Bruce of Los Angeles Book Release

Bruce Bellas (aka Bruce of Los Angeles) (1909–1974) was born in Alliance, Nebraska and was a chemistry teacher before taking up photography. He set out on road trips through America’s heartland, photographing farmhands, athletes, soldiers, and sailors along the way, and eventually made his way to California, where he began shooting bodybuilding contests all along the coast. As his career blossomed, he branched out into color work, 8mm films, and 3-D slides, and by the 1960s had succeeded in publishing his own magazine, The Male Figure. He died in 1974, leaving behind one of the most comprehensive photo archives of the time.

Spank give a ten inch salute to these erotic flicks and Bruce — an icon of gay art and one of the most famous names in physique photography. The excellent NYC publisher Powerhouse releases Bruce of Los Angeles: Inside/Outside this Thursday Nov 6th. It’s a great limited edition collection of Bellas’ rare photographs that also includes a DVD of 12 digitally remastered films, score one if you can!