Leave it to Leonor #376

This week, I’m thinking about Calvin Klein. Last week, the latest campaign was released with Jeremy Allen White and I have not seen such a flurry of activity in the group chats and IG stories in a very long time. To put it mildly, the photographer, Mert Alas and JAW, really gave the people what they wanted. I thought about ranking my own personal top five campaigns but then realized it would be much more fun to include some experts. First stop: Nichole Perkins, writer and former host of Thirst Aid Kit (can someone please pay to bring this back ASAP?), photographer and Loyal Nana’s founder Amanda Saviñón, longtime LITL advisor and Senior Culture Editor, Erin Evans, Mathew Rodriguez, a Brooklyn-based writer for whom the underwear aisle was a very important part of growing up gay, and Danielle Henderson, TV writer and absolute genius behind Feminist Ryan Gosling. The format is inspired by the old US Weekly’s Fashion police, but with more of a thirsty focus.

And here comes the newsletter’s first ~NSFW~ warning. If you’re in an open plan, perhaps it’s time to do a search for “this week in reading” and skip all the way down? You’ve been warned!

NP: I was 15 when this ad came out and i remember studying it very closely, but Marky Mark was never my thing. However, there’s no denying the iconic nature of this one, even if he is… who he is.
LM: The sweet smile versus the aggressive grab vibe is really playing to all sides of the market. I cannot fault them for going for it.
AS: I was 3 years old. How do I still remember seeing this?!
EE: That smile is actually brightening my day. I had a thing for Mark in “Fear,” even though his character was actually terrible. . .
MR: I’m just saying if I saw that smile on a hookup app, he’d get into my Calvins!

LM: So sad what has become of Antonio Sabato Jr. (he’s MAGA) but I am pretty sure at least one of these photos was on my collage wall in high school. Which, upon reflection, seems deeply inappropriate. .
NP: the anti-bulge protector is weird. 
EE: The veins in his arms are doing something to me.
DH: I can’t believe his dickhole is just OUT there, forever.

NP: An absolute fantasy come to life
LM: Chiseled from a slab of stone. 
AS: It’s giving GLOSS honey!
EE: I distinctly remember this because the way the light reflects off his smooth, dark-chocolatey skin is just perfection.
MR: I know this is about underwear but his legs look 10 miles long and I’m very into it.
DH: The most classic of the bunch for me. The photos are straight up artistic, and those LEGS! Iconic images.

NP: I might be the only person in the world who still gives him a third and fourth glance but yes.