Founded in the 1940s, Seventeen revolutionized the world of magazine publishing by establishing the teenage market as a serious target audience. Under the leadership of editor-in-chief Helen Valentine, Seventeen recognized the unique needs and interests of teenage girls, treating them as serious and intelligent young adults. This approach set Seventeen apart from other publications of the time, which often overlooked this demographic.

Estelle Ellis made significant contributions as the promotions director to the dissemination and success of Seventeen and Charm. She organized surveys, events and advertising campaigns that helped make the magazines known to a broad audience and strengthened reader engagement. Research also justified Valentine's editorial vision of an audience eager for serious fiction and articles on contemporary social issues, community service, education, advances in science and technology, and career opportunities, in addition to the usual topics covered by women's magazines - fashion, beauty, and relationships. Until Seventeen's success demonstrated that teenagers were a significant and distinct market, there was no clothing designed for them; they were expected to buy and wear the same styles as their mothers.

Valentine's editorial vision for Seventeen was multifaceted. She also understood that teenage girls sought more than just fashion and beauty tips. Therefore, the magazine included serious fiction, articles on contemporary social issues, community service, education, advances in science and technology, and career opportunities, alongside the more traditional topics of fashion, beauty, and relationships. This comprehensive content strategy contributed to Seventeen's rapid success, reaching a circulation of one million within the first 18 months.

Cipe Pineles, who joined Seventeen as art director in 1947, was crucial to the magazine's visual identity. Her commitment brought a fresh perspective to the magazine's design, developed in consultation with Agha, whom Valentine knew from her time at Vogue. The design followed more the classical tradition of layout and typography represented by Agha, as opposed to the bolder approach of Brodovitch at Harper's Bazaar. The book-like typography of fiction allowed art to dominate, while the editorial and fashion pages were more playful, showing early trends toward American figurative typography.

Pineles is credited with the innovation of using fine artists to illustrate fiction. As part of Valentine's mission to educate teenage girls, Pineles moved Seventeen away from the idealized, sentimental Jon-Whitcomb school of illustration and brought modern art closer to the broader youth audience, allowing fine artists access to the commercial world. Many of her selections came from specific ethnic or political backgrounds - Ben Shahn was active in the political left; Jacob Lawrence was part of the Harlem Renaissance; Reginald Marsh and John Sloan were known for their social realism; Richard Lindner was a recent German immigrant; Dong Kingman was Chinese-American.

As an illustrator herself, Pineles was the perfect art director - she left her artists alone. She asked them to read the entire story and choose what they wanted to illustrate; her only instruction was that the work should be good enough to hang in a gallery. For visual diversity, she also introduced conceptual approaches with collages, photography, and the emerging field of informative illustration and design. Some young artists "discovered" by the magazine became well-known, including Richard Anuszkiewicz and Seymour Chwast.

Through the combined efforts of Valentine, Pineles, and promotions director Estelle Ellis, Seventeen became more than just a magazine; it was a cultural force, empowering teenage girls, providing them with valuable information, and celebrating their potential. The magazine's legacy continues to be felt as it reshaped the publishing industry and set new standards for perceiving and addressing teenage girls in the media. (dg)