Buddy Basil -- Mr. New Jersey, 1960

Buddy Basil (his first name has been given as both James and John, so I'll just stick with Buddy!) had a competitive and modeling career stretching from 1955 into the early 1960s. Only one of my files has the photographer ID'd -- the December, 1955 cover of "Muscle Power" is credited to the mysterious "Togof." The portrait sure looks like it could be by Danny Fitzgerald (aka "Les Demi-Dieux"), who was, like Togof, a New York-based artist. A few more shots of Buddy can be found at the fun site Classic Bodybuilders of the Golden Age.

(That's Bob Hover sharing the April, 1957 cover of "Tomorrow's Man" with Buddy.)

From tiny Johnny T's do mighty Johnny T's grow...

Predating even the Scott sessions are photos of a noticeably sleeker Johnny taken by Vulcan (Anthony Guyther - a New York-based photographer) and the mysterious "Togof" (possibly one of the several aliases used by Guyther, but no one can say for certain). A bit of trivia -- for his first couple of physique magazine appearances, he was billed as "John Trenton" before becoming famous under his real name. Here's a look at a young, pensive Johnny T by Vulcan...

...and with that, I wish you all a good night!