''Puss'', stylized as ''PUSS'', () was a leftist underground satirical and arts magazine which was published in the period between 1968 and 1974 in Stockholm, Sweden.

History and profile

''Puss'' was launched by a group of Swedish artists led by Lars Hillersberg in Stockholm in January 1968. The magazine adopted a critical approach towards politicians and opinion leaders and condemned the US interventions in Vietnam and the

Swedish police The Swedish Police Authority () is the national police, police force (''Polisen'') of Sweden. The first modern police force in Sweden was established in the mid-19th century, and the police remained in effect under Municipalities of Sweden, local ...

. It was also involved in the emerging

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

discussions in Sweden. Major contributors were Lars Norén, Marie-Louise Ekman,

Carl Johan De Geer Baron Carl Johan Louis De Geer af Finspång (born 13 July 1938) is a Swedish artist, writer, musician and '' friherre'' (baron) of the De Geer noble family. De Geer was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He grew up in a castle in Skåne, in s ...

Lars Forssell Lars Hans Carl Abraham Forssell (14 January 192826 July 2007) was a Swedish writer and member of the Swedish Academy. Forssell was a versatile writer who worked within many genres, including poetry, drama and songwriting. He was awarded the Bell ...

, and

Öyvind Fahlström Öyvind Axel Christian Fahlström (December 28, 1928 – November 9, 1976) was a Swedish multimedia artist. Biography Fahlström was born in São Paulo, Brazil, as the only child to Frithjof Fahlström and Karin Fahlström. In July 1939 he was ...

. The issues 1 through 21 were published in

A4 format ISO 216 is an international standard for paper sizes, used around the world except in North America and parts of Latin America. The standard defines the "A", "B" and "C" series of paper sizes, which includes the A4, the most commonly available ...

. The remaining issues came out in

tabloid format A tabloid is a newspaper format characterized by its compact size, smaller than a broadsheet. The term originates from the 19th century, when the London-based pharmaceutical company Burroughs Wellcome & Co. used the term to describe compres ...

. The frequency of ''Puss'' was regular in the early years, but became irregular later. The magazine had 24 pages throughout its lifetime. The editor of the magazine frequently changed and included the following: Lars Hillersberg, Åke Holmqvist, Karin Frostensson, Carl Johan De Geer, Leif Katz, Karl Erik Liljeros, Ulf Rahmberg, Lena Svedberg and Christer Themptander. The magazine sold nearly 10,000 copies. The magazine frequently employed the

political satire Political satire is a type of satire that specializes in gaining entertainment from politics. Political satire can also act as a tool for advancing political arguments in conditions where political speech and dissent are banned. Political satir ...

containing a covert and aesthetic critique. In the third issue ''Puss'' published a photo collage made by Lars Hillersberg featuring a naked man wearing a mask of the People's Party leader

Sven Wedén Sven Wedén (23 July 1913 – 31 March 1976) was a Swedish politician. He was the leader of the Swedish Liberal People's Party (Sweden), People's Party from 1967 to 1969. Wedén survived severe tuberculosis and became a businessman in the fam ...

. Following its publication the issue was confiscated by the Swedish authorities, and it became a subject of criticisms by mainstream publications such as ''

Aftonbladet (, lit. "The evening paper") is a Swedish language, Swedish daily tabloid newspaper published in Stockholm, Sweden. It is one of the largest daily newspapers in the Nordic countries. History and profile The newspaper was founded by Lar ...

'' and ''

Svenska Dagbladet (, "The Swedish Daily News"), abbreviated SvD, is a daily List of Swedish newspapers, newspaper published in Stockholm, Sweden. History and profile The first issue of appeared on 18 December 1884. During the beginning of the 1900s the pap ...

''. Right-wing leader

Gösta Bohman Bo Gösta Bohman (15 January 1911 – 12 August 1997) was a Swedish politician and the leader of the Swedish liberal conservative Moderate Party from 1970 to 1981, during a period in which the party strengthened its position in Swedish politics ...

also attacked the magazine describing it as a "disgusting" publication. ''Puss'' folded in Autumn 1974 after producing a total of 24 issues.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Puss 1968 establishments in Sweden 1974 disestablishments in Sweden Censorship in Sweden Defunct political magazines published in Sweden Defunct Swedish-language magazines Irregularly published magazines Magazines established in 1968 Magazines disestablished in 1974 Magazines published in Stockholm Satirical magazines published in Sweden Swedish political satire