Reb’s Notes on “London Life Magazine”

At best, my information on “London Life Magazine” is sketchy. Hopefully someone can send me more specific details.

It appears that “London Life” started in the late 1920’s, and continued through the beginning of World War II. The war being the most-likely reason publication ceased.

This publication was way ahead of its time. I have hundreds of pages from various issues from the late 20’s on. Most in the 30’s. All in pretty bad shape, but I have kept them in plastic. I know each page has at least one scan left in it before they flake away in my hands – I’m sure others in this world have copies left of “London Life”, but I’ve yet to find anybody with any copies at all.

The stories, photographs, letters and ads are amazing. Talking about 6” and 7” high-heels in the 20’s and 30’s? Blew me away. Ads for Gentlemens corsets, Pony Girls, Austrian stove-pipe corsets, long hair fetishists…unbelievable stuff. 

January 2002 – I just received more info on “London Life”…the fetishistic content continued until the publication’s London office was bombed by the German Luftwaffe in 1941, when “10,000 pounds worth of machinery – and all the files – were destroyed”.

The diagram displayed below was researched and created by Bienvenu II, Robert V. 1998.
The Development of Sadomasochism as a Cultural Style in the Twentieth-Century United States.
(Doctoral Dissertation.) Bloomington, IN: Indiana University.
Be sure to visit his research web site at: http://americanfetish.net