Australia's first nude male magazine centrefold | Australian Story (2019)

Key Concepts

• Play Magazine Centerfold: The first nude centerfold featured in Play magazine.
• Jack Thompson: The individual initially considered for the first nude centerfold.
• Cultural Context - Vietnam War: The backdrop of the Vietnam War and its impact on perceptions of nudity and morality.
• Moral Relativism: The idea that morality is relative to the context and situation.

The Origin of Play Magazine’s First Nude Centerfold

The discussion centers around the historical context of Play magazine’s decision to feature a nude centerfold, specifically identifying the speaker as the first person to do so. The initial candidate for this role was Jack Thompson. A humorous anecdote is shared regarding Thompson’s physical attributes – specifically, a perceived lack of fingers which the speaker suggests may have been “corrected” with an added digit in the depiction. This detail, while seemingly trivial, highlights the constructed nature of media imagery.

Resistance and the Negotiation of Boundaries

The speaker recounts that they initially resisted the offer, not due to objections to nudity itself, but because of the requirement to disrobe. This resistance wasn’t rooted in prudishness, but rather a pragmatic consideration of the task itself. Several individuals were approached before the speaker, all of whom were asked to pose nude. This indicates a deliberate process of seeking a suitable candidate.

The Vietnam War as a Moral Counterpoint

The core argument presented is a striking juxtaposition of nudity with the atrocities of the Vietnam War. The speaker explicitly states, “In a world where we're dropping napal on children in Vietnam, surely nudity is not an issue.” This statement represents a form of moral relativism, suggesting that in the face of large-scale violence and suffering, concerns about nudity appear comparatively insignificant.

This isn’t presented as an endorsement of nudity, but rather as a challenge to societal priorities and a questioning of what constitutes genuine moral outrage. The speaker frames the issue not as one of inherent wrongness in nudity, but as a matter of perspective and scale. The use of “napal on children” is a deliberately shocking image intended to underscore the gravity of the war and, by contrast, diminish the perceived offense of nudity.

Logical Connections & Synthesis

The conversation flows from establishing the historical fact of the first nude centerfold to detailing the initial selection process and the speaker’s eventual acceptance. The key shift in the discussion occurs with the introduction of the Vietnam War as a moral benchmark. This isn’t a logical progression in the traditional sense, but rather a rhetorical move designed to reframe the discussion and challenge conventional moral assumptions.

The main takeaway is a provocative commentary on societal hypocrisy and the selective application of moral standards. The speaker uses the context of the Vietnam War to argue that anxieties surrounding nudity are misplaced when weighed against the horrors of armed conflict. The anecdote about Jack Thompson, while amusing, serves to subtly reinforce the idea that even the presentation of nudity is often artificial and constructed.