Bizarre was published by John Alexander Scott Coutts and ran for 26 issues beginning in 1946 and running through 1959. He published the magazine under the pseudonym of "John Willie", a name he kept for the duration of his career. Willie was introduced to the American fetish underground by Charles Guyette and later worked with Irving Klaw, the infamous BDSM merchandiser later charged with obscenity, but he is best known for his fetish cartoon character Sweet Gwendoline, which he drew in a style that influenced later artists such as Gene Bilbrew and Eric Stanton.

Despite the nature of the magazine, Coutts was able to circumvent censorship and orders to cease publication because he was careful to avoid "nudity, homosexuality, overt violence, or obvious depictions of things that might be read as perverse or immoral and that might rankle those parties who were capable of banning, censoring or blocking the magazine's circulation. The magazine included many photographs, often of Willie's wife, and drawings of costume designs, some based on ideas from readers. There were also many letters from readers: he was accused of inventing these but insisted that they were genuine. These letters covered topics such as high heels, bondage, amputee fetishism, sadomasochism, transvestism, corsets and body modification. The magazine was suspended completely from 1947 to 1951. By 1956, Coutts was ready to give up the magazine and that year he sold it to someone described only as R.E.B., who published six more issues before Bizarre finally folded in 1959. There was no mention within the magazine that it had changed hands, but in issue no. 23 Mahlon Blaine was introduced by the editor as the artist who was to replace Willie as the primary illustrator. After publishing the first 23 issues of Bizarre, Coutts moved to Hollywood, California, where in 1961 he developed a brain tumour and was forced to end his mail-order business. Destroying his archives and returning home to the British Isles, Coutts went to live with his sister who resided on the island of Guernsey. Whilst living with his sister Coutts died in his sleep on the 5th August 1962.