ART AFICIONADO

Saturday, February 4, 2023

Carol Shaya

Acting Appreciation

I kind of remember this story being the headlines when I was in college. Carol Shaya, a New York police officer who posed for PLAYBOY magazine had been terminated for improperly using her uniform and the police department's logo. She got her job back after a judge reviewed the case, but was then fired by the police commissioner who argued that her appearance violated the City Charter and department's rules.

Born in Tel-Aviv, Israel, on February 4, 1969, Shaya immigrated to America as a child. She graduated from Benjamin N. Cardozo High School in Queens, NY, in 1987, and attended St. John's University.

In 1991, Carol joined NYPD. Around that time, she met her then-husband, Charles Castro, during the Crown Heights riots.

The Beaux Arts Society crowned Carol "Queen" of the Beaux Arts Ball in 1994. She was then approached by PLAYBOY to pose nude. She appeared on the cover with a big picture layout in the August 1994 issue of PLAYBOY. It is said she was paid $100,000 (about $201,000 today).

Although she lost badge over the incident, baring it all did make her a celebrity. She appeared in police-drama, New York Undercover, and Silent Prey and appeared in many television and radio talk shows.

She sold real estate in Queens before moving to West Hollywood to work as an actress and personal trainer.

Photographs by Stephen Wayda

Sources:

Wikipedia

https://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/08/nyregion/following-up.html

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0790140/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1

Friday, February 3, 2023

Maitland Ward

Acting Appreciation

Last fall, 2022, I heard Maitland Ward interviewed on Holly Randall's Unfiltered (Ep. 260) podcast. I'll be honest, I have been following Maitland since she was on Boy Meets World, the ABC/Disney show of the late 90s. So, I knew a little bit about Maitland.

Born on February 3, 1977, the 5'10" American actress is best known for her role as Rachel McGuire on Boy Meets World and its spinoff Girl Meets World. But it didn't start there. She made her debut at the age of 16 on the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful. She was then a guest-star in USA High, Home Improvement, and co-starred with Jay Thomas and Mario Lopez in the television film Killing Mr. Griffin.

She was on Holly Randall's podcast promoting her new book, Rated X, which I bought and read. Highly recommend and you can find it HERE. The book follows her life and career as a "Disney" actress and the cut-throat industry.

In the book, she isn't ashamed, and shouldn't be, of her sexuality and sexual needs, which led her to pose nude and then act in adult film. In a way, she is a pioneer for actors bridging from mainstream Hollywood acting to adult entertainment, and vice versa.

She has received multiple accolades for her performances, especially from AVN and XBIZ.

Source:

Wikipedia

https://pipocamoderna.com.br/2019/10/ex-estrela-da-serie-teen-o-mundo-e-dos-jovens-vira-atriz-porno/maitland-ward/

https://babesrater.com/picture/6261650/maitland-ward

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Wednesday, February 1, 2023

Great Day to Make a Snow-woman

Howard Shoemaker, PLAYBOY March 1995

Tuesday, January 31, 2023

Rodolphe Töpffer

Art Appreciation

Born in Geneva, Switzerland on January 31, 1799, Rodolphe Töpffer is considered to be one of the earliest and most influential cartoonists and graphic novelists in history. He is credited with creating the first comics and graphic novels, which he called "récits en estampes" or "narratives in prints."

Töpffer became a school teacher in Geneva. In his early 20s he established his own boarding school for boys. He was then appointed Professor of Literature at the University of Geneva in 1832.

It was his short stories and caricatures he drew to entertain his students that made him famous. His comics were a combination of text and illustrations, and featured a wide range of characters and genres.

Historie de M. Vieux Bois (1837) is considered to be the first graphic novel. It was published in the United States in 1842 as The Adventures of Mr. Obadiah Oldbuck.

The process he used to create his works was a form of lithography known as autography, which allowed for quicker reproduction.

Töpffer's comics were not only a new form of entertainment but also a new way of storytelling, allowing him to express his thoughts and ideas in a new and innovative way. His comics were a fusion of art, literature and humor which was a new concept in the 1820s.

Before his death in 1847, he wrote on child art and creativity in Réflexions Et Menus-propos D'un Peintre Genevois Ou Essai Sur Le Beau Dans Les Arts that children often displayed greater creativity than trained artists, whose creativity was often overshadowed by their technical skills.