The New Yorker turns one century old — and hasn’t aged a day! The witty, cosmopolitan magazine published its first issue on February 21, 1925. And even though present-day issues are often quite contemporary in content, the magazine’s tone and style still recall its glamorous Jazz Age origins.
The New Yorker traces itself to members of that legendary group of wits known as the Algonquin Round Table — renowned artists, critics and playwrights who met every day for lunch at the Algonquin Hotel.
And in particular, to two married journalists – Harold Ross and Jane Grant – who infused the magazine with a very distinct cosmopolitan zest. High fashion, martinis and Midtown Manhattan mixed with the droll wit of a worldly literati.
A new exhibition at the New York Public Library — “A Century of the New Yorker” — chronicles the magazine’s history, from its origins and creation by Ross and Grant to its current era, under the editorship of David Remnick.
Greg and Tom interview the show’s two curators Julie Golia and Julie Carlsen about the treasures on display from the New Yorker’s glorious past — from the magazine’s first cover (featuring everybody’s favorite snob Eustace Tilly) to artifacts and manuscripts from the world’s greatest writers.
LISTEN NOW: THE NEW YORKER MAGAZINE
A Century of the New Yorker
Through February 21, 2026, third floor of the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, 42nd Street and 5th Avenue
“The New York Public Library’s new major exhibition A Century of The New Yorker draws on NYPL’s collections, including the magazine’s voluminous archives and the papers of many of its contributors, to bring to life the people, stories, and ideas that made The New Yorker.”
