Monday, November 2, 2020

Favorite Pic of the Day for November 2nd

Above:
September 2015 by Gordon Nebeker
-See More Below-

Check out today's BIRTHDAYS HERE:

Room With A View



Halloween: Aftermath

Every year, when I first post after Halloween, I feature an All Hallow's Eve aftermath.  It usually consists of an image depicting the time post holiday party or the morning after.   This year, my aftermath post was made easy, thanks to Luke and Studio1x.  Those enjoyed Luke's bloody turn as Patrick Bateman last week, might enjoy seeing Luke just after the shoot, relaxing and then hitting the shower to wash off all that blood.  Check it out on the NEXT PAGE HERE:

First Love: The Case of the Disappearing Derriere


I have a clear memory of the first time that I saw 1977's First Love.  The recollection is so clear as it was during the very brief period of time that I was with my very first real girlfriend.  It was 1988, and I was 13.  My girlfriend Valerie was babysitting, and I snuck in to visit her after the parents had left and the baby was asleep.  We ordered a small pizza, drank Pepsi, and watched television.  Except for a kiss good night, that was as  physical as we both got.

The parents were not due back until after midnight, so it was safe to watch a bit of the movie that started at 10pm, it of course, was First Love.  I recognized Katt from The Greatest American Hero, and I knew Susan Dey from repeats of The Partridge Family.  Now this is where is my memory played a few tricks on me.  Maybe it was due to the sexual tension, or lack of sexual tension, between Valerie and I, but I remember the movie being incredibly sexual with a lot of nudity.

Years later, I watched the film again on-line, and this time saw next to nothing of Katt's beautiful body.  Lots of shirtless and sexy scenes, but the only nudity was from Susan Dey.  I'm guessing, given her turn as a sweet sit-com start, seeing Laurie Partridge's breasts, must have caused quite a stir at the time.   


Recently, thanks to a poster on DreamCaps, I saw some promotional images of Katt, showing more skin than he actually showed in the film. That had me going back to check out the movie again, mostly for the sex scenes, to see if there was something I missed.  Again, no nudity from Katt, just Dey's boobs.  I could sense though, there was some creative editing, possibly to remove Katt's nude scenes.

That had me wondering why.....  Katt was a pretty big name at the time, First Love, being his follow-up from his role in Carrie.   Around this time, Katt also came close to winning the role of Luke in Star Wars, and according to some sources, it came down to him and Mark Hamill.  If your interested, there's a long audition scene on Youtube with Katt playing Luke and Kurt Russell playing Han Solo.

I attempted to research the nude scene to get some answer, but kept hitting brick walls.  I wondered if Katt's rising star had someone request his nude scenes be edited out.  Although the actor had done a couple of nude scenes in couple of softcore movies, they were both in the 90's, after his movie career was on the decline.  I featured Katt's nude scenes in Last Call in a post back in 2015. (HERE:)

I reached out to a few people a few months ago, who were connected to the film, including director Joan Darling, but to date, I didn't receive any replies.  My gut tells me their were nude scenes filmed that were later removed before the films release.  It's possible, Katt's hint of rear nudity was just for promotional purposes, or possibly for a European release.  

I remember seeing promotional shots of Martin Hewitt (HERE:) that showed a bit more of his butt, than he showed during that scene in the movie. At least the version that I saw.  The promotional material was for the film's release in France, and it's possible they were used only for promotion, and never meant to be in the film.  Seems strange though.  I'll keep on the trail though, and let you know if I hear back from anyone and learn anything new.  I do love a mystery, especially when it involves a hot actors ass....


Promotional Tease images


Gordon Nebeker: Lake Powell Memories, 2015



'We had come to Moab from five different states and none of the models had met each other before they arrived nor had any of the photographers worked with any of the models before. And yet we all blended together well and friendships and working relationships were formed and I think we were all a bit sad to say goodbye when the shoot was over.'
 
Rob

Our world's have all be altered this year thanks to a persistent and dangerous virus.  The news has been wall to coverage on the numbers, the deaths and it's impact on society, the economy and our lives.  There have been serious stories about it's impact on our mental health, and lighter stories about what we're reading, baking and binge watching.

Joel

As much attention has been given to all we're losing, I haven't seen as much of a focus on the things we're gaining.  That makes sense really, with so much sadness and loss, it's a little insensitive, not to mention premature, to talk about some unpredicted benefits.  For me, one of those benefits has been a memory modification.  


Memory is really a complicated concept.  We all remember things differently, and for most of us, our minds have a strong protective element which sometimes manages to filter out things we're not ready or able to deal with.  Memories took on an entirely new meaning this year, one that although laced with sadness, also had an aspect of appreciation that I've really tried to lean into, both in my life,and with the site.


This year, so many things have been on hold.   Everything from holidays with big family gatherings to going to a movie theatres.  Gone were big festivals  and fairs, crowed sporting events, the Olympics, concerts and plays. Non-essential workers, especially in arts, have still not fully come back, and that includes the photography of the male form.


Without as many new shoots to feature, I began asking photographer and models about featuring older shoots.  So many photographers graciously went into their archives to find shoots to share, and although I've always welcomed art from the archives, it was especially satisfying to tap into older shoots, and models and memories that were often some of the artists favorites from their body of work.


Usually this time of year, I beginning to work on sharing images from the annual trip and shoot to Utah.   For the last seven years, I've lucky to share images from the yearly visual expedition and join vicariously through the photos and stories.  It's usually in September when Gordon Nebeker heads west, and Mike Tossy and Mark from StudioMGphotogray head two states east.  After processing, editing and narrowing down images, I usually start putting together the presentation in November or December.


This year, Covid forced the trip to be cancelled.  Although each of the photographers held out out, it was clear by early summer, it was not something they could safely plan for this year.  Although the trip didn't occur, I wasn't ready to give up on the tradition of sharing work from the shoot.  The shoot is not only a tradition, it's also a uniquely creative endeavor, with three photographers, two to four models with the addition of spectacular light, and the ultimate background and location. 

Will

I began by asking Gordon Nebeker if he was up for heading into his archives to see if he might some favorite images, some new images, or edits of shots I'd hadn't featured before.  Gordon decided to focus on the 2015 shoot which just happened to be one of my favorites.  I loved each of the three models who joined Gordon, Mark and Mike that year, and how they contrasted physically yet so beautifully fused  together visually, and connected both watt expression and pose.

Two of the models, Will and Joel, I had previously featured on the site and Rob made the the perfect finish to the modeling trio.  Although none of the models had met before, they just visually clicked, there was an erotic ease and magic, something that although the photographers had thought and hoped for, is not something you can actually know until they're all finally together.


If you want to seem ore from the 2015 shoot, check out the links below.  Both Gordon and Mark have also created books.  Gordon has a series of books, Muscles & Mountains, each focused on a specific shoot and year.  Check them out on his Blurb page HERE:   Mark put together BASK, a compilation of favorite shots and memories from the last seven years of shoot.  Check it out on Blurb HERE:


'As the immediacy of the shoot begins to fade with time, there are still touchstones that one remembers as part of the experience. Things like tubes and tubes of sunscreen, carrying enough cold water to satisfy the thrust of all involved in ninety degree weather, getting a good night’s sleep, bopping to dance music in the car, taking the right lens with you on the short hike, can anyone ever have too many fully charged batteries at the ready?, and did I mention sleep?' 


'I also remember lots of laughter, some great meals, attending the Moab Gay Pride Parade that happened to take place the day after our shoot was over (the whole town gets involved) and people. Lots of people everywhere. It was a challenge to find quiet and private spaces to do our photography but we just watched the people; if they went left, we went right and we found our private spaces.'


Lake Powell 2015