Charles Laufer, the founder of Tiger Beat and other teen centric magazines passed away this week of natural causes.
While working as a high school teacher in 1955, Laufer was frustrated by the lack of interesting reading material for bored youth and went on to create his magazine as a response to that.
Tiger Beat, his most successful periodical followed earlier publications, Teen and Coaster.
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| First issue! |
Tiger Beat became the moneymaker, profiling such stars as Jan Michael Vincent, Scott Baio, Leif Garrett, The Bay City Rollers, John Travolta and David Cassidy to a rapid teen audience that drove sales to a monthly circulation that peaked at about 700,000 in 1978.
But much of the magazine’s success came from a fortuitous relationship with the Monkees, who regularly appeared on the cover and with whom Laufer had signed an exclusive deal for special Monkee magazines, books and merchandise.
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| Monkee Love Beads, anyone? |
Tiger Beat is still selling the teen idol almost half a century later, and it still captures the same audience of teen girls with crushes on celebrities eager to post glossing pictures and posters on their wall.
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