Boy Howdy!
CREEM, America's Only Rock 'n' Roll Magazine, was born in Detroit in 1969 as a raw, unfiltered music rag. For two decades, it broke barriers, raised profiles, bruised egos, and redefined participatory journalism. After a 33-year hiatus, CREEM returned in 2022 as an oversized print quarterly available exclusively at creem.com. CREEM is produced by a small team of writers, editors, and rabble rousers strewn across the country who are united by a simple belief: rock isn't dead, and neither is print. Boy Howdy!
CREEM 101
CREEM History: 1969-1973
The publishing underground rises up, slaps on a backstage pass and the world feels the first ripples of the what happens when you give hippies electric typewriters and free records. Clowns go bad!
The Golden Years: 1973-1978
It was the dawn of a new era, and CREEM became the rock and roll bible of little booger-eating twerps everywhere.
The New Wave: 1979-1986
After the departure of Bangs, Uhelszki, and Marsh, Susan Whitall keeps the punk rock flame burning bright.
CREEM: AMERICA’S ONLY ROCK ‘N’ ROLL MAGAZINE
Capturing the messy upheaval of the ‘70s just as rock was re-inventing itself, the film explores CREEM Magazine’s humble beginnings in post-riot Detroit, and its upward trajectory from underground paper to national powerhouse. Ripping back the curtain on CREEM’s wild and disruptive newsroom and the band of unruly outsiders that ran it, (genius clown prince Lester Bangs, visionary publisher Barry Kramer, and others who weren't all that different than the rock stars they covered), the film explores why even over fifty years after publishing its first issue, “America’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll Magazine” remains a seditious spirit in music and culture.
Directed by Scott Crawford
Starring Alice Cooper, Joan Jett, Gene Simmons, Kirk Hammett, Michael Stipe, Thurston Moore, Cameron Crowe, and more
“Irreverent, boundary-smashing”
-The New York Times
Chairman
JJ Kramer
Publisher
Boy Howdy!
CEO
John Martin
Editorial Director
Jaan Uhelszki
Merchandise Manager
Jayme Darling
Editor & Special Projects
Fred Pessaro
Art Director, Merchandise
Marc Desrosiers
Managing Editor
Mandy Brownholtz
Graphic Design
Mia Gilling
Editor at Large
Zachary Lipez
Licensing
Bart Silberman
Articles Editor
Dan Morrissey
Partner
Matt Usher
Strategic Advisor
Jenn Cress
Magazine Design
Alen Zukanovic
Travis Campbell