Walter Kundzicz as Champion Studio

Under the name Champion Studio, Walter Kundzicz (b. 1925) became one of last of the great pioneers of physique photography when he entered the field in the late 1950's. Unlike the earlier oiled-and-posed demigods who graced the pages of the popular magazines of the day (Strength and Health, Muscle Power, Tomorrow's Man, The Young Physique and similar publications), Champion's handsome young models were a new breed. They were less often competitive bodybuilders and instead seemed more like the bad-boys-next-door that viewers secretly wanted to sneak a peak of in the locker room or fool around with under the bleachers. Kundzicz's images were bold and iconoclastic in their use of costumes, uniforms, props and vivid color. These photographs became wildly popular with mail-order customers and collectors because they stood in stark contrast to most of the physique photography available at that time. While Champion was at its peak in the mid-1960's, Kundzicz launched and published his own magazines, including Big and Go Guys, expanding and strengthening the Champion brand. His ability to create and market these colorful, campy images of handsome young men assured him of a loyal fan base that continues to grow even today, a half century after most of his iconic images were created. In his color photos of nude and semi-nude athletic men of the 50's and 60's, Walter Kundzicz pushed the societal taboos of his time and skirted the fringes of legality. In his Champion Studios he portrayed his toned and scantily clad models in delicate and playful postures that not only lived out and performed common homoerotic fantasies, but also perfectly captured the rigid but changing sexual climate in North America between the Kinsey report and hippy free love. Today Kundzicz is considered one of the best photographers of his genre, with his prints becoming rare collectibles.