Another Stab at a Pasadena City Magazine

Pasadena magazine launches later this year -- but don't be too hard on yourself if you thought Pasadena magazine already existed.

It did exist -- actually, several magazines have existed under that name through the years, but none have lasted. Launching and sustaining a big-city mag is tough enough, but keeping one going for a smaller city like Pasadena is even tougher. Here's an old Pasadena mag (notice its upscale pretensions) that existed in the early 1990s:



Enter the new Pasadena mag, which promises to cover all of the San Gabriel Valley -- including, strangely, Glendale... which isn't a part of the San Gabriel Valley. But that's OK. (Glendale is woefully underserved by local media, given its population -- 205,000. But that's a rant for another day.)

The Pasadena Star News' Larry Wilson received the same "charter membership" mailer that I did, and took issue with the mag's sense of geography:

Going through the mail at home Monday, I was therefore fascinated when I fished out a fat, glossy envelope inviting me to subscribe to the new Pasadena magazine: "Smart. Sophisticated. Sexy."

Well, thank you very much. That's me all over, your target reader for sure.
Yes, other magazines have had that title before. I don't know who's behind this one; the only name anywhere in the vast literature (besides "Your editorial team") is of publisher Mark C. Hulme. I wish them all the best.

You do have to know your market, though. Yes, it will sell, as we do, outside the city limits. But in his "Dear Reader" letter - you know the drill: "big-city buzz with small-town heart" - the publisher writes, "Whether it's the latest shopping down Mission Street or the magic of a drive down Christmas Tree lane, Pasadena captures the spirit of our one-of-a-kind city ..."

Mmmm. One of a kind, Pasadena may be. But Mission Street is in South Pasadena; Christmas Tree Lane in Altadena.