David L. Chapman

"American Hunks depicts the muscular American male as documented in popular culture from 1860 to 1970. The book, divided into specific historic eras, includes such personalities as bodybuilder Charles Atlas, pioneer weightlifter Eugen Sandow, and movie stars like Steve "Hercules" Reeves and Johnny Weissmuller, and publications such as the 1920s-era magazine Physical Culture and the 1950s-era comic book Mr. Muscles. It also touches on the use of masculine, homoerotic imagery to sell political and military might, and how companies have used buff, near-naked men to sell products from laundry detergent to sacks of flour since the 1920s."--Jacket.

"Over the past 100 years, the image of the physically strong, confident, muscular woman has been the object of derision, fascination, and erotic fantasy; she is often portrayed, in both photography and illustration, as a sexy dominatrix, sexless mannequin, or sideshow freak. In this collection of rare archival images from the late 19th to mid-20th century, authors David L. Chapman and Patricia Vertinsky trace the peculiar yet fascinating history of muscular women in popular culture. One of the battlefields in this cultural conflict appeared in popular imagery: posters, advertisements, comic books, magazine illustrations, and (most particularly) photography all offered outlets of expression for many muscular women. Until quite recently, however, such females were packaged for the general public as physical monstrosities, lesbian man-haters, kinky sex objects, or beautiful living statues. At the same time, many women, including those in the emerging female bodybuilder community, have had to fight hard to reclaim the image of female muscularity as their own. Featuring some 200 full-color and black-and-white illustrations, many never before published, Venus with biceps is a beautiful and historically significant book about gender, image, social expectations, and female power."--Back cover.