {{Plainlist| * {{URL|https://popeyemagazine.jp/}} * {{URL|https://magazineworld.jp/popeye}} }} | issn = | oclc = }}
'''''Popeye''''' (stylized as '''''POPEYE''''') is a monthly [[fashion]] and [[men's magazine]] published by [[Magazine House]] with the name licensed from [[King Features Syndicate]]. Founded in 1976, it is one of Japan's oldest magazines featuring articles about [[men's fashion]]. Its tagline is "Magazine for City Boys".<ref name="hype">{{cite news |title=A Guide to Japanese Fashion Magazines |url=https://hypebeast.com/2015/4/a-hypebeast-guide-to-japanese-fashion-magazines |access-date=30 April 2016 |work=Hypebeast |date=30 April 2015}}</ref><ref name="klas">{{cite news |first=Matthew |last=Klassen |title=Takahiro Kinoshita |url=http://www.inventorymagazine.com/features/takahiro-kinoshita.html |access-date=30 April 2016 |work=Inventory Magazine}}</ref> The magazine introduced American youth culture to Japanese audiences and is Japan's longest-running men's fashion magazine.<ref name="valet2024">{{cite news |last=Marx |first=W. David |title=Japan's Coolest Men's Magazine: Popeye Magazine |url=https://www.valetmag.com/living/culture/2024/celebrating-popeye-magazine-japan-mens-style-091924.php |work=Valet |date=19 September 2024 |access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref>
==History and profile== ===Founding=== ''Popeye'' was conceived in 1976 as a male counterpart to ''[[Anan (magazine)|an an]]'', Magazine House's successful women's magazine.<ref name="hype" /><ref>{{cite thesis |first=Barbara |last=Németh |title=Masculinities in Japan |degree=MA |date=2014 |url=https://theses.cz/id/w3ov0n/?lang=en |publisher=Palacký University Olomouc |location=Olomouc}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Brian |last=Moeran |title=A Japanese Advertising Agency: An Anthropology of Media and Markets |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Cid44llrlewC&pg=PA304 |year=1996 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |location=Honolulu |isbn=978-0-8248-1873-9|page=304}}</ref> The magazine emerged from the merger of two existing publications, ''Ski Life'' and ''Made in U.S.A.''<ref name="jul" /> According to cultural historian W. David Marx, founding editor Jirō Ishikawa originally wanted to name the publication "City Boys" before settling on ''Popeye''.<ref name="bandana">{{cite news |last=Ohlendorf |first=Cory |title=Issue #9: The Story of 'Popeye' Magazine |url=https://www.thebandana.jp/p/issue-9 |work=Bandana |access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref>
The first issue appeared in July 1976<ref name="ming">{{cite news |first=Chais |last=Mingo |title=Popeye Magazine 40th Anniversary Issue & Issue 01 Re-Print |url=http://www.intelligencemagazine.com/news/2016/6/9/popeye-magazine-40th-anniversary-issue-issue-01-re-print |access-date=6 February 2017 |work=Intelligence |date=9 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160612201008/http://www.intelligencemagazine.com/news/2016/6/9/popeye-magazine-40th-anniversary-issue-issue-01-re-print |archive-date=12 June 2016}}</ref> and featured the fashion trends of [[Los Angeles]].<ref name="jul">{{cite news |first=Julie |last=Makinen |title=What's hot in Japan right now? Los Angeles, circa 1976 |url=https://www.latimes.com/world/asia/la-fg-japan-los-angeles-magazine-20160628-snap-story.html |access-date=6 February 2017 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=19 July 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Levith |first=Will |title=Japan's Popeye Magazine Is a Surprising Relic of the Not-So-Distant Past |url=http://www.realclearlife.com/history/popular-japanese-magazine-los-angeles-1976/ |access-date=6 February 2017 |work=Real Clear Life |date=25 November 2016}}</ref> Art director Seiichi Horiuchi created the logo in 1976 and designed every issue throughout the decade.<ref name="hypebeast2022">{{cite news |first=Nicolaus |last=Li |title=Iconic Japanese Magazine 'Popeye' Launches Online Store with Merch Release |website=Hypebeast |date=26 April 2022 |url=https://hypebeast.com/2022/4/japanese-magazine-popeye-online-store-launch-merch-release |access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Niko |last=Pajkovic |title=Japanese Label Popeye Launches Web Store and Merch Collection |url=https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/popeye-1 |work=TrendHunter |date=27 April 2022 |access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref> Yoshihisa Kinameri served as the launch editor.<ref name="jul" />
===Publishing details=== The publisher is Magazine House Ltd., a Tokyo-based publishing company.<ref name="japanesestreets">{{cite web |title=Popeye |url=http://www.japanesestreets.com/fashion-mags/225/popeye |work=Japanese Streets |access-date=30 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071101094705/https://www.japanesestreets.com/fashion-mags/225/popeye |archive-date=1 November 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |first=Fiona |last=Wilson |title=Press Ahead |magazine=Monocle |date=November 2015 |volume=9 |issue=88 |url=https://monocle.com/magazine/issues/88/press-ahead/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151024170314/https://monocle.com/magazine/issues/88/press-ahead/ |archive-date=24 October 2015}}</ref> The company, originally named Heibun Shuppan, founded the magazine in 1976.<ref>{{cite journal |first=Keiko |last=Tanaka |title=The language of Japanese men's magazines: young men who don't want to get hurt |journal=The Sociological Review |date=May 2003 |volume=51 |issue=S1 |pages=222–242 |doi=10.1111/j.1467-954X.2003.tb03613.x |s2cid=143669392}}</ref>
The magazine was initially published biweekly<ref>{{cite book |title=Europa World Year Book |year=2004 |page=2357 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wGA4o-UhAfgC&pg=PA2357 |publisher=Europa Publications |isbn=978-1-85743-254-1|location=London; New York}}</ref> before transitioning to monthly publication.<ref name="japanesestreets" /> ''Popeye'' covers fashion, clothing, accessories, bags, and shoes, and targets young, educated urban men.<ref>{{cite book |first=Masafumi |last=Monden |title=Japanese Fashion Cultures: Dress and Gender in Contemporary Japan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p6dOBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA26 |date=2014 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-4725-8673-5|page=26 |location=London}}</ref><ref name="japanesestreets" />
===Competition and decline=== Following ''Popeye''{{'}}s success, publisher [[Kodansha]] launched ''[[Hot-Dog Press]]'' in 1979 as a direct competitor and "nearly identical rip-off".<ref name="poul">{{cite news |last=Poul |first=Alan |date=19 August 1990 |title=Japan's Glitzy, Busy New Info-Mags Are Training Manuals for the 21st Century |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |page=7/Z1 |edition=Sunday}}</ref> In 1982, ''Hot-Dog Press'' outsold ''Popeye'' for the first time.<ref name="marx">{{cite web |last=Marx |first=W. David |date=9 December 2017 |title=The Man Who Brought Ivy To Japan |url=https://www.ivy-style.com/the-man-who-brought-ivy-to-japan.html |website=Ivy Style |access-date=11 January 2026}}</ref> By 1991, ''Hot-Dog Press'' reported greater sales than ''Popeye'', which had a circulation of 700,000.<ref name="ono">{{cite news |last=Ono |first=Yumiko |date=28 June 1991 |title=Magazine House: Tokyo's Trend-Setter |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |page=B1 }}</ref>
Both ''Popeye'' and ''Hot-Dog Press'' struggled by the mid-1990s as readers became less interested in magazines that dictated fashion trends.<ref name="shirouzu">{{cite news |last=Shirouzu |first=Norihiko |date=24 April 1995 |title=Twentysomethings in Japan Spurn Haute Couture, Frustrate Retailers |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |page=A7B}}</ref>
===Editorial leadership and redesign=== In 2012, Takahiro Kinoshita became editor-in-chief and initiated a magazine redesign.<ref name="ming" /><ref name="klas" /> Circulation grew to 100,000 during his tenure.<ref name="hypebeast2015">{{cite news |title=Takahiro Kinoshita |url=https://hypebeast.com/the-hypebeast-hundred-2015/takahiro-kinoshita |work=Hypebeast |date=2015 |access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref> Kinoshita left his position in 2018 to join [[Fast Retailing]] as an executive officer.<ref>{{cite press release |title=Former Popeye Editor-in-Chief Takahiro Kinoshita Joins Fast Retailing |url=https://www.fastretailing.com/eng/ir/news/1805011500.html |publisher=Fast Retailing |date=1 May 2018 |access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Wetherille |first=Kelly |title=Former Popeye Editor in Chief Joins Fast Retailing |url=https://wwd.com/business-news/human-resources/former-popeye-editor-in-chief-uniqlo-takahiro-kinoshita-1202663020/ |work=WWD |date=1 May 2018 |access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref>
==Cultural impact and recognition== Other Magazine House titles include ''[[An An|an an]]'', ''[[Brutus (magazine)|Brutus]]'', and ''[[Croissant (magazine)|Croissant]]''.<ref name="japanesestreets" /> In 2013, both ''Popeye'' and ''Brutus'' received the Fifth Best Magazine Award.<ref>{{cite news |title=The Fifth Best Magazine Award Winners Including Brutus and Popeye Announced |url=http://en.fashion-headline.com/article/2013/03/19/543.html |access-date=30 April 2016 |work=Fashion Headline |date=19 March 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603173201/http://en.fashion-headline.com/article/2013/03/19/543.html |archive-date=3 June 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
The magazine celebrated its 40th anniversary in July 2016 with a special issue that included a complete reprint of the original 1976 edition.<ref name="jul" /><ref name="ming" /> The anniversary included collaborations with major fashion retailers, including a limited collection with BEAMS celebrating both brands' 40th anniversaries.<ref>{{cite news |last=Chin |first=Mallory |title=BEAMS & 'Popeye' Magazine Celebrate Their 40th Anniversaries with a Collaboration |url=https://hypebeast.com/2016/10/beams-popeye-magazine-40-anniversary-collection-hong-kong |work=Hypebeast |date=31 October 2016 |access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref>
==Circulation and publication== In 1999, ''Popeye'' reported a circulation of 220,000.<ref>{{cite book |first=Laura |last=Miller |editor1-first=Shigeko |editor1-last=Okamoto |editor2-first=Janet S. |editor2-last=Shibamoto Smith |title=Japanese Language, Gender, and Ideology: Cultural Models and Real People |location=Oxford; New York |chapter=You are doing Burikko! |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NoxJCAAAQBAJ&pg=PT150 |date=2004 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-029026-9|page=150}}</ref> {{As of|2024}}, the magazine continues monthly publication with digital editions and an online store.<ref name="valet2024" /><ref>{{cite news |first=Nicolaus |last=Li |title=Iconic Japanese Magazine 'Popeye' Launches Online Store with Merch Release |website=Hypebeast |date=26 April 2022 |url=https://hypebeast.com/2022/4/japanese-magazine-popeye-online-store-launch-merch-release |access-date=16 June 2025}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category}} * {{Official website|https://popeyemagazine.jp/}} {{in lang|ja}} * {{Internet Archive|1978-10-25-popeye-magazine-raw-pages/1978-10-25%20Popeye%20Magazine%20%28No%20OCR%29|25 October 1978 issue}} * {{Internet Archive|popeye-magazine-for-city-boys-1981-04-10|10 April 1981 issue}}
{{Japanese fashion magazines}} {{Popeye}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Popeye}} [[Category:1976 establishments in Japan]] [[Category:Fashion magazines published in Japan]] [[Category:Lifestyle magazines published in Japan]] [[Category:Magazines established in 1976]] [[Category:Magazines published in Tokyo]] [[Category:Men's fashion magazines]] [[Category:Men's magazines published in Japan]] [[Category:Monthly magazines published in Japan]] [[Category:Popeye| ]]