Pass the Paper

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>Magazines were an incredibly popular form of reading among troops, and Trautman worked to purchase bulk subscriptions to popular periodicals in late 1942 and early 1943. However, the War Production Board had announced paper rationing for magazines, which disincentivized publishers from offering discounts. Trautman arranged with the War Production Board to get a paper allotment for magazines being printed for the Army. The War Production Board required paper-saving mechanisms, from shrinking the size of periodicals to prohibiting advertisements. Newsweek printed the first miniature magazine for the Army, followed by Time, the New Yorker, and others. Trautman wondered if he could figure out how to do the same with books—printing popular titles in miniature form. He turned to his friend and fellow Army officer, Eric Knight, for ideas.</jats:p>