Time (magazine)
On the 3rd of March 1923, a small office in New York City published its first issue. Briton Hadden and Henry Luce stood behind this new weekly news magazine called Time. They had met years earlier while editing the Yale Daily News together. Their goal was to create something brief enough for busy men to read in an hour. The original title they chose was Facts, but they changed it to Time with the slogan Take Time , It's Brief. The cover featured Joseph G. Cannon, the retired Speaker of the House of Representatives. This first issue cost fifteen cents and contained articles about current events alongside advertisements. Hadden brought a carefree attitude to the project while Luce handled the business side with serious intent. They raised one hundred thousand dollars from wealthy Yale alumni including Henry P. Davison and Dwight Morrow. Roy Larsen joined them in 1922 as circulation manager before becoming general manager. After Hadden died in 1929, Luce took full control of the media conglomerate he built. Larsen remained his right hand man throughout the decades that followed.
Time Inc. grew into a massive publishing empire under Henry Luce's autocratic rule. Roy Edward Larsen purchased five hundred fifty shares of stock after selling inherited RKO stock. By the time Luce died, his holdings were worth over one hundred nine million dollars. The company expanded through radio broadcasts like Pop Question starting in 1924 and The March of Time beginning in 1931. These programs brought news summaries to millions who had never seen the magazine itself. In 1987 Jason McManus became editor-in-chief following Henry Grunwald. Norman Pearlstine succeeded him two years later in 1995. A major merger occurred in 1989 when Time Inc. combined with Warner Communications to form Time Warner. This entity later became AOL Time Warner before reverting to just Time Warner in 2003. Martha Nelson made history as the first female editor-in-chief of the magazine division in January 2013. Nancy Gibbs followed her role as managing editor from September 2013 until September 2017. Meredith Corporation announced its acquisition of Time Inc. in November 2017 backed by Koch Equity Development. Marc Benioff and his wife Lynne bought Time for one hundred ninety million dollars in October 2018. Benno remains chairman but does not involve himself in daily operations. Jessica Sibley took over as CEO in November 2022 after serving as COO at Forbes.
The early pages of Time featured an acerbic irreverent style that critics called Timestyle. Writers used inverted sentences so often that Wolcott Gibbs parodied them in The New Yorker back in 1936. He wrote backward ran sentences until reeled the mind where it all will end knows God. This unique approach helped coin words like socialite guesstimate televangelist pundit and tycoon into common usage. Less successful attempts included cinemactress and radiorator which never caught on with readers. Time introduced the names World War I and World War II in 1939 instead of older forms like First World War. These false title constructions became known as Time-style adjectives. The Milestones section listed births marriages divorces and deaths of famous people starting from the first issue. Entries remained short and formulaic until 1967 when a reader complained about the confusing habit of listing names ages claims to fame and circumstances of death. A typical entry from the 26th of March 1956 read Died Lieut j.g. David Greig Skippy Browning Jr. twenty four star of the 1952 Olympics as the U.S.'s dazzling three-meter diving champion. The Listings section provided capsule summaries of films plays musicals television programs and literary bestsellers until the mid-1970s.
A red border appeared on every cover beginning in 1927 and has changed only eight times since then. The September 11 attacks prompted a black border to symbolize mourning while the next regular issue returned to red. An Earth Day issue from the 28th of April 2008 featured a green border dedicated to environmental issues. A metallic silver border marked the tenth anniversary of September 11 attacks on the 19th of September 2011. the 31st of December 2012 celebrated Barack Obama's selection as Person of the Year with another silver border. November 28 and the 5th of December 2016 covered the Most Influential Photos of All Time using silver borders again. the 15th of June 2020 included names of people on the border for the first time during protests surrounding George Floyd's murder. Artist Titus Kaphar depicted an African-American mother holding her child against that backdrop. Black borders returned in late September 2020 covering the American response to the coronavirus pandemic. Silver borders appeared once more in late September and early October 2022 for Queen Elizabeth II's death. Richard Nixon holds the record for most frequent appearances with fifty-five covers spanning from the 25th of August 1952 to the 2nd of May 1994. In October 2020 the magazine replaced its logo with the word Vote explaining few events will shape the world to come more than the result of the upcoming US presidential election.
The annual Person of the Year cover story has been Time's most famous feature since 1927. Charles Lindbergh won the inaugural award despite being controversial due to his isolationist views. Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin both received the title in past years because they affected news headlines significantly. Editors stated the distinction goes to whoever had the biggest impact over the past twelve months whether good or ill. It is not necessarily an honor or reward but a recognition of influence. The year 2006 selected You as Person of the Year which received split reviews from readers. Some found the concept creative while others wanted an actual person named on the cover. Editors Pepper and Timmer reflected that if it was a mistake we're only going to make it once. Silence Breakers were chosen in 2017 recognizing people who came forward with personal stories of sexual harassment. The magazine also compiles lists like Time 100 featuring one hundred most influential people annually. They created All-Time 100 best novels in 2005 and All-Time 100 Movies the same year. The 100 Best TV Shows of All-Time appeared in 2007 followed by All-Time 100 Fashion Icons in 2012. A February 2016 error included male author Evelyn Waugh on the 100 Most Read Female Writers list creating media attention.
Time Europe covers the Middle East Africa and Latin America since 2003 from its London headquarters. An Asian edition based in Hong Kong serves that region while the South Pacific edition operates out of Sydney covering Australia New Zealand and Pacific Islands. Time France began publication in December 2025 as the first foreign licensed edition printed quarterly by 360BusinessMedia. One hundred thousand copies print for each issue distributed across France Belgium Luxembourg Switzerland and Monaco. Angelina Jolie appeared on the cover of that inaugural French issue. Time for Kids targets children mainly distributed in classrooms containing national news a Cartoon of the Week and popular culture articles. This division rarely exceeds ten pages front and back with an annual environmental issue near the end of the school term. A Canadian edition existed from 1942 until 1979 before closing bureaus except Ottawa due to tax status changes. The magazine discontinued publishing a separate Canadian edition entirely in December 2008. Time LightBox launched in 2011 as a photography blog curated by the photo department winning Photo Blog Awards that same year. TimePieces represents a Web3 community NFT initiative including works from over forty artists from multiple disciplines.
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Common questions
When was the first issue of Time magazine published?
The first issue of Time magazine was published on the 3rd of March 1923. Briton Hadden and Henry Luce founded this weekly news magazine in a small office in New York City.
Who created the Time magazine brand and what was their background?
Briton Hadden and Henry Luce created the Time magazine brand after meeting while editing the Yale Daily News together. They raised one hundred thousand dollars from wealthy Yale alumni including Henry P. Davison and Dwight Morrow to launch the publication.
What is the significance of the red border on Time magazine covers since 1927?
A red border appeared on every cover beginning in 1927 and has changed only eight times since then. The color changes symbolize specific events such as mourning for the September 11 attacks or environmental awareness for Earth Day issues.
How often does Richard Nixon appear on the cover of Time magazine compared to other figures?
Richard Nixon holds the record for most frequent appearances with fifty-five covers spanning from the 25th of August 1952 to the 2nd of May 1994. No other individual has matched this frequency of cover appearances over that time period.
When did Time Europe begin covering international regions from its London headquarters?
Time Europe began covering the Middle East Africa and Latin America since 2003 from its London headquarters. An Asian edition based in Hong Kong serves that region while a South Pacific edition operates out of Sydney.