A New Spin on Things. In 1985 Bob Guccione Jr. introduced a new magazine to the American public. While it was centered around popular music, Spin gained greater attention for its irreverent take on American culture. In this respect it was more similar to edgy, youth-oriented 1980s magazines such as Spy than to its direct competitor, Rolling Stone. "Let the Baby Boomers read Rolling Stone," Guccione seemed to be saying; "this is a magazine for Generation X."

You Can't Keep Me in Your Penthouse.

The son of the publisher of Penthouse and Omni, Guccione came into magazine publishing naturally. His parents separated in 1965, and he lived with his mother in her native England until they moved to New Jersey when he was fifteen. A high-school dropout, Guccione worked in magazine circulation and marketing before launching Spin under the Penthouse aegis with $500,000 from his father...