35 Years of Defining and Designing THE BLACK COLLEGIAN - cont'd   Between 1972 and early 1973, Volume 2 of THE BLACK COLLEGIAN saw a short-lived new cover treatment that introduced a blocky, old-fashioned-looking serif font and a two-line title, but not much else in the way of innovation.     By Volume 3, simple typography effects -- a vertical treatment for "THE," a slender, italicized serif font -- show the new publishers making an effort at creating a somewhat more elegant design that would remain consistent for a few years. The addition of a clean white border improved the legibility of the featured contents listed on each cover. It allowed potential readers to quickly grasp articles of interest while perusing the display shelves of a magazine stand. As readership and overhead grew, the cover price inched up by a hefty two-bits over the first issue's price.  But, the trade-off was an altogether more attractive, professional-looking publication offering great articles not found elsewhere.     Volume 7 saw the magazine radically transformed.  As the publishers became more sophisticated in design and branding, THE BLACK COLLEGIAN introduced its first true logo in 1977. Its fat, florid lettering today seems quaintly "old school," but is very much of its time.  Similarly dated are the full, long Afros on the male and female "Grads" -- figures that would become (with slight variations) fondly familiar symbols to generations of Black students all across America.  The "Grads" element remains the underpinning for our design even today, albeit in a considerably updated form. The Seventies' high inflation certainly contributed to driving the price up to a dollar, but that was only part of it.  Circulation was booming, expanding even beyond the traditional Black colleges and universities. THE BLACK COLLEGIAN had truly earned its reputation as "The National Magazine of Black College Students" -- and it proudly announced the fact in its official tagline.     The first basic "Grads" design was employed, more or less intact, for over a decade. There were some slight modifications, however. The minute facial detail from the original was phased out; eyes, nostrils, lip creases and the woman's earrings were removed in favor of a cleaner, silhouette and outline effect.  In the early 80s, the cover price had jumped up to $2.50, but then remained steady into the next decade.     [The Design History of TBC - Continued >>]