American Hunks: The Muscular Male Body in Popular Culture, 1860-1970 Review
American Hunks: The Muscular Male Body in Popular Culture, 1860-1970
- ISBN13: 9781551522562
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed
The “American hunk” is a cultural icon: the image of the chiseled, well-built male body has been promoted and exploited for commercial use for over 125 years, whether in movies, magazines, advertisements, or on consumer products, not only in America but throughout the world. American Hunks is a fascinating collection of images (many in full color) depicting the muscular American male as documented in popular culture from 1860 to 1970. The book, divided into specific historic eras, includes such personalities as bodybuilder Charles Atlas; pioneer weightlifter Eugene Sandow; movie stars like Steve “Hercules” Reeves and Johnny “Tarzan” Weismuller; and publications such as the 1920s-era magazine Physical Culture and the 1950s-era comic book Mr. Muscles. It also touches on the use of masculine, homoerotic imagery to sell political and military might (including American recruitment posters and Nazi propaganda from the 1936 Olympics), and how companies have used buff, near-naked men to sell p
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Tagged with: 18601970 • American • body • Culture • Hunks • male • Muscular • Popular • Review
Filed under: Muscle Building Book Reviews
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ANOTHER CHAPMAN WINNER,
“American Hunks” is a bonanaza of vintage muscleman photos. With his inimitable flair and mischevious sense of fun, Mark Chapman and Brett Josef Grubisic have gathered hundreds of the best images from the world of the hunk, muscleman, he-man or gymnast/wrestler. The book presents over 100 years of male muscle images from sources as disparate as cement bags, shoe polish tins, Coke ads, cigarette packs and underwear, not to mention a wide variety of studio photos. Each image has a welcome paragraph to describe it. There are introductions by both authors, as well. Though there are some familiar photographs (due to their iconic nature), I was happy suprised to see hundreds of images for the first time. This volume is a must have for all fans of the male form and physical culture, all presented in excellent quality prints and with panache and wit. This is a keeper!
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|Hunks from the past,
A wonderful book, with its many excellent photos, the more recent ones bringing back memories. Those were once the only pictures we had to fantasize about the ideal man/lover… It’s mostly pictures with captions. with only short chapter introductions. Thoroughly enjoyable!
But one thing is missing: hardly a word about censorship or prudery, which is the first thing you think about seeing some of those fig leaves, posing pouches and even painted-by-hand blotches to obscure the offending parts in many early photos. We only read that a studio was forced to shut down, or forbidden to send by post, and it all relaxed in 1967. Still, there are many photos to prove these must have been clandestine.
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|Well worth considering for any coffee table book collector,
It’s been said women are constantly objectified in the media… but could the same be said of men? “American Hunks” takes a scholarly look at the use of the perfect physical specimen of man and how it has been used as a sex symbol over the years. For well over a century the image of musclebound hunks has been on countless items, selling not only to women, but men as well, both gay and straight. The photos within do contain nudity, but the main focus is on the evolution of the use of the hunk in media. “American Hunks” is well worth considering for any coffee table book collector.
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