Some kind of strange and unexplainable primal forces are at work when the cleavage is exposed. When a man’s eyes make contact, our breath turns to short little panting noises as a pleasant warmth begins to develop in the nether region. Remember the Seinfeld episode where George stares at the NBC executive’s daughter’s low hanging fruit? Jerry says they are like giant and powerful magnets to the eyes with an effect much like Kryptonite has upon Superman.

Once again, it cannot be explained by mere rationale, but when the globes are in orbit, our eyes MUST make contact. Whether they are small and firm, or large, round and jiggly, it does not matter…we HAVE TO look! We HAVE TO. It’s like some unwritten law in the ancient records, scribed on the walls of the Mayan Temples. The luscious valley between the mighty peaks grips a man’s being much like the Sirens who seduced Homer in the Iliad and the Odyssey. Its spell is intoxicating driving a normal man to the very brink of childish behavior, not to mention – utter stupidity (or is that udder stupidity?)

We males have become masters of our craft. We have studied this vertical space of flesh and nothingness and have learned how to catch that sacred glimpse of nirvana at the perfect time. We look the female in the eyes, smile as we talk, nodding as if we are actually listening to a word the shrew is saying. It’s a peek of the holy grails that we are after and nothing will stop our valiant quest. We use cunning and guile to move their attention elsewhere – and the moment their eyes turn, OUR eyes dive in for the kill.

“Oh, look… that kitten must be lost.” We say with an innocent yet sinister glow.

“Oh, where?” she says, as her head moves about.

“Over yonder, in the bushes” you point, as your pupils all but burn a hole into her chest.

“Where?” she asks, “I don’t see a… um, what are you looking at?”

SNAGGED! You have been snagged! She begins to change the subject while awkwardly tugging her blouse upwards. As she continues to talk, you sit there like a fool – a large pulsating letter “L” is emblazoned upon your forehead as the beauty that once was is buried six miles deep in cotton and polyester fibers.

This previous action on the part of the female, I do not understand, as it confuses the male species here and abroad. Let me explain. A woman wears a shirt or sweater that by her choice, is low cut, as her ta-tas are in full display for all the world to gander. They’re swingin’ high and low, loose and free, giving the male populous the joy we so richly deserve. Yet the moment our woman – this teasing harlot – notices where our eyes are fixed, she folds her arms or grabs the nearest Cosmo to cover up those mountains of grandeur. UNFAIR I say!

I, the Zman, speak on behalf of heterosexual men everywhere on this wretched planet. Women, take heed. When you “CHOOSE” to wear a low cut top that exposes your upper region, DO NOT act so alarmed when we men are gazed upon your earthly beauty. Why do you wear such attire if you do not wish for us to stare? Why do you purposely dress so provocatively, yet cover up the moment we sneak a peek? I’ll be honest, ladies… since my early manhood this phenomena has really irked me to no end. You put the sale rack up on display, but when an interested shopper passes by, the curtains are drawn and the shop is closed. Again, UNFAIR I say!

I have to admit that this very horrid plight happened to me only today and I could not go another moment without speaking up for my fellow man. I was taken aback as my character was unfairly thrown into question. This was rude, degrading, and unjust in every way.

I’m telling you, there really was a lost kitten in the bushes. I swear.

- Zman

As my son has just hit 14 year’s of age – on his way to earning his Mancard – I’ve noticed his interest in girls getting more and more obvious. Each morning before school he hoses himself down with AXE body spray, and when mixed with Fritos for lunch it makes for an interesting middle-school aphrodisiac. Plus he’s doing a lot of Myspace messaging back and forth with the young ladies, which I say, “kudos little dude.”

I was trying to remember my earliest feelings for the opposite sex and it was probably in first grade where I sat in front of Kathy Werbin’s house one Saturday morning for about four hours waiting for her to come outside. I remember my heart pounding, wondering what I would say when we’d hook up. (It’s uncanny how woman make guys do brutally stupid shit – even at six years old.) Finally my patience paid off as she appeared from her garage – and man she was hot – even back then I was particular about looks. I remember she was into GI Joe’s and asked me to play. (It’s funny that GI Joe’s were actually dolls wrapped in testosterone so boys would be tricked into playing with them.) But my little heart was soon plucked from my ribcage as she had to go – a play date with Robert Sandler was scheduled and that was the first time I realized what cruel harlots the opposite sex can be.

It was definitely movies and TV that helped to arouse my nubile senses in the early years. I didn’t know why, but at ten years old I couldn’t take my eyes off of Barbara Eden’s stomach when she donned that genie costume. I used to get warm all over when she pranced around her Cocoa Beach habitat. And even at ten I wondered what the bloody hell was wrong with Major Nelson - I mean for crissakes, come on, man! Forget the fact that she was sizzling hot and was sworn to his every command – the bonehead could have anything he wanted – gold, jewels, cars, homes – but it was always, “Don’t use your powers, Jeannie.” What a friggin ass-tro-NOT.

Those cavorting cougars always had me more worked up more than Laurie Partridge or any of the Brady chicks. Girls my own age didn’t do it for me. I can’t explain it, but I always had a penchant for the older gals. Now I know most guys loved Dawn Wells as Mary Ann, but I was always a Ginger guy, and when Tina Louise strutted about in those slinky nightgowns, I was glued to the tube. (And it wasn’t until I was around 15 that I came to the conclusion that Gilligan, the Skipper, and the Professor were all raging poofters.) I’ve never really dug the “girl next door” type, but more the sultry, buxom bombshell. And as a lad, no one had me standing at full attention more than the incredible Raquel Welch. I was just a kid but I had an amazing appreciation for her killer body, complete with swollen appendages. You can blame God or nature, or the earth’s primal forces, but I was not in control of certain bodily reactions when Raquel appeared on a TV talk or game show. I used to scan the TV Guide when we got it to see if the starlet was appearing anywhere. That same era had the likes of Ursula Andress, Elke Sommer and Gina Lolabridgada, Sophia Loren, Brigette Bardot, and Margaret Nolan - incredibly voluptuous goddesses I couldn’t take my eyes off!

The same unexplainable force that changes the tides and pulls plants towards the sun had me more jacked up than ten Milky Ways and a jug of Bosco. I vividly remember watching Goldie Hawn dance in a bikini on Rowan and Martin’s Laughin, and thinking, “Now that sure as hell beats playing with GI Joe’s.”

Even though she wasn’t provocative, I always dug Elizabeth Montgomery as Samantha Stevens on Bewitched. Again, at an early age I recognized her beauty and just being a witch carried a sexiness all of its own. And again, with the ability to have anything he wanted, her retarded husband Darrin suffered from Major Nelson syndrome: “Don’t use any witchcraft to get what we want or need, Sam.” Whether it was York or Sargent, both Darrin’s were most definitely a couple of real “Dicks” when it came to Samantha’s powers.

No doubt today’s TV is a hell of a lot more sex oriented and I realize that my son is subject to those same unexplainable forces that his daddy was driven by. Plus with the internet and its 12,000 naughty sites, my kid doesn’t have to go rooting around my bedroom for pop’s “half-assed” hidden Playboy magazines (sorry dad, but you’ve gotta know I would have found them even if you buried them two miles under the goddamned septic tank.)

Listen, my intent here wasn’t to write a sexist piece and I’m certainly not advocating my kid look at porn or anything like that. I just know at 14 what my son is feeling as I think back to my early days of youth. And there’s no doubt everyone of you guys have similar memories and stories of your own – hopefully to share in the comments section below (and please do so because I’ll most likely need to convince my mother, wife, and daughter that I’m not a raging perverted psychopath, after they read this.)

Glad I could share such nice mammaries.

And hey, if you love the chicks from the sixties and seventies, there’s no better magazine to get your nostalgic dander up than Cinema Retro, published by my good buddy and film (and James Bond) aficionado, Lee Pfeiffer @ www.cinemaretro.com

- Zman

In the early 50’s famed artist George Petty drew and airbrushed the pin-up girls for Ridgid Tools popular calendars. According to the ASIFA Animation Hollywood Animation website:

George Petty was one of the top “cheesecake” illustrators of the 30s and 40s. He began his career with a series of cartoons featuring beautiful girls and their far from handsome beaus. His work coined the term “Petty Girls” to describe the carefully airbrushed girls with brilliant smiles and sexy poses. He left Esquire, to be replaced by Alberto Vargas who we will be featuring here soon, and became a freelance commercial artist. His girls soon ended up gracing magazine ads and calendars for such unlikely products as Tung-Sol Radio Tubes and the aptly named, Ridgid Tools.

Being a huge fan of nostalgia and retro stuff, I love this calendar art and so will you. An interesting note about the artist… He grew up working in his dad’s photography studio where airbrushing was common in the business, but not at all in illustration – until he applied the medium to drawings like these making Petty the pioneer of the technique for illustrators who followed.

Scroll down and check ‘em out…just gorgeous stuff!

VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE!

Tell us who happens to be your favorite RIDGID chick from years back. While March 1953 is incredibly suggestive for it’s day, I think November 1952 would have threaded my pipe with the most precision!

- Zman

Part One of this Outstanding Video Interview

Michael Gladis plays the pipe smoking copywriter, “Paul Kinsey” on AMC TV’s, Award Winning, Mad Men. Not only does his character Paul smoke a pipe on screen, but Mr. Gladis smokes a pipe in real life.

PipesMagazine.com Editor & Publisher, Kevin Godbee sat down with Michael Gladis in the private smoking lounge at Davidoff of Geneva in midtown Manhattan on November 14, 2009. They talked about pipe smoking, his role on Mad Men, and his acting career in general. Michael is charming, friendly, and witty while he enjoys smoking his pipe and giving us the inside scoop on Mad Men and telling us how he is similar to Paul Kinsey. See Part I of our video interview with Michael Gladis here and see if you can get the trivia question right at the end.

Watch Part One of Kevin Godbee’s Interview by CLICKING HERE

Cubatabaco Wins Longstanding Battle

By Jonathan Perlow, Courthouse News Service

(CN) – A Cuban government-owned tobacco company won its 12-year legal battle to stop a U.S. cigar producer from using the Cohiba name and trademark in the United States. A federal judge in Manhattan once again backed up Cubatabaco, which accused General Cigar of “exploiting the reputation and goodwill of the Cuban Cohiba.”

Cohibas are among the world’s most famous and sought-after cigars, and were originally produced exclusively for Fidel Castro.

U.S. District Judge Robert W. Sweet barred General Cigar from using the Cohiba name in the United States, but allowed it to keep using the name on its Dominican-made cigars, pending appeal.

Judge Sweet said his most recent opinion was “nearly identical” to his previous finding that General Cigar Holdings had tried “to plagiarize the mark” and engaged in “intentional copying.”

His decision was reversed by the 2nd Circuit, which dismissed the federal claims, saying the embargo between the two countries barred the Cuban company from acquiring property in the United States, including trademarks.

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case.

But when New York’s highest court clarified its position on what constituted unfair competition, Cubatabaco’s state law case was back on. The New York Court of Appeals found that “bad faith” wasn’t necessary to prove unfair competition by appropriation, only that “deliberate copying” had taken place.
Cubatabaco argued that on the cusp of the 1992 cigar boom, General Cigar selected the “Cohiba” name for a new line of premium cigars “in order to exploit the reputation and goodwill of the Cuban Cohiba,” according to the ruling.

Judge Sweet agreed, and said the U.S. company’s choice was “in part to capitalize on the success of the Cuban Cohiba brand and especially the good ratings and notoriety that it had received in Cigar Aficionado,” a magazine for cigar enthusiasts.

The debut issue of the magazine proclaimed Cohibas to be Cuba’s finest cigars, in an article called “The Legend of Cohiba.”

Cubatabaco further claimed that the Cohiba name was protected under the Lanham Act by the “well-known marks” doctrine, even though the company held no U.S. trademarks.

Judge Sweet agreed that this was the case, but said Cubatabaco’s challenge of the Cuban Asset Control Regulations was obsolete after the state court’s ruling.

“The New York Court of Appeals held that plaintiff could be entitled to relief against use of its foreign mark if it could establish deliberate copying and secondary meaning, even though the plaintiff had no U.S. trademark rights,” Sweet wrote.

“For certain kinds of cases … goodwill can, and does, cross state and national boundary lines.”

Frosted Flakes), turn on one of three network channels and laugh like a couple of little mo-fo’s until our mom made us go outside and play. Anybody remember Courageous Cat and Minute Mouse, Underdog, Tennessee Tuxedo Sherman and Mr. Peabody? These were freakin’ classics – long before computers, the internet, video games, or cable and satellite television – and long before political correctness.

In these animated classics, you could guarantee that sometime within the next ten minutes, some person or talking animal was going to completely get his ass kicked. Anvils fell from the sky, trains appeared through living rooms, dynamite blew shit up, dudes fell from twenty story buildings, and shotguns blasts to the face caused heavy gun powder burns at best. Popeye and Bluto unmercifully beat the bejezuz out of one another, the Coyote continually got his balls broken, and Tom the cat was always the unlucky recipient of a sledgehammer to the skull instead of the mouse dinner he had forever dreamed of. And, if you remember, many a character smoked a big, fat cigar.

Afterwards, we’d go out and play football or street hockey, tag, ride bikes, or whatever the hell, and we only came in for lunch and dinner. We rode our bicycles really far to another kid’s house, there were no cell phones to call moms, and the thought of a child predator lurking about was the absolute furthest thing from a parent’s mind.

Damn, those are great memories. I dug my early childhood. And you know what? Those cartoons subjected me to more violence than most Sopranos episodes (although I do admit it would have been pretty sweet to see Yosemitee Sam receive a good old fashioned, Jersey style curbing.) But I never thought about hurting other children, or causing vile mischief. I never wanted to stick explosives in someone’s pants, run them over with a bus, or bash their head in with a wooden club. (And don’t even get me started on the Three Stooges.) And yet I grew up to be a responsible adult, with a wife, two great kids, and a nice home.

Amazing – there were no politically correct do-gooders saving me from myself, but yet I turned out all right. There was no one rating kids shows to make sure that there’s one white kid, one black, one Asian, and one Hispanic in every episode. And cartoons weren’t on from morning ‘til night with their own dedicated channels – completely desensitizing kids where they think that this is the only type of programming on the tube. When I was young I also watched adult shows with my parents like Rowan and Martin’s Laugh In, the Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts, Mission Impossible, All In the Family and the cast of Norman Lear spin-offs – not ten straight episodes of Sponge Bob Ass Pants, That’s So F@#king Raven, and other PC Disney Dreck.

But I turned out all right. Thank you mom and dad for raising me correctly – but with all the violent programming and un-supervision – I turned out just fine. (I know some of you may be debating that very thought, but I like to amuse myself, so just keep it quiet, thanks.)

OK, so I smoke a cigar or two, yeah, I admit it – picked that nasty habit up from Looney Tunes. But it’s all cool… I’m suing Warner Brothers for two hundred and thirty-million dollars for exposing me to second-hand cartoon cigar smoke.

-ZMAN