The Full Chuck: “Everything is Pornography to Someone”

Blogger dude and mover/shaker Chuck McCarthy (of Ideas By Chuck and History of Chuck fame) answers a few questions about his nude modeling debut for Pinups Magazine.

How did you get hooked up with Pinups Magazine? Was this your first experience with nude modeling?
I am not sure. I think some people on the Internet told some other people on the Internet about me being hairy. After that, Christopher from Pinups contacted me through Facebook to ask me if I would be interested in modeling. I have never modeled nude, but I have been naked before… in the shower.

How long did you consider doing it before you committed? What were your reservations? What tipped the scale and made you decide to go for it?
I thought about it for maybe a month or more. My main reservation was the fact that it was full frontal and I was worried I would lose some mystique. I don’t have a small penis, but imaginary penises are always bigger. Plus, I’m a grower not a show… er. In the end, I decided to do it, because I couldn’t pass up the narcissistic pleasure of having an entire magazine devoted to me, nor the joy that I could bring my friends and fans with another more ridiculous tale of my life.

Did you ever have any qualms about Pinups being a gay publication?
No. I wasn’t being asked to do anything overtly homoerotic besides be naked. I am sure way more gay guys bought a copy of Levi Johnston’s issue of Playgirl. I don’t think I could jerk it to Pinups if I was gay, but I could probably jerk it to Playgirl. You could call your car gay, but that wouldn’t stop me from riding in it.

Did you think of the cabin setting and country living concept, or were you more along for the ride?
That was Christopher. Once we were there, I had somewhat of a hand in some of the setups, but… you know… I was there to International Male Model, not direct the shoot.

Were you nervous?
Not really. I mean… anytime you are getting in a car with strangers to go to the middle of nowhere for the purpose of being naked… but I was able to push past that. Christopher seemed pretty benevolent. Plus, if I let fear get in my way, Tyra Banks would win. Know what I mean?

Are you happy with how the pictures turned out?
Yeah. I think they turned out great. I am glad that I have total body control and was able to make the low light situations work.

What was it like to receive a 56-page magazine of just you? Have you assembled the 32” x 70” poster yet? (I so would have if I were you.)
It was pretty funny. I actually received a couple dozen copies and they were wrapped in uncut test prints from the magazine, so I know what it’s like to “get wrapped up in yourself,” literally and figuratively. I have assembled the poster, but not hung it… Get it? Ha. It is pretty epic. The poster was probably what actually made up my mind about doing this whole thing.

What’s the deal with no full erections?
It’s art, not porn. There weren’t even any half erections. Trust me.

What do you think makes something pornography?
Everything is pornography to someone.

Do you consider modeling for Pinups to be sex work?
No. I didn’t get paid to do it, and if you want to look at it under the “whore vs. girlfriend,” microscope, that is the real test. But what is “sex work”? A Chili’s waitress who wears a short skirt and a tight shirt is selling a Big Mouth Burger® with a side of sex that never comes out of the kitchen… unless you are Tiger Woods. The way I see it, it’s all about levels of customer satisfaction.

Do you have any concerns that you’ll ever regret your Pinups stint? Are you interested in pursuing more nude modeling gigs? How does compensation factor in? Have you drawn a line of what you are/are not willing to do?
I don’t regret it, but I am not pursuing any other nude modeling work. Like I said, I didn’t get paid to do Pinups, so compensation isn’t really part of my vocabulary.

Any thoughts, as a blogger, on the printed zine?
Print, especially small run niche market printed work will never go away. People love to have physical things– to collect. I am actually working with someone that wants to publish a zine of my creation. I don’t know what it will be, but hopefully people will be just as interested in it as they were in my issue of Pinups.

More Chuck can be found on YouTube, twitter, and VYou. We <3 you, Chuck!