Joe Weider and his brother Ben – founders of the modern fitness and bodybuilding industry – also published Men’s Fitness and Adventure magazines in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Kinda like “pulp novels” but in magazine form. Topics ranged from sports and crime to the Korean War. “You too can have muscles” to avoiding smoking and the dangers of petting. These are covers from those publications that combined male fitness, contemporary issues and adventures into a periodical for bodybuilders, fitness enthusiasts and their admirers.
There were those of us who discovered these, or similar publications in the early 70’s, during our teenage years and found them an avenue of escape, fantasy and adventure. However (this in no way whatsoever diminishes the publications and the successful men and women who founded the modern industry) the pictures and the stories some of us found exciting in a way that was different from their other admirers and followers. And it took some years to finally realize the what’s and why’s about a homoerotic attraction (and it’s a whole other topic not even ready to tackle here).
So let’s take a look at some of the cover art and manly men displayed !
