Turn of the Century Day, Part 1 - William I. Goldman's Brothel Photos

Today we have a two part turn of the century set, starting with William I. Goldman (1856-1922) of Reading, Pennsylvania.  He was an excellent portrait photographer and an officer in the State Photographers Association.  Active in the Masonic Lodge, Elks Club, and several other civic organizations, he was a popular, successful, and respected business man.  Eighty years after his death, however, another side to his work was discovered when a collector found an album of photos of prostitutes taken in Sallie Shearer's Reading brothel between 1892 and 1902.  (It turns out he was also one of her best customers.)  The pictures of the working girls are now considered among the best work of that sort anywhere, and nestled among them were about 10 male nudes.  Unfortunately, I was only able to find four of those for this series. so if anyone has access to others, please let me know.  I have looked and looked to no avail.

 

Pistol Pete

I'm tempted to say that this was Sallie Shearer's security guard, but she had the Reading Police paid off and probably didn't need one.  He may have been a customer who agreed to pose for Mr. Goldman

 

Selfie?

This is believed by a number of experts to be Mr. Goldman himself in one of the bedrooms at Sallie Shearer's place.  The only question about the photo's provenance seems to be whether this was a self portrait done with a timer, or if he had one of the girls or other patrons snap the shutter.

 

Brothel Customer

This handsome fellow was described in Mr. Goldman's notes as customer of Sallie Shearer's 

brothel.  Why he needed to pay for it is beyond me, but then again, it was 1900, and single 

men had little hope of getting laid otherwise. When Mr. Goldman passed away in 1922,

he was glowingly referred to as likeable, popular, and a pillar of the community.  He was 

certainly popular with Ms. Shearer's girls, as he never married and patronized them for decades.  

 

On a pedestal again

Our last photo by William Goldman appears top be the same man seen holding a pistol in an earlier picture in today's series.  That's the same pedestal, and although it isn't as clear here, the same walpaper as in the other.  Again, if anyone manages to find any more male photos by this exceptional photographer, please let me know.  You will be lavishly thanked and credited.

 

Turn of the Century, Part 2 - France

Part two of our turn of the century series features Frenchmen.  We start with Emile Royer.

 

1899

This  handsome young Frenchman posed nude in 1899.

 

Colonial

By the end of the 19th Century, France had acquired a huge colonial empire in Africa and elsewhere.  This showed up in an online anthropological collection called Fallaize which warned that its contents were possibly insensitive and not in keeping with modern standards.  These men look dignified to me, but I will leave it to you viewers to make your own conclusions about appropriateness.

 

Ernest Reynaud

Ernest Reynaud was a poet and writer who also served as Paris Police Commissioner 

when he wasn't writing or posing nude.  This is from about 1900.

 

Professor Desbonnet

This one was made in Professor Desbonnet's Paris physical culture atelier around 1910.

 

Bonus item

I'm posting this repeat as a bonus item because I found some provenance on it while researching 

today's French photos.  I didn't really note anything about it last time other than a passing 

resemblance to the Achilles myth.  While I wasn't able to confirm that, I did discover 

that the photo was taken by French photographer Leopold Mercier around 1900.

 

Unknown

This last one is unknown, but the hair style makes me think 1930-ish.

 

Poster Day

 

Our theme today is 20th Century posters, and we start with a promotional number 

for the Bears Hotel in Basel, Switzerland.  We are assured that they have the nicest

 beer hall in Basel, as well as a garden concert venue for the City Orchestra.  

 

Feel a man

Join the Royal Navy and feel a man!

OK, where do I sign?

 

DDR 1966

The weightlifting world championship was held in East Berlin in 1966,

and this was one of the promotional posters.

 

Prague, 1938

I like the way the men are  holding hands in this Czech poster from 1938.

Only a few months later, the Czechs were sold out by the Western Allies.

 

O, Canada

The brawn is under wraps in this Canadian poster, but it is there.

And they way the two men are positioned is interesting.

 

Spain 1924

This poster promotes a large art show and raffle for the benefit of the 1924 Spanish Olympic team.

 

Werkbund

The Deutsche Werkbund was an organization committed to the merger or art, industry and personal craftsman ship for the betterment of commerce and culture.  Their first exhibition was held at Cologne in 1914, but had to be cut short when war broke out that August.  Note the interesting spelling of the city's name in German.  I've only ever seen it spelled with a 'K' before this.

Soviet Water Polo

This Soviet sports poster features a handsome water polo player.

 

Brawny naval gunner

This World War II recruiting poster implies that joining the Navy would make you like 

the guy loading shells into the gun.  I'm sure, however, that more than few recruits

 were more interested in getting a man like that than they were in becoming one.

 

Scottish Golfing

I find the men in this Scottish golfing poster to be quite attractive.

 

The Artistry of Pat Milo III

Today will be the third of a continuing series of posts showcasing the more artistic work of Pat Milo.  We start with Larry Zofe and a square stick of lumber.

 

Keith Overton

Pat Milo could be very sparing with props to great effect.

This example of that is of Keith Overton.

 

Tom Bailey

The old adage "sometimes less is more" seems to apply in Mr. Milo's photo of Tom Bailey.

 

Dave Fletcher

The screen at right adds interest to this Pat Milo photo of Dave Fletcher.

 

Max Yardley

The Mid-Century Modern screen is a nice touch in this photo of Max Yardley that I first 

posted almost six years ago.  I had to bring it back for this Milo Artistry set.

 

Mike Dunn

Pat Milo used a partially visible hoop and some good lighting in this shot of Mike Dunn.

 

Robert Rex

If I'm being honest, I will have to say that I don't particularly like Robert Rex's looks.

When photographed just right by Pat Milo, however, that opinion changes.

 

Tom Cerelli

I really like the geometry of the white and black sections of the set Pat Milo 

used here to photograph Tom Cerelli.  That lighting is pretty good as well.

 

Don Evans

Mr. Milo photographed Don Evans in a nice patio garden.

 

Larry Webb

Closing out the Pat Milo Artistry set with Larry Webb and some trademark lighting.