It’s time for HOLIDAY, a vintage American travel magazine published from 1946 to 1977. I first came across the magazine last summer–hiding in a box at an antique store (this is the kind of find that makes my heart race!). I knew nothing about the magazine, but I bought two issues based on the cover art alone (more on that in part II). And here are some stand out covers I found online:
In HOLIDAY, you and your family can live the good life by purchasing the perfect vacation, car, clothes and liqueur. Even as a modern reader living in these days of austerity, I feel like I should be sipping on a martini as I flip through the adverts…
The writing is exquisite, featuring the likes of W.H. Auden, Graham Greene, Ernest Hemingway, Mary McCarthy, and more.
HOLIDAY is a heady read at times–intelligent, sophisticated and hopeful–reflecting the spirit of mid-century America. I love Mary McCarthy’s dramatic description of the prestigious Vassar College, which was still a women’s college when the story was published in May 1951 (it went co-ed in 1979):
“Like Athena, goddess of wisdom, Vassar College sprang in full battle dress from the head of a man…it was the first woman’s college to be conceived as an idea, a manifesto, a declaration of rights and a proclamation of equality.”
HOLIDAY is now being revived by a creative team from France. You can check it out here.
See more vintage HOLIDAY covers on Tumbler here.
And more to discover in this Vanity Fair article.
Lost and Found Books 
I love those magazine covers and vintage ’40s and ’50s style. As I sit here in rainy England, right now I wouldn’t mind being that woman lazing in the hammock, ideally with a cold beverage by my side!
So true, these mags create a such an idyllic image of summer (and life in general)….Hope you get some sunshine! 🙂
What a great find!!! Those covers are a work of art and than all those lovely photos and illustrations about living the good live…myohmy, that is traveling whilst sitting on the couch and sipping tea.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! It is a treasure…more to come!
[…] the intriguing HOLIDAY magazine that I mentioned in my last post. I rescued it from a cardboard box in an antique store last summer (for $3!!!). I was immediately […]