Modern Drunkard

Modern Drunkard
Standing Up For Your Right To Get Falling Down Drunk Since 1996
Modern Drunkard Magazine logo
The Modern Drunkard standard
TypeMagazine
FormatBroadsheet
PublisherFrank Kelly Rich
EditorFrank Kelly Rich
Founded1996
CountryUnited States
Circulation50,000
Websitedrunkard.com
Free online archiveshttps://drunkard.com/back-issues/

Modern Drunkard is a glossy color lifestyle magazine and associated brand, which humorously and semi-seriously promotes the lifestyle of the "functional alcoholic."[1][2] Modern Drunkard's standard features a martini glass with an olive above two crossed swords. Three letters, M, D and M, appear on the flag and stand for "Modern Drunkard Magazine."

History

Frank Kelly Rich, a former U.S. Army Ranger,[3] founded Modern Drunkard as a periodical in 1996.[4] The first issue of Modern Drunkard was 16 photocopied pages with made-up ads; by 2005 its circulation was about 50,000.[5][6][7] The magazine runs advertisements from bars in Denver, Minneapolis, Las Vegas and Philadelphia, as well as from companies selling drinking supplies. The print edition is available at newsstands and is also available for free in bars and liquor stores in the aforementioned cities.[1] A U.K. launch of Modern Drunkard was considered in 2003, but never came to pass.[8] Apart from his work through the magazine, Rich is occasionally interviewed about hangover cures and other alcohol-related issues for other publications and news outlets.[9][10][11]

Content

Print magazine content

The Modern Drunkard aesthetic style is reminiscent of once popular 1950s "men's action" pulp periodicals,[12] with artwork depicting tough, lantern-jawed men and buxom women.[2] Regular Modern Drunkard features include "Booze in the News," "Post Cards from Skid Row" (featuring poetry written by and/or for the inebriated), "Wino Wisdom,"[12] "Alcocomics − Cartoons for the sober challenged," and "You Know You're a Drunkard When..." The magazine also features articles on alcohol's place in history, including such topics as the Whiskey Rebellion and President Franklin D. Roosevelt's love of the martini. It frequently runs pieces arguing against MADD's positions, and in August 2004 had an editorial on the shrinking alcoholic proof of a bottle of Jack Daniel's.[1][13]

Modern Drunkard has profiled and lauded historical drinkers such as Ernest Hemingway, Humphrey Bogart, Winston Churchill, W.C. Fields, Mark Twain, Charles Bukowski, The Rat Pack, and Hunter S. Thompson.[14] It has also featured "Drunkard of The Issue" interviews with contemporary drinkers such as Doug Stanhope,[15] Johnette Napolitano,[16] Mojo Nixon,[17] Lydia Lunch, Dan Dunn, Tucker Max, Josh Blue, Richard Cheese, Hank Williams III, and various other interviewees.[18] In the early aughts, the magazine repeatedly attempted to secure an interview with Christopher Hitchens, but was rebuffed because Hitchens stated he already had "too many enemies."[19]

Online content

The Modern Drunkard website includes a section on its history, an FAQ page, an IRC chatroom, various articles from print back issues of the magazine, and an archive of Modern Drunkard podcast episodes (hosted by Rich and the magazine's poetry editor, Nick Plumber).[20] It also sells various products bearing the Modern Drunkard standard and/or phrases related to the magazine itself and to the liberal consumption of alcohol. Modern Drunkard also produces short videos hosted on its YouTube channel.

Staff

Apart from Rich, the publisher/editor, Modern Drunkard has featured writing and interviews by contributors such as Nick Plumber,[21] Boyd Rice,[22] Luke Schmaltz,[23] Brian M. Clark,[24] Richard English,[25][26][27] and David Sipos, among others.[28] It also regularly features the Drinky Crow character from the Maakies comic strip by Tony Millionaire,[29][30] as well as artwork from Karl Christian Krumpholz.[31][32] Staff are reportedly allowed to drink (and smoke) on the job, and are provided with a bar and a fridge containing beer.[2][33]

Books

In 2005 Penguin Books published a collection of numerous of Rich's articles previously published in the magazine, as The Modern Drunkard: A Handbook for Drinking in the 21st Century.[34][35][36] In 2007 a German translation was published by Tropen Verlag.[37] Prior to starting the magazine, Rich authored a series of cyberpunk science fiction novels in the 1980s, centered around a protagonist named Jake Straight.[38] The initial novel in the Jake Straight series was published in 1984, and the four-book series was republished by Gold Eagle in 1993 and 1994, with covers illustrated by Tim Bradstreet.[39][40] Several other Modern Drunkard staff members have also republished their work for the magazine in separate book collections.

Books by Modern Drunkard writers and illustrators

  • Millionaire, Tony (2000). Drinky Crow's Maakies Treasury. ISBN 9781560979753.
  • Rich, Frank Kelly (2005). The Modern Drunkard: A Handbook for Drinking in the 21st Century. ISBN 9781594481420.
  • Rich, Frank Kelly (2007). The Modern Drunkard's Adventures in Alcohol. ISBN 9780307354938.
  • Rice, Boyd (2008). Standing in Two Circles: The Collected Works of Boyd Rice. ISBN 9781840681185.
  • Krumpholz, Karl Christian (2014). 30 Miles of Crazy!. ASIN B0DM9SBQRQ.
  • Krumpholz, Karl Christian (2015). 30 Miles of Crazy! Vol. 2: Another Round. ISBN 9781513600338.
  • English, Richard (2015). Beer for The Genius. ISBN 9781941050095.
  • Plumber, Nick (2017). Whiskeyboat. ISBN 9780998722702.
  • Schmaltz, Luke (2023). The Belcher: Overserved Underdog. ISBN 9781735645803.
  • Clark, Brian M. (2025). Drunk Jerk: A Chrestomathy of Carousal and Critique. ISBN 9798999211606.

Conventions

Modern Drunkard held its first convention for readers and staff in 2004, at the Stardust Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.[1][28][41] Events included live music, independent films, live burlesque, seminars, interviews and drinking games, all accompanied by bar service and many free drink promotions. It became an annual event, advertised as "The best time you'll never remember" and "Say it loud, say it plowed."[6]

The second Modern Drunkard convention was held in Denver, Colorado, at The Ogden Theatre, in the summer of 2005.[42][43][44] The third convention was again held in Las Vegas, in 2006.[45][46] The fourth Modern Drunkard convention was held in 2008 (making it no longer "annual") at Three Kings Tavern, in Denver.[47][48] The magazine does not appear to have had any subsequent conventions.

References

  1. ^ a b c d Smith, Dinitia (October 20, 2004). "A Serious Business for a Humorous Drunkard". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 8, 2014.
  2. ^ a b c Kelly, David (January 2, 2005). "Homage to boozers: Bimonthly magazine unabashedly celebrates the pleasures and virtues of heavy drinking while defending drunks as an 'oppressed minority'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 20, 2011 – via San Francisco Chronicle.
  3. ^ Williams, Alex (January 1, 2006). "Hangover Helpers: Beyond Sheep Eyes". The New York Times.
  4. ^ Calhoun, Patricia (November 4, 2004). "Through a Glass, Darkly". Westword.
  5. ^ Kelly, David (January 1, 2005). "Magazine Toasts Unabashed Alcoholism". The Los Angeles Times.
  6. ^ a b Higgins, Sean (June 23, 2006). "The Anti-temperance Movement". America's Future. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  7. ^ Higgins, Sean (March 17, 2006). "In Vino Veritas". National Review.
  8. ^ Whitehead, Jennifer (June 24, 2003). "Cult US magazine Modern Drunkard considers UK launch". Campaign. United Kingdom.
  9. ^ "Some sobering advice about hangovers". CBS News. January 1, 2012.
  10. ^ Wilson, Jason (January 2, 2008). "Forget the hangover; go for the grapefruit". The Herald-Tribune.
  11. ^ Allan, Patrick (November 14, 2015). "Why You Should Edit Your Writing When You're Hungover". Lifehacker.
  12. ^ a b Decker, Edwin. "How Modern Drunkards convene in Las Vegas". San Diego City Beat. Archived from the original on September 24, 2016. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  13. ^ "Drinkers object to Jack Daniel's watering whiskey down". USA Today. Associated Press. September 29, 2004. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  14. ^ Carlson, Peter (April 27, 2005). "Drunkard mag toasts Thompson". The Seattle Times.
  15. ^ McFarland, Ben (2019). "Drink & Comedy: No Laughing Matter?". Thinking Drinkers.
  16. ^ "Best Of 2015: Johnette Napolitano, Concrete Blonde". Popshifter Magazine. December 28, 2015.
  17. ^ Patchez (August 2, 2024). "A Farewell Toast to Mojo Nixon". Dear Booze.
  18. ^ "Press". Brian Abrams. Retrieved February 17, 2026.
  19. ^ Gillespie, Nick (December 16, 2011). "More Tales of Hitchens". Reason Magazine.
  20. ^ "Nick Plumber". IMDb.
  21. ^ Light, Afton (June 8, 2020). "Who Are You, Nick Plumber?". Afton Light.
  22. ^ "Boyd Rice". The New Yorker. June 14, 2013.
  23. ^ Wenzel, John (October 19, 2012). "Bender's Tavern closing Oct. 31". The Denver Post.
  24. ^ Griffiths, Josh (December 31, 2023). "We Chat With Brian M. Clark – Writer, Musician, Artist". The Aither.
  25. ^ Kogan, Rick (April 8, 2016). "Beer and baseball: Reunited, and it feels so good". Chicago Tribune.
  26. ^ Lacy, Eric (January 27, 2013). "Andre the Giant's legendary drinking tales tied to Wrestlemania III match with Hulk Hogan at Pontiac Silverdome". MLive.
  27. ^ Remington, Alex (April 28, 2011). "Interview: Modern Drunkard Magazine's Rich English". Fangraphs.
  28. ^ a b Seabaugh, Julie (May 20, 2004). "FEATURE: Invasion of the Bottle Snatchers". Las Vegas Weekly.
  29. ^ Conner, Shawn (October 19, 2009). "Maakies creator more than just Drinky Crow". Guttersnipe Magazine. Canada. Archived from the original on February 10, 2026.
  30. ^ Millionaire, Tony (June 16, 2014). "Maakies". Modern Drunkard Magazine. p. 52.
  31. ^ Utterback, Chris (September 18, 2014). "Denver Cartoonist Spills Colfax Avenue's Secrets in 30 Miles of Crazy!". Westword.
  32. ^ Schwinghammer, Michelle (September 12, 2021). "30 Minutes with Karl Christian Krumpholz". SCHWINGSTATE.
  33. ^ Kane, Colleen (April 12, 2015). "The three martini office: Where drinking at work is a job requirement". Fortune. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  34. ^ Smith, Russ (December 31, 2005). "Into the Drink". The Wall Street Journal.
  35. ^ Hamilton, William L. (October 9, 2005). "A Drinking Life". The New York Times.
  36. ^ Fagan, Mark (December 9, 2005). "Curling Up - The Modern Drunkard: A Handbook for Drinking in the 21st Century". The Austin Chronicle.
  37. ^ "Die feine Art des Saufens: Ein Handbuch für den modernen Trinker". Perlentaucher Das Kulturmagazin (in German). Germany. 2007.
  38. ^ Kelly, David (January 2, 2005). "Magazine extols editor's unabashed love of booze". The Seattle Times.
  39. ^ "The Complete Jake Strait Series: Avenging Angel, The Devil Knocks, Day of Judgment, Twist of Cain". Biblio.
  40. ^ "The Jake Strait Series in Order (4 Books)". FictionDB.
  41. ^ Harsanyi, David (2007). Nanny State: How Food Fascists, Teetotaling Do-Gooders, Priggish Moralists, and Other Boneheaded Bureaucrats Are Turning America into a Nation of Children. New York: Broadway. pp. 57–58. ISBN 9780767924320. Modern Drunkard Las Vegas 2004.
  42. ^ King, Kat Valentine (May 11, 2005). "Modern Drunkard opens the tap for annual convention". The Denver Post. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  43. ^ Calhoun, Patricia (May 12, 2005). "Triumph of the Swill". Westword.
  44. ^ Associated Press (June 3, 2005). "Annual convention tips a glass toward drinkers' excess". The Denver Post.
  45. ^ Toole, Michael (July 6, 2006). "ON THE SCENE: The Doctor Is In". Las Vegas Weekly.
  46. ^ "The Anti-temperance Movement". America’s Future. June 23, 2006.
  47. ^ Tone, Joe (September 2, 2008). "Over the Weekend: Modern Drunkards (and other assorted drunkards) do Denver". Westword.
  48. ^ Shoe, Aubrey (August 28, 2008). "Drowning convention". Westword.
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