Wonderland Burlesque

Tuesday, March 31, 2026

Tuesday Titillation: The Rubber Meets The Road

Tuesday Titillation:

The Rubber Meets The Road

April? Say it isn't so!

But it is almost here, and I, for one, am eternally grateful. Merely the promise of spring is enough to stir my heart from its winter slumber.

And for me, spring means one thing.

Time to get that bicycle up to code and on the road.

To do that, unless you know what you're doing - it's best to take it in for a tune-up at your local bike shop.

Hopefully, all is good and it costs you little more than your time. But get that air pressure in the tires right!

I love biking. It's the easiest exercise. Plus, I get to be outside, in the sun.

Yes, biking does a body good. Your spirits, too.

Need a bit of inspiration? Look no further.

Below you'll find a bevy of boys demonstrating just how impactful it can be when the rubber meets the road.

And speaking of which... you might want to be packing, if you know what I mean (wink, wink).

You never know who you might cross paths with this time of year.

I never travel anywhere without my kit.

That's what backpacks were made for.

Helps keep the spring in my fling!

- uptonking from Wonderland Burlesque

Skylar Grey - C’mon Let Me Ride ft. Eminem

La Bicicleta - Carlos Vives, Shakira

Monday, March 30, 2026

Acquired Tastes XLIII: Gay Pulp Fiction, Part 221 - Rough Trade, Part 19 of 19

Acquired Tastes XLIII:

Gay Pulp Fiction, Part 221

Rough Trade

Part 19 of 19

Today, we take a final look at the Rough Trade imprint.

Brought to you by the good people at Star Distributors, LTD., the Rough Trade imprint published 224 titles, from 1974-1990. Star Distributors, LTD. operated out of a P.O. Box at the Canal Street Station in New York City.

The imprint's numbering system begins with RT-401, and continues thusly. The book number only appears on the spine of the book.

All the books feature the imprint's distinctive Rough Trade logo in the upper left of the book's cover. The books cover design consists of an all-caps (typically) title in a banner of orange or baby blue near the top. A frame is created by two white stripes descending from the top banner to a thin banner (orange or baby blue) containing the word 'Illustrated' - for the books are, with drawings throughout. At the center of the cover there is an explicit illustration - some ink/pencil, some woodcut/etching - all by various popular gay artists of the time, including Craig Esposito, Adam, Michael, etc.

Did I mention that there are illustrations throughout each book? Well, yes, there are, by the same artist as the cover art. Something for every chapter - so a daunting task for the illustrator, for sure.

Oddly, the early books in the series do not have a publisher's page. Price point for the books began at 2.25 and increased (by various increments) to $3.95. Typically, you can buy these books today for between $25-45.

The back covers sometimes feature a synopsis of the book to entice readers or advertisement for one of Star Distributors' other imprints. Ads also appear at the front or back of the book - offering books, videos, and sex toys.

And, starting with RT-605, the distinctive banner is now blue. The reason? Many of these are re-issues of titles they have previously published with all-new artwork.

Here are the next ten titles. We end on a good note. This week, I found something for all ten.

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Body Builder’s Cult

Author: Anonymous

Rough Trade

1988

RT-615

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Midnight Plowboy

Author: Anonymous

Rough Trade

1988

RT-616

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Hard Hold

Author: Anonymous

Rough Trade

1989

RT-617

Available as a downloadable PDF or ebook at Hommi Publishing.

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Prisoner of St. Brutus

Author: Anonymous

Rough Trade

1989

RT-618

Available as a downloadable PDF or ebook at Hommi Publishing.

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Rory's Slaveboys

Author: Anonymous

Rough Trade

1989

RT-619

Available as a downloadable PDF or ebook at Hommi Publishing.

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Leather and Rope

Author: Anonymous

Rough Trade

1989

RT-620

Available as a downloadable PDF or ebook at Hommi Publishing.

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Men of the Twisted Cross

Author: Anonymous

Rough Trade

1990

RT-621

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Marooned Men

Author: Anonymous

Rough Trade

1990

RT-622

Available as a downloadable PDF or ebook at Hommi Publishing.

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Captives of Sodom

Author: Anonymous

Rough Trade

1990

RT-623

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Chained Chicken

Author: Anonymous

Rough Trade

1990

RT-624

Available as a downloadable PDF or ebook at Hommi Publishing.

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Oh, and one last thing...

I found this:

Apparently, they tried to create a magazine with the same branding and illustrations as the book series.

I don't know much about it. Nor have I ever seen one or found one for sale.

If you have any further information or the covers of other issues, please contact me. I would love to learn more.

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And that's all for now.

Up next: more tantalizing cover art from another vintage gay pulp fiction imprint.

Until then...

Thanks for reading!

Hard To Hold - RAC feat. Tegan and Sara

Sunday, March 29, 2026

Weekend Onesie: Humpe Humpe

Weekend Onesie:

Humpe & Humpe

Down The Rabbit Hole merely places a spotlight on something slightly unusual that's caught my interest. With the help of Wikipedia, YouTube, and other sites, I gather information and learn something new.

Today, we take a look at the history and music of the Humpe sisters, Annette and Inga.

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From Wikipedia and other sources:

The Humpe sisters, Annette and Inga, spent their childhood in Herdecke and Bad Pyrmont. After high school and following six semesters of studying composition and piano in Cologne, Annette moved to Berlin in 1974, where she started performing in various bands. Her younger sister Inga soon followed and the sisters naturally found themselves collaborating on various musical projects.

They first achieved first commercial successes in 1979 with the band Neonbabies, founded by the sisters. The sisters released their debut album in 1981, with Inga on lead vocals.

In 1980, Annette Humpe also helped found Ideal along with Ernst Ulrich Deuker and Frank Jürgen Krüger. In the band, Annette served as a songwriter while performing lead vocals and keyboards. The group also recorded songs originally performed by Neonbabies including the highly popular Blaue Augen, which was written by Annette. That song became Ideal's highest-charting song and was also covered by various other artists.

In addition, the Ideal members were close friends of the band Trio, for whom Annette occasionally performed as a backing vocalist, most notably on the #1single Da Da Da.

When Ideal and Neonbabies both disbanded in 1983, Annette became a record producer. For the group DÖF, she co-wrote and produced the commercially successful single Codo, which was a #1 hit in Germany, Austria and the Netherlands and also reached #4 on the Swiss single charts. The song was performed by two Austrian comedians, Joesi Prokopetz and Manfred Tauchen along with Inga Humpe.

In addition, in 1984, Annette and Inga served as co-producers for the band Palais Schaumburg.

The sisters founded the duo Humpe & Humpe in 1985. They wrote and produced most of the songs released on their two studio albums. While the duo was widely known as Humpe & Humpe, their names appeared on the albums as Inga & Anete Humpe and Humpe – Humpe respectively. In the UK, the duo was known as Swimming with Sharks due to the potential sexual connotations of the name Humpe in English.

Their first album contained the single Yamaha. The song was particularly successful in Japan during 1985, and it was released with a memorable split-screen video featuring the sisters. Their second album, and English language venture, featured two singles; No Longer Friends and Careless Love. They received significant airplay on BBC Radio One during 1987 and strong reviews from British music press, although this did not result in significant Chart success for the sisters. The single Careless Love reached the German single charts and peaked at #24.

As international success remained elusive, the duo went their separate ways.

During this time Annette continued to produce other artists including Rio Reiser and Heiner Pudelko. By 1990, with Humpe & Humpe in the rear view mirror, Annette released her first solo studio album called Solo. The album failed to chart. After the release of her solo album, Annette decided she was through with singing. She would concentrate exclusively on composing and producing over the following years.

Inga returned to England, where she sang as a featured vocalist for Johnny Logan and Howard Jones. Inga's first solo album was released in 1990 under the title Planet Oz. It included the single Riding into Blue (Cowboy Song), written and produced by Trevor Horn and became a minor hit.

In 1995 Inga returned to Germany and joined her sister, performing as the duo Bamby. They released the album Wall of Sugar.

Annette went on to find success as part of the group Ich + Ich, while Inga recorded several cover songs and became a frequent featured backing vocalist on various singles. In 2000, Inga formed the electronic duo 2raumwohnung with her life-partner Tommi Eckart.

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