Playboy magazine selling newsstand replica of first issue from December 1953

Playboy magazine last week published a newsstand replica of its first issue, published a tad over 60 years ago, with the cover subject Marilyn Monroe. That first issue was 50 cents; the reprint SIP is $9.99 and it should be on newsstands for about a dozen weeks. According to a story in Folio:

"This isn't the first time Playboy has leveraged its existing assets to spike revenue while celebrating its history. Two years ago it dug into its archive and released eBooks that highlight some of its best interviews over the past 50 years. But beyond that, the company has been monetizing its archives constantly.

"That is, iPlayboy membership enables readers to access 60-years worth of content online or on their mobile devices. There are three membership options: month-to-month for $8.00, an annual membership at $5.00 a month and a two-year membership at $4.16 a month."

Playboy founder Hugh Hefner started the magazine with $8,000 raised from 45 investors (including $1,000 from his mother). He was originally going to call it Stag Party. The first issue, which featured pictures of Monroe that had been taken from a 1949 nude calendar, sold over 50,000 copies.