Planet Nude

Planet Nude episodes:

• 05.28.2024

  Full steam ahead for Wisconsin WNBRs

  As summer approaches, preparations for Wisconsin’s World Naked Bike Rides (WNBR) are in full swing, with both Milwaukee and Madison gearing up for their annual events. These rides, celebrated for promoting body positivity, cyclist awareness, and energy independence, are set...

  
• 05.16.2024

  Seattle proposes new nude-friendly policy for Denny Blaine Park

  Seattle Parks and Recreation is set to formalize a policy for Denny Blaine Park that preserves its status as a clothing-optional space while addressing concerns from local residents. This move follows last year’s controversy over a proposed children’s play area,...

  
• 05.14.2024

  Getting to the root of things

  The winding road is littered with old motels with peeling paint, empty swimming pools, and rusty neon signs that burned out long ago.  Some rent rooms by the month, some by the hour.  Between long stretches of farmland and woodlands,...

  
• 05.07.2024

  Florida’s new massage therapy law exempts nude resorts

  In April, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed HB197, a law that tightens regulation of massage therapy establishments, aiming to combat human trafficking and ensure professional standards. The legislation mandates increased operational transparency and precise documentation of services and personnel. Notably,...

  
• 05.03.2024

  Naked gardening folklore

  As any seasoned horticulturist can attest, gardening involves much more than putting a seed into the dirt, keeping it watered, and watching it grow. Serious agrarians insist on the importance of lore and ritual in gardening. The Old Farmer’s Almanac stresses the...

  
• 04.30.2024

  Why didn’t I get to swim nude at the YMCA?

  North American attitudes toward many social issues have progressed over the past 100 years. However, the way we approach nudity has seemingly regressed. Consider the practice of nude swimming, especially among males. From the early part of the 20th century...

  
• 04.24.2024

  Nudity ban proposal stirs debate in Florida

  A newly proposed initiative by Brevard County, Florida, led by County Commission Chair Jason Steele during a Brevard County Tourist Development Council meeting, aims to restrict nudity at public events that receive tourism grants. This initiative specifically targets LGBTQ+ cultural...

  
• 04.18.2024

  How the novelty song “The Streak” set me on the path to naturism

  In 2024, “The Streak,” a novelty song by veteran singer/songwriter and occasional humorist Ray Stevens, turned 50. The song was released in February 1974, and by late spring, it was inescapable, receiving airplay on both the country and pop charts....

  
• 04.13.2024

  Orrie Hitt’s novel 'The Naked Flesh'

  The disappointingly crude, post-pulp cover of Orrie Hitt’s novel The Naked Flesh reflects the book’s publication date of 1962. The cover promises “ADULT READING” and portrays two women, one distantly nude, the other wearing a bikini that is clearly intended...

  
• 04.11.2024

  Legal victory for nudists at Lights Beach, Western Australia

  As a nudist in Western Australia, I took on the challenge of securing legal recognition for Lights Beach as a clothing-optional area. Despite initial hurdles, including bureaucratic resistance and the need to navigate jurisdictional complexities, my persistence paid off. I...

  
• 04.09.2024

  Freehiking: Tips for doing it legally (and illegally)

  Freehiking combines the joy of nudity with the benefits of hiking, offering an unparalleled sense of freedom and connection with nature, distinct from the experience of nudist resorts or crowded nude beaches. It not only promotes mindfulness and presence by...

  
• 03.28.2024

  Neo Naturists at Tate Britain

  A few weeks ago, Tate Britain hosted a captivating intersection of art, history, and activism. The Neo Naturists, a trailblazing artist trio consisting of Jennifer Binnie, Christine Binnie, and Wilma Johnson, captivated visitors as they transformed their nude bodies into...

  
• 03.21.2024

  Jan Gay: An enigmatic cultural force

  In an era when Comstock Laws still clamped down on the dissemination of sexual information and LGBTQ+ identities were forced into the shadows, an out-and-open lesbian named Jan Gay challenged these constraints with her words, actions, and art.

  
• 03.19.2024

  The Body (1970)

  Inspired by a science book by Anthony Smith, producer and director Roy Battersby’s 1970 documentary The Body (not to be confused with the 2001 Antonio Banderas film of the same title), narrated by Vanessa Redgrave & Frank Finlay and scored...

  
• 03.15.2024

  Returning to 'Running Around Naked'

  I pause in my packing, taking in the fancy floral cocktail dress, my husband’s buttoned down shirts and slacks, when I am struck by absurdity. What am I thinking? We’re going to a nudist resort. Read the full story on...

  
• 03.12.2024

  Values too central to abandon

  Naturist activist Lee Baxandall, who founded the Naturist Society and whose work led to the formation of the Naturist Action Committee and the Naturist Education Foundation, was an early advocate for a diverse and inclusive naturism. As author Brian Hoffman...

  
• 03.05.2024

  Andee Rodgers' 'ImPerfect' journey

  Andee Rodgers is at the forefront of a movement that champions the role of women in the world of naturism. As the current president of Serenity Mountain Retreat, Rodgers has taken on a significant role within the American Association for...

  
• 02.28.2024

  Grace Crowley's naturist webcomics

  Loxie & Zoot is a webcomic created by Grace Crowley which ran from 2003 to 2006, during the big webcomic boom when titles like Penny Arcade, Ctrl+Alt+Del, and 8-Bit Theater rose to prominence. Its titular characters run an Australian nudist camp...

  
• 02.24.2024

  Wisconsin's legislative halt brings a tentative victory for naturist rights

  In a surprising turn of events, the Wisconsin State Legislature has apparently opted not to advance the controversial anti-nudity bills SB 477 and SB 478 to the assembly agenda before the closure of their legislative session this week, leaving naturism...

  
• 02.22.2024

  Orrie Hitt’s novel Nudist Camp

  Dolls and Dues, Suburban Wife, The Torrid Teens, Call Me Bad, Dial ‘M’ for Man—all characteristic titles for pulp fiction short stories and novels of the 40s and 50s. But Orrie Hitt (1916-1975) was not your typical writer of pulp...

  
• 02.19.2024

  Little Beach needs friends

  The Friends of Little Beach (FoLB) are locked in a culture war with Hawaii’s Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) over the right to nude sunbathing at Little Beach. Facing increased enforcement, the group has launched an alert system...

  
• 02.17.2024

  A call for unity (and nudity) in California

  With DeAnza Springs Resort “going textile” last July, Olive Dell Ranch being listed for sale a few days later (since unlisted), and Lupin Lodge a few months later, the California nudist community is in turmoil. Members of these resorts, and...

  
• 02.15.2024

  Are we sabotaging the effort to get women into naturism?

  The naturist community prides itself on taking up the charge for diversity, inclusivity, and body positivity in an effort to foster a sense of equality among all participants. However, recent incidents have highlighted inadvertent consequences of mixed messaging, hindering women's...

  
• 02.13.2024

  British bodies, French film

  Not long after I released my book, Nudism in a Cold Climate: The Visual Culture of Naturists in Mid-20th-Century Britain, a review feature appeared in the French newspaper, La Libération. Wittily subtitled ‘Tout Nus Mais Pas Bronzés’ [‘Everybody is Nude,...

  
• 02.09.2024

  We got it all, and we show it all!

  “We got it all, and we show it all!” shouts the Cavalcade of Perversion ringmaster Mr. David (David Lochary) to a crowd of curious carnival goers in director John Waters’ 1970 underground feature Multiple Maniacs. Inside the Cavalcade’s tent is...

  
• 02.08.2024

  On the other side of fear

  I discovered naturism when I was facing my biggest fear in life. I had spent eight years trying to acquiesce and appease this fear. Actually, that’s not quite true; I had spent twenty-one years doing that, but the last eight...

  
• 02.06.2024

  New Jersey proposes amendments to sexually oriented business laws

  On January 9th, 2024, New Jersey lawmakers, led by Republicans Carmen F. Amato, Jr. and Brian E. Rumpf, introduced Senate Bill No. 1905 and Assembly Bill No. 1723. These proposals seek to update the existing legal framework, specifically targeting the...

  
• 02.06.2024

  Hawaii introduces legislation to change indecent exposure laws

  On January 18th, 2024, Hawaii introduced legislation concerning indecent exposure, with bills presented in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Led by Democrat Scott Saiki, HB 1873 and SB 2251 aim to adjust the state’s approach to indecent...

  
• 02.03.2024

  A change is gonna come

  Home is a 2008 French-Swiss film directed by Ursula Meier. The film tells the story of an unconventional family living in near isolation in a cluttered, brutalist, concrete home in the bucolic French countryside, a few short steps away from...

  
• 02.01.2024

  Remembering Eva Grant (1924-2024)

  Eva Grant was a former glamour model turned glamour photographer who photographed for nudist/naturist magazines postwar. She died on January 22nd, 2024, at age 98. I was intrigued by her when I researched my 2021 book, Nudism in a Cold...

  
• 01.31.2024

  #NoFilter

  Immediate. Today, I am sure that most of us hear this word and understand it to mean now, to mean without delay, or without the barrier of time separating me from the thing I want. Immediacy, in our fast-paced world...

  
• 01.30.2024

  Deepfake dangers

  In early January, there was a great post here on Planet Nude about AI’s anti-nude bias in art. Concerns were raised about AI censorship, including my caution about the dangers of AI misusing nudity. On January 26, this concern became...

  
• 01.25.2024

  Wisconsin DNR board enacts nudity ban on state lands

  In a board meeting held on January 24th, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) board voted unanimously in favor of a new set of rules, prominently featuring a ban on public nudity on state natural lands. The state agency,...

  
• 01.23.2024

  Nudism, punk rock, and anti-authoritarianism

  More than just a lack of dress, nudism is a proposition of sorts. It invites you to abandon the dogma of a society that has handed down the long-held conservative mores of its parent generation—and their parents before them—all the...

  
• 01.20.2024

  Maslin Beach film review

  Maslin Beach, located near Adelaide, South Australia, is the first official nude beach in the country, designated as such in 1975. Being an American who has never left their country, I can’t tell you much about it, but there’s something...

  
• 01.17.2024

  Wisconsin Senate passes anti-nudity bills

  MADISON, WI – In a significant development on January 16th, the Wisconsin State Senate passed two controversial bills, SB 477 and SB 478, in two party-line votes of 23 for to 9 opposed. There was no debate over the bills,...

  
• 01.15.2024

  “Desexualize nudity” doesn’t mean what you think it does

  We hear it all the time from naturism advocates: “Desexualize nudity.” It even has its own hashtag. I noticed the phrase being thrown around soon after I joined the online nudist community, and I often found it rubbed me the...

  
• 01.13.2024

  What have you got to hide?

  In the 2018 French science fiction television series Nu, written and directed by Olivier Fox, naturist activist Jean Lanvin (Thomas Séraphine) successfully campaigns for an ordinance to make public nudity the norm in France, arguing, with little evidence, that a...

  
• 01.09.2024

  AI art's anti-nudity bias

  I’ve written before about generative AI and its apparent discomfort with the nude form in art. To probe this a little further, I turned to three popular AI art-generation platforms with the goal of recreating five famous nude artworks, in...

  
• 01.05.2024

  Ungewitter’s ‘Nakedness’

  Die Nackheit, written in 1906 by Richard Ungewitter, is considered the foundational text for the nudist movement as we know it today. Despite its importance, this book was never translated completely into English until 2004 by Tessa Wilson, when it...

  
• 01.02.2024

  From the archives: A cosmic odyssey on Planet Nude

  Welcome to the faraway realm of Planet Nude, a wild and woolly land where the very air you breathe grants you immediate citizenship. As you step out of your vessel, you're greeted by a lush, verdant landscape teeming with the...

  
• 12.19.2023

  The Schuster chronicles

  In 1979, retired schoolteachers and active nudists Read and Jeanette Schuster founded the American Nudist Research Library (ANRL) at Cypress Cove nudist resort in Kissimmee, FL. Their initial collection, primarily composed of hundreds of nudist magazines, soon grew into a...

  
• 12.19.2023

  Naturist hate: Is it a crime?

  I didn’t expect I’d be returning to the subject of media so soon, but recent events over the Christmas period have forced my pen. I spoke about why my husband and I are happy to appear in the media in...

  
• 12.17.2023

  Berkshire Vista discards nudist roots for upscale glamping

  Berkshire Vista Resort, an esteemed nudist retreat in western Massachusetts and a member of the American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR), is embarking on a new chapter. The resort, initially established as Birch Acres in 1955, has recently been acquired...

  
• 12.16.2023

  Where have all the nudists gone?

  I might have used “naturists” in the title, but that wouldn’t have harmonized as well with Pete Seegers's lyrics (“flowers” instead of “nudists”). But there’s not much difference in the two terms anyhow. And besides, there may not be many...

  
• 12.15.2023

  All new episode of Naked Age coming next week

  In the next episode, we’ll discover the remarkable stories of Jeannette and Zelda Suplee, two pioneering women in American nudism. This episode explores Jeannette’s foundational role in establishing Sunny Rest Lodge, and Zelda’s influential journey as a nudist advocate and...

  
• 12.14.2023

  Bad nudes

  In the news this week is an alarming story accompanied by photographs of captured Palestinian men who had been stripped nearly naked and lined up side by side, with vague and conflicting reports of whether the men were civilians. Regardless,...

  
• 12.12.2023

  Making waves in Belgrade

  Naturists from more than sixteen countries undoubtedly made a splash this past weekend as the 51st international naturist swimming competition, known as the International Swimming Gala 2023, successfully concluded in Belgrade. The event took place from November 3 to 5,...

  
• 12.07.2023

  The Füde Experience: A paradigm shift for naturism

  As an advocate for naturism, I am always looking for ways to introduce the philosophy to those unfamiliar with its positive aspects. I came across an article about The Füde Experience, which piqued my interest. This innovative program, founded by...

  
• 12.05.2023

  Walt Whitman: A poet in nature

  Walt Whitman, often hailed as a great American poet, profoundly influenced the naturism movement. His personal experiences, particularly those related to nature, shaped his views on the sanctity of the human body and its connection to the natural world. Whitman's...