In early 1976, Carl Ruderman needed a figurehead to divert attention from his position as publisher. He hired Peter Wolff – but Wolff suggested he appoint a nominal female ‘publisher’ instead. And not just any female – he wanted a glamorous woman already associated with the New York sex scene. Wolff suggested adult film actress Bree Anthony, star of porno hits Oriental Blue, The Vixens of Kung Fu, Highway Hookers, and others. Appointing Bree Anthony proved a smart idea – and selecting her eventual successor, adult film actress Gloria Leonard, an even smarter one. Remarkably, given the number of controversies and articles generated, the August issue of Cheri marked only the first year anniversary of the magazine. A good portion of the issue is dedicated to reliving highlights from the previous year, such as Jamie Gillis and Terri Hall’s photo spread from Terri’s S&M dungeon, and a pictorial with the genitally-malleable Veri Knotty. Working in a band is a difficult task; often, emotions threaten to break it apart, but they can also bring its members closer together. With Uenoyama's help, Mafuyu may finally be able to express the feelings that fight to break free from within his heart. This month’s porn star interview featured Marlene Willoughby, and was accompanied by a series of photos of Marlene dressed up as a maid, a dominatrix, and Fidel Castro (seriously…). She described appearing in the off Broadway play, Che, having sex with John Holmes, and her relationships with men. Also of relevance to the adult film scene is an article about the new Sharon Mitchell film Joy, referred to here as ‘Sex Crazy.’

We continue our review of the history of east coast publication Cheri, looking at the magazine’s second year in business: 1977. (You can read about the first year of Cheri here.) Firstly, there was a controversial feature on the René Guyon Society, a possibly mythical American group that was said to have advocated sexual relationships with children. How on earth do you illustrate such an article? In this case, with children’s dolls. All very strange. The regular columnists weighed in with their latest essays, and Annie Sprinkle joined the team, standing in for Kim Pope. Jody Maxwell found herself in the right place at the right time. She was in Kansas City, the location of the upcoming Republican convention. This enabled her to report on the preparation for the event – from unusual angles. This month she spoke to prostitutes in the city about their rights.

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They don’t come more original than musician Sweet Pie, and this issue features a report from a performance of the world’s only nudist boogie-woogie pianist. Sweet Pie was raising awareness (and funds) for his defense against the state of Vermont, whose Liquor Authority had been taking away licenses from any venues where he appeared.

On a perhaps more substantive topic, there’s a feature on the two people who stood against each other in ‘The Battle of Miami’, Anita Bryant and Bob Kunst. Bryant, a Christian pop singer, had became an outspoken opponent of gay rights in the US. In 1977, she ran a ‘Save Our Children’ campaign in Florida to repeal a local Dade County ordinance that prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Her involvement with the campaign was condemned by Kunst and other gay rights activists who, assisted by many other prominent figures in music, film and television, retaliated by boycotting the orange juice brand she promoted. It’s a story showcasing the culture wars that featured in the 1970s, with Bob Kunst emerging as the liberal voice of reason. (Postscript: Bob Kunst supported Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election.) Keaton Reynolds wakes up, in wolf form, and finds himself with a mate. He's instantly attracted, but not so thrilled to find out the man is straight. Having been in a relationship once before where his partner professed to be "Not gay" left a bad taste in his mouth. Keaton wants to make a break for it and pretend he never set eyes on Chay—but Chay is not ready to let him go. Fanne Foxe’s monthly trip was to New Orleans, and as usual she headed there with Andrea Ambers, C.B. Lucci, and photographer Peter Hurd to report from the various sex clubs and brothels on Bourbon Street.The issue also included an article about “new art”– a male sex surrogate and a feature on glory holes (which included pictures of adult film stars, Arlana Blue and Juliet Graham).