Tom Of Finland's Thieving Cowboy and Royale Studio

Dolphin Photography launched with Tom of Finland's 'Thieving Cowboy' (1960) 

 The 'Thieving Cowboy' is one of Tom of Finland's earliest works and will be familiar to many of the readers of this blog, not least for its memorable spanking content. It's probably less well known that the series was originally commissioned by our friends at Royale Studio. That was in 1957, according to the Colville Gallery, the year Royale itself was launched (see Timeline article at the new Royale blog). 

Coincidentally 1957 was also the year that Tom's pictures first 'came out' in AMG's Physique Pictorial (according to Hooven, Tom of Finland, His Life and Times, Chap 8). See also Tom of Finland Foundation's article, "How Tom went from belittled pornographer to iconic artist"). 

Hooven remarks that Royale was one of Tom's best customers and that he did 'several' series for them. 
I confess I don't know what the others were apart from the mysterious 'Mr Universe' series. 

The Tom of Finland Retrospective (Gay Men's Press, 1988) included one image from the 'Thieving Cowboy' series on page 14 and dated it as 1958. However, the earliest independently documented reference I can find for it in relation to Royale is an advert in 'Tomorrow's Man' beefcake mag in August 1960 marking the launch of Royale's offshoot studio, Dolphin Photography (ad reproduced above). 

This advertisement describes it as a 16-picture 'playlet' but a later ad in 'Manifique' in Spring 1961 revised the total upwards to 17. More recently JW Anderson claimed there were 26 images in the set altogether and since he was working with the Tom of Finland Foundation at the time he ought to know. However, the evidence available to me suggests that 17 is probably right for the Royale set at any rate, although it is an unusual number, not amenable to fitting neatly into a sheet of thumbnails. It's possible Tom produced a longer version for publication elsewhere or that Royale commissioned a subset, perhaps with some new illustrations, thereby enabling them to claim exclusivity. The end of the story (presented in detail in the next post) does offer more evidence on this. 

For that article, I have been able to assemble 15 images belonging to the set, although 2 of them are incomplete. They come from the following web sources:-

• Jock Spank has an article 'Cowboy Thief' with 12 pictures from the set. These images are reasonable quality but have been 'enhanced' and don't have the subtle detail of original drawings. Their numbering doesn't match my larger group.
• Recently 4 images of good original quality appeared on art auction sites purporting to be Numbers 2, 3, 12 and 13 in the series (original numbering). I have used all of them, sticking to their numbering and some replacing Jock Spank images.
• I have two images with numbers in the corners (from I don't know where). They have obviously been cut from Royale thumbnail sheets and show what Nos 14 and 16 depicted, but I have only used 16 for this article.
• To these I have added 4 images found embedded in Dolphin Photography adverts during my recent searches of vintage beefcake mags. Two were easy to extract from the advertising blurb (12 & 17) but the other two were tangled up with other imagery so I have (crudely) extracted them. They are therefore incomplete, mostly lacking backgrounds and definition, but they temporarily fill gaps in the sequence quite usefully. These are included as numbers 6 and 7.

I have guessed where the unnumbered ones fit based on the image narrative.

The next post will feature the full set of pictures as far as I have been able to go with it.

Below, one of the images after photographic enhancement.

Tom of Finland - 'The Thieving Cowboy' - 3, Caught In The Act

Art by Appas

Appas - Chang Chi Bound 01-01

Regulars will know I'm not enamoured of the modern fashion for iterative image series which superimpose an erotic progression on an unchanging underlying pose. But the sheer quality of these images by Appas demonstrate the power of technology to produce superb images in the right hands. 

It starts with a sexy image of man tied up in light shibari on the back seat of a bus while the man responsible hovers menacingly just off-picture. We see he has bare arms and intimidating, fingerless gloves. He's immobilised his victim with arms tied over his head and 'frog' legs, exposed his muscular torso and undone the fly of his trousers to reveal a splash of pubic grow-back.

The stretching and creasing of the captive's pants caused by the open frog legs is captured amazingly well and this detail alone makes the image worth including here but there's also an overall sense of heightened realism that is fascinating. There's a superhero film connection here so I dare say there are underlying photo images doing the groundwork here but it's an impressive result nevertheless.

Appas - Chang Chi Bound 02-10

Appas breaks with convention here by moving the captor to a different position and showing him actually interacting with the primary image of the captive. We get a glimpse of a handsome bearded man but it's unclear because of a transparency effect, whose purpose is not very clear. It does avoiding (partially) obstructing our view of the captive's face which has a wonderful expression of tense anticipation but I can't help thinking that it would be more effective do away with the transparency effect and show off the screwed-up face detail in a separate close-up image. 

The stripping of the captive has moved on considerably here, but as is usual in this genre (and porn films in general) the clothes have simply vanished into thin air so you haven't missed much! It's still a great picture though, 

Appas - Chang Chi Bound 02-15

In this final image the captor has left the victim perched on the back seat, still helplessly tied and covered with his own cum. It draws out the incongruity (and humiliation in this bondage situation) of sex being extracted in a public place. The passenger in the seat in front seems too embarrassed to even look round but that just makes thing worse for the victim. But it's a fantasy he loves.

Appas - Gabriel Reyes, Reaper 04 

Gabriel Reyes is another popular figure for fan art who's popped up (as it were) in several artists' contributions here at mitchmen. This man doesn't really need the leg up of a gaming existence to be interesting. Devilishly handsome man and clad in sexy chaps and leather gear he'd turn heads anywhere. His kneeling pose here is submissive, disarming and extremely seductive. 

That appeal is topped off for me by his cock dipping into, splashing around in the pumpkin head bowl. At least it seems like a bowl to me full of cooling, previous produce. Logically though, the cut-out eyes and other features would prevent any accumulation of fluid and it would normally contain a burning candle ....... which puts a very different complexion on his mischievous expression.

Appas - Gabriel Reyes, Reaper 21

This is the naked variant, still dipping! As you can imagine, his cock assumes all sorts of different positions and states as it progresses towards this conclusion but it's dipper that does it for me.

You can check out the links below for more.

Appas - Supes

This is straightforward fan art with Superman being given a splendidly muscular body to fit into a Hollywood, rubberised vision of his famous body suit. I rather like the idea that he has massive packing in the groin department but without it having any perceptible sexual purpose. His slightly plastic-looking facial features might be a similar wry comment on the hero's unreal, overly clean persona.

Appas - Prince Philip & Tentacles 17

Prince's (heir or spare) are not popular erotic subjects for me as a rule and this render is not comparable in quality with the others above, but I just like coiled tentacle in this image. In companion pictures Appas shows it jerking off the young man which is quite entertaining.

Appas can be found at Gumroad 

and at Patreon for those happy to buy a pig in a poke.

His Twitter site mentioned on the Superman picture is no more. 

Art by AnimasAnimus

Animas Animus - Captain America & The Punisher

AnimusAnimus has a simple recipe for his art - men with exceeding large asses being dominated by their muscular peers and this is an excellent example. This spanking image is full of energy and lust. 

But if his themes are simple his art isn't, despite appearances in this cartoon. The contrasting characterisations of the super-clean Captain America and the super-butch Punisher mine a very rich seam of rebellious non-conformity in the male breast. Dressing the punisher in jeans invites us to identify with him. His lovingly detailed boots and stubbled chin stress an earthy masculinity that seems to elude the goody-goodies of this life.

AnimasAnimus & Shadowwow - Set Me Free

This image seems to explore the other side of the coin, the devilry and beastliness that lurks within the non-conformist and the ability those characteristics have to tempt ordinary mortals. I'm not sure why the artists have chosen a crab to represent such secret longings, unless there's magic involved. 

I love the setting of a desert island beach. It's almost as this hulk has been deposited in Ehrlik territory where I imagine he would give the native Amazons a run for their money in the man-collecting stakes. If your fate as a wrong-doer is to be isolated from the rest of the world in an inescapable prison this place beats the deep burial option by a country mile.

I normally steer clear of mixed-species creatures like this but I like this one's fleshy physique and it is just the face that's morphed, no paws or tails. The grotesque facial characterisation complete with pirate patch is nicely conceived, but still the image would work better for me if he had a more human face - more like the Punisher above, say.

AnimasAnimus - Easter Egg Wrap 

The artist gives full rein to his perverse imagination in this delightful image, adapting the ancient fetish practice of oriental balls to a more prosaic, but not entirely hygienic purpose although I don't suppose that consideration would deter all my readers. It's utter fantasy of course, where does the wrapping come from? How do you stop the chocolate melting? But it's good to see that the captive worker slaving away seems to be enjoying his job so much. (Yes I know he's got a tail but it's only a little one!).

The concept of a hole-in-the-wall incarceration, display and dispensing service, usually targeting super-heroes, appeals to the erotic imagination and has spawned a lot of variations over the years. 

AnimasAnimus - Muscle Lovers (my title)

This fantasy (100% human!) wittily goes to the root of the matter (as it were) with an unbelievably over-developed, young muscleman apparently having sex with his own reflection and filming it on his phone so his fans can admire and envy him. AA's admiration of these types is obvious even when he's poking fun at their human weakness. 

AnimasAnimus - Venom's Playthings

When this artist wades into superhero sexual exchanges he often discards the normal physical constraints of bodies to achieve fantastical super-intercourse, but as the action develops these images sometimes become bafflingly complex, especially when self-morphing creatures like Venom are involved. This image actually shows The Hunk and Rocket-Head trapped in a deeply intimate coupling after Venom (right) has lured them into erotic combat and somehow coated and enclosed them with some of his own latex-like skin. I don't profess to know how that works but I love the concept! 

This image reminds me of a scenario that had a brief vogue a few years ago when the Chris Redfield biohazard craze was at it's height. A Security Guard patrolling outside a bio-plant found himself assailed by tentacles emerging from the earth, totally absorbed by the mutant being and converted into a something resembling a sort of perpetual sex machine. He did not lose his bodily integrity as a human but his sexual parts became predominant at the expense of motor and communication functions. His new whole became a solid bio-mass that looked like a throbbing machine when his colleagues found him. Something like the image just above. It's an idea I'd like to have illustrated myself but I think it calls for the wizardry of computer art.

AA @FurAffinity

AA at Twitter

AnimasAnimus shop at Gumroad

If you are intrigued by the art of Animas-Animus it's probably a good idea to understand what the term means. Without going into the psychological theory of Jung, the animus is the unconscious masculine side of a woman, and the anima is the unconscious feminine side of a man*. I think this artist is probably interpreting this idea in a general way about roles and role reversal but embraces animal characteristics as well to an extent that I have barely touched on in this article.

*You can delve the theory deeper at Anima and Animus but it's not an easy read!

More Art by Bazz

 Not the wittiest caption by Bazz
But a great image, love those trunks

- and the butt rubbing!

Don't know the names or studio yet

More art by Bazz at mitchmen

101 Uses For A Belt - No 13 Incentivisation - Unlucky for some

Bazz - Woodcutter

 Image/caption courtesy of Bazz

Anyone know what video the image comes from?

For more Uses, click on the 'Belts' label at the foot of the post

More Bazz next time

101 Uses For A Belt - No 12 Lottery Ticket

 

Our local Leather Bar has come up with a clever way to keep patrons drinking.
You leave your belt with the wardrobe slave when you arrive.
Last man to reclaim his belt gets to take the slave too.
Looks like tonight's gonna be a long wait for him.

~

For other Uses click on the 'Belts' label below.

Art by VolfKing

VolfKing - 'Tentacle Foodchain' p2

This is the opening scene of VolfKing's 'Tentacle Foodchain' and it seems a perfect complement to my own recent post 'Army Buddies in Tentacle Trap'. The naked man struggling helplessly as tentacles immobilise and grope him is depicted with tantalising subtlety and I love the way the artist has created his jungle background from a simple palette of black, grey and white shapes.

VolfKing - 'Tentacle Foodchain' p5

VolfKing's story isn't about soldiers ambushed in the jungle at all but it's easy to imagine here that one of the army buddies has somehow been rejected the the tentacle creature, leaving him free to enjoy watching his buddy being groped while he considers whether and how to to free him.

VolfKing - 'Tentacle Foodchain' p10

Realising he seems to have immunity he's even emboldened to join in and create a strangely erotic threesome. Despite the fact that his buddy seems to be suffering badly from the squeezing of the giant feelers he's also excited by his predicament.

VolfKing - 'Tentacle Foodchain' p11

But it seems the kinky 3-way is less exciting to the capative than the attractions of his buddy's body which he cannot touch. He must also have a lurking anxiety that the tentacle creature's grip is a prelude to more demanding activity with perhaps a fatal outcome. He'd rather his buddy showed a bit more eagerness to free him and not just stand back and watch.

VolfKing - 'Tentacle Foodchain' p12a

His friend's response is to gag him seemingly confirming his worst fears.

 

VolfKing - 'Tentacle Foodchain' p12c

If this poor man is doomed, at least he's getting a decent send-off.

Discovering a little late the thrill of living on the edge.

This is a lovely picture and a refreshing take on the tentacle scenario.

The elegant shaping of the captives leg and feet seems at one with the waving tentacles. 

It suggests an underlying symbiosis is developing.

Even the gently leaning tree seems to be involved, luring the man to his fate. 

The rest of the jungle seems to recede into an indistinct slightly murky web.

VolfKing - 'Tentacle Foodchain' p17

This is possibly not the sort of coming together our poor captive would have chosen if he had the choice but at the same time it's evident that his ardour isn't exactly flagging. That's apparent in not just his dripping signal post but also the passive toe-curling bracing of his legs when he might have equally dropped them and closed off the pass. 

It's amazing what a bit of danger does for the libido and there's obviously a bit an adventurer in this man which is probably what led him naked into the jungle in the first place. There's a slightly comic sense that the tentacle was originally intending to angle up between his open legs but has suddenly spotted something more interesting lower down and ducked in for a closer look. The captive's bulging eyes seem to reflect this worrying (for him) development.

I love the balletic shaping of the tentacle and legs here, very refined. 

Perhaps a suggestion that our man is revealing his feminine side.

VolfKing - 'Tentacle Foodchain' p18

It seems a shame to spoil the beautiful romance of tentacle seduction 

but nature must take it's course.

The long suffering captive seems disappointed too, but he'll learn.

He's suddenly acquired a splendid pectoral display 

as if confirming his ascent to a more developed manhood. 

 This isn't the best picture in the bunch but VolfKing does his best to infuse a sense of the artistic in the elegantly raised leg (again), but also the upward flow of the texturing of the bark of the tree emulating the thrust of the tentacle. The leafy background is pretty but doesn't quite match the drama of the despoilment.

VolfKing - 'Tentacle Foodchain' p21

As the scene concludes his buddy takes the place of the tentacles and frees him from their embrace.

It seems an idyllic scene if emotional scene with another splendid and sophisticated jungle rendering seeming an entirely appropriate .

~

VolfKing has a truly artistic talent that infuses the atmosphere of these images to great advantage. The sense of suspense is sustained and developed with great skill. I can't say I'm thrilled by the styling of his subject's faces and flirtation with age taboos but I guess he's just observing the traditions of his genre.

Read the original story of VolfKing's Tentacle Foodchain

which is utterly different and more complex than my interpretation!