Men in Boats Day

Our theme today is men and boats.  I'm not sure what these two are doing.

 

Shadows

There are some shadows here, but not the kind a certain viewer likes.

 

Bored

These two may have been bored,with the horizontal 

guy only peeking up to see the cameraman.

 

Australians

Our only color picture of the day is of twq Australian nudists.

 

Trio

I wouldn't mind going on a Zodiac ride with these three guys.

 

David Kelp

This one was labeled as David Kelp.  I keep thinking I've heard that name somewhere,

but nothing useful came up on Google . . . as is usual these days.

 

Hired a rower?

Did these two skinny dippers hire a man to row them around,

or did they just pose for a picture with him?

 

Damaged

Too bad this photo appears to have been damaged.

The composition and reflection could be quite nice.

 

Hanging out

These two guys are letting it all hang out.

Maybe they were counselors at Camp Waggadong.

 

Rectangle

Our final boat is a rectangular one that must have had some special use.

Whatever that might have been, I can't guess.

 

Name that Model Day V - Butts by Bruce

I've made this particular episode of Name that Model Day particularly difficult by also making it a 

Day of the Derriere.  As a small help, the photos are all supposed to be by Bruce of LA,

and several of them show at least part of the model's face.  We start with a guy

standing on a plywood squre in the desert.  Maybe the sand was hot.

 

Fish net

Several of the classic era physique photographers went through a phase of usine fish net props 

in the 1950s, and Bruce was no exception.  I have to say that he did it quite well.

 

Corrugated Backdrop

You knew we weren't going to get through a Bruce set without the corrugated backdrop, 

and here it is.  Also, we get a profile view of the model's face to help you naming sleuths.

 

Desert Dudes, Derrieres

Bruce went all the way to saguaro country to photograph these two.

And no, saguaros do not grow near Los Angeles.

 

Ranchito I

The wagon wheel and barn wall make me think that this 

was made at Bruce's "ranchito" country place.

 

Plastic Ball

I've done entire sets on men playing with balls,

but this picture works better here.

 

Beach Bum

Here we have a nice beach bum with tan lines.

 

Ranchito II?

This may be another one taken at Bruce's rural property northeast of Los Angeles.

 

Double Derrier II

Our second derriere duo features Bruce's well worn tuffet.

 

Face II

Here's another one in which we get a partial look at the model's face.

 

Ball and Net

We've already seen the ball prop and a fishnet in two 

separate photos today, but this one has them both.

 

Outlier

This last one looks like either an outlier or something from early

 in Bruce's career . . . assuming that it is actually his.

 

Bernard Perlin Day II

It's been almost a year since I did my first full series on the life and work of Bernard Perlin, so let's do another.  A major figure in the formative years of gay art culture in New York, he was close to a number of major figures, including the PaJaMa Collective and George Platt Lynes.  So I am starting the set with a photo of him by Mr. Lynes and a portrait of the great photographer by him.

 

Japanese Model

Bernard Perlin was present at the surrender of Japan in September of 1945.  (You can see one of his drawings of the actual signing if you click on his name in the list of topics on the right hand side of this page.)  He apparently engaged a Japanese during his stay in the early days of the occupation for the two drawings shown here.  Given the food shortages in Japan leading up to and including that time, it is surprising to see the model so well fed.  Perhaps Mr. Perlin took some artistic license.  The fundoshi underwear worn adds a certain level of authenticity.

 

Joe Santoro

I find this drawing of a snoozing Joe Santoro to be of exceptional quality.

Mr. Perling completed it in 1950.

 

1942

This untitled work is dated 1942, around the time Bernard Perlin worked on government posters.  

I have to wonder if this was one of the poster models getting in a little extra work.

 

War Posters

Early in World War II, Bernard Perlin contributed to the war effort by producing propaganda posters.  The one above was part of a successful War Bond promotion, but the one below was not finished or published.  I'm guessing that the African-American model was not well received in some circles.

 

Scowling Man

Scowling Man from 1940 shows Mr. Perlin's willingness 

to cover the full range of human expression.

 

Bernard Perlin taught at the Wooster School at various times,

and these two drawings were done there in 1985-86..

 

August 1945

In August of 1945, Mr. Perlin was on assignment in the Mariana Islands for Forbes magazine.

He did this drawing of U.S. servicement an air base getting the news that bombing had been 

ended.  This was after the atomic bombings, but before the formal surrender of Japan.

 

Walter

Bernard Perlin sketched a well built man named Walter in 1953.

 

The Bartender

I'm closing today's series with a painting from 1958.  It's called The Bartender, and all the patrons 

appear to be men.  Yes, there were gay bars in New York City in 1958.