Yaahting
Encyclopedia
Yachting, A Parody was a 1984 parody of the boating magazine genre, most notably Yachting
. It was published by Dreadnaught Publishing, a short lived Massachusetts
based company. The main publishing staff were: Publisher was Elizabeth Meyer
, Publisher; Nathaniel Philbrick
, Editor-in-chief; Peter Gow, Executive Editor; William Gotha, Design Director; and Bob Payne, Advertising Coordinator.
Yaahting consisted of a number of short pieces lampooning typical examples of nautical journalism: self-congratulatory how-to pieces, "How to Walk Down a Dock," "Restoring the Buzzards Bay 23," and "At Last--A Real Instant Boat;" fawning interviews of famous yachtsmen, "Hog Wild in Wallenda" and "Tom Blackballer Looks Ahead;" and fatuous cruising tales, "Hearth of Darkness," "Cruising the Persian Gulf," and "A Perfect Cruising World." Other features included reportage on faux race events ("The Alcatraz 100," "The Flying Squat Nationals," "Going for Broke," and "The Inquirer Singlehanded TransAt Race") and features on absurd vessels ("Soave 48HRS--The Shape of Things to Come," "Dumpster Ahoy!" and "Hiva-Oa"). A number of the articles were written as specific parodies of the style of popular writers of the era; travel writer Patience Wales was targeted as "Prudence Porpoise," and globetrotters Lin and Larry Pardee became Lint and Berry Nurdee.
Notable in the magazine were the spectacular color photographs, many set up by publisher Meyer and the products of such well-known nautical photographers as Alastair Black, Christian Fevrier, Daniel Forster, Benjamin Mendlowitz, Dan Nerney, and Neil Rabinowitz. Artwork included contributions by Jan Adkins, Don Demers, Robert Forget, and Jeremy Ross. Several famous figures in the sailing world of the 1980s served as photographic models, including Tom Blackaller
and Robby Doyle.
Included are many photographs of disasters and embarrassments, outtakes from the files of maritime photographers featuring dismastings, collisions, and other examples of bad luck and questionable seamanship. Photographers were eager to find a home for these photographs, which were otherwise unpublishable in mainstream periodicals.
Yaahting also featured nearly a hundred pages of parody advertisements and short articles organized by "department."
Roughly 30,000 copies of Yaahting were produced and were sold directly by Dreadnaught as well as through bookstores and nauticalia dealers.
Publisher Elizabeth Meyer went on to restore the J-Boat Endeavour
, and she is now a principal in J Class Management of Newport, Rhode Island, and of the International Yacht Restoration School
. In 1987 Dreadnaught Publishing also produced The Concordia Yawls
: The First Fifty Years.
Editor-in-chief Nathaniel Philbrick
is a writer on maritime and historical subjects. His bestselling In the Heart of the Sea won the National Book Award
in 2001. His book Mayflower (2006) was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize
and was also a bestseller. Executive editor Peter Gow teaches and has written on educational, historical, and maritime subjects, including a meditation on the educative power of being on the water, The Watery Realm (2006). Advertising coordinator Bob Payne is a well-known travel writer.
Yaahting was an example of the parody genre that flourished in the 1970s and '80s, inspired by other magazine send-ups produced by the Harvard Lampoon and others.
Yachting (magazine)
Yachting is a monthly English-language magazine published since 1907. It was founded by Oswald Garrison Villard, publisher of the New York Evening Post and the Nation. The next year Herbert L. Stone became the manager. In 1938 Stone and some friends bought the magazine.It features articles on...
. It was published by Dreadnaught Publishing, a short lived Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
based company. The main publishing staff were: Publisher was Elizabeth Meyer
Elizabeth Meyer
Elizabeth E Meyer, was born in Baltimore in 1953. She was instrumental in the restoration of the J Class Yachts beginning with Endeavour in the mid 1980s. She is married to Michael McCaffrey.-Life:...
, Publisher; Nathaniel Philbrick
Nathaniel Philbrick
Nathaniel Philbrick is an American author and a winner of the National Book Award for his 2000 work of maritime history In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex. He is member of the Philbrick literary family.-Life:...
, Editor-in-chief; Peter Gow, Executive Editor; William Gotha, Design Director; and Bob Payne, Advertising Coordinator.
Yaahting consisted of a number of short pieces lampooning typical examples of nautical journalism: self-congratulatory how-to pieces, "How to Walk Down a Dock," "Restoring the Buzzards Bay 23," and "At Last--A Real Instant Boat;" fawning interviews of famous yachtsmen, "Hog Wild in Wallenda" and "Tom Blackballer Looks Ahead;" and fatuous cruising tales, "Hearth of Darkness," "Cruising the Persian Gulf," and "A Perfect Cruising World." Other features included reportage on faux race events ("The Alcatraz 100," "The Flying Squat Nationals," "Going for Broke," and "The Inquirer Singlehanded TransAt Race") and features on absurd vessels ("Soave 48HRS--The Shape of Things to Come," "Dumpster Ahoy!" and "Hiva-Oa"). A number of the articles were written as specific parodies of the style of popular writers of the era; travel writer Patience Wales was targeted as "Prudence Porpoise," and globetrotters Lin and Larry Pardee became Lint and Berry Nurdee.
Notable in the magazine were the spectacular color photographs, many set up by publisher Meyer and the products of such well-known nautical photographers as Alastair Black, Christian Fevrier, Daniel Forster, Benjamin Mendlowitz, Dan Nerney, and Neil Rabinowitz. Artwork included contributions by Jan Adkins, Don Demers, Robert Forget, and Jeremy Ross. Several famous figures in the sailing world of the 1980s served as photographic models, including Tom Blackaller
Tom Blackaller
Thomas David Blackaller, Jr. was a world-champion American yachtsman, America's Cup helmsman, sailmaker, and racecar competitor...
and Robby Doyle.
Included are many photographs of disasters and embarrassments, outtakes from the files of maritime photographers featuring dismastings, collisions, and other examples of bad luck and questionable seamanship. Photographers were eager to find a home for these photographs, which were otherwise unpublishable in mainstream periodicals.
Yaahting also featured nearly a hundred pages of parody advertisements and short articles organized by "department."
Roughly 30,000 copies of Yaahting were produced and were sold directly by Dreadnaught as well as through bookstores and nauticalia dealers.
Publisher Elizabeth Meyer went on to restore the J-Boat Endeavour
Endeavour (Yacht)
Endeavour is a J-class yacht built for the 1934 America's Cup by Camper and Nicholson in Gosport, Portsmouth Harbour, England. She was built for Thomas Sopwith who used his aviation design expertise to ensure the yacht was the most advanced of its day with a steel hull and mast...
, and she is now a principal in J Class Management of Newport, Rhode Island, and of the International Yacht Restoration School
International Yacht Restoration School
The International Yacht Restoration School is a private school on Thames Street in Newport, Rhode Island, that teaches boat and yacht restoration. The school also has a campus in Bristol, Rhode Island, that offers marine technology courses...
. In 1987 Dreadnaught Publishing also produced The Concordia Yawls
Concordia yawls
The Concordia yawl was designed in 1938 by naval architect C. Raymond Hunt with input from Llewellyn and Waldo Howland, Clinton Crane, Fenwick Williams and Frank Paine....
: The First Fifty Years.
Editor-in-chief Nathaniel Philbrick
Nathaniel Philbrick
Nathaniel Philbrick is an American author and a winner of the National Book Award for his 2000 work of maritime history In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex. He is member of the Philbrick literary family.-Life:...
is a writer on maritime and historical subjects. His bestselling In the Heart of the Sea won the National Book Award
National Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of American literary awards. Started in 1950, the Awards are presented annually to American authors for literature published in the current year. In 1989 the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization which now oversees and manages the National Book...
in 2001. His book Mayflower (2006) was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
and was also a bestseller. Executive editor Peter Gow teaches and has written on educational, historical, and maritime subjects, including a meditation on the educative power of being on the water, The Watery Realm (2006). Advertising coordinator Bob Payne is a well-known travel writer.
Yaahting was an example of the parody genre that flourished in the 1970s and '80s, inspired by other magazine send-ups produced by the Harvard Lampoon and others.