The editors of Photoplay, Julian Johnson and James Quirk, established one of two most popular fan magazines in the early part of the twentieth century. By 1918, the editors could boast a circulation figure of 204,434. The basic format of Photoplay set a precedent for almost all other movie magazines that followed it. It catered largely to the public's craving for information about their favorite stars and reviews of new motion picture releases. A color picture of a movie star, drawn specially for the magazine, appeared on the cover of each issue. Such original art work distinguished Photoplay from other fan magazines and made the covers collectors' items.

Inside the magazine, following a few pages of advertisements and the table of contents, there appeared a section of about 10 to 15 pages of photographs of actors and actresses. The key to this layout was a proper balance between pictures and text. And...