Vintage Military - Part 83

 World War II - German POWs

Today we look at photos and video of German prisoners of war captured by the British after the invasion of Normandy in 1944.  Above is a video of German POWs in Normandy stripped naked and sprayed, probably with something to combat lice. 

Above, a POW transit camp in Leopoldsburg, Belgium.  The caption said "One of the first things that happens for a POW is a hot shower."

Another photo of the shower at Leopoldsburg.

Then the German POWs were transported to a POW camp in England.  The remaining photos are from the No. 9 POW Reception Camp.  POWs were searched and personal items were listed, above.

Then medical inspection began.

We end with POWs being checked for lice etc. by the Red Cross.

Olympic Photos by Paul Richer - Part 10

Olympic Photos by Paul Richer, part 10

We continue our series of nude photographs by Paul Richer of athletes in the 1900 Paris Olympics.  Richer was on an official Olympic commission to study the athletes.  Richer was responsible for taking nude anthropomorphic photos of the athletes, and since it was an official commission, almost all the athletes who were asked to participate did so.

We start with French cyclist Fernand Sanz, above.  He won a silver medal in the bicycle sprint.  Interestingly, Sanz was the illegitimate son of King Alfonso XII of Spain.

Here are Paul Richer's photos of Fernand Sanz, front view ...

side view ...

and rear view.

Disclosure: I have removed yellowing from Richer's photos and brightened them.

Danish athlete Eugen Schmidt is pictured at left above.  He competed in shooting and in the tug-of-war, in which the mixed Danish-Swedish team won the gold medal.

Here are Richer's photos of Schmidt, front view ...

rear view ...

and side view.

This is Danish runner Ernst Schultz.  He won bronze in the 400 meter race.

Here are Richer's photos of Schultz, front view ...

side view ...

and rear view.

American athlete Dick Sheldon won a gold medal in shotput.  I got this picture of him from Vintage Muscle Men.  Thanks, Jerry!

Here are Richer's photos of Sheldon, front view ...

side view ...

and rear view.

Next time: more Paul Richer Olympic athlete photos.

Performers - Part 78

Mozart - Die Entführung aus dem Serail

Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Seraglio) is a lighthearted opera in which the hero rescues his beloved, who has been kidnapped and is being held in a Turkish harem.

In 2004, at the Komische Oper in Berlin, director Calixto Bieito transformed the setting from a Turkish harem to a Berlin brothel with fetishism, masturbation, urinating (singer on singer) and nipple-slicing. Subscribers and sponsors were outraged.

One of the characters, Osmin, who manages the seraglio, appeared completely naked, as seen above.  Osmin was played by bass singer Jens Larsen.

And you thought classical music was boring!

Photographers - Part 78

 George Dureau, part 2

Earlier this month we saw some photographs by New Orleans photographer George Dureau (1930-2014).  Today we look at some more of his work.  He took many photos of black men, many of them nude.  Above, Jonas Williams, 1979.

This photo of Jordan Page, Emmitt Johnson and Gloria Johnson, 1983, is unusual for including a woman.  Almost all of Dureau's nudes were men.

Raymond Maxwell Hall.

Rico Fortune.

Dureau is unique in that he took many photos of dwarfs and amputees.  Above, Sonny Singleton.

Another little person, Stanley Hurd, 1983.

Wing Ding Crest, an amputee.

We end with another amputee, Wilbert Hines.

Dureau taught Robert Mapplethorpe, who is said to have been inspired by Dureau's amputee and dwarf photos, which showed the figures as "exposed and vulnerable, playful and needy, complex and entirely human individuals."

George Dureau died in 2014 of Alzheimer's, aged 83.

Calendars - Part 78

Barefoot Man 2025

Last time we saw the Barefoot Man 2024 calendar.  It's the successor to the long-running Warwick Rowing calendar put out by the rowing team at Warwick University, England.  The calendar is not only a fundraiser, but it promotes a gay/straight alliance to challenge homophobia.

Today we look at their 2025 calendar.  The cover features Eric.

January features Stewart, Francis, Jamie, and Olly by the Zambezi River in Mozambique.

February features Tommy and Tyler on the Santa Teresa Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica.

March features Javi, Alex, and Manu in Toledo, Spain.

April features Francis at Cahorra Bassa Lake in Mozambique.

May features Eric in the Diamante Valley in Costa Rica.

June features Tommy and Tyler on the Santa Teresa Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica.

July features Jose in the Diamante Valley in Costa Rica.

August features Tommy on the Santa Teresa Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica.

September features Tommy on the Santa Teresa Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica.

October features Jose, Nic, and Shelby in the Diamante Valley in Costa Rica.

November features Alex and Brian in Toledo, Spain.

We end in December with Olly, Stewart, Francis, and Jamie by the Zambezi River in Mozambique.

Protests - Part 78

Naked Handstander, part 3

We continue our mini-series on the Naked Handstander, Jonathan Scholes from Australia.  He has been doing naked handstands all over the world as a form of protest.  All of today's handstands were done in Norway.  Above, Festplassen, Norway.

What is he protesting?  Planned obsolescence – products that are deliberately designed to have a short lifespan so consumers have to buy or upgrade them over and over again.  He hopes that his naked handstands will help draw attention to this issue.

Above, he does a naked handstand in Bryggen Bergen, Norway.

At Mogen Sognefjord, Norway.

At More og Romsdal, Norway.

In Oslo, Norway in 2011.

In Preikestolen, Norway in 2011.

On Trolltunga, the "troll's tongue".  We saw this image in an earlier post about hiking to Trolltunga.

Yes, Norway gets cold and snowy, but that doesn't stop our intrepid Australian.

Next time: more naked handstands in other countries.