While Jacob Elordi has achieved prominence, fame and acclaim for his turns in ‘Euphoria’ and ‘The Kissing Booth’ trilogy, it is his upcoming performance in Emerald Fennell’s ‘Saltburn’ that has me the most excited. When someone of such beauty also thrills with their talent and acting prowess, it’s the stuff of legend and Hollywood firmament. Witnessing a star in the process of being born is a wonder indeed, and for that Jacob Elordi is crowned Dazzler of the Day.
Having dabbled in modeling, singing, acting, and baring it all on the Broadway Bares stage, Steve Grand has come into his own with his Grand Axis clothing line, which he so gorgeously flaunts in the promo shots for the brand. As the model and silent-seller of his underwear and swimwear, Grand is the best billboard for his product, and his winning smile and attitude earns him this Dazzler of the Day. A Renaissance man in the truest sense, Grand is ever-expanding his influence and reach, and the world is a little better (and a whole lot prettier) for it.
For gay men of a certain age (myself most definitely included), the best source of fashionable and racy underwear a couple of decades ago was the ‘International Male’ catalog; the modern-day version of such a supply has to be Andrew Christian, who has made his underwear company the gold-standard of fun under-attire. Having established himself as a brand thanks to skillful and sexy promotional images and videos, and an ever-evolving selection of merchandise that celebrates all sorts of sexiness, Christian walks the walk of his scantily-attired talk, thrilling on his Instagram feed with his own products. He earns this Dazzler of the Day for that, and for giving us something more than boxers or briefs from which to choose.
Vanity fashion lines come and go awfully quickly these days, but one of the most enduring and compelling has been the one started by Todd Sanfield, whose body walks the walk that his products talk. Sanfield created his underwear line 13 years ago, and has been modeling and promoting it consistently ever since. It’s expanded into swimwear too, and at the helm of it all is Sanfield himself. That sort of singular drive and determination is what sets him apart from those that have fizzled. Earning his first Dazzler of the Day (after having been named a hunk in several previous incarnations in these parts) Sanfield is still offering scintillating images and products to match. Check out his offerings here.
A member of BTS named Jung Kook is the rumored face and body of a new Calvin Klein collaboration. Once upon a time, this site would have been entirely on top of this and I’d have been able to give you the complete run-down on all involved parties and appendages. As it stands now, I know nothing about what’s happening from either end of this pairing. But hey, here is Jung Kook in his Calvins, not unlike Shawn Mendes and Nick Jonas and Maluma.
As for this year, I have no idea who is even playing or what Dazzlers of the Day might strut their stuff on the field, and I’m not even all that excited to see Rihanna, but I’m happy to see others enjoy this day. Besides, it’s a chance to look back at all the ball-happy posts we’ve done in service of bowls super and otherwise over the years, as seen in the following links:
Troye Sivan has been featured as a Dazzler of the Day in this post from a couple of years ago, so today’s feature is just a little form of further appreciation for their talents. Unsure of whether they’re the new official face/body of Calvin Klein, perhaps this should be an official audition in the event that they’re not.
Recently featured as a Dazzler of the Day here, Dominic Albano launches his first foray into underwear this week, drawing on years of modeling and fashion experience. His self-monikered line features the sort of sexy designs he’s so proficient at showing off for other designers, and it’s always a treat when the designer can say they have walked a mile in the clothing they are selling.
Albano is coming off a scintillating retro-styled piece for the online version of Playgirl Magazine, and a retro-feel informs the promotional images for his current underwear campaign. The lighting and feel are moody, evoking and playing up the sultry gaze that Albano has come to embody in much of his modeling work. It’s the perfect sales pitch for underwear, which is largely about selling sex, but should also come with comfort and function. Both seem to play a part in the new line, which keeps the flashy and colorful excess of many other underwear offerings to a minimum, relying on basic neutrals and classic cuts.
Centering it all is Albano’s focused determination on building a brand and his familiarity with the product. There is a carefulness and deliberate cultivation of his image, but also a courage in doing things entirely his own way. Check out the new line of underwear at his website here.
Dominic Albano heads into 2023 with a new underwear enterprise, after a year that found him heralding the return of Playgirl magazine with a sizzling cover shoot as their Man of the Month. For both those endeavors, he handily earns this first crowning as Dazzler of the Day. While many admire Albano for his philosophical contradiction of being a socially-introverted superstar, and the heavy weight that goes allow with such an often-tortured personality juxtaposition, he’s also quite easy on the eyes. Dazzlers that dazzle from within and without will always have a place here. Keep your eye out for his new underwear line launching next month – at which point we’ll do another feature on him.
If there’s a song that personifies what my website has been doing for almost an entire double-decade, this may be the one. Courtesy of the adorable Meghan Trainor (who doesn’t get enough credit for her song-crafting skills) give a listen to ‘Made You Look’ which is all about the bait-and-switch of the superficial versus the substance, and that battle has been gloriously waging here since we first went up way back in 2003.
I could have my Gucci on
I could wear my Louis Vuitton
But even with nothin’ on
Bet, I made you look (I made you look)
Given that timeframe, this blog has been doing its thing since before Instagram, Twitter or FaceBook even existed. Those social media outlets took the work by storm, and I use my accounts mainly to drive visitors here, to these blog posts, and the daily writing and photographic rituals that have been cathartic artistic outlets. How to get noticed in an increasingly-fractured and splintered world, where content turns over within seconds, and the average lifespan of a website is under three years. The lifespan of a personal blog is probably much lower. Simply being here, almost twenty years now, is a feat in and of itself, and the recipe for my success is simply making this a labor of love and creative expression. That said, it’s always more fun when guests visit, and to make that happen I’ve employed a simple thirst-bait-and-switch formula, where provocative images draw the viewers in, and then the words, ideally, get them to stay for a bit.
I’ll make you double take
Soon as I walk away
Call up your chiropractor
Just in case your neck break
Ooh, tell me what ya, what ya, what you gon’ do? Ooh
‘Cause I’m ’bout to make a scene
Double up that sunscreen
I’m ’bout to turn the heat up
Gonna make your glasses steam
Ooh, tell me what ya, what ya, what you gon’ do? Ooh
Sadly, I realize that ideal scenario is preciously rare; it’s a losing game trying to convince even my closest friends to stop by these parts. That used to bother me, before I understood how it drove my pathology and inspired me to create things that were worth reading, that would get even those weary and worn down by my antics to take a moment and check in. That was also the sort of guy for whom I fell, over and over: the one who wanted nothing to do with me. When the people who matter most to you don’t seem to notice anything you do, you learn to thrill the world, or you give up on it. For all my jaded cynicism, I haven’t given up on anything.
When I do my walk, walk
I can guarantee your jaw will drop, drop
‘Cause they don’t make a lot of what I got, got
Ladies if you feel me, this your bop, bop
(Bop bop, bop)
I could have my Gucci on (Gucci on)
I could wear my Louis Vuitton
But even with nothin’ on
Bet, I made you look (I made you look)
Yeah, I look good in my Versace dress (take it off)
But I’m hotter when my morning hair’s a mess
But even with my hoodie on
Bet, I made you look (I made you look)
And once you get a taste (woo)
You’ll never be the same
This ain’t that ordinary
It’s that fourteen karat cake
Ooh, tell me, what ya, what ya, what you gon’ do? Ooh
When I do my walk, walk
I can guarantee your jaw will drop, drop
‘Cause they don’t make a lot of what I got, got
Ladies if you feel me, this your bop, bop
(Bop bop, bop) ohh
This little bop reminds me of a simpler time, back when the internet was a safer, softer, sillier place. It gives off a sense of superficial glam, only to reveal something sweeter and slightly more substantial – the hat trick of what has kept this blog going. A bit of a tease, a bit of a please, and a bit of the bee’s knees. Nothing too serious, unless you look beneath the surface. Most won’t bother making it this far, but for those who do, and those who continue to return, I’ll do my best to make it worth your while. If I happen to fail, which will sometimes occur, then I will play this song and try to remember the fun in life, the frivolity, and all the foolishness that once made the world go round.
I could have my Gucci on (Gucci on)
I could wear my Louis Vuitton
But even with nothin’ on
Bet, I made you look (said, I made you look)
Yeah, I look good in my Versace dress (take it off, baby)
But I’m hotter when my morning hair’s a mess
But even with my hoodie on
Bet, I made you look (said, I made you look)
Actor, singer and up-and-coming aerialist Chris Salvatore is a Renaissance man who earns his first Dazzler of the Day thanks to a career of reinvention and evolution. He’s been in movies, television, and live shows, while honing his singing and songwriting (witness some of his popular covers, as well as his original songs, for evidence of his brilliance). He’s also had a line of underwear out, which originally put him on this website’s map. Fortunately for all, he still likes showing off, and his burgeoning OnlyFans site is further proof of that.
