Talk:Omni (magazine)

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I seem to rememeber early advertizing for Omni in other magazines that suggested it would be launched under a different name, Nova perhaps? Does anyone have a ref for this? Maury 23:13, 6 September 2006 (UTC)

There was indeed a Nova. What I can't recall is if that name was only used in the pre-debut ads or if it was the actual name of the first few published magazines. I have a full set of NOVA/OMNI starting with issue 1, going through several years, and I am 99% certain the first issue is called 'NOVA'. I'll try to dig it up to confirm. I think maybe an English magazine named NOVA existed before OMNI and perhaps they changed the name so as to be able to sell it abroad?

alexgoolsby@hotmail.com

I still have an original issue somewhere, and it was indeed called "OMNI". Its possible they called it Nova somewhere else, but likely safe to assume this name was only pre-release? Maury 13:13, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

Now you have me wondering. Guess I'll have to dig out my first issue. LOL 

I was pretty sure I saw NOVA on it but maybe I was so excited by the pre-release hype that the name NOVA just stuck in my head.

There was a NOVA in there somewhere or else we would not both remember the same name. Funny that I was having this discussion with a friend just one day ago and came here to get answer.

I found the first OMNI and it's OMNI. Collector's Edition Vol 1 number 1 Oct. 1978 $2.00 Fiction: Asimiov, Sturgeon, Goulart, Hall

I read the intro to the magazine by Bob Guccione, on page 6, but he offers no explanation about the name. So it will have to remain a mystery for the time being. I remember now why I knew I saw NOVA printed on this same cover. They showed this same cover in the ads but had it NOVA instead of OMNI. I remember being struck by this when I went to the bookstore desperately searching for the NOVA I knew should have been out. I didn't recognize the name but I did recognize the cover.

Fascinating poll on last page "The Delphic Poll' you guess when certain futuristic events will occur, if ever.

Nuclear war between Russia USA. First terrorist use of nukes. Return to pre-sixties morality. Gas reaches 25 cents a liter? LOL

Computer beats world chess champion. USSR overthrown by pro-west regime. (like that was ever going to happen:p )

Now all we need is a Penthouse round about august 78 and I'll bet we'ed see that NOVA ad.

I worked in the Public Relations department of OMNI and it was always called OMNI never Nova. I do recall another publication called Nova.

[edit] TV show host

I clearly remember Peter Ustinov as the host of the TV show, not Hal Linden. Of course, my local tv station might have skipped shows where the latter appears.

Instead of claiming both were hosts (as I do not know for sure), I thought it would be better to post this matter here for discussion. SanGatiche 15:36, 18 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Mixed case

Is it "OMNI" or "Omni". For the text, we should pick one and use it. -- Kaszeta 22:12, 21 November 2006 (UTC)

I'd suggest "OMNI" since the editor himself uses all caps when referring to the magazine in the introduction.

I disagree: magazines often use all caps (or small caps) for in-house reference, to distinguish their own name visually from other names. Unless "OMNI" is an acronym or initialism, it should be set in standard case layout (i.e., initial cap, lowercase otherwise).

Re: NOVA. I found one other reference to NOVA as being the name of the magazine at one time. http://www.atlanticfreepress.com/component/option,com_comprofiler/task,userProfile/user,84/Itemid,35/

This page is a bio for the writer Jules Siegel. Below is the excerpt:

"He has served as a consultant for Playboy and Penthouse (where he created the concept for Dreams & Diversions, at one time the magazine's most popular non-photographic section) and was Arts Editor of Omni when it was still called Nova."

I realize it isn't likely that it was ever published as NOVA. The first issue was indeed called OMNI. I have it here. But I believe it may have been first advertised under the name NOVA. Anyone else remember the name NOVA in connection to OMNI? So far two of us have this memory and now the above reference.

Yeah, I think we're good to go mentioning it now. But that does lead to another question, why did they change it. That couldn't have been cheap. Maury 17:46, 18 January 2007 (UTC)

Ok, so I wrote to Jules Siegel. The reason they changed the name was that it would infringe on the Nova TV show (on PBS). So obvious in retrospect... Geez, what did we do without the internet? Maury 03:36, 19 January 2007 (UTC)

Good work Maury, contacting Siegel. So it was going to be NOVA. I wonder how far they went with NOVA before changing it. I clearly remember seeing "NOVA" in some pre-debut ads. I went to the bookstore looking for NOVA on several occasions before it dawned on me that another new Sci Fi mag called OMNI was too much of a coincidence. Alex G

I think that the passage "OMNI entered the market at the start of a wave of new science magazines aimed at educated but otherwise "non-professional" readers. Science Digest and Science News already served the high-school market, and Scientific American and New Scientist the professional, while OMNI was arguably the first aimed at "armchair scientists" who were nevertheless well informed about technical issues" suggests (falsely) that Scientific American was started around the same time as the other magazines mentioned. Scientific American began publication in the nineteenth century, or early twentieth century. - CEC —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.221.31.204 (talk) 23:24, 1 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Faces and More Faces

Is it just me, or did Omni go for faces nearly every time on its covers around the same time it leaned more towards paranormal reporting? And if so, whose brainchild was that? Was that some sort of marketing angle to hopefully snag mainstream customers used to buying fashion mags?? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.68.70.186 (talk) 23:14, 13 December 2007 (UTC)