Does a battery-operated magazine cover say "The 21st Century Begins Now" to you?

In September, Esquire magazine will present an electronic cover, complete with battery pack, that will flash "The 21st Century Begins Now."

The somewhat low-technology behind the cover "has been used for supermarket displays but never embedded in a magazine," reports the New York Times.  Esquire editor in chief David Granger hopes the issue will be a classic worthy of display in the Smithsonian.

"The possibilities of print have just begun," Granger told the Times.  "In two years, I hope this looks like cellphones did in 1982, or car phones."

Esquire magazine has been known for its ground-breaking covers over the years.  An exhibit of them runs through March at the Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan.

Full story from NYT here.  Info on the Esquire MoMA exhibit here.