[CAT] "Who Killed Cat Fancy?"
New York Magazine's Abraham Riesman describes the fall of Cat Fancy magazine and its replacement by Catster. As he describes it, cats did not stop being popular. Rather, they were differently popular.
To understand the seismic shift in cat culture, you can start by picking apart Cat Fancy's name. It used to be much more than a whimsical reference to the enjoyment of felines. When the magazine launched in 1965, animal lovers were very familiar with something called "the cat fancy." The term referred to a connoisseurlike approach to cats: following professional cat shows, maintaining directories of cat breeders, and recognizing the importance of purebred bloodlines.
"Back then, the people who had all the knowledge tended to be the people who were showing cats, breeding cats, everything like that," said Melissa Kauffman, senior editorial director for I-5. Cat Fancy's innovation was to take that knowledge - and its attendant attitude toward cats - to a nationwide audience. "They did cover some of the topics that Cat Fancy covers today, but it was more about things like show information." There were long indexes of breeders, in-depth analyses of different breeds, and impassioned letters from opinionated cat owners (including, in one memorable instance, Ayn Rand).
However, Susan Logan is quick to say the magazine was not snobby. "From the very first [issue], the true scope included mixed-breed cats, feral felines, and even our domestic cats' wild cousins," she told me in an email. "Self-described as a magazine for 'anyone who fancies the cat,' Cat Fancy from its very first issue in 1965 defined that meaning as a voice devoted to the care, welfare, and adoration of all cats."
Nevertheless, readers of Cat Fancy in its early decades would likely be aghast at the shape of today's cat passions. Modern feline icons like Grumpy Cat and Lil Bub are mutts with genetic deformities. They wouldn't have made it past the front door at a Golden Age cat show. And their many public appearances are filled with fans who would disdain anyone who gets a cat from a breeder rather than a shelter.
[. . .]
Then there's the other massive trend in cat culture that Cat Fancy never totally caught up to: Nowadays, cat enthusiasm is all about laughter and delight. When the internet goes gaga for a piece of cat content, it's lighthearted, or about cats as an extension of our personalities and lifestyles. It's a video of a cat massaging another cat or falling into a fish tank. It's a list of GIFs of cats who "Cannot Even Handle It Right Now." It's an advice column about dating a fellow cat person (featuring, of course, lots of GIFs).
By contrast, Cat Fancy and its offshoot website, CatChannel.com (which will remain in operation), are more likely to publish useful-but-staid information about flea and tick products or details about Abyssinians. They have lists and photo essays, of course, but the overall tone remains calm and clinical, like words from a kind veterinarian.
To understand the seismic shift in cat culture, you can start by picking apart Cat Fancy's name. It used to be much more than a whimsical reference to the enjoyment of felines. When the magazine launched in 1965, animal lovers were very familiar with something called "the cat fancy." The term referred to a connoisseurlike approach to cats: following professional cat shows, maintaining directories of cat breeders, and recognizing the importance of purebred bloodlines.
"Back then, the people who had all the knowledge tended to be the people who were showing cats, breeding cats, everything like that," said Melissa Kauffman, senior editorial director for I-5. Cat Fancy's innovation was to take that knowledge - and its attendant attitude toward cats - to a nationwide audience. "They did cover some of the topics that Cat Fancy covers today, but it was more about things like show information." There were long indexes of breeders, in-depth analyses of different breeds, and impassioned letters from opinionated cat owners (including, in one memorable instance, Ayn Rand).
However, Susan Logan is quick to say the magazine was not snobby. "From the very first [issue], the true scope included mixed-breed cats, feral felines, and even our domestic cats' wild cousins," she told me in an email. "Self-described as a magazine for 'anyone who fancies the cat,' Cat Fancy from its very first issue in 1965 defined that meaning as a voice devoted to the care, welfare, and adoration of all cats."
Nevertheless, readers of Cat Fancy in its early decades would likely be aghast at the shape of today's cat passions. Modern feline icons like Grumpy Cat and Lil Bub are mutts with genetic deformities. They wouldn't have made it past the front door at a Golden Age cat show. And their many public appearances are filled with fans who would disdain anyone who gets a cat from a breeder rather than a shelter.
[. . .]
Then there's the other massive trend in cat culture that Cat Fancy never totally caught up to: Nowadays, cat enthusiasm is all about laughter and delight. When the internet goes gaga for a piece of cat content, it's lighthearted, or about cats as an extension of our personalities and lifestyles. It's a video of a cat massaging another cat or falling into a fish tank. It's a list of GIFs of cats who "Cannot Even Handle It Right Now." It's an advice column about dating a fellow cat person (featuring, of course, lots of GIFs).
By contrast, Cat Fancy and its offshoot website, CatChannel.com (which will remain in operation), are more likely to publish useful-but-staid information about flea and tick products or details about Abyssinians. They have lists and photo essays, of course, but the overall tone remains calm and clinical, like words from a kind veterinarian.