NAKED MEN: PIONEERING MALE NUDES 1935-1955 by Leddick, David; Winslow, Ethan; Brynner, Yul & Other Models; Platt Lynes, George & Other Artists - 1997

New York City, NY: Universe Publishing/Rizzoli, 1997. First Edition. First Printing.. Hardcover. Fine/Fine Dust Jacket.. New York City, NY: Universe Publishing/Rizzoli, 1997. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. First Edition/First Printing. 127 pages. Landmark collection of male nudes. One of the most beautiful erotic art photography books of our time. The First Hardcover Edition. Precedes and should not be confused with all other subsequent editions, particularly the British Facsimile Edition, which was issued one year later, in 1998. Published in a small and limited first print run as a hardcover original only. The First Edition is now scarce. An austerely elegant production by Ethan Winslow: Oversize-volume format. Pictorial hard boards with titles on spine, as issued. Photographs by various contributors. Foreword by Quentin Crisp. Printed on pristine-white, thick coated stock paper in Singapore to the highest standards. In pictorial DJ with titles on the cover and spine, as issued. Presents David Leddick's and Ethan Winslow's "Naked Men: Pioneering Male Nudes 1935-1955". Preserves for posterity some of the best early male nudes taken in America for artistic as well as sensual purposes, the two being closely intertwined. What makes this collection stand apart is its success in locating nudes of American models who eventually became successful actors, artists, and even writers. Yul Brynner is here, with a full head of hair, in an unabashed, full-frontal pose. So are Horst, Christopher Isherwood, Tennessee Williams, George Platt Lynes, and Paul Cadmus. The single most beautiful model is William Christian Miller, photographed by both George Platt Lynes and Paul Cadmus. Miller was "so beautiful he stopped cars in the streets" (he was Platt Lynes' muse) . Accompanied by a historical account of the development of the male photographic nude, each still-living model is shown as he looks at the time of the book's publication. The first volume in a trilogy that continues with "Naked Men Too" and concludes with "Male Nude Now", bringing the subject up-to-date, the sequels are brilliant and essential, but they do not surpass the importance and production values of this pioneering, inaugural volume. An absolute "must-have" title for erotic art photography collectors. This copy is very prominently and beautifully signed, dated (on the day of the book launch) , and inscribed in metallic-silver pen-marker on the front free endpaper by the authors/editors: "With all best wishes, David Leddick Ethan Winslow June 26, 1997". It is signed directly on the page itself, not on a tipped-in page. The recipient, a prominent Silicon Valley figure/collector, is named, but cannot be named here. This title is an erotic art photography classic. As far as we know, this is the only such signed, book-launch-day dated, and inscribed copy of the First Hardcover Edition/First Printing available online and is in especially fine condition: Clean, crisp, and bright. Please note: Precedes and should NOT be confused with the British Edition, which was issued one year later, in 1998. Copies available online have serious flaws, are subsequent printings, or are remainder-marked. This is surely an accessible and lovely alternative. A rare signed copy thus. Lavishly illustrated with black-and-white plates. Some of the finest male nudes of the 20th century. A fine collectible copy. (SEE ALSO "NAKED MEN TOO: LIBERATING THE MALE NUDES 1950-2000" AND "MALE NUDE NOW" TITLES IN OUR CATALOG). ISBN 0789300796.