The advertisements didn't exactly help enhance the National Police Gazette reader's sense of security. There were public service announcements in the magazine to WASH to stop skin disease. Mail-order gonorrhea cures ran on most pages for almost six decades, presumably for a consumer market that didn't mind dripping and screaming by their mailbox for six to eight weeks. Every fourth classified ad was for something called BLOOD POISON, and I don't know even know if it was a cure or a weapon. My point is -- our parents, grandparents and great-grandparents were totally filthy and disgusting.
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It Was the First Magazine to Pick Fights with the Reader
The National Police Gazette was filled with boxing articles, and for a long time it was considered the leading authority on fighter rankings. I have no idea how this happened, since the boxers were ranked on the same page as fighting dogs and pro wrestlers, and their ranking system never got more complicated than "This man from Louisville sent in a topless picture of himself and said he could kick anybody's ass." For decades, the first section of every NPG issue was just pictures of people challenging the reader to a fight. Obviously this was awesome, and I wish magazines still did it ...
![6 Reasons the 'Police Gazette' is the Craziest Magazine Ever]()
![6 Reasons the 'Police Gazette' is the Craziest Magazine Ever]()