Mark One Studio, Part 1 - Billy Hill

Alan Stone, shown above, was a Montreal photographer who did business as Mark One Studio.  

His work was very versatile, but he is best known for his physique photos.  Mr. Stone had

 rheumatoid arthritis, hence the cane in the picture above.  I'm devoting a two part set 

to him today, with part one featuring Billy Hill, Mr. Canada of 1954.

 

Billy Hill I

Billy Hill wasn't just a championship level bodybuilder and a great model known for his winning smile.  He was also a very decent man who became Alan Stone's assistant and caregiver.  During Mr. Stone's arthritic flareups, Mr. Hill would sometimes literally carry him to remote photo shoot locations.  Above, we see him in an indoor location, but it was outdoors where he really shone.

 

Billy Hill II

Posing on that slab or concrete or stone couldn't have been comfortable.

Perhaps that's why we don't ger Mr. Hill's usual big smile.

 

Billy Hill III

I find that the industrial setting works best with this reclining shot of Mr. Hill.

 

Billy Hill IV

Mr. Hill gives us that winning smile one more time in this photo.

 

Billy Hill V

Our last photo of Billy Hill shows him in the water with a skimpy bathing suit.  This would have bee suitable for publication, which leads us into part two of today's double feature.

 

Mark One Studio Day, Part 2 - Face and Physique Magazine

Alan Stone joined Bruce Bellas, Bob Mizer, and other physique photographers in publishing his own magazine, Face and Physique starting about 1960.  Above is an ad he placed in another publication making prominent mention of color pages, something still new at the time.  Part two of our Mark One Studio double feature shows off five different models from F&P.

 

Andre Lafreniere

We get two views of Andre Lafrienere on this page.

 

Bob Ireland

Bob Ireland looks good in what I've come to call the "playing the castanets" pose.

 

Gerald Desfosses

I'm not sure if this threefer of Gerald Desfosses is a later composite or two facing pages from 

Face and Physique, but all three images are impressive.  Mr. Desfosses took up photography 

himself and some point, and some of his photos appeared in later issues of this magazine.

 

Mike Mangione

 

Competitive bodybuilder Mike Mangione made several appearances in Face and Physique,

 and this is a favorite.  He also appeared with Gerald Desfosses in a memorable 

posing strap duo photo set that I will try to post in a future series.

 

Joey Krnjaich

We get a very fine derriere pose from Joey Krnjaich.

And no, I don't know how to pronounce the name.

 

Chubby Day

It's Chubby Day, and we start with an FKK man on the beach with a scoop net.

I'm running low on fully nude chubby photos, so I'm sending out an appeal for 

viewer contributions.  Anything prior to the late 80's will do, and you will 

be lavishly thanked and credited.  Use the contact form top right.

 

NYC Public Bath

This happy, exhuberant fellow had his picture taken in a New York City public bath in 1938.

 

Pleasant

Despite the poor photo quality, we can see this fellow's pleasant expression.

 

Father and Son?

I get a father and son vibe from these two happy men.

 

Aussie Tummy

This Australian nudist isn't that big overall by 

current standards, but that furry tummy is nice.

 

Lou Costello

Lou Costello made a career out of being a chubby funny man,

and he wasn't afraid to show off his bulk.  He's adorable in stripes.

 

Trophy

Did nudist pageants give trophies for Best Chubby Guy?

Of course, they were so nonjudgemental that he may have won the Open Division.

 

Making an effort

Will he or won't he be able to reach his toes?

 

Mario

This guy has a Mario mustache.

 

Speedo needed

Too bad the Speedo hadn't been invented when this was taken.

On the upside, if he went sailing, he had a spare sail.

 

Tonsorial Talent Double Feature, Part 1 - Civilians

Some of my earliest homosexual "awakenings" took place in the barber's chair.  Here was this big hairy man putting his hands on me in a perfectly innocent way that was somehow just sooooo nice.  I felt like the guy in the advert above looked, sublimely content to be preened and petted.  Today it's a tonsorial talent double feature, starting with the civilians, then moving on to military.

 

Mustaches all around I

Berlin around 1900 was the setting for this crowded barbershop where every guy had a mustache.

 

Outdoor I

I think this outdoor barber shot was taken during the Oklahoma Land Rush.  My great-grandmother (1875-1967) used to say,  "That was when half the landless white trash in Texas ran off to Oklahoma in hope of free land.  Good riddance!"  She was a judgemental old bird, but she was also a suffragette and a career woman when such was almost unheard of in the Southwest.

 

Mugs

Most of the regular customers at this early 20th Century barber shop had their own shaving mugs which were kept in the shop.  Some men rarely shaved at home in those days.

 

Mustaches all around II

This early 20th Century barbershop has mustaches all around.

 

Outdoor II

The belted bathing suit dates this one to around 1940.

 

Massager

The handheld massage device at the end of a haircut sent me into a near ecstatic state.

The guy in the mirror looks like he's headed there, too.

 

Flattop

The flattop screams 1950s.

 

Tonsorial Talent Double Feature, Part 2 - Military

For part two of our double feature, we turn to the military, long known for requiring specific types of haircuts.  These men are World War II GIs on a beach in Burton Bradstock, England in 1944.

English beaches are not known for such sunny weather, but that's where it was.

 

 

101st Airborne

Here we see a member of the 101st Airborne getting their trademark Mohawk haircut.

Oddly, the main barber doesn't have one.  Did they hire outside talent?

 

Soldiers in the sticks

These guys look like they are in some remote military duty area, and the "barber shop" 

waiting area has a quintessentially typical customer reading a newspaper.

The shirtless barber and his client are beautifully built.

 

First World War

I think these handsome fellows are First World War Tommies.

 

Beard Trim

Our last image shows a sailor getting his beard trimmed on H.M.S. Cochrane during World War II.