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We all learn that life just isn't always fair.
Erik Hooper was Playgirl's Man for July in 1979 and unfortunately for Erik, his photo spread seems to have become less than memorable for many. This is probably due to the less-than-desirable image quality and limited content of his photo shoot and has nothing to do with Erik's desirability. With his head of curls, that dark blond moustache and hairy body, Erik deserved the star treatment. It would have been wonderful to see Erik's thick pubic bush and those dangling darlings hanging loose with some close up shots using a high quality lens and printed on premium paper stock. But this was part of the era when Playgirl had shifted from focusing primarily on sexy nude men to trying to be a complete woman's showbiz-gossip-beauty tips type of publication (that also happened to have men for enjoyable viewing). This decision made sense in that magazines needed good distribution channels. The more bookshelf's, supermarkets and quickie mart locations that had your rag, the better. If this had been an earlier time when the magazine first started out, the odds would have been good that Erik's handsome face would have been on the cover instead of Sally Field.
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He certainly sounded like an interesting man. The brief narrative along with his pictures told readers that he was born in Amsterdam and came to California at the age of 6. In addition to enjoying "anything athletic" he was seeking a masters degree in education.
We all learn that life just isn't always fair. Erik Hooper was Playgirl's Man for July in 1979 and unfortunately for Erik, his photo spread seems to have become less than memorable for many. This is probably due to the less-than-desirable image quality and limited content of his photo shoot and has nothing to do with Erik's desirability. With his head of curls, that dark blond moustache and hairy body, Erik deserved the star treatment. It would have been wonderful to see Erik's thick pubic bush and those dangling darlings hanging loose with some close up shots using a high quality lens and printed on premium paper stock. But this was part of the era when Playgirl had shifted from focusing primarily on sexy nude men to trying to be a complete woman's showbiz-gossip-beauty tips type of publication (that also happened to have men for enjoyable viewing). This decision made sense in that magazines needed good distribution channels. The more bookshelf's, supermarkets and quickie mart locations that had your rag, the better. If this had been an earlier time when the magazine first started out, the odds would have been good that Erik's handsome face would have been on the cover instead of Sally Field. 
