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.

 

Jack Mitchell

Returning to the work of Jack Mitchell today.  The photo above was made at one of his gallery shows where his amazing talent for portraiture was on display.  Although I won't be posting 

those today, take a look online if you want to see some amazing work of that sort.

 

Outtake?

My source wasn't sure if this was an outtake from a photo session

or the way Jack Mitchell intended it to be seen.

 

Cal Culver

The double exposure is really nice in this image of Cal Culver, aka Casey Donovan.

 

Brian Poer

This sleeping beauty is Brian Poer.

 

Milton Dean I

Jack Mitchell did a whole series of photos of Milton Dean using plant and floral overlays.

I'm not crazy about the techinque, but it is interesting in a way.

 

Kodachrome

I cropped this from a whole page of very similar Kodachrome slides.

 

"And Puppy Dog Tails"

This my (probably unexpected) favorite of the day.  It is the cast of the 1969 Gay Liberation play, 

"And Puppy Dog Tails," one of the highest grossing off-Broadway productions of the year. 

 

Body Parts

This was in a group of photos for sale on a high end auction website labeled as "Jack Mitchell: Body Parts."  I don't know if that was Mr. Mitchell's name for them or the sellers'.

 

Cal Culver II

Cal Culver is making a second appearance today for two reasons.  First, I recently found half a dozen "new" Jack Mitchell photos of him, and second, this one is rather different from the other.

 

Lanky

I wish I had a name for this lanky Jack Mitchell model.

 

Milton Dean II

Ending the set with a second photo of Milton Dean.  Despite the floral clutter 

obsuring the model, I like this one more than the first one posted today.

 

Champion Studio Day

Walter Kundzicz owned Champion Studio and is best known for his extensive use of color 

and kitschy props.  Today, I am going back to basics with all black and white photos and 

only a smattering of props.  We start the show with a minimalist image of Bob Anders.

 

Nikos Makros

Nikos Makros posed poolside for this one.

 

Joe Alonzo

I don't know what that is Joe Alonzo is holding,

but he looks very good holding it.

 

Hank Strothers

That mesh posing strap on Hank Strothers was a censorship dodge.

More on that subject in a later post today.

 

Mike Pohl

We get three views of Mike Pohl on page 25 of Champions All,

a publication put out after liberalization in the late 1960s.

 

Tore Lind

Tore Lind's Scandinavian good looks worked well with a jockstrap.

Note the image of a naked woman in the background.

 

Doug Betts

This is Doug Betts on the white sand of the Sunset Beach Club,

Walter Kundzicz's very own Florida nudist resort.

You might enjoy the front and back views.

 

Rock Granger

This Rock Granger in one of Walter Kundzicz's censorship dodges, see-through 

underwear.  He was also known to have used mesh posing straps and veils.  

Having been raided at one point, he wasn't taking any chances.

Rod Bauer and Scott Manley

Here we see Rod Bauer (left) and Scott Manley with a rope ladder.

 

Ken French

Lots of beef and a nice dusting of fur 

in this posing strap shot of Ken French.

Oh, and the smile is icing on the cake.

 

Dick Stark

I've posted quite a few photos of Dick Stark over the years,

but somehow managed to miss this one until now.

 

Doug Jackson

Completing the Champion series with Doug Jackson,

his clipboard, and his prodigious bush.