Hunk House

Physique Pictorial

In December 1945, at age 23, Bob Mizer forms his physique‑photography studio Athletic Model Guild & befriends bodybuilders of Muscle Beach in Los Angeles who model for him in exchange for free prints.

Bob initially promoted his photographs through ads in Strength and Health, but when the U.S. Postal Service threatened the magazine in 1950 to no longer accept ads of that nature, he was forced to adapt. At just 29, rather than lose his primary marketing channel, he created his own publication, Physique Photo News, featuring both his images & work from other studios. By the second issue, he sharpened the concept & renamed it Physique Pictorial, the title that would come to define his legacy.

1-1
May 1951
From Photocopy
1-2
November 1951
From Photocopy
2-1
February 1952
From Photocopy
2-2
May 1952
From Photocopy
2-3
August 1952
2-4
Winter 1952
From Photocopy
3-1
Spring 1953
From Photocopy
3-2
May 1953
From Photocopy
3-3
August 1953
Special Revue 1
October 1953
3-4
December 1953
4-1
March 1954
Coming Soon
4-2
June 1954
Coming Soon
4-3
Fall 1954
Coming Soon
4-4
Winter 1954
Coming Soon
5-1
Spring 1955
5-2
Summer 1955
5-3
Fall 1955
5-4
Winter 1955
Coming Soon
6-1
Spring 1956
6-2
Summer 1956
6-3
Fall 1956
7-1
Spring 1957
7-2
Summer 1957
7-3
Fall 1957
7-4
Winter 1957
8-1
Sprint 1958
8-2
Summer 1958
8-3
Fall 1958
8-4
Winter 1958
Released: March 1959
9-1
Spring 1959
Released: July 1959
Masthead: 9-9
9-2
Summer 1959
Released: September 1959
9-3
January 1960
9-4
April 1960
10-1
June 1960
10-2
August 1960
10-3
January 1961
10-4
April 1961
11-1
August 1961
11-2
November 1961
11-3
March 1962
11-4
May 1962
12-1
July 1962
12-2
November 1962
12-3
January 1963
12-4
May 1963
13-1
August 1963
13-2
October 1963
13-3
February 1963
13-4
May 1964
14-1
July 1964
14-2
October 1964
14-3
February 1965
14-4
June 1965
15-1
October 1965
15-2
January 1966
15-3
June 1966
15-4
September 1966
Cover: 15-3
16-1
December 1966
16-2
April 1967
16-3
September 1967
16-4
February 1968
17-1
July 1968
17-2
January 1969
18
January 1970
19
June 1971
20
December 1971
21
July 1972
22
April 1973
23
August 1973
24
January 1974
25
May 1974
26
December 1974
27
July 1975
28
August 1976
29
March 1977
30
August 1977

The copyright status of Physique Pictorial issues Volume 31 to 41 is unresolved & not currently planed for inclusion on Hunk House.

31
August 1978
32
May 1979
33
December 1979
34
October 1980
35
August 1981
36
September 1982
37
November 1983
38
November 1984
39
January 1986
40
June 1987
41
September 1990

Twenty-five years after Bob's death, an organization that acquired his surviving negatives through an eBay sale began publishing a new magazine using images from the archive alongside work by contemporary photographers. Although it adopted the same title & launched with Volume 42, that publication is entirely separate from our efforts.