Diane Powell, age 14, of Baton Rouge, La., for her question:
WHEN WAS THE FIRST MAGAZINE PRINTED?
A publication called Journal des Savans, or Journal for Scholars, was printed in 1665 in France. It was the world's first magazine and it featured a list of books that were being sold by booksellers. At first only short reviews of books were published but later other types of materials were added.
A magazine called The Review first went on sale in London in 1704 and it is called the first magazine in English. The editor and publisher was Daniel Defoe, the man who wrote the popular book called "Robinson Crusoe."
The Review, which lasted for nine years, had four pages in each issue and every word in every issue was written by Detoe. Defoe was often in trouble with his publication because his very strong opinions about politics many times upset government leaders.
Next on the British literary scene were two magazines called The Tattler and The Spectator. Two journalists, Joseph Addison and Richard Steele, were responsible for the publications, which were more literary than political. They became very popular and brought a rush of imitators with such names as Chit Chat, Town Talk and Tea Table.
The word "magazine" itself was used for the first time in 1731 by Edward Cave, an English printer who came out with a publication called Gentleman's Magazine. One of the writers employed by Cave was the famous Dr. Samuel Johnson.
Ten years after Gentleman's Magazine first came out, Benjamin Franklin made plans to come out with the first American publication. His General Magazine ran into trouble when his assistant, John Webbe, told a printer named Andrew Bradford all about Franklin's plans.
Three days before Franklin's magazine came out, Bradford hit the stores with a similar publication called American Magazine. Franklin was three days late because he had to do all of the typesetting and printing without help. But Franklin went on to become the most famous magazine editor in the country.
A large number of magazines were published during the early days of the American republic, but all of them failed. A number of those started in the 19th century, however, are still being published today. They include The Nation, harper's Magazine, Atlantic Monthly, Ladies' Home Journal, Good Housekeeping and McCall's.
America's first magazines looked rather dull compared to today's colorful publications. But as publishers made more money with advertising and increases in circulation, they put more money into the magazines themselves with better paper, bright artwork and pictures, better printing and a higher quality of writing and editing.
The word "magazine" comes from the French word "storehouse" or "storage place." A magazine, in effect, is a type of warehouse or place to keep different kinds of reading matter.
"Periodical" is another word that means the same thing as magazine.