Queer Miami Emmy-nominated filmmaker Kareem Tabsch continues his penchant for capturing some of the many idiosyncratic characters that have been part of the history that has given Florida its rather ‘showy’ reputation. He started with his short CHERRY POP about the spoilt Fort Lauderdale cat who traveled in customized Louis Vuitton luggage, and lounged in a mini-Rolls Royce Corniche. His 2nd short Dolphin Lover was one of those only-in-Florida- stories from the 1970’s about Malcolm Brenner and his romantic and sexual love affair with a captive bottle-nosed Dolphin .
It was with his debut feature The Last Resort that Tabsch showed his true passion for the heart and soul of Miami. With co-director Dennis Scholl, he so perfectly captured the vibrant community of Jewish retirees in the 1970’s who had turned the Beach into their own sun-filled paradise . The documentary was based on the work of two American photographers Andy Sweet and Gary Monroe who had recorded the rise and fall of this colorful very opinionated senior population.
With this latest film Naked Ambition, Tabsch and and Scholl, turn their attention to another legendary Miami photographer that has not yet got the full recognition she deserves. Bunny Yeager started out as model and a beauty queen winning numerous titles such a Florida Orchid Queen, Miss Trailercoach of Dade County, Miss Army & Air Force, Miss Personality of Miami Beach, and Cheesecake Queen of 1951. She very quickly became one of the most famous models in Miami appearing over 300 newspapers/magazines
Yeager however developed an interest in being the other side of the camera, and bringing all she had learnt posing to her work, she created her very own fresh style. She wasn’t just a pretty face as after taking a Night School class she learnt very quickly and became a very professional photographer. Then in 1954 she sold a photograph she had taken of model Maria Stinger, to Eye magazine for the cover of their March issue, and there was no looking back .
Yeager had her own very distinct style, favoring natural light and shooting on Miami’s glorious beaches when they were totally empty. Her models wore swimsuits or were partially naked : as this was the era of pin ups and ‘cheesecake’ photography. During that time she discovered Bettie Page the most famous model of the generation who soon became known as the Queen of Pin Up.
Yeager worked extensively for Hugh Hefner and Playboy ….. he was one of the talking heads in the doc that spoke effusively of Yeager and her work. A side note is that when Yeager died, Heffner sent 2000 red roses to her funeral.
Tabsch explains that in the 1970s men’s magazines became more anatomically graphic and so Yeager largely stopped photographing for them, saying they were somewhat “smutty” . As someone pointed out, in an industry dominated by men, overnight ‘pin up’ photography went from R rated to X rated.
It wasn’t until the 1990s that Yeager’s work started to be recognized in their own right as works of art. In early 2010, The Andy Warhol Museum held the first major museum exhibition of Yeager’s work called “The Legendary Queen of the Pin Up”, that featured her self-portraits. That was followed by exhibits in Germany, Bulgaria and even in The Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale
Add to that the tributes in the filmfrom the likes of Bruce Weber (who also lives in Florida) who confirmed Yeager’s success was also exceptional as she was a woman in a male dominated world. Actress/filmmaker Guinevere Turner who co-wrote the script for The Notorious Bettie Page with Mary Harron, who directed the film, made a point of acknowledging as an unwitting feminist.
By the time she died in 2014 Yeager was recognized as one of the country’s most famous photographers influencing many artists and photographers including Diane Arbus, and Cindy Sherman,and left an enpor,ous body of work
It is however time that she gets the same public recognition as they do maybe this compelling new film will finally help change all that.
Naked Ambition is next screening at Miami Film FestivalROGER WALKER-DACK Creator, Editor-in-Chief Miami Beach, FL / Provincetown, MA
IG @QUEERGURU Member
of G.A.L.E.C.A. (Gay & Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association) and
NLGJA The Association of LGBT Journalists. and The Online Film Critics Society. Ex Contributung Editor
The Gay Uk & Contributor Edge Media Former CEO and Menswear Designer of Roger Dack Ltd in the UK
Labels: 2024, Bunny Yeager, Denis Scholl, documentary, Kareem Tabsch, Naked Ambition, review
