Black History Magazines: Jet, 1950s

Jet magazine was founded in 1951 by John Johnson of the Johnson Publishing Company. Published in Chicago, its tagline was “The Weekly Negro News Magazine.” It printed in a small, digest-sized format with covers that featured black and white photographs and a single spot color. Art director Herbert Temple made the most of the limited resources, combining dynamic crops and silos of photos with energetic color patterns and graphic shapes. There were also plenty of provocative headlines and photos of swimsuit models, all of which made the Jet covers in the 1950s feel very energetic and more than a little risqué.

(Above): Hazel Scott, April 17, 1952.

Velma Middleton, May 8, 1952.

Eartha Kitt, February 24, 1955.

Madeline Jackson, September 18, 1952.

Urylee Leonardos, September 25, 1952.

Anna Mae Windburn, February 11, 1954.

Arlene Pugh, April 10, 1958.

Josie Cain, August 19, 1954.

Delphine Moore, January 1, 1953.

Ramona Bruce, December 24, 1953.