Sexy Tarzans: 1965's Tom of Finland's Jack in the Jungle and JULY Update

Note: July's full of exciting adventure and danger here at VGMH as we venture deep into the exotic (and erotic) jungles of the world. Keep on the lookout for unexpected surprises and tough sexy naked guys! Also, this Friday evening, please be sure to check out the VGMH exclusive interview with Str8Cam.com's Jeff. The questions came from you, and they were excellent...Jeff's answers were candid and some of them very surprising.





Jack in the Jungle, Part One
What do you get when you mate classic Tarzan with classic Tom of Finland? You're about to find out.


VGMH has already celebrated the Tom of Finland erotic art series, and in 2009 we also began a series on vintage Sexy Tarzans in Hollywood Movies. But what many may not know is that in the 1960's these two diverse worlds collided! It seems that Tom was a big fan of the Tarzan films, and in 1965 while he was looking for an ongoing character for his panel stories, he decided to base an uber-masculine sex machine on the Tarzan concept. The result was Jack of the Jungle.  Jack would run for three series.

With this jungle hunk, what we're actually witnessing is the early evolution of a gay character icon---Kake. Kake (pronounced “Kah-keh) is Finnish for “butch." It wouldn't be later (until 1968) until Tom decided to morph Jack in the Jungle into the incredibly endowed Kake, switching a loin cloth for a leather-clad motorcyclist, as his "ultimate man." But like Jack, Kake kept the emphasis on an affirmative presentation of gay men: Good looking, well-built guys engaging in gay sex and enjoying what they were doing without fear or shame.  One has to remember that this was the 1960's!

In his engaging biography of Tom, Valentine Hooven quotes Tom as saying, “In those days a gay man was made to feel nothing but shame about his feelings and his sexuality I wanted my drawings to counteract that, to show gay men being happy and positive about who they were. Even the men who at first are depicted as surprised and resistant to gay sex end up delighted and wanting more."

Above: Cover art for the first Jack in the Jungle series.  As longtime readers of the VGMH series on Hollywood Tarzan series already know, Tarzan and his trusty phallic-looking dagger have a long history in the movies.  Here, Tom plays up the symbolism nicely. Hey Jack, is that a dagger in  your loin cloth, or are you just happy to see me?

Above: From a tree limb high above the lush floor of the jungle, Jack watches the blonde European explorer as he relieves himself in the thick jungle brush. Whoaaa! Suddenly Jack's got a boner to deal with as he watches this man's ass with more interest than Cheeta looking at a ripe banana.

WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT?  STAY TUNED!

Thomas Eakins and Baseball (end of series)

What better way to end this series on the gay history of baseball than to enjoy some athletic art from the very talented painter/photographer, Thomas Eakins?

Born in Philadelphia in 1844, Thomas (photo, right) is one of America's few indisputably great painters.  His gay friend Walt Whitman (painting, below) was the subject of this 1887 portrait by Eakins, who said that Thomas was not so much a painter as he was a "force."  And what a force he was. 

Eakins was married, but his sexuality remains a matter of gossip even today.... The males in his paintings, close friendship with Walt Whitman, stories from men who claimed advances, and belief that a naked woman was the most beautiful form in nature---'except for a naked man'---give some reason to pause (Eakins also photographed and painted nude ladies).  His brother-in-law, Frank Stephens, prompted even more allegations by accusing him of incest (1). While the accusations of incest were never proved, the charge itself was enough to have Eakins removed from a Philadelphia art club. Some have speculated that Eakins had a long-term love affair with another former student, Samuel Murray, who was later a well-known sculptor and became Eakins’ devoted nurse in his last days.  

VGMH thinks it's pretty clear that Mr. Eakins desired to keep his personal life personal, even if some of his artistic choices didn't help the cause a whole lot.  The debates about Eakins sexuality will probably go on forever, or at least for as long as his art remains interesting to current generations.  It would be nice to recognize such a great talent as being gay, but since we don't know, let's just enjoy some of his work.

Thomas Eakins, "The Swimming Hole," 1885

  "Baseball Players Practicing," 1875.

This well-known watercolor (on paper) by Thomas Eakins is in the collection of The Museum of Art at the Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, As his painting illustrates, Thomas seems to have had an appreciation for the players of the game.

  Thomas liked to photograph nude models (below) to use as a reference for his artwork, and some of these models may very well have been sportsmen of the era, in addition to art students. Working with a wooden view camera and glass plate negatives, he distinguished himself from most other painters of his generation by mastering the technical aspects of photography.  For Eakins, the camera was a device comparable to anatomical drawings.

"Wrestlers," 1899

 

"Biglin Brothers Racing," 1872

Study of a Nude Man (The Strong Man) 1869

(1) http://www.culturekiosque.com/art/exhibiti/thomaseakins.html

Sportsmen, Newsmen, and Locker Room Horseplay

THE LOCKER ROOM
VGMH believes if it wasn't for the fact that Joe married Marilyn, interest in him nude wouldn't be as popular as it remains today. But he's just one of many sports stars who have candid photos of them out there.  Sports writing styles and objectives were different in the 1930's and 1940's from what they are today.  Back then, the lives of baseball players and the writers/photographers who covered them were interwoven, because traveling by train and bus often created situations in which avoidance was difficult, if not impossible. Gradually the players trusted the writers much more than today's players (especially considering the tabloid mentality of most modern sports media) ever would.  The photos below are purported to be these famous jocks:

Joe DiMaggio...Tarzan Yell?

This photo shows DiMaggio in a postgame shower, wearing only a happy grin. It's early in Joe's career, circa 1940.

Bob Feller

Feller in action on the field

Mickey Mantle

Yogi with Joe

Joe DiMaggio: Famous to Many Gay Men for One Little Reason...

...So what does it take for a moody, straight athlete, who retired from baseball in the 1950's, to get  included here at VGMH?  Well, it helps if that athlete first:
1) Marries a Hollywood star who goes on to become immortalized as a      legendary gay icon.
2) Then it's nice when some nude pics, taken in the locker room showers, show up of the athlete.
3) And let's suppose this guy's fame also represents what was happening in American culture in the decades following the scandalous 1920's....
4) Never cashed in on Marilyn's life, he took to his grave the stories about Marilyn that only he and her knew.  He never married again.  He had a half-dozen red roses delivered 3 times a week to her crypt for 20 years.


GOODBYE ROARING TWENTIES, HELLO HELL

At first blush, this may not relate much with the VGMH series on the Roaring Twenties and Coney Island, but actually the times and events of Joe DiMaggio's life in the decades after the 1920's pick up the story where we left it last week...Many of those immigrants who visited Coney Island between 1900 -1929 had eventually managed to make a place for themselves in the tough city of New York.  And one of them was Joe.

In 1931, during the height of the Great Depression, Joe DiMaggio dropped out of school. With little education and no skills, he worked as a laborer on the docks, and like so many others he was glad to find work wherever he could find it.  His brothers (Tom and Vince) were already both playing for the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League, making a hundred dollars a month.  That was good money when soup kitchens circled city blocks.

DiMaggio wasn't especially good looking but he wasn't unattractive either...but perhaps more importantly, Joe's skills and persona of being quiet and humble (while cocky and arrogant on the field) worked during the sobering and solemn 1930's.  Without getting into scores and stats, he had an amazing career in baseball.  Yet, he wasn't, by his own admission, a great man. As he said, he was "just a man trying to get along."

1954: THE JOCK AND THE MOVIE STAR

The story goes that Joe DiMaggio, the king of baseball, and Marilyn Monroe, the sexpot queen of Hollywood, were introduced to by a mutual friend and had their first date in New York.  Neither took to the other much, until Mickey Rooney playing matchmaker.

The relationship between Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe was complex. She could have had much more handsome baseballers, heck she could have had anybody. America's ideal hero-- strong, rugged, quiet, troubled, married to America's feminine ideal-- beautiful, talented, and sexually appealing.  It was a perfect match that was destined to fail, which it did.

Joe DiMaggio - What's My Line (1955)

MR COFFEE

Joe DiMaggio in Mr. Coffee commercial 1978

THE NUDES

While it's difficult to comprehend that there was once such an innocent time in media, sports historians that VGMH track suggest that the nudes were simply some photographers having fun with Joe.

TOMORROW: NUDE PHOTOS OF DIMAGGIO AND BONUS PICS ...OTHER FAMOUS ATHLETES "NATURAL" IN THE LOCKER ROOM.

VGMH Unbiased Reviews: Str8tMale.Com

About VGMH Site Reviews...

An interesting pattern seems to be developing here (our first paysite review visited Vintage Male Physique Photography, followed a few months later with The Guy Site)....and now VGMH's third review visits http://www.str8cam.com/.  While each of them may be totally different in terms of their themes and content, they all share an important thread...all three were created by men who take pride in their product and work very hard to engage a connection with their subscribers.  There’s something about the entrepreneur spirit of a man who follows his dreams and creates a website (the way he wants it to be) that VGMH likes, compared to the atmosphere found at most of the corporate mega-sites these days.  

What's Interactive Amateur Video?

St8Cam.com fits into the niche of being an interactive amateur video site. I first contacted Jeff to review his website because it's widely regarded as being among the best in this specialty category.  VGMH finds this format especially interesting because it would have been impossible to pull off in the past.  Before computers, the closest thing to "interactive" smut would probably have been the customized photo sets which were mailed (illegally through the postal service) in carboard envelopes, often along with undies that were supposedly worn in the photo sets, and maybe included a handwritten note from the model. But thanks to the advent of modern home computers and the internet, intimate connections (including JO buddies) between men who will never actually meet in person can be made from anywhere in the world and in real time. 

This means that twice a week, from his home base in Southern California, Jeff goes into a sparsely furnished room and turns on his camera, lights, and computer, and then he interacts (live) with site members who are logged onto their own computers. At first blush VGMH was afraid that this might be just a little bit creepy, but the atmosphere created by Jeff quickly melted away any such thoughts.  In one sesssion, Jeff arrives at the scheduled show time, and then explains that it's going to have to a quick JO because he has to go pick up his inlaws at the airport. With that in mind, Jeff greets by screen name those who are logged-on as he undresses and masturbates until cuming. He talks in a casually friendly conversational style that’s not leery or condescending in any way.  Want more interaction? Similar to the pre-computer options in smut, sometimes (by special request) Jeff will wear briefs or a jock strap during the live session and then sell/send them off to their new happy owner.
 

The VGMH Review

The name STR8Cam.Com comes from the fact that Jeff is a happily married straight man who recently turned 30.  Yes, he is straight, and he served in the U.S. military.  He's been doing his interactive video paysite for 11 years now, which says a lot considering how competitive this business is.

We'll start the review with what guests first see on the preview tour screen...Jeff is one handsome hunky stud (and yup he's rightfully proud of his body).  He stands 5'10" and is about 190 pounds of pure beefy muscle. He has bright baby blue eyes, a sculpted phsysique from hours at the gym, and (depending upon his current mood) is either hairy or smooth from his face to his balls.  The preview tour at his site offers a video of Jeff using a toy to masturbate with as well as sample photos.  The video of him pumping his manhood into that toy is enough reason to visit the preview page.

Unfortunately, what doesn't come across very well from the preview tour is that Jeff''s a down-to-earth guy without any arrogance/attitude about his looks or appearance.  VGMH believes that while most guys may subscribe to St8Cam.com because he's an attractive slab of USDA prime meat, they probably renew their subscriptions because of Jeff's honestly fun personality and and the charismatic respect he has for his members.  It's very obvious that both the star and his audience have a mutual relationship with one another.   They send him presents for his birthday, and he shares everyday living moments caught on his phone's camera. 

Make no mistake, he's 100% straight and while his sessions may include sex toys, underwear play, piss play, and about any other request that his devoted fans may think up to request that he do, Jeff doesn't do sex with other dudes.  Period. 

Shows are several times a week and Jeff adds to his archives about eight times per month.  There are lots of videos in the library and the preview page does a good job of showing the diversity of the videos found within.  He also has some guest performers and that means there are sometimes three updates a week. 

Two semi-regular guest models who perform live from time to time are former Big Brother TV Series cowboy Steven Daigle (right) and Canadian gay porn star Ryan Russell (below). Particualry fun to watch is Ryan as he sticks his dick into it a mold to make a replica...then in a future session, he literally fucks himself with the replica of his own cock.  VGMH thinks it brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "GO FUCK YOURSELF!" 

Jeff has also grabbed ahold of the American dream of entrepreneurship and has created nothing less than a marketing empire. Potential subscibers should be aware that Jeff''s live shows often include him demonstrating products that are also for sale...Not only does he enjoy fucking the hell out of his Fleshjack, but there's also a link to get your very own toy. Perhaps no product is more interesting than his http://www.str8camlube.com/  which actually looks like real sperm in both color and consistency in his videos.

In terms of navigation, the site's appearance has a lot of things going on to grab your attention, and it may be downright confusing on the first visit.  Once acclimated to the menus and choices, the site itself is designed to display the many avenues of Jeff''s world, with his personal performances archived in a menu on the left of the screen.  This means subscibers can participate with Jeff during a scheduled live performance or simply watch/save it later.  There's a schedule for upcoming shows and links to photos and other items.

Video quality is now in HD with several player options.  Most of the videos are downloadable to be saved (no DRM). The overall libary of videos reflect that this site has been around for a long long time...Jeff has gone through several generations of videos – wmv, real, and flash. As mentioned, there's a photo library, but it would be misleading to suggest that still images are the selling point of this site.  If you subscribe, you are doing so because you want to watch Jeff play with himself and have the opportunity to interact in live time with him.  Want to see Jeff's cock jutting out of the fly of his shorts? Want to see his dick go from soft to rock hard as he looks at straight porn? Ask and he'll do his best to accomodate.  It's obvious that Jeff works hard to please his fans.  Customer service is very good. Jeff is on Twitter and replied to all emails within 24 hours or less.

THE RATING
Money is tight and there are lots of options for entertainment out there.  So who does VGMH think might NOT like this site?   If you prefer seeing a new/different man everytime you visit, then STR8Cam.Com  is probably not the best bang for your buck.  On the other hand, if you are looking for a hot and friendly jerk off buddy to spurt your spud with, then you will certainly find that with Jeff, and then some.  Memberships for other interactive video sites (that offer quality live sex shows) are often much more expensive, so the value is also here in terms of price.

In summary, Jeff is a classically good looking dude with a perfect gym body, massive arms and legs, and wonderfully furry muscle-butt.  Between the photos, ads, and sample video, what you see on his preview page is a very good representation of what is inside, so ...

VGMH is giving STR8Cam.com an  overall rating of 90 out of 100...EXCELLENT
http://www.str8cams.com/str8cam/str8cam1000cc.htm

Exclusive!

Jeff's kindly agreed to do an interview only for VGMH readers.  Why not take his free tour and ask Jeff a question (personal or about the site)? 

Email me your questions (no later than Sunday night please) and I'll use as many as I can. 
stevesmile9@gmail.com

Playgirl Magazine, October 1976 and David White

NOTE: Thanks to everyone who commented/emailed me about yesterday's Rock Pamplin feature.  Lots of readers thought it was especially nice to see what Rock looks like after all these years.  So for today's post, instead of trying to refer folks back to read a 2009 VGMH story about yet another Playgirl sensation, here's the full post about Mr. David White.   Included below is a great video link from a local TV station where he was living, with David talking to the reporting team.   He comes across as a really nice guy and still looks great.  As we'll see in future stories, it's not just a total coincidence that both Rock and David went on to become two of Playgirl's all-time favorite models...both men had the extremely good fortune of being photographed by an artist who knew how to capture the natural sensuality within men... Norbert Jobst.  More on that connection in the future. 

DAVID WHITE, THEN AND NOW

1976 was America's bicentennial celebration year, and if there was ever a male model that summed up the look of the time, who was considered "hot" back then, it could easily have been Mr. White.  He had the tanned and toned body.  He had the thick unruly moustache and stylized hair.  Totally straight David White's appearance in October's 1976 Playgirl cemented his status as a gay sex symbol. It also appears to have launched a very successful modeling career for the young athlete.

Years later (in one of countless tributes to him) Playgirl would publish the following statement about David:  "One of the hottest men ever to sear the pages of Playgirl was David White [...] a blue-eyed god who had readers going gaga for months.  The country was also gyrating over Jimmy Carter's admission to Playboy magazine that he had looked on a lot of women with lust in his heart [...]"

In research, VGMH found that most stories about David's modeling career begin post-Playgirl. The story goes that White was a tanned young lifeguard in Fort Lauderdale, Florida when he was spotted by a California modeling-agency scout. The scout thought David was perfect for a new Winston cigarettes ad campaign, and in 1977 he began to appear as the "Winston Man" (a role that another Playgirl model...Rock Pamplin also played).   After that, David was the cover model for the August 1978 issue of GQ magazine. White's success continued in the 1980's as he became the face of Aramis cologne.  In fact, it seems that David proved his head was as smart as it was handsome...the skilled athlete always prepared for his next career move and didn't especially seem interested in revisiting past achievements or failures.

He reportedly lived in New York City from 1977 to 1983, enjoying the big city and dancing at Studio 54 during its heyday. A natural athlete, David raced his bike in Central Park on Saturday mornings and won the Pepsi 24-hour Cycle Marathon, which covers 540 miles, twice. 

He then moved to California and continued both modeling and biking. Later he became a personal trainer, and among the stars he trained was Ozzy Osbourne. White also helped Jane Fonda and Racquel Welch on their workout books and videos.

More recently, in 2007 Mr. White was reportedly living in South Knoxville Tennessee where he owned and operated The Gym, a fitness facility.  Since that time, he decided to close it. "The Gym", which opened more than 25 years ago as a “hard-core” workout facility, shut down on Dec. 5th 2008 with about 250 members. His adult son, Eric White, is said to look very much like his handsome father did when he was in his twenties. The last photo (below) is of David White, approximately 30 years after his Playgirl pose.

JUST CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW TO WATCH A LOCAL NEWS REPORT VIDEO ON DAVID

Playgirl Magazine May 1976: Centerfold Finalist Rock Pamplin

Man cannot live on baseball alone, and that's especially true when the 1976 May issue of Playgirl has beefy and hairy Rock Pamplin gracing its cover!  Baseball will be back tomorrow.

In 1976 Playgirl still had its classic cover look and typeface, and even today there's just something especially exciting in knowing that the handsome cover models were also presented nude inside for our viewing pleasure.  Later the magazine would try many different formats, and the editors would begin slapping TV and movie celebrities on the cover. 

This issue offered a story entitled "Behind the scenes at Hearst Mansion," and their Discovery model contest winner was Carlos Roebuck.  But the main event started on page 73, where yet another contest finalist...mustached stud Rock Pamplin, went without clothes on a sandy beach.  Readers would have to wait until fall and the October issue to find out who eventually won the contest, and for those that don't already know, VGMH isn't going to spoil it and spill the beans!  Rock actually hit paydirt with this May issue, and would go on to become one of the magazine's favorite models of all-time.  There will be more photos and history of Rock in the future.

Pamplin was a commercial print model and in addition to baring it all for Playgirl, he also worked at the gay Colt Studios. After his smut heyday, it's been reported (unconfirmed) that he escorted and continued occasionally modeling.

Photographed by Norbert Jobst in Hawaii, Playgirl listed Rock's age as 26. His photo session was in Hawaii, where the story implied he was living at the time.

 DAILY VISITOR BONUS PICS!

Below are a few more photos for VGMH daily blog friends. Added randomly to posts, it's just a little way to say "thank you" for stopping by often during the busy summer months...and after 24 hours they'll cover up with beach balls or go away.

1977 Winston Ad (without moustache)

Hairy in all the right places

Below: Non-Playgirl Smut

Ever wonder what a sexy 1970's Playgirl hunk would look like today? Rock's obviously taken great care of himself over the years.