Mahammad Ali poses for Esquire in this contreversial photoshoot

Esquire is one of my favorite reads, they stay atop men’s fashion, new products and have creative and some debatable material. Much more than now, content for the men’s magazine in the 60′s and 70′s featured controversial topics of the day, involving racism, feminism and the Vietnam War. Boxing during that era launched fighters into iconic status. None more iconic than Muhammad Ali. Aside from being the greatest boxer of all-time, formerly known Cassius Clay was a magnet for controversy. Ali’s conversion to Islam in 1964 deemed it necessary to negate his involvement in the Vietnam War in 1967. His religious beliefs and personal opposition to the Vietnam War led to an arrest on draft evasion charges. He served no jail time, but was stripped of his Heavyweight Championship title and had his boxing license suspended. He would not fight professionally for 4 years.

Designer and current icon in his own right, George Lois, featured Muhammad Ali a total of 3 times on the Esquire covers, forever changing the art of cover art. Muhammad Ali’s stand against the Vietnam war painted him as the classic martyr, suffering and dying for his beliefs. The true brilliance landed on Lois, who with a single image and a single concept was able to capture the struggle of Ali in April’s 1968 cover.

A 10 year span marked the age of George Lois’ iconic Esquire covers. From 1962 to 1972, Lois created and designed imagery, capturing the essense of the controversial decade of the 60′s. He made his mark on political views and changed graphical and conceptual advertising imagery forever. Viewed as one of the greatest adsmen of our time, George Lois has been honored by having his work featured at MoMA, exhibition “George Lois: The Esquire Covers.”