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Most of these materials date from the mid-twentieth century, they were produced in the United States, and they circulated widely across the country and abroad. On one side of the wall, we find a set of seven photographs portraying men in the shower. Some years ago, the Mark S. Bonham Centre’s Sexual Representation Collection (SRC) acquired Waugh’s pornography collection, which he assembled throughout the years while researching the history of adult and queer film, and erotic visual culture.

His inaugural model in his first catalogue ended up being Jim Stryker, the model with whom he was caught during the police raid. This "health" framing allowed the material to circulate via mail order, fostering a subcultural network that sustained gay visual erotica during an era of criminalized homosexuality.The Stonewall riots of 1969 marked a pivotal turning point, catalyzing the gay liberation movement and paving the way for more overt mainstreaming of beefcake in gay media.

After rising as a WWE superstar, Johnson departed the organization full-time in 2004 to pursue acting, leveraging his charisma and physicality for broader appeal.[61] His role as DSS agent Luke Hobbs in the Fast & Furious franchise, beginning with Fast Five (2011), solidified his status, contributing to the series' expansion into high-stakes action spectacles through subsequent entries like Fast & Furious 6 (2013) and Furious 7 (2015).[62][63]Chris Hemsworth and Henry Cavill have redefined beefcake ideals in contemporary superhero cinema, showcasing sculpted forms tailored for mythic roles.

Kundzicz had wisely taken to keeping his original materials – still images, slides, and films – in multiple safety deposit boxes at a local bank.

This time, the trial dragged on for a dreary, anxiety-ridden eight months. Organizations like the Gay Men's Health Crisis produced materials such as Safer Sex Comix, which incorporated explicit, humorous depictions of fit male bodies to promote condom use and risk reduction, countering stigma and making prevention messages relatable and empowering for gay men.

His influence extended to educational institutes and publications that democratized physical training for middle-class men seeking to reclaim vitality in an urbanizing world.[18]Bernarr Macfadden further advanced the movement by founding Physical Culture magazine in 1899, which became a leading platform for articles, photographs, and advice on bodybuilding, diet, and hygiene, explicitly celebrating male muscularity as essential for health and success.

Cheesecake, referring to depictions of women in alluring poses, originated in the 1930s amid burlesque performances and early photography, where it functioned as a euphemistic term for semi-nude or flirtatious representations that avoided direct censorship.[79] Beefcake emerged in the 1940s as its male counterpart, coined to describe muscular male figures in films and magazines, mirroring cheesecake's structure but adapted to highlight male physiques in a similarly stylized manner.[80] These parallels underscore a gendered symmetry in objectification, where both tropes commodify bodies for visual consumption, often in advertising and entertainment contexts.[81]Despite these similarities, significant differences arise from societal taboos surrounding the male gaze and objectification.

Coined around 2015, the dad bod—characterized by a softer, less chiseled build—gained traction as a counterpoint to hyper-muscular ideals, with surveys indicating preferences for relatable, non-extreme bodies among dating app users.[43][44] This shift aligns with broader body positivity campaigns that critique rigid standards, encouraging inclusivity for varied body types in media and advertising, though muscular imagery persists alongside these evolutions.[45][46]Into the 2020s, beefcake ideals have seen a resurgence in media and celebrity culture, with a shift away from slimmer aesthetics toward more overtly muscular "hunks" as of 2024, exemplified by figures like Glen Powell and Jeremy Allen White, reflecting fluctuating preferences for confident, physically imposing male representations while body positivity continues to influence broader inclusivity.[47][48]

Notable Examples

Classic Beefcake Figures

One of the most iconic figures in the classic beefcake era was Steve Reeves, a former bodybuilder who rose to prominence through his starring roles in Italian peplum films during the late 1950s.

in History from the University of Toronto (2022) where he is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow.

A champion of the erotic: The history of Champion Studio, Part I

Author’s note: This is the first in a two-part series on the history of Champion Studio

Like nearly all other male physique photographers in the mid-20th century, Walter Kundzicz’s life was equal parts beauty and struggle.

The man who would go on to introduce Champion Studio to the world of beefcake photography was born on January 10, 1925, in Newark, New Jersey.

beefcake gay

This era's momentum reduced legal barriers, allowing beefcake imagery to evolve into a more explicit celebration of queer desire within dedicated gay media ecosystems.During the 1980s AIDS crisis, beefcake imagery played a crucial role in gay activism and safer-sex campaigns, leveraging muscular male aesthetics to engage communities devastated by the epidemic.

Laurin explains:

“The images that struck me most while sorting through the thousands of photographs in this collection were the ones that had a more mundane, everyday setting. Kundzicz’s older brother became his guardian, and the youth moved to Tennessee to live with him. He secured seven Mr. Olympia titles from 1970 to 1980, dominating the competition with six straight wins from 1970 through 1975 before a comeback victory in 1980.[57][58] Schwarzenegger's shift to acting gained momentum with his portrayal of the relentless cyborg in The Terminator (1984), which established him as a box-office draw in action genres and expanded his influence across multiple films in the franchise.[59][60]Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson embodies the evolution of beefcake from wrestling arenas to global film dominance.

“He asked, ‘Have any of you gentlemen picked up any of these models to prove your contention that these guys have erections?’ Of course, the answer was no. He sparked a friendship with one, and became a quasi-apprentice for the other (Don Young), watching the artist oil up his models and set up his cameras.

Watching Young in action, Kundzicz finally became convinced that he, too, could make a living from photographing young men in the buff.

According to Kundzicz, Stryker eventually settled down, married, and had two children. This internet-era evolution highlights beefcake's enduring resonance in LGBTQ+ spaces, shifting from print-era secrecy to online communal play while retaining its roots in male physical idealization.

Influence on Fashion and Advertising

The commercialization of beefcake imagery in fashion and advertising began prominently in the 1950s, with swimwear and underwear brands leveraging muscular male models to appeal to post-war ideals of vitality and leisure.

 

Undeterred, Kundzicz and a friend worked for months saving up to found the studio that would become Champion.