Biography

Jim French (July 14, 1932 – June 16, 2017) was an American photographer, filmmaker and publisher who, under the pseudonym Rip Colt, created Colt Studio. French left a legacy of homoerotic images in photo sets, magazines, books and calendars that presented his work exclusively and set a new standard in photography of men. Given that he owned the company that produced and distributed his work, it was self-published. French began drawing and photographing male erotica in the 1960s. His first published book, Man, was issued in 1972. Other books include Another Man, Jim French Men, Quorum, Opus Deorum, Masc., The Art of Jim French and The Art of the Male Nude. Colt magazines began in the early 1970s. By the late 1970s, short films were being issued in 8mm format; they were soon collected on video-cassette format, which were remastered for DVD format in the 1990s. These DVDs remain available. Annual calendars in the Jim French style, some of them including his iconic photographs, continue to be published each year. French died at home in Palm Springs, California, at age 84.