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| Playmate of the Month: Kimberly McArthur, photographed by Arny Freytag Southern Star | The Dallas Cowboys fumbled when they cut Kim McArthur — their miss is our Miss January |
 | The World of Playboy |
| Dear Playboy | |
| Playboy After Hours | |
| The Playboy Advisor | |
 | Dear Playmates (Karen Price, Vicki McCarty, Marcy Hanson, Lorraine Michaels, Cathy Larmouth and Jeana Tomasino) |
| The Playboy Forum | |
 | Playboy Interview: George Carlin | A candid conversation with the brilliant — and still rebellious — comedian about his new life after years of inactivity and a crippling cocaine habit |
 | Fiction: Killing | She loved two men — and she was losing them both, by John Updike, illustrated by Frank Gallo |
 | Article: The Unreturning Army | The papers are full of Vietnam-vet-gone-mad stories, but none pinpoints the problem — if we want our soldiers to come home, we have to let them, by Philip Caputo, illustrated by Kinuko Y. Craft |
 | Pictorial: The Bad and the Beautiful | Video’s virtuous and villainous star in our bubbling bath of soap-opera sirens, photographed by Richard Fegley |
 | Article: Between Rock and a Soft Place | Our writer turned on his radio looking for some hard-driving music, but what he heard was — well, horrifying, by Stephen King |
 | Gifts: The Eleventh-Hour Santa | Rest ye merry, gentlemen procrastinators. Playboy once again comes up with a sleighful of last-minute yuletide goodies, photographed by Don Azuma |
 | Fiction: Blue Cadillac | That incredible girl! That gorgeous car! Braxton was in love, by Michael Malone, illustrated by Peter Lloyd |
 | Drink: Together Again: Bubbly & Black Tie | Got those holiday blahs in the night? Welcome the new year with a champagne gala that’s formal yet fun, by Emanuel Greenberg, photographed by Don Azuma |
 | Humor: At Home with the Haigs | by Henry Beard, Christopher Cerf and Tony Geiss |
 | Pictorial: The Gentleman Prefers Blondes | Marriage is a wonderful institution. Ask John Derek |
 | Satire: Reagan of the Lost Art | Could Beau Geste whip out a mot juste? Hell, no, but Ronnie can, by Jules Feiffer |
 | Modern Living: Cars ’82: All Systems are Go! | There’s high adventure on wheels again as we present a selection of stylish automobiles that have the breeding to satisfy the urbane owner, by Gary Witzenburg, illustrated by Martin Hoffman |
 | Sports: Lords of the Rings | Eighteen years ago, some people decided this country should grow a better crop of gymnasts — now it’s harvest time, by Richard Price, illustrated by Richard Izui |
 | Humor: Playboy’s Party Jokes |
 | Attire: Tailored for ’82 | Five fashion innovators create look-ahead suits and sport coats exclusively for Playboy, by David Platt, illustrated by Bill Rieser |
 | Travel: Live like a King | Thirteen majestic hotels for travelers who mind their manors, by Stephen Birnbaum, photographed by RIchard Fegley |
 | Humor: That Was the Year that Was | Tongue-in-cheek remembrances of sundry personalities and events that made news in 1981, by Tom Koch, illustrated by Bill Utterback |
 | 20 Questions: John Matuszak | The notorious defensive end shares his thoughts on liberated ladies, mental masturbation and the joys of kicking ass |
 | Fiction: In Praise of Older Women | Beauty, wisdom, grace and a certain statesmanlike cunning — isn’t that what every man needs in a wife?, by Thomas M. Disch, illustrated by Kinuko Y. Craft |
 | Pictorial: Playboy’s Playmate Review | A roundup of the past delightful dozen (Heidi Sorenson, Karen Price, Kelly Tough, Cathy Larmouth, Susan Smith, Kymberly Herrin, Vicki Lasseter, Debbie Boostrom, Lorraine Michaels, Gina Goldberg, Shannon Tweed and Patricia Farinelli) |
 | Playmates’ Progress |
 | Ribald Classic: The Tale of a Sofa | From Le Sophe, by Crebillon Fils, retold by Robert Mahieu, illiustrated by Brad Holland |
 | Playboy’s Annual Awards | Announcing the prize-winning authors, artists and photographers whose contributions were judged by our staff to be the past year’s most outstanding |
 | Man and Women: Part 1 — The Sexes: A Mystery Solved? | If you think the differences between men and women are merely a matter of upbringing, then modern science has some surprises for you, by Jo Durden-Smith and Diane de Simone |
 | Humor: Playboy Funnies (Annie & Albert, Saturday Nite Jive, Betsy’s Buddies, Space Dog on the “Iceworld,” Moonshine McJugs, Teasers, Xmas Xing) |
 | Playboy Potpourri | People, places, objects and events of interest or amusement |
 | Satire: Little Annie Fanny, by Harvey Kurtzman and Will Elder |
 | Playboy on the Scene: Habitat | Cellars in the sky |
 | Playboy on the Scene: Fashion | Bedtime story, by David Platt, photographed by Verser Engelhard |
 | Playboy on the Scene: Gear | Initial statement, photographed by Don Azuma |
 | Playboy on the Scene: Sex News |
 | Playboy on the Scene: Grapevine (Kathleen Turner, Ann Turkel, Carly Simon, Meryl Streep, Carole Mallory and Ilie Nastase, Adam Ant, Yvette Mimieux) |
 Alden Erikson |  Alden Erikson |  Bernard Kliban |  Buck Brown |
 Eldon Dedini |  Francis Wilford Smith |  Gahan Wilson |  John Dempsey |
 Roy Raymonde |  Rowland Wilson |  Edmond Kiraz |
 Playmate Calendar ad |  Subscription ad (with Playmate Lorraine Michaels) |  What Sort of Man Reads Playboy? |
Pipe and PJs 