David Anthony was a fashion photographer on Swinging Sixties Carnaby Street, who had a brief career as a singer, under the name "Charles Dickens."
Apparently Mr. Dickens released three singles: "That's the Way Love Goes" (1965), "I Stand Alone" (1966), and "So Much in Love" (1966).
In 1968, he was cast in the film
The Touchables (1968), a take on the gangster tv series
The Untouchables (1959-63).
The plot is minimal, just an excuse for some "hush-hush wink-wink" British naughtiness. Pop star Christian is kidnapped by four girls, who take him to a Buckmeister Fuller geodesic dome and then a merry-go-round, tie him up, and have sex with him. Meanwhile his friends are trying to rescue him, and there are some gangsters.
It was directed by Robert Freeman, the Beatles' favorite photographer during the 1960s. The song "Norwegian Wood" was based on John Lennon's affair with Freeman's wife.
This was his only directorial credit.
Other performers include Harry Baird as a gangster named Lily white, and professional wrestler Ricky Starr, who also took his shirt off for an episode of the American sitcom
Mr. Ed.
No gay content in the movie, and I can't find anything else out about David Anthony: there's another photographer AND another musician named David Anthony active now, plus celebrities named David Anthony Higgins, David Anthony Kennedy, and so on.
But this post is really about the fashion photographer turned actor stripped to his underwear and tied spreadeagle to a merry-go-round.
Well, it WAS the 60s: Gay content was cryptic and often not very flattering.
ReplyDeleteKind of a weird plot. The Untouchables was about Al Capone, right? So yeah, a weird open parody to say the least.
Love to find out more about David Anthony .. spotted a photo on Getty saying he was married to Chrissie Shrimpton in 1968 ( sister of Jean Shrimpton and ex GF of Mick Jagger ) also possibly connected to Celia Hammond ?!
ReplyDeleteAfter further research on Instagram I have now discovered that sadly David Anthony died at some time before the end of November 2018. His last wife was the fashion model Jane Goddard who appeared in many issues of Vogue. One of the most reposted Images show her in a rainbow dress hovering above a small dog .. taken by David Bailey in the 1970s
Deleteabs
DeleteI saw the Getty photo too. In researching info on Chrissie Shrimpton, there's no mention she was ever married to him. So that might have been a poorly researched assumption on the part of the Getty site. More than likely, he was a brief relationship between her tumultuous time with Mick Jagger and her moving on to Steve Marriott of The Small Faces fame. It's sad to hear that David has gone. I found he had established a photography business website with a picture of him in later life with grey hair, curiously in the same style as he had back in the sixties mod era. He had an eventful life back then, between his fashion photography career and his shortlived success as a local pop star before being cast in The Touchables. I wonder how he died.
DeleteDavid Anthony, who sang under the name 'Charles Dickens' was connected to model Celia Hammond, they lived together in Kilburn, London in 1966-67, I was their next door neighbor. In 1968 Hammond began dating guitarist Jeff Beck and they were together for the following 18 years.
ReplyDeleteDavid Anthony went on to marry model Christie Shrimpton. There is a photograph of them with a small dog online.
DeleteDavid Anthony is also the name of very hot gay porn actor you can see his work in such titles as "After the Heist", "Coyote Point" and " The Runners"
ReplyDeleteI saw the trailer which looks very 1960s
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