This is an interesting movie to say the least. It was, at least partially, an attempt by Sal Mineo to move into more challenging roles and be seen in a different light. Mission accomplished! Movie featured obscene phone calls, voyeurism, implied masturbation, implied incest, trips to the porn shop, a predatory lesbian (it was 1965), and more. Matter of fact it was banned in England back in the day - more for subject matter than anything else (ie no real nudity). Several sites stated that this was the first movie to feature a male in tight white briefs instead of boxers (not sure if this is true or not) but I doubt there are many films that spend so much time lovingly fetishizing the male leads body.Anyway bunch of pics to follow. BTW, if you have any interest in Sal Mineo (one of the few actors brave enough to talk about his sexuality in the 70's) this is a great book:
Interview where Sal talks about the role and underwear:
And it was also at that time I was doing the film Who Killed Teddy Bear? with Juliet Prowse, where I played a telephone freak, and we were having this hassle with the censors. "You see, in some of the shots while I was on the 'phone they wanted to sorta suggest that I was masturbating, but I couldn't be naked - this was '67 or '68. So I was just wearing jockey shorts. It turned out that that was the first American film where a man wore jockey shorts. They always hadda wear boxer shorts on screen. So I got hit with all of this, and I'm laughing about all this controversy about what is considered obscene! Imagine! And only a few years later we've got Deep Throat!"First pics have Sal in briefs but you don't see his face in any of the shots (you aren't supposed to know who the obscene caller is yet)
These pants are tight enough you can pretty much tell he is wearing briefs under them.
Off to the gym!
Not from movie but who cares at this point
Never heard about this actor, and those movies. This post is just amazing ! Such beautiful classical black and white ! Never imagine there was a movie like that with withe briefs. Of course, his bulge in whities is missing. But great discover to me. thank you Adam.
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome Fren. Sal was also the model for a famous nude painting in the guggenheim. "The New Adam." http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/collections/collection-online/artwork/15278
DeleteJames Franco made a movie about the life of Sal....I don't know if it was ever released past a few select showings in his film school.
ReplyDeletehis best known film is Rebel without a Cause. He played the character of Plato. In the film the sexual tension between Mineo and James Dean was insanely palpable. It seems this where the speculation of James Dean's bisexuality seems to have started and why the studios tried so hard to pair Dean with co-star Natalie Wood. Mineo, like Tab Hunter, was open about his homosexuality which is why is been relegated the back pages of Hollywood History. He was murdered in a robber/gay bashing in 1973.
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