The Thinking Person's Smut
Hey, nice back cover of New York magazine this week—a shirtless athlete! Not just any shirtless athlete would be appropriate for their refined demographic, however. With rowdy soccer players often thought of as being low-class (and a populist sport to boot), and with Michael Phelps being a little odd-looking, it's only natural that classy New York's contribution to male pinups would be Rafael Nadal, a tennis player. Sports that usually require money or horses—like tennis, rugby and polo—are the ones whose players are more acceptable for refined ladies to fall for. (Nouveau riche footballer David Beckham doesn't count; he comes from a humble background.) For NY Mag to venture into the perilous category of totty, it's either the "classy sportsman" route or the faux-serious, artistic homage (Lindsay Lohan as Marilyn Monroe.)