TWO LENGTHY TYPED LETTERS DATED 1967 FROM AYN RAND TO PLAYBOY EDITORIAL DIRECTOR A.C. SPECTORSKY ON ART, WOMEN, AND SEX, BOTH SIGNED BY AYN RAND
RAND, Ayn. Two typed letters signed. New York, January 14 and 19, 1967. Three sheets of paper (two Objectivist letterhead) measuring 8-1/2 by 11 inches. Housed in a custom cloth portfolio and clamshell box.
Two original typed letters from Ayn Rand to A.C. Spectorsky, the editorial director of Playboy, regarding Rand’s refusal to comment on an article in the 1967 December issue of Playboy and Rand’s decision to instead provide a lengthy Letter to the Editor on good art, sex, and women’s bodies, both letters signed by Ayn Rand.
Written on the letterhead of The Objectivist Inc, Ayn Rand and Nathaniel Branden’s monthly magazine (expanded from the earlier newsletter), these two typed letters are addressed to A.C. Spectorsky, the editorial director of Playboy. The first responds to a letter from Spectorsky that evidently requested that Rand comment on an article called “Women as Angels” from the December issue of Playboy. Rand’s letter, dated January 19, 1967, reads, in part: “Dear Mr. Spectorsky: Thank you for the December issue… To tell you the truth, I have no comment to make on that article. But I have, on “The Playmate as Fine Art” in your January issue. So I wrote the enclosed in the hope that you will use it. (But please print it in full or not at all.) Cordially, [signed] Ayn Rand.” The second letter, written as a “Letter to the Editor,” is the aforementioned enclosure. It reads, in part: “Dear Sir: There is a sorry contradiction between the Playboy philosophy and the stuff presented in your January issue under the title: ‘The Playmate as Fine Art.’ I disagree with many aspects of the Playboy philosophy, but I agree (at least, in general terms) with its stated intention: that man should enjoy his life on earth and that sex should be regarded as a proper, innocent, inspiring part of his life. If this is what Playmate of the Month is supposed to symbolize, it is regrettable to see you publish ‘interpretations’ that symbolize the exact opposite. The only real artist in the bunch is (or was) Dali, whose contribution is not up to the best of his former standards. As for the rest of the stuff, observe its resemblance to the art of the Middle Ages. Both come from… a profound hatred for man and for this earth… the treatment of woman as a gargoyle… That sort of ‘art’ is the status quo of today, the remnant of a dying trend, the stale, conventional output that one can see anywhere, from subway ads on down. There’s no shock value left in ineptitude… May I call your attention to a glimpse of the new in the field of actual fine art, to an artist who project a view of life similar to your philosophy, but expresses it with a virtuosos technique: José Manuel Capuletti… This is an artist whom the readers of Playboy should discover. If the vindication of sensuality is one of their cardinal values, they should observe its treatment at the hands of a master. Sincerely, [signed] Ayn Rand.” The artists featured in the article mentioned by Rand included Larry Rivers, James Rosenquist, George Segal, Andy Warhol, and Tom Wesselmann. The Dalí mentioned by Rand was from Hugh Hefner’s personal collection and was sold by Christie’s for $266,500 in 2010. Capuletti has largely escaped critical recognition. Both letters feature a few minor ink corrections by Rand.
Two fine typed letters, both signed by Ayn Rand.