history of male nude photography 105

Frederick Kovert (aka Frederick Ko Vert, Fred de kovert and Kovert of Hollywood) was a minor silent screen actor known for his drag roles. His first movie was "An Adventuress" (1920) with Rudolph Valentino in a minor role. In 1944 Kovert started (last film in 1931) a new career as a photographer; he is the true father of modern physique photography, better known photographers like Bob Mizer or Douglas of Detroit would learn their trade from him. Kovert had a store in West Hollywood during the 1940s where he worked with a particular attention to the lighting, photographing athletic models like Greek-Roman statues, as gladiators or Olympian Wrestlers (law allowed nude photographs unless they had some "socially redeeming value"); despite the limited context of the photos there is a certain freshness, innocence, vitality and casuality even when models are obviously posing. Kovert suffered from mental illness and committed suicide in 1947, most of his work has gone lost. However there is a gossip that claims that Kovert only bought photographs and hired other photographers (like Spartan of Hollywood) to do the work.