Planet Homo

When only a towel will do...

Welcome to summer.

File Under: Things We Never Knew

UNDERWEAR EXPOSED!!

"Though more resilient than clothing, 2009 will be challenging for underwear retailers - for the first time since our records began in 1988, underwear expenditure growth will be negative (-0.8%), as the recession forces consumers to be more frugal."
Gay men wear briefs, straight men wear boxers is the common belief. There is a deep fascination with underwear on the part of gay men; the ads dollars alone support a host of magazines and blogs and the images are rampant in a world already dizzy with erotic saturation.
But first, a little history:
Briefs were first sold on 19 January 1935 by Coopers, Inc., in Chicago, Illinois. They dubbed the new undergarment the "Jockey" because it offered a similar degree of support as the jockstrap (one style of which is also called Jock brief or Support briefs). Thirty-thousand pairs were sold within three months of their introduction. In North America, "Jockey shorts" or "Jockeys" is often used as a generic term for men's briefs.

In Australia, Y-front briefs are referred to as "jocks", but should not be confused with jockstraps (more specifically used by athletes) which expose the buttocks. Australians generally use the word briefs to refer to the bikini-style underwear for men, which do not have the Y-front opening.
Dazzling!
Which means, there are people who actually design underwear for a living. Picking the band color, applying a logo to the waistband...which has always seemed, why someone else's name? Shouldn't someone invent a way for my name to appear on the underwear?
In the email comes this notice from IQONIQ, a company based in the Netherlands. We have no idea what IQONIQ means, iconic? We couldn't tell because with the image we were sent, the model is checking himself out in the mirror, which means the logo is backwards. The underwear are nice. They have colored ribs and large colored bands with an extremely large logo. Putting your name on underwear started with Calvin Klein, who practically invented underwear as a gay magnet. For the most part, underwear have little visibility other than those twenty seconds undressing in the gym, though we have seen some men stretch the moment. Underwear, by and large, are not cheap, especially if someone's name is on it. ICONIQ underwear are $16 each, Calvins cost $24 for one pair.
Andrew Christian has elevated underwear to an art and he charges $34 for underwear with a flag of your favorite country. We have no idea if the cotton is better, so we assume you are paying for the priviledge of wearing their name around your waist.
The basic underwear, the Hanes, the Fruit of the Looms are considerably less, though they may indicate frugality when seen by the public. We researched the market for underwear that didn't cost a fortune and yet felt and looked like an expensive pair. The answer: Merona underwear to be found at Target. The cotton is thick, there is happily no logo and the fit is, snug. The cost $8 dollars for three. In this economy, cheap underwear might be the start.

The Teddy Awards

The Teddy Awards announced their winners last week in Berlin and among the winners were John Hurt for Best Acting Performance in "An Englishman in New York", a special TEDDY Foundation Award to Joe Dallesandro for his achievements "as underground film star, gay icon and actor", and the best feature film award went to Raging Sun, Raging Sky (Rabioso sol, rabioso cielo) by Julián Hernández. It has to be noted our dear friend Joey Arias won the "Best Drag Queen in the World" award. As for this titillating photo, this is Eike von Stuckenbrok, who labels himself an "equilibrist", which means modern dancer and acrobat in English The video can be seen here. For all the Teddy, head here.

Report from Iowa

Intrepid reporter Todd Schultz braved the cold of Iowa to file this report:
Wednesday nights in Iowa City, Iowa tend to drag. Or rather, is it the queens who are dragging?
At Studio 13, a gay bar about half the size of an Olympic size swimming pool, Queen bee Drag Queen, and Iowan Gay Icon Dena Cass is a riot. A comedienne, a hell of a dancer, and tits that would put Pam Anderson in her glory days to shame.
 People might not expect this class of drag fervor in a “small town” like Iowa City. But the boys in Iowa know how to get down.
 In fact, Iowa City is said to be among the highest per capita gay cities in the nation. And on Wednesday nights Studio 13 is packed to the brim. Hot men everywhere, drinks are flowing, and the lovely ladies of Wednesday Night’s Drag show parade in their glamour gowns.
 When I decided to cover the drag show, I was a little bit shy about taking pictures, but I was obviously naïve about Drag Queens. Dena was anything but shy. She flaunted her long lashes, and her luscious fun bags, only getting wilder for the camera.
 Iowa may not be your idea of the ideal vacation, but for all of you guys out there who have that corn-fed farm boy fantasy, it just might be the perfect spot.
 And know this: When you come to Studio 13, on a Wednesday Night, you know you’re going to have a good time, Dena will make sure of that.

The Advocate: This is news?

The Advocate is a self proclaimed news magazine and their website is "The Award-Winning LGBT News Site" so it’s a little strange when you see on their pages yesterday this "news" story about the former lover of  Portland mayor, Sam Adams accepting to pose, naked of course for, you guessed it, Unzipped magazine. Cross pollination is nothing new, but rarely this shameless.

The Academy Award of Tricks

It was bound to happen: we live in a digital era, where dating is nothing less than getting online and demanding your particular pleasure and expecting it. It's a nasty playground to be sure. People lie. Many people are bored and assuming a personality and image has never been easier. The "trick" is to never never follow through. If you do, you might find yourself on rateurtrick.com. Started in November 2008, RYT currently has 12,000 members. Started for noble reasons as creator Robert Hallman revealed in a recent interview:  I was living in Seattle in 2000 and a friend of mine and I knew someone named JonPaul who was constantly going off on this guy and that guy and after a while, just listening to him gave me the idea of doing the site. My friend John, however, decided it was a bad idea because of the potential of slander, etc.—but then we hadn’t done our research and we knew nothing about the CDA Act of 1996, so it never happened. I finally made the decision to do it when two things occurred: a friend of mine—who used drugs—was hung and overdosed by some guy while he was in their playroom, while his boyfriend was in the office area in the same house. All my friend remembers is the guy his lover was playing with walk by with this five-year-old laptop and leave the house and then he heard kicking sounds coming from the playroom and found his lover hanging by a noose, frothing at the mouth."
While most encounters are less dramatic, the sheer drama of finding out about next week's trick can be titillating. There will always be the potential for revenge—less than happy tricksters for a litany of reasons, discarding the truth for sexual fictions or other innuendo. ("Tweaker Tweaker Sunny Day, OMG it Sun, girl STAY AWAY....what a mess!") Or in an era of shameless self-promotion, you can always write yourself up in glowing terms. ("Hook up with this guy if you can") . The current listings are surprisingly kind: most men tell it like it is. People may lie about their age a few years, or a few inches, but it seems like most people are out there, having a lot of sex, and enjoying it. Check it out.

Happy Valentine's

Yes it is.

http://www.obviousmag.com/

Armani Exchange suggests a whole lotta love

The Armani Exchange store at the Shops at Mission Viejo is in hot water over a Valentine's day window display made of condoms arranged into a heart. It sounds innocuous to us, but then, we're not conservative Orange County parents, some of whom have been calling the mall to complain. (Our favorite critique, from the OC Register's comments section: "It's not multiple partners day, it's Valentine's Day." Seriously! Multiple Partners Day isn't until March, and anyway, it's really just a holiday Hallmark invented to sell more "#1 Booty Call" mugs.)
So far the store hasn't caved—unlike a branch in Michigan, which just took their display down—but this story is still developing. By the way, do note that the condoms are still in the packaging, meaning the display is about as licentious as that well-known locus of corruption, the Trojan section at CVS.
writer Izzy Grinspan

When Calvin Klein Was Bad

With the recent news alert that some Calvin Klein ads were being banned in the US, we decided it was time to look back when CK really did push the envelope. The envelope here being" they're so young!"

Sexy

How do they do it? The people at fantasticsmag.com continue to produce great, sexy fashion with an edge. This image from a story called "Circus Circus" features a wide range of stunning models in the most economic of settings—and it completely works. And it usually does.

Alert the Media: New Shoes for Men

Shoes...do you ever think about shoes? Women seem to love them, Filipino boys seem to love them.But sitting around the table talking shoes? Not lately. So it was a bit surprising to see this press release: After an absence of seven years on the menswear scene, Manolo Blahnik has dusted off his sketchbook - and created a line of men's shoes so fabulous, they are pretty much guaranteed to knock your man's socks off. The six-piece collection runs the gamut from safely stunning (the red suede Oxford brogue), to the outrageously gorgeous (in the shape of leopard print sandal, Bir). "It's not a big collection," reflects the designer, who was honoured with a CBE just a couple of weeks ago. "There are some simple sandals in beautiful materials, and a few classics - with a twist. I thought it was time to bring back some colour into the male wardrobe."
Now, I don't know anyone who is going t be wearing at least the first two shoes, the red shoes are a little too Moira Shearer for my taste, but I've been known to wear challenging colors. Maybe it's a metaphor. Fashion in general, men's fashion has always seemed precarious. Who buys those $180 Dolce Gabbana T shirts? Maybe the Oh La La Paris boys, but rarely do I see anyone wear anything really tony. Now, I confess, I work at a fashion school and a fashion newspaper, so the odds are really great that I should see more fashion on men, but it simply isn't so. I remember dating someone who worked at Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills and he worked in the men's fashion department. The high-end mens fashion. I would sometimes lurk for hours up there, just waiting for him to get off work. But I always looked to see who was shopping. First, more people looked than bought. I think they took one look at those prices and made for the nearest escalator. But there were some purchases. Now, hopefully, without offending anyone, these are simply my observations: Queens. Those guys you see out who seem to have a permanent curve to their eyebrows, a wisp of make-up and more than a dash of cologne. They usually seemed to be wearing fashion design wear and were out to purchase more. There were frankly a lot of Asian men. As was the person I was dating at the time. Or the William Sledd types: sightly pudgy, sarcastic and in reality, quite smart and shoppers.
Looking at the Blahnik shoes, I am reminded: fashion, high men's fashion is something that for most people is about the models, the designers and the strains they go to to make us look. And we do look. I'm just not sure we're buying it.

Tonga Delicious

Fantasticsmag.com always delivers something fresh, interesting and eye-worthy with this fashion spread featuring a model with the improbable name of Tonga Teave. Photographed on located in sunny Palm Springs by Edward St. George. Visit their site for the full monty.

Modelling Underwear: Behind the Seen

A Go Softwear fashion show caught on tape by the steady hand of Michael Davis. The Peacocks spread their fans.

WestHollywood.com's Oscar Espada gets into the mind and technology of underwear with Andrew Christian.
    Since its inception in 1997, the innovative and very contemporary collection of sports and swimwear that is Andrew Christian has become a favorite of the young, urban male in Los Angeles, Hollywood and West Hollywood. Teenagers as well as guys in their twenties and thirties continue to be drawn to the provocative line of underwear and the dramatically decorated t-shirts which sport gothic themes and variations of a cross- something that has become the Andrew Christian trademark. Today Andrew's clothing line is not only sold in some of the most exclusive stores in the US; countries like Japan, the UK, Sweden, France, Spain and Israel offer it as well.

The collection, which keeps coming up with new and exciting designs, has been the subject of features in magazines like West Hollywood’s “Frontiers” and ”In Magazine” and numerous other publications such as Holiday, Instinct, Genre and Sportswear; a true success story for a young man who only 10 years ago used to sell his modestly produced items in High School. Andrew, who is in his late twenties, has been one of the pioneers in the fashion underwear craze that has practically eradicated the use of plain white briefs and taken this market to the next level with his line of underwear made of different fabrics such as sports mesh, sheer, and baby thermal in a myriad of colors decorated with edgy and exciting designs that have transformed the underwear into one of the most important items in the fashion-conscious male’s wardrobe.

Some of Andrew's underwear includes what he calls "Show-it Technology” which is basically a strap that enhances and accentuates a man’s “prize processions”; a very handy feature for the guy “on the hunt”. “But the strap doesn’t have to be used all the time” says Andrew. ”So you can wear the briefs when you visit your parents”.
Most likely, the go-go boys that perform in the West Hollywood clubs own at least one pair of these provocative pieces.

Asking Andrew if he ever envisioned the degree of success that he’s enjoying today when he first started designing his own pieces back in High School, he candidly admits that although he trained to master his skill and pursued his dream of launching his own company, he had no way of truly knowing what the exact result of following his passion would be. He feels very content and grateful to the public for the great acceptance his line has had, and he is particularly grateful to the young crowd who were drawn to it from the very beginning.

What will be the next stop? Andrew will soon start hosting model contests, requesting men and woman to submit their photos. Once the winner is selected he, or she, will be featured in one of his upcoming publicity affairs such as club events, cross-country promotion campaigns, fashion shows etc.

Judging by the way styles keep evolving and changing and the urge that today’s urbanites have to look fashionable, young designers like Andrew Christian will undoubtedly be around for a long time to come, creating new and trend-setting items to satisfy the public’s thirst for innovation.

To see more of Andrew's work (and beautiful models), visit andrewchristian.com

V Men

VMAN #8 features a smoking Orlando Bloom and Men's Fashion on Fire.

Quite White

Be sure to check out fantasticsmag.com's new edition featuring NCAA football star Dave Brytus and the very sexy and graphically appealing fashion story about why white is right this summer featuring the viscously appealing model, Erik. On websites everywhere.

Mercury in Retrograde

Let me explain: If you ever want to see a taping of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, be warned, watch for that invisible shift in the universe called Mercury in Retrograde. Astrologers will explain that this is a short period of time in which communications become crossed; letters don't arrive when expected, appointment times get screwed up, even communication between partners or associates becomes like the game Telephone, what was originally said turns out to be something completely different than what was meant. And so it was, that on a bright morning in Burbank, Ca., standing in line to get those revered, long awaited tickets to the Ellen show, something goes amiss. The line is oddly formed; it isn't clear what direction the line will take until after nearly an hour and a half, it begins to move. Standing in line, one senses that these are people from elsewhere, not Los Angeles. Not for any detectable reason, just a feeling. At some point a PA (production assistant) takes to a bench and announces, though she can hardly be heard, there is construction going on very nearby, that today's show will not the coveted Valentine's Day Show, but the Mardi Gras show with special guest Harry Connick, Jr. A gasp of excitement comes collectively from the crowd. There are only sixty or so people, so the odds of getting in, seem very good. It is first come, first serve. The line moves, slowly, but deliberately towards the PA. With only five people in front of you, she stops, takes a phone call on her cell phone and explains to the remaining people in line, that the show is booked. But, you have choices. You can come back another day, or come back and join the "Riff Raff" room, which is standing only, you "might get in", nothing is guaranteed. Riff-Raff, which doesn't have a pleasant sound to it, nor meaning either:  This adjective originally referred to somebody who was disreputable or vulgar. Only later did it acquire the undertones it now has of a person who is attractively unconventional. This may have come from the second half of riff-raff, or from raff, which had survived by itself in dialect usage in much the same sense of the lowest class of the population. So you’re not only out, literally in cold, but you're less than a citizen of Ellen's world. This has all taken place between 8:30 am and 9:45 am. And this all feels familiar, like that that strange slow shift backward motion in the universe, call Retrograde. You can google the word and find out when it occurs. And here’s what is says: February 13, 9:38 AM MST,  Retrograde at 10 degrees 14 minutes Pisces.

Jean Paul Gaultier's Mane Day

Inspired by the book Bad Hair by James Innes-Smith, Gaultier took the stage yesterday at Paris Fashion Week with hair spray can in hand.