R.I.P. Joe Michael 'Dusty' Hill. 1949-2021.

R.I.P. Mike Howe. 1965-2021.

Free the tiddies! 30yrs ago today, the controversy of female toplessness in Canada began in Guelph,ON when on a sweltering hot day, 19yr old university student Gwen Jacob took off her shirt while walking down a street. After a local Karen who witnessed her, called the police to complain that one of her young children had glimpsed the bare boobies, Gwen was picked up and charged with public indecency. While awaiting trial, in the surrounding media scrum & protests about the right of women to claim that exhibited breasts are not lewd, Gwen blasted discrimination, bias, hypocrisy & double standard claiming that at the same time of her arrest, bare-chested men were visible in a nearby sports field. With the Criminal Code citing the specific nudity as being offensive for contravening community standards and thus a violation of law, a judge found her guilty in Jan 1992 and fined her $75. After losing on appeal to the Ontario Court, she then appealed to the Ontario Court of Appeal who 5yrs later in December 1996, overturned her conviction saying being topless was not a sexual act, based for the purpose of profit, or an action that was under a definition of degrading/dehumanizing. The brief attention had seen Gwen appear on a talk show, and directly resulted in the cases of 2 other women (Saskatchewan, British Columbia) have their similar charges dropped. Although vindicated based on a less restrictive interpretation of morality, the ruling remains still murky due to the Supreme Court of Canada NOT finalizing that while there was no obscenity, being topless doesn't fall under the consideration of a constitutional right of equality. Although now legal (yet not necessarily culturally easier), the same actions by women afterward can still see charges laid & facing prosecution elsewhere in the country.
[I'm almost certain the talk show was Sally Jessy Raphael, and I def remember Gwen recounting a funny incident of how a city bus driver with passengers nearly jumped a curb and crashed into a pole because he was straining to look at her topless, and also of being annoyed & getting snippy at another female panel guest who was interruptive and condescendingly called her "dear" which set her off].

This month marks the 70th anniversary of the publication debut of MODERN MAN magazine (1951). One of the very first precursors of PLAYBOY, this adult picture magazine featured humor, cars, pop culture, softcore sex and photos of buxom models & movie stars like Marilyn Monroe, Mamie Van Doren, Jayne Mansfield, and many lookalikes. The final print issue was Dec 1976.


JULY 1951 ON THE WORLD STAGE Talks to end the Korean war will begin later in July after terms were accepted by General Matthew Ridgway, supreme commander to the United Nations in the Far East. Original proposals for the ceasefire talks were made by General Ridgway to the Communists who requested changes which have today been agreed to. In his primary message to the North Korean commander Kim Il-Sung and the Commander of the Chinese Communist forces General Peng Tuh-huai, General Ridgway stated, "since agreement on armistice terms has to precede the cessation of hostilities, delay in initiating the meeting and reaching agreement will prolong the fighting and increase tension." But at the request of the Chinese & North Koreans, the talks will be delayed by 10 to 15 days. The delay is thought to be because of difficulties in reaching Kaesong due to transport problems although there is speculation the delay is to allow a finalization of tactics. The talks are to be held in Kaesong, a city in the southwestern part of the North and so far in the armed conflict, the only city to change previous control from the South. The location is aslo no-man's land just south of the 38th Parallel which forms the joint border of separation between both countries. Liaison officers from all sides are due to arrive in Kaesong on July 5th for preliminary talks and General Ridgway has asked for "positive assurances of safe conduct for this personnel" for when the officers travel to the conference. They are expected to co-ordinate details of the truce negotiations to end the war with the hope of substantial agreements further involving the US Navy and North Korean Army, arrangements for a demarcation line, a demilitarized zone, discussions on how the truce will be supervised, and the issue of prisoners of war. Back in April, President Harry Truman fired his popular General, Douglas MacArthur, from his position as Commander of American forces which shocked the public back home and stunned the world. Both men had clashed over the war's direction, and when the General suggested using the highly devastating atomic bomb, his comments were seen as a dangerous & reckless provocation. What ensued with each was a public war of words that resulted in MacArthur being dismissed, and replaced by Ridgway. The Korean War began in June 1950 when North Korea invaded the South at several points along the 38th parallel. The North is equipped & trained by both the Soviet Union and China, while the South is supported by a United Nations coalition made up of some 20 countries with the United States providing the overwhelming assistance in fighting.

35yrs ago this month, The revelation of Traci Lords starting her xxx career as a 15yr old underage performer came from an FBI and Los Angeles County District Attorney investigation beginning in late May 1986, based on an anonymous source first disclosing the information that she was a minor. The state ID, driver's license, birth certificate & passport she used had all been fake which she at one point called the phony documents "a white lie." She was exposed 2 months later and as the industry reeled, it went into damage control that saw producers, photographers, and model agency owners arrested. Millions of dollars were spent having to pull her magazines, pictures & hardcore videos out of circulation -- with owning her now-banned material being classified as 'possession of CP.' [Many of her films just removed her scenes, had a new actress play her part, and shot new footage]. As criticism mounted in the backlash, she claimed that she had been sexually abused by her Mom's boyfriend who got her into the porn world. But when Traci then badmouthed the biz (that had made her a rich sensation) saying she had been manipulated, drugged and forced into non-consent -- all requiring several months of therapy, her ex-peers swiftly condemned her saying they never once recalled her criticizing or complaining but rather just the opposite in which she basked in the attention & fame. Blasted as a spoiled & calculating fibber, HUSTLER mag named her an 'Asshole of the Month' in its pages; and in subsequent documentaries about the xxx world with segments that spoke of the controversy, Veronica Hart specifically had no love lost in calling her a hypocrite. In the aftermath of Traci's seeming downfall, many said that she herself was the law enforcement leak by having schemed to trade off her notoriety by using the publicity to propel a move into a mainstream career. By year's end, the movie TRACI'S BIG TRICK was released. An unauthorized bio loosely based on the real sordid saga, it heavily vilifies Lords (played by Jacqueline Lorians). Traci left porn 2 days after turning 18 which was also the same day her single only legal movie (TRACI, I LOVE YOU) wrapped filming and was released in 1987.