November 13, 2025 • 8 mins
In the 1960s, at the height of the Mad Men era, Jule Campbell shattered glass ceilings by transforming a struggling magazine into a media empire: the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, the most anticipated annual publication. Chic and controversial, the mastermind behind this titillating page-turner was a creative trailblazer who navigated a male-dominated workplace while simultaneously rebuffing accusations of objectification. Campbell transformed the magazine with her vision to showcase female beauty in a tasteful, artistic manner. Daughter-in-law Jill's documentary chronicles her 32-year reign, where she championed intelligence and empowered supermodels like Christie Brinkley, Cheryl Tiegs, Roshumba Williams, and many others who recall the era and working with her. Weaving together her journey with feminism's evolution, the film explores the changing gaze on beauty, from objectification to body positivity. Through stunning visuals and intimate interviews with a wise, nonagenarian Campbell herself, we witness a legacy that continues to inspire.Jule Campbell, the founding editor of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, is the subject of this documentary. It explores how she transformed a struggling magazine into a publishing powerhouse.Campbell's vision was to create beautiful imagery in exotic locations. She fought to protect the models from objectification while celebrating their beauty. She battled with male editors to find a balance between these two approaches.The documentary portrays Campbell as a resilient and creative trailblazer. She changed the way women are seen in media by showcasing their intelligence and personalities alongside their beauty. She even championed naming the models, who were previously seen as nameless faces.Beyond the Gaze goes beyond Campbell's story. It explores the evolution of feminism and fashion alongside the changing societal views on female bodies in swimsuits. The documentary questions the continued relevance of Campbell's creation in today's world that emphasizes empowerment and inclusion.Ultimately, the film is a celebration of women supporting women. Campbell's mentorship and dedication to her collaborators serve as an inspiration for generations. The documentary's structure follows Campbell's life, reflecting on her legacy and mortality with grace and wisdom. The visuals are designed to echo the beauty of Campbell's work in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.Here's the trailer:Https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuuER5o4oys&t=5s
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
We live in a society where there is so much
going on all at one time. How are you expected
to keep up? Arrow dot net a r r oe
dot Net not one podcast. There are seventeen to choose
from because it deals with everyday life and how we
are moving through it. Arrow dot Net thank you so
much for your support. Recording in progress, Michael Michael Michael,
(00:23):
Hey Arrow, Carol Alt is here. You'll have chill three
minutes after the hour?
Speaker 2 (00:28):
Go ahead?
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Did you say? Three minutes after the hour? Nice seeing it, Carol.
It was very nice seeing you today.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Nice to talk to Row.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
Bye, I'm multitasking Arrow, Sorry eleven after no Good morning.
How are you doing, Carol? Good Arrow, how are you? Fantastic?
And very excited to share a conversation with you because
because of this documentary, I have done so much research
on Julie Campbell, because I think she's a piece of
Americana history as well as global history that cannot be
(01:02):
forgotten because she took a chance and she opened up
a door for so many others to reach out, and.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
I wish she had known that in her lifetime.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
I think, like most women, they do their job and
they don't realize the impact they make, and she made
a huge impact, as you could see in Beyond the Gates,
unbelievable bigfoot prints, billion dollar industry.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
Well, she brought people together. That was one of the
very first things that I took note of. It was like,
oh my god, these are people that you know, if
you were out there in regular society, they wouldn't be
mingling together. But she brought them together.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
Not only that, what you have to understand is that
she created businesses for women, not just the model.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
Okay, we all have businesses, thank you, Julie, but for
the women who own bathing suit companies or you know,
a bathing suit of parol companies. But beyond that, she
brought commerce to places that may not have been on
the mass, to poor countries that really could use the
(02:07):
boots she.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
Her footprint is so big. And what's so startling to
me is how few.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
People knew this because she never got the accolades for that.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
In doing the research that I did, I asked that question,
I'm sure a billion people are going to could it
ever happen again? And I love the way that research
shows that, yes, it could happen again, but not in
the way that it did. In nineteen sixty five because
publications are not as big as what they used to be.
So therefore, I'm hoping that this beyond the gaze goes
and it inspires the people that are on TikTok and
(02:43):
other different platforms, because it can't stop, Carol. It's got
to keep growing or it's going to go silent.
Speaker 2 (02:51):
Yes, yes, you're right, but you have to also remember
that the time that Julie did this, she was a
woman in a man's landscape, yep, and that was that
was her superpower basically, is that she was able to
navigate all of this. It was incredible what she did
in the time that she did it, but what she
(03:12):
was able to accomplish as a woman, she'd be inspirational.
Speaker 3 (03:15):
You know, I'm one of the producers on it, and
I called all the girls. I said, you have to
do this because Julie, I mean, and I got no pushback.
Everybody wanted to be in it. Everybody loved Julie. Everybody
has a major life because of Julie Campbell. But when
you see how this is put together and you see
Julie's life in the time of nineteen sixty eight, the
(03:36):
thing that she was up against the way she navigated,
the way she protected the girls, and how it wasn't exploited.
It explains why this is not exploitive, and it explains
why it became so famous and so unique in it
because there.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Are many people who tried to copy this.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
I know Inside Sports tried to do it. You know,
many people tried to copy. There were other copycats along
the way, but Julie was the one had the formula.
And when you look at what the formula is, I
think a lot of these girls on TikTok and you know,
Instagram really should take notice because the formula was very specific.
Speaker 1 (04:16):
Please do not move. There's more with Carol Alt coming
up next. The name of the documentary Beyond the Gaze,
Julia Campbell's swimsuit issue. We are back with Carol Alt.
She was the influencer before it became you know that
spoken word that's on our tongue. And the thing that
really shocked me that I got out of the documentary,
(04:37):
and I mean this really created a conversation between my
wife and I. She thought she was going straight to hell,
and I thought, oh my god, here I am in
twenty twenty five looking back at this. This generation. Oh
my god, it's too completely different worlds. And I can
understand where she was going, Well I don't.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
I mean, yeah, she said, I'm probably going straight to hell.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:58):
But at the same time, she was so protective and
stepped in front of the camera if she thought something
was exploited.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
And you know, I was a little.
Speaker 3 (05:08):
Surprised she said that because she never acted that way.
She protected us like crazy in front of the camera
and in the in the you know, boardroom with the
guys who you know, she would take out pictures that
she felt.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Were too sexy.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
I mean, but yeah, back in nineteen sixty eight, it
was it was so you know, pure puritan it was.
It was not like it is today. And it's so interesting.
I find history so interesting. So a documentary like this,
I would think would be very interesting in people to
see where we come from, just.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
In the last fifty years, where we've come from.
Speaker 1 (05:47):
You brought up the fact of the number of people
that were affected by her, for the people that made
the swim suits, the large country, in the countries, the
small countries. This is this is where it touched me.
And I hope this doesn't cross the line. But I
knew that there were changes coming to our world. When
that magazine appeared in my middle school library, I went,
we're changing because this right here is not what my
(06:10):
father's generation would have accepted. And I was so proud
of Riverside Junior High School for allowing us to have
this magazine because it opened up the door for people
to be themselves.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
What year was that about?
Speaker 1 (06:24):
Nineteen well, yeah, yeah, being about nineteen seventy three, nineteen
seventy four. So in my reality, when I found out
that this was actually starting in sixty five, I was
shocked because I picked up on this story when it
became a part of my life. And that's what people
need to understand is that there is a story before
what you think is the story.
Speaker 3 (06:44):
Right as you said, I have to tell you had
a very unique high school. And because not you know,
there was there was people who would write in and chase,
we're not getting sports. They didn't candle this subscription.
Speaker 2 (06:55):
It still was a sports magazine.
Speaker 3 (06:56):
It still was the number one sports magazine to the
very big business.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
It wasn't like it was going.
Speaker 3 (07:03):
To be you know, go away. You know, if you
had to, oh suffer through the swimsuit issue, you would
do it because it was a sport.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
But at the end of the day, everybody wanted to see.
Speaker 3 (07:13):
It because it was beautiful and in the middle of
February when it's miserable out.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
Here, his sun, sea and sand and it.
Speaker 3 (07:21):
Made you dream.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
And it wasn't tacky.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
There were no like high heels and you know, jewelry
and lipsticks.
Speaker 2 (07:29):
I mean, I drok my own makeup on the beach
and by the end of the day.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
I had no makeup at all in my cover and
Kenya that covering Kenya, believe it or not, was We
were finished, and this boat came up over the horizon
and Julie ran over and he said, throw on the
suit and they wrapped the towel around me and I
changed suit and I'm like, i can't even get a
brush through my hair. I've got sand steps to be everywhere.
(07:52):
I'm like, they'll never see this picture. Literally, I said,
they're never going to see this picture.
Speaker 2 (07:57):
And I jumped on the shore and that's that.
Speaker 3 (08:00):
Both came right behind us and double page, you know,
gatefold cover.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
You've got to come back to this show anytime in
the future. A few minutes with you is just not enough.
And I'll tell you what people need to get into
beyond the gaze, because this right here is the conversation
starter and it is, like I said in the beginning,
Americana and beyond.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
Everybody has an opinion, and it's on every platform, so
you can find it streaming.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
I love it. Will you be brilliant today? Okay, you too.
Speaker 2 (08:29):
Thank you.
We live in a society where there is so much
going on all at one time. How are you expected
to keep up? Arrow dot net a r r oe
dot Net not one podcast. There are seventeen to choose
from because it deals with everyday life and how we
are moving through it. Arrow dot Net thank you so
much for your support. Recording in progress, Michael Michael Michael,
(00:23):
Hey Arrow, Carol Alt is here. You'll have chill three
minutes after the hour?
Speaker 2 (00:28):
Go ahead?
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Did you say? Three minutes after the hour? Nice seeing it, Carol.
It was very nice seeing you today.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Nice to talk to Row.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
Bye, I'm multitasking Arrow, Sorry eleven after no Good morning.
How are you doing, Carol? Good Arrow, how are you? Fantastic?
And very excited to share a conversation with you because
because of this documentary, I have done so much research
on Julie Campbell, because I think she's a piece of
Americana history as well as global history that cannot be
(01:02):
forgotten because she took a chance and she opened up
a door for so many others to reach out, and.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
I wish she had known that in her lifetime.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
I think, like most women, they do their job and
they don't realize the impact they make, and she made
a huge impact, as you could see in Beyond the Gates,
unbelievable bigfoot prints, billion dollar industry.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
Well, she brought people together. That was one of the
very first things that I took note of. It was like,
oh my god, these are people that you know, if
you were out there in regular society, they wouldn't be
mingling together. But she brought them together.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
Not only that, what you have to understand is that
she created businesses for women, not just the model.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
Okay, we all have businesses, thank you, Julie, but for
the women who own bathing suit companies or you know,
a bathing suit of parol companies. But beyond that, she
brought commerce to places that may not have been on
the mass, to poor countries that really could use the
(02:07):
boots she.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
Her footprint is so big. And what's so startling to
me is how few.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
People knew this because she never got the accolades for that.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
In doing the research that I did, I asked that question,
I'm sure a billion people are going to could it
ever happen again? And I love the way that research
shows that, yes, it could happen again, but not in
the way that it did. In nineteen sixty five because
publications are not as big as what they used to be.
So therefore, I'm hoping that this beyond the gaze goes
and it inspires the people that are on TikTok and
(02:43):
other different platforms, because it can't stop, Carol. It's got
to keep growing or it's going to go silent.
Speaker 2 (02:51):
Yes, yes, you're right, but you have to also remember
that the time that Julie did this, she was a
woman in a man's landscape, yep, and that was that
was her superpower basically, is that she was able to
navigate all of this. It was incredible what she did
in the time that she did it, but what she
(03:12):
was able to accomplish as a woman, she'd be inspirational.
Speaker 3 (03:15):
You know, I'm one of the producers on it, and
I called all the girls. I said, you have to
do this because Julie, I mean, and I got no pushback.
Everybody wanted to be in it. Everybody loved Julie. Everybody
has a major life because of Julie Campbell. But when
you see how this is put together and you see
Julie's life in the time of nineteen sixty eight, the
(03:36):
thing that she was up against the way she navigated,
the way she protected the girls, and how it wasn't exploited.
It explains why this is not exploitive, and it explains
why it became so famous and so unique in it
because there.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Are many people who tried to copy this.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
I know Inside Sports tried to do it. You know,
many people tried to copy. There were other copycats along
the way, but Julie was the one had the formula.
And when you look at what the formula is, I
think a lot of these girls on TikTok and you know,
Instagram really should take notice because the formula was very specific.
Speaker 1 (04:16):
Please do not move. There's more with Carol Alt coming
up next. The name of the documentary Beyond the Gaze,
Julia Campbell's swimsuit issue. We are back with Carol Alt.
She was the influencer before it became you know that
spoken word that's on our tongue. And the thing that
really shocked me that I got out of the documentary,
(04:37):
and I mean this really created a conversation between my
wife and I. She thought she was going straight to hell,
and I thought, oh my god, here I am in
twenty twenty five looking back at this. This generation. Oh
my god, it's too completely different worlds. And I can
understand where she was going, Well I don't.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
I mean, yeah, she said, I'm probably going straight to hell.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:58):
But at the same time, she was so protective and
stepped in front of the camera if she thought something
was exploited.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
And you know, I was a little.
Speaker 3 (05:08):
Surprised she said that because she never acted that way.
She protected us like crazy in front of the camera
and in the in the you know, boardroom with the
guys who you know, she would take out pictures that
she felt.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Were too sexy.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
I mean, but yeah, back in nineteen sixty eight, it
was it was so you know, pure puritan it was.
It was not like it is today. And it's so interesting.
I find history so interesting. So a documentary like this,
I would think would be very interesting in people to
see where we come from, just.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
In the last fifty years, where we've come from.
Speaker 1 (05:47):
You brought up the fact of the number of people
that were affected by her, for the people that made
the swim suits, the large country, in the countries, the
small countries. This is this is where it touched me.
And I hope this doesn't cross the line. But I
knew that there were changes coming to our world. When
that magazine appeared in my middle school library, I went,
we're changing because this right here is not what my
(06:10):
father's generation would have accepted. And I was so proud
of Riverside Junior High School for allowing us to have
this magazine because it opened up the door for people
to be themselves.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
What year was that about?
Speaker 1 (06:24):
Nineteen well, yeah, yeah, being about nineteen seventy three, nineteen
seventy four. So in my reality, when I found out
that this was actually starting in sixty five, I was
shocked because I picked up on this story when it
became a part of my life. And that's what people
need to understand is that there is a story before
what you think is the story.
Speaker 3 (06:44):
Right as you said, I have to tell you had
a very unique high school. And because not you know,
there was there was people who would write in and chase,
we're not getting sports. They didn't candle this subscription.
Speaker 2 (06:55):
It still was a sports magazine.
Speaker 3 (06:56):
It still was the number one sports magazine to the
very big business.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
It wasn't like it was going.
Speaker 3 (07:03):
To be you know, go away. You know, if you
had to, oh suffer through the swimsuit issue, you would
do it because it was a sport.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
But at the end of the day, everybody wanted to see.
Speaker 3 (07:13):
It because it was beautiful and in the middle of
February when it's miserable out.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
Here, his sun, sea and sand and it.
Speaker 3 (07:21):
Made you dream.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
And it wasn't tacky.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
There were no like high heels and you know, jewelry
and lipsticks.
Speaker 2 (07:29):
I mean, I drok my own makeup on the beach
and by the end of the day.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
I had no makeup at all in my cover and
Kenya that covering Kenya, believe it or not, was We
were finished, and this boat came up over the horizon
and Julie ran over and he said, throw on the
suit and they wrapped the towel around me and I
changed suit and I'm like, i can't even get a
brush through my hair. I've got sand steps to be everywhere.
(07:52):
I'm like, they'll never see this picture. Literally, I said,
they're never going to see this picture.
Speaker 2 (07:57):
And I jumped on the shore and that's that.
Speaker 3 (08:00):
Both came right behind us and double page, you know,
gatefold cover.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
You've got to come back to this show anytime in
the future. A few minutes with you is just not enough.
And I'll tell you what people need to get into
beyond the gaze, because this right here is the conversation
starter and it is, like I said in the beginning,
Americana and beyond.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
Everybody has an opinion, and it's on every platform, so
you can find it streaming.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
I love it. Will you be brilliant today? Okay, you too.
Speaker 2 (08:29):
Thank you.
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