Lou Zivkovich is best known for his appearance, at age 33, as the "nude centerfold" in the July 1974 issue of Playgirl Magazine. While many of Playgirl's nude models tend to have the look of Chippendale dancers -- complete with longish...
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Lou Zivkovich is best known for his appearance, at age 33, as the "nude centerfold" in the July 1974 issue of Playgirl Magazine. While many of Playgirl's nude models tend to have the look of Chippendale dancers -- complete with longish hair, shaved chest, supple body, and poutish expression -- Zivkovich represented a more masculine, more elemental type. His physique was powerful, (though not muscle-bound), with bulky shoulders and thighs, and he lacked the vaunted "wasp waist." He had generous amounts of hair on his forearms, chest, and stomach. (There was so much hair across his pecs that his nipples were almost lost to view.) His facial expressions tended toward natural, unstudied looks, and his stances avoided the artifical, calculated poses favored by many other models. There was no pose, for example, with his hips thrust provocatively forward, and he did not pose with one foot on the ground and one foot on a chair -- a pose which spreads apart the model's legs in order to showcase his "family jewels." Curiously, there were no rear-view shots of Zivkovich. Perhaps it was felt his buttocks weren't that attractive or perhaps Zivkovich vetoed these poses because they might have made him look too submissive. None of the photos emphasized his lower legs and at no point did he lift his arms to fully show off his armpits. (Perhaps they were considered too hairy.) Unfortunately, in its early years of publication, Playgirl only allowed its male models to be shown in relaxed rather than aroused states. This means that Zivkovich could not display what some might consider his greatest asset to its fullest extent, but this omission had the effect of stimulating the imagination of Playgirl readers and leaving them longing for more. Alas, following a brief attempt at an acting career, Zivkovich disappeared from view, leaving his fans only with rich memories of his physical presence.