In picture 11 the direction of the plot becomes clear, the two models have swapped clothes.
At one point I wondered if the EX2 designation on the Catalogue page for this set referred to exchanging clothes but I suspect it may just mean Example 2.
Men swapping their clothes is in itself an erotic idea which has quite complex associations to do with shared intimacy, borrowing identities and displaying oneself in a new way. I have a separate series which showcases this theme, click on the 'sharing' tag below for more.
Royale Studios - Soldier-Sailor - 11
John the sailor looks just as good in Fred's shorts as he did in sailor's whites and the submissive kneeling pose is very erotic. He appears to be conducting a close quarters examination of Fred's groin area, hands on waist, poised to pull him closer and perhaps to release the flap. Funnily enough, Fred looks rather nervous!
As an aside, around this time Tom of Finland also picked up on the erotic potential of this 'dressing' theme in a couple of pictures in which a kneeling tailor assists a muscular stud into new clothes (see my later post on this). It's interesting to speculate whether one inspired the other although this is the era when having trousers custom fitted was more usual than buying off-the-peg.
Royale Studios - Soldier-Sailor - 12
In 12 we see the models from the rear. John the sailor's tapered torso is highlighted by the high waist on the shorts, but exaggerated by freak shadowing on his right side as the photographer strives to highlight Fred's rather interesting frontal bulge in the sailor's pants. It's a tight fit, his generous backside is very well displayed. It's interesting to compare this image with No 5 and to see how different the two body/clothing combinations appear
The theme of men swapping one set of clothes for another crops up more than once in Royale's uniform sets, usually in the context of a recruitment storyline (i.e. civilian to military). It's a good excuse for showing flesh but is partly inspired by the National Service era in the UK when all able bodied young men were called up for a period of service in the armed forces. Of course, once you introduce homosexual overtones, recruitment into an all-male service takes on a whole new flavour.
Royale Studios - Soldier-Sailor - 13
In the final picture of this group the boys are undressing again and the shot of the sailor opening the flies on his shorts (which are to be unbuttoned of course not unzipped) would grace any modern photo set. Even in this fuzzy image the definition of his six pack and the curve of the stomach are very sexy. Sailor Fred's packet is indistinct here but would have been interesting in the full print. The naturalistic posing around the drum centrepiece makes a nice composition and it captures an innocent, shared intimacy which many of us will remember from our own early experiences with other men.
For earlier articles in this series click on the GIU/Royale label below
If anyone has better copies of these pictures which they are willing to share I would be very pleased to hear from them
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