This is a totally fresh publication, offering some of the best modern pinup imagery by contemporary photography greats. Volume one is on sale at cost – only $9 for a bundle including both the print and .pdf versions!
Marilee Caruso and I shot some fun Black Lodge-themed cosplay images earlier this year, featuring me as Laura Palmer from David Lynch’s and Mark Frost’s quirky Twin Peaks TV show. We went for a slightly 1930s-1940s Laura as the show is known for its frequent retro visual callbacks, and – as I was 48 at the time the photos were shot – an older Laura, which is more in line with the third season of the show. The final season aired in 2017, featuring versions of all the characters aged 25 years from their original appearance during the early-90s run of the show.
Two more pinup publications this year, both with photography, makeup and hair by Marilee Caruso! My Rick’s Dessert Diner images are in the super-duper Social Pin Issue 72 (and on the back cover!) and my Lucy Westenra (of the Coppola Bram Stoker’s Dracula adaptation fame) pics are in Volume 1 of Retro Lovely‘s new Vampyre special edition!
Marilee Caruso took the photos and did the glam for both sets.
The first feature (my singles from our “Brides of Dracula” vampire shoot) got six pages in volume 8, and the second (lingerie witch) received six pages and a cover for volume 9.
The photos ended up being playful and funny, as we very quickly moved away from me playing terrorized victim to the creature himself turning tail and running away. I’m guessing it was my big net and massive Dooneese Maharelle energy that scared him off? The world may never know.
Anyway, a fun way to bridge the gap between hot Summer days by the lagoon and Halloween.
The June issue of Bombshell magazine is out! My Hearst Castle-inspired set by Marilee Caruso (who also did the makeup and hair) is in Book 1, including the inside cover facing the table of contents. If you want to grab this – or any – Magcloud publication on sale, there’s a discount code right now: MAG25.
Since I am a huge fan of William Randolph Hearst’s La Cuesta Encantata estate (“the enchanted hill,” now a California State Park located near San Simeon, CA), I wanted to incorporate a sliver of the atmosphere there. Virtually all aspects of the architecture and decoration were overseen by architect and Berkeley grad (Go Bears!) Julia Morgan over nearly three decades, and it remains one of her most impressive projects.
Since we couldn’t shoot at the actual house, we adapted Marilee’s “study” setup to double as W.R.’s library. The original room is very Spanish Baroque in ways that only a wealthy media mogul who collected lots of European antiques can replicate, but we did our best. I added a reproduction Greek vase (dude collected tons of art, including a huge ancient pottery collection from Greek antiquity which he highlighted in his library) and my “Citizen Kane” snowglobe to the studio set.
Marilee put images from my Film Noir shoot on the late 1940s tv console to add another layer of meaning, as both Hearst and Marion Davies (his girlfriend and major silent era and golden age of Hollywood star) were involved in the early American film industry. Given the tv cabinet and the more mid-century look of the studio set, we couldn’t do 1920s or 30s. And since the house was closed during World War II and Mr. Hearst and Davies left the house in 1947 due to the former’s ill health, we figured a small evening party in 1946 or 1947 “coulda happened” like this.
You can find this and all my issues via my Linktree.
To grab a copy of my cover issue (or a poster featuring the cover art), here are the Magcloud links (don’t forget to use code MAG20 through 5/25/2023 to get 20% off):