I keep coming back to the most essential place and period for the material I have been collecting, buying and selling for almost 30 years: Paris in the 1920s and 1930s. It is the fountain of publications with a certain style, a certain seductiveness; the illusive "je ne sais quoi". Here is Frivolites Parisiennes a "one shot" publication, beautifully printed in dark burgundy toned gravure and featuring a hand full of Diana Slip lingerie company photographs by Roger Schall and Brassai. Quite rare!
And Jambes, the first of three issues published. A rare bird indeed, featuring revealing photographs of legs, shoes, boots, stockings tops and garter belts as well as raised skirts showing off frilly panties and lingerie. Happily, views looking-up at legs on ladders is also a feature. The precursor to what would follow almost 30 years later on the pages of Elmer Batters' Black Silk Stocking magazines. Published by Paris-Photo, the photographs credited to Paris-Photo Studio.
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The precursor to the Parliament heels and hose genre of magazines were the magazines self-published by Elmer Batters in the late 1950s. Batters was ahead of his time, focusing on what he personally was obsessed with and eventually everyone else (the big, slick magazines publishers) caught on. Here are Sheer Delights, Leg-O-Rama and Black Silk Stockings featuring some of his favorite girls from his stable of models. Always great photographs cover to cover. Batters later years at Parliament will follow in a separate post.
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The exceptional fetish fancier's magazine, first published in England, 1948 by Benson Herbert. Each issue from Utopia bore a different title (see link) similar to those posted listed here: Snap, Haywire, Blue Stories, Cuban Capers, Heebee Jeebees and Hubba Hubba. Serious collectors of these magazines, filled with stories and illustrations about voluptuous females in restrictive clothing and foot wear, estimate about 80 different titles were published.
The obsessive texts brought to life the stylized illustrations, signed Janine, used throughout each issue and on each cover. Janine, a pseudonym for Reina Bull, was an accomplished illustrator of fantasy and sci-fi book covers. The illustrations, of well endowed busty ladies with large derrieres, bulging thighs and calves, were caricature-like fantasy creatures.
Particular obsessions were for corsets, tiny waists, stocking tops revealing garter belts and straps, ultra-high high heels, tightly laced calf-high boots, stockings, girdles, restrictive foundations and frilly, frou-frou lingerie from the turn-of-the-century.
The first five covers are of the original magazines found on the web. The second group are reprints from the mid-1960s (from my archives) with two replacement cover illustrations by Gene Bilbrew, possibly pirated.
Click here to see Steve Holland's excellent blog about Utopia and Reina Bull.
Following are Utopia reprints circa mid-1960s. Fads & Fancies numbers 4, 5 and 6. The covers for numbers 5 and 6 are illustrations by American fetish illustrator, Gene Bilbrew, aka Eneg.
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