Waiting for Speedway Fowler

Wigwag was an American magazine published from 1988 until 1991.

I was one of the (apparently few) subscribers.

The easiest way to describe Wigwag is to say that it was the New Yorker, without that magazine's unique attitude. I realize that description makes no sense, but it's all I can come up with. Wigwag's scope reached much farther than the east coast, both geographically and philosophically. It was a magazine that wanted its viewers to step back, get out in the fresh air, and breath deeply. It wasn't about hipness quotients. It wasn't about irony. Wigwag was about life.

Wigwag's writing was top-notch. Many of its contributors came from New Yorker writers who'd left when Conde Nast bought that publication. But whereas the New Yorker embodies sophistication, Wigwag had no interest in that kind of reputation. It was more interested in significance... even if it happened to be found in Cedar Rapids or Bangor or Spokane.

Wigwag attracted a lot of attention during its brief life, but the recession of 1991 proved too much for the magazine.

Still, it's underlying philosophy remains valid, especially in these times, and I think if Wigwag were suddenly to reappear on the newsstand, it would find an even larger audience today.

I know I'd be one of the first to subscribe.