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Saturday, August 17, 2024

Burt Reynolds


Burt Reynolds was never shy about showing off his hairy body, and that's a good thing.

 

6 comments:

  1. And there's the famous Cosmopolitan centerfold.

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    1. Right, that was groundbreaking, even though his crotch was covered. There are persistent rumors of a fully nude version, but these days we can't be certain if what we see is photoshopped or not.

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    2. The existence of fully nude shots-- initially, anyway-- was confirmed by Burt Reynolds himself.

      In interviews, Reynolds said that numerous photos were shot by Francesco Scavullo for the COSMOPOLITAN centerfold-- some discreet, some full-frontal. This was the first time anybody had done this for a mainstream magazine, so they weren't sure how far to push it-- but Reynolds said he had no qualms about displaying it all, even though he was approaching it as a joke rather than a serious layout.

      He said that he and Scavullo and COSMO editor-in-chief Helen Gurley Brown-- whose groundbeaking idea this was-- sat down at a table to review the various options, and it was agreed that each one would pick their favorite shots of the batch.

      He said that he and Scavullo both picked full-frontal shots, while Brown picked "covered" shots. Since Brown was not only a woman-- like the intended target reader-- but "the boss," her vote overruled theirs and full-frontals were out.

      Reynolds said that he and Brown further clashed over which of two similar "final selection" shots to use. In one, he was tossing his head back and laughing; the other was the now-legendary shot that was printed-- Brown having prevailed yet again.

      According to his account, Reynolds was given possession of all of the other photos that were shot as part of the contract with COSMO, and they were supposedly all destroyed by him.

      However, a paperback book quickly followed ("Hot Line: The Letters I Get-- And Write!") in which Reynolds supposedly responded to fan mail as a result of the COSMO centerfold. There was a 16-page B/W photo section in the book, in which the photo you post here appeared among other similar shots (including shots of Reynolds wearing only a football jersey that have appeared elsewhere).

      Supposedly, these were shot "exclusively" for the book-- but given the way he described the shoot, I suspect they may have been some of the outtakes from the COSMO session given to Reynolds.


      -- hsc

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  2. Mamie Van Doren said a cigar would have covered his goods more then adequately. Ouch!

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