Vintage Muscle Men: May 2023

Wednesday, May 31, 2023

Bernard Naceri Day

I decided Bernard Naceri needed another series, so here it is.

He looks great here, but the volleyball net is too low.

Odd pose.

I think the pose in this unattributed photo of Mr. Naceri is unusual.

It makes his shoulders look less broad than they actually were,

but I won't complain at all about the nice view of his derriere.

Tree with character

I once heard a guide on a tour of an arboretum describe trees like this one as

having character. The way Bernard Naceri is posed here only adds to that.

Youthful

This magazine cover is from 1965, but Bernard Naceri appears younger than in photos

dated earlier. Perhaps the publishers used an old photo of him with Pierre Patel.

Shower

The vintage resale site were I found this said it way by Bob Harvest.

Mr. Europe 1961

That's Mr. Naceri at center on the winners podium for Mr. Europe 1961.

Ferrero

I've had this in my collection for years, and only when doing the research for this series

did I find that it was Mr. Naceri and by Jean Ferrero. Live and learn, I always say.

And wouldn't we all love to encounter this handsome guy on a woodland walk?

Nudist?

The volleyball and net make me think this is one of the Bob Harvest nudist photos for which

Bernard Naceri posed. I mean, with volleyball, one's mind has to go straight to nudists.

British Cover

Mr. Naceri was truly an international star, as shown by his appearance on the cover of the

British publication, Health and Strength the same year he won the Mr. Europe title.

And finally . . .

I may have saved the best for last in our Bernard Naceri series.

That smile, the confident stance, that body, the Mediterranean setting. Perfection.

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Weightlifter Day

Today we get physical and look at weightlifting in the 20th Century.

We start with one of my persona favorites outdoors.

Kettle Bell

Kettle bells have been around quite a long time.

This is early 20th Century.

Riebicke

This model did a number of athletic poses in this location for Gerhard Riebicke.

Click on Mr. Riebicke's label at right to see some more I posted earlier.

1930

The French website where I found this photo dated it at 1930.

Quonset Hut

Did nudist camps use quonset huts? Maybe he's military, but the huts

look like beat up war surplus items. We still have businesses here

in East Hawaii in units like these, but they are in better condition.

In the woods

This young man seems to be getting his training done in a nice wooded area.

Helping hand

This nudist is helping a female lift a barbell . . . and leering at her.

Norbert Schemansky

This is Norbert "Norb" Schemansky (1924-2016) who was a three time World Champion and

won medals in four successive Olympics from 1948 to 1960. He set a new world record at age

38 and was referred to by his Soviet opponents as a great competitor and friend. He was fired

from a job for taking off too much time to compete. Those were different days!

Photoshopped?

I have a feeling that this guy's crotch was photoshopped. And what's that white patch

in front of him? Do any of you with good software have any opinions to share?

Early machine weights

Our last weightlifting photo shows what might be an early version of one of those

mechanical systems. I wish we had a better view of the fellow at right.

Monday, May 29, 2023

Memorial Day, 2023 - Honoring the Texas 36th Infantry Division

As some of you know, my uncle served in the 36th Texas Division during World War II. The 36th was originally made up of Texas National Guard units brought together under a central command. My uncle joined in 1940 and went on to serve in North Africa, Italy, France, Germany and Austria. He was wounded twice and awarded the Bronze Star along with his Purple Heart. Today, I am honoring some of the men of the 36th who were killed in action, both Texans and non-Texans. The first three men were all from my home town and part of Uncle's National Guard unit.

Clifford Clyburn

Major Clifford Clyburn was the highest ranking National Guard officer from my home town in the years leading up to World War II. He was an engineer for the highway department, and a highly regarded professional. My uncle didn't know him very well, but thought the world of him, saying, "He wasn't one of those 'stay in the rear' officers. He was in the thick of it." Maj. Clyburn's bravery caused him to be posthumously awarded the Siver Star and Purple Heart after being killed on the Franco-German border in late November of 1944 while leading his men against fortified positions.

T.C. Cox

Sgt. T.C. Cox was from a family that ran a dry goods store in my home town, hence the spiffy suit. He was my uncle's sergeant from the time he entered the National Guard in 1940 until Sgt.Cox was killed in December of 1943 during a terrible winter campaign. There was a gold star in the window of his parents' house for decades after the war had ended . . . actually, for the rest of their lives.

Morse Ivey

There's a story told that when Morse Ivey was born, his father went to the court house to register the birth. What was supposed to have been "Morris" came out "Morse" in the thick Texas drawn. So Morse it was from then on. My uncle knew him before they joined the National Guard in 1940 and described him as a charmer who had the girls wrapped around his little finger. Morse was killed in action during the invasion of Southern France in 1944.

Claude Huffman

Claude Huffman was from a neighboring county in Texas. He is shown here during training at

Camp Bowie in Brownwood, Texas. Pvt. Huffman was killed in Alscace in November, 1944.

Alfred Brockel

By September of 1943, the 36th Division was receiving replacement troops who were not Texan.

My uncle told us that they were readily accepted, even though many were Yankees. Sgt. Alfred Brockel was one of those replacements, and he was killed in action in October, 1943.

Joe Kolarovic

Joe Kolarovic (right) was in the same regiment as my uncle, the 142nd.

He was killed in the invasion of Southern France in 1944.

Kenneth Bricker

Pfc. Kenneth Bricker was an Illinois farm boy who was sent to the 36th Texas Division as a replacement in 1943. He was killed in Italy the last day of November that year.

Jackson Shrader

Sometimes it isn't just fighters who are killed in action. Jackson P. Shrader was a medic

trying to give aid to a wounded soldier when he was killed in Italy on September 16, 1943.

Anonymous Poem to the War Dead - 1944

THE YOUNG DEAD SOLDIERS DO NOT SPEAK

Nevertheless they are heard in the still houses: who has not heard them?

They have a silence that speaks for them at night and when the clock counts.

They say, We were young. We have died. Remember us.

They say, We have done what we could but until it is finished it is not done.

They say, Our deaths are not ours: they are yours: they will mean what you make them.

They say, Whether our lives and our deaths were for peace and a new hope or for nothing we cannot say: it is you who must say this.

They say, We leave you our deaths: give them their meaning: give them an end to the war and a true peace: give them a victory that ends the war and a peace afterwards: give them their meaning.

We were young, they say. We have died. Remember us.

Anonymous, 1944