Sex to Sexty - The Most Vulgar Mag

Sex to Sexty was an American counter counter-culture joke and cartoon magazine from 1965 to 1983, and was started by John Newburn, and fueled by a skilled and prolific artist named Pierre Davis, who lovingly painted an oil painting illustration for each cover. (All 198 of them!)

This new book Sex to Sexty (2008) from Taschen portrays the magazine in all its redneck psychedelia, complete with the hypnotic two-color covers reminiscent of Timothy Leary’s LSD albums. Think of this as a cartoon retrospective of raunch. Sex to Sexty is primarily about the dirty cartoons and jokes, most of which require only an open mind and a sense of humor. These fun and funny cartoons make fun of sex, human foibles, rednecks, hippies, gays and straights.

Sex to Sexty bills itself as the most vulgar magazine ever made, and this is what editor Dian Hanson has to say about it: “Raw, irreverent, uncensored and all-American, Sex to Sexty spares no gender, sexual preference, ethnic orientation, or hygienic dysfunction in bringing you what the magazine's original publisher called the ‘World's Largest Accumulation of He-Man Robust Humor in the World.’”

There’s no doubt that Sexty to Sexty is a men’s magazine of adult humor, but co-founders Newburn and Davis referred to it as Jokelore, an important part of folklore. Another appeal of this comic book was that Sex to Sexty printed dirty jokes from readers, therefore engaging in and investing in its own publication in a fun and productive way.

Sex to Sexty features a funny and brainy forward by artist Mike Kelley. No prior experience with this magazine is necessary to appreciate or enjoy this book. Think Playboy’s Little Annie Fannie, but not as slick and a whole lot dirtier. The variety of topics and the fair dose of fun-making all round reminds one of Mad Magazine for adults who like dirty jokes. (Famous underground cartoonist R. Crumb may be a better draftsman than Pierre Davis, but Crumb’s mind is just as dirty.)

The fun design of this book only reinforces the theme of vulgar humor. Take off the dust cover and you’ll see the fun, poster-sized Pierre Davis painting reproduced on the other side, complete with a faux art museum picture frame.

• Weird fact about Sex to Sexty: Lowell “Pierre” Davis went on to produce country prints and collectible plates and such that can be found on eBay selling for hundreds of dollars. No sex themes, though, just kind of boring stuff one might find in a grandmother’s kitchen.

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