A Cheer for Our Troops

I have seen this video online repeatedly, and I have to say it touches me. We are so removed from the war in Afghanistan as civilians. In the US, one would be hard pressed to notice that we are even a country at war. But on the other side of the world, US troops are fighting, and something about this video moved me. Perhaps seeing troops work on a lipsync video just like so many other young people around the world reminds me that many young men and women are in harm's way. No one is shirtless in this video, but undoubtedly, many of them are candidates for the blog. I post this video in honor of the troops and the difficulties they face every day. I am...

Yours in shirtlessness,
Nandita
President
IMS

The End of an Era

So last week the sad announcement came that "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" had been canceled. Obviously reality tv has taken over for soap operas, allowing real people to behave badly in their actual lives instead of paying actors to portray outlandish situations, and I have my own feelings about the adverse effects of this trend on our society. For one thing, it has encouraged people to treat each other terribly in order to gain that elusive prize of fame. With these two soaps' demise comes the end of an era of rather over-the-top daytime programming that was a shameless fantasy. I'm sure they will be replaced by another set of Real Housewives or maybe a show about what happens when you put 10 people who hate each other in a house filled with tarantulas.

While a few soaps remain on the air, I feel sad for the loss of AMC which was the soap that ruled in my house growing up. My grandmother used to tell me that she would feed me lunch as a baby while watching AMC. I watched it with her when I came home from school in my pre-teens years. And as an adult, I would find a strange comfort in tuning in to the adventures of Erica Kane every once in a while when I might find myself at home for lunch. I worked as an extra on AMC a few times, and it was the gig that lent my career legitimacy for my grandmother even though I had worked extensively in theater before working on the show. I also will venture a guess that my first glimpses of good male shirtlessness came on a weekday afternoon between 1 and 2pm on ABC during my teenage years.

So in honor of a show I feel I passed my life with, I post Cameron Matheson in all his shirtless glory. May he find other places to take his shirt off, and may I find something interesting to watch on that errant weekday afternoon when I am home for lunch. Until then, I am...

Yours in shirtlessness,
Nandita
President
IMS

The Goz

The secretary of IMS recently alerted me to some upcoming excellent male shirtlessness coming from Ryan Gosling in the film "Crazy Stupid Love." Between his abs and the fact that it's a romcom with Steve Carell, I'm sure to see it. If only he were reunited with Rachel McAdams, all would be well. But I won't grumble. Mr. Gosling is always compelling onscreen and has chosen some interesting roles over the years. And if he happens to look great with his shirt off, then who am I to complain?

So things are really heating up here in the South. I feel that in just a day or two, men will be shedding their shirts left and right. Whether this will be a good thing remains to be seen, since my apartment complex is surrounded by fast food restaurants. I will say, however, that the men in the cast seem to be gearing up for shirtless weather. I think goodness lies ahead. Until then, I am...

Yours in shirtlessness,
Nandita
President
IMS

Gleeful Requests

As the evening began to settle here in Alabama, I started to panic that I would not be able to come up with any good shirtlessness for this week. While GA featured a fair amount of shirtlessness last week, I don't think I can support the musical episode. To be fair, I came to the theater via musicals and have a very soft spot for them, but watching doctors sing instead of operate did not compel me last week. Also, I think GA has used up its quotient of otherworldly visions in the form of Denny Duquette, and so I was very disappointed to spend an hour with Callie outside of her own body. Thank goodness Avery took off his shirt!

So I turned to an IMS member for advice, and he requested Mr. Darren Criss of "Glee." I was worried about the age factor, since I am not an advocate of posting children on the blog, but Mr. Criss is 24 - fair game. I am a few episodes behind on "Glee" but have thoroughly enjoyed his storyline with Kurt, even though I sit in nervous anticipation of Kurt's first heartbreak. Having survived high school and beyond, I am unfortunately bound to remember the accompaniment to most first kisses. But it is sweet to see their love story presented as just that. So many thanks for the suggestion of ground-breaking shirtlessness to my fellow IMS member!

In the meantime, things are heating up in the South, and I believe a lot of shirtlessness will be coming my way soon. The park is green and lovely; the pool will be open shortly; and there is no reason that attractive men should not be sauntering about without shirts for the rest of my stay here. No reason except the possibility of torrential rain and tornadoes, but I remain hopeful as should you. Until then, I am...

Yours in shirtlessness,
Nandita
President
IMS

Limitless Shirtlessness

One of my castmates and recent members of IMS reported some good shirtlessness over the weekend in the new movie "Limitless." Bradley Cooper has never been hard on the eyes, and the prospect of seeing him in nothing but a pair of boxer briefs could entice me to see this movie. However, I have to admit that since arriving in Alabama, I have seen exactly one movie, and my guess is that my next trip to the cinema will most likely be for Jane Eyre. What can I say? I am a sucker for period dramas! That is why "The Tudors" was such a joy - period costumes and shirtlessness! Needless to say, Mr. Cooper has made "Limitless" number 2 on my list.

As for said castmate who reported his recent shirtless fix, I'd like to give a shout out for developing some very good shirtlessness of his own. He has introduced me to the wonder of "The Perfect Push-Up," a set of portable devices that make push-ups even harder than they normally are by requiring you to twist your wrists while doing them. I don't understand the physics of them, but I will say that the results speak for themselves. He was the envy of every man and woman in the gym this morning where we took a Body Pump class together. This recent addition to the IMS membership told me that the blog inspired him to develop better shirtlessness himself. This is exactly how the blog should work!

The cause continues on in mysterious ways. All I can say is that I'm happy to inspire more good male shirtlessness all across the country. Until next week, I am...

Yours in shirtlessness,
Nandita
President
IMS

Shirtlessness, the Old Fashioned Way

I realize that I have been a terrible blogger by not keeping to my schedule. Alas, rehearsing a repertory season is a bit more taxing than I expected and the internet connection in our apartments is not quite as amenable as promised. So my apologies for slowing down on the shirtlessness front. It is a cause that I continue to support but perhaps not as vocally on the internet as previously. I assure you that my commitment remains unwavering in spite of the obstacles that time and the internet put before me.

Today I am posting Clark Gable in honor of the play that I am currently working on, which tells a fictionalized account of the creation of the script for "Gone with the Wind." My castmates and I watched the movie as research, and I found myself incredibly compelled by Mr. Gable. He had such an ease on screen. While I realize that his shirtlessness is not the best by today's overwrought standards, there is something quintessentially male about Clark Gable, and I thought it was worth celebrating.

In other news, I have discovered that although there is a rule in the park against running shirtless, there does not seem to be a rule against standing around shirtless. Now that the temperature has hit the 80s, the shirts are coming off. I'm not sad to say it. Things are definitely starting to look up on the shirtless front!

In the wake of my absence, I think I have to look at paring back my posting schedule to once a week on Mondays. I hope that my fellow IMS members will understand that sometimes learning and performing three plays at the same time can whittle away time once dedicated to blogging. I continue to encourage and promote good shirtlessness in my everyday life and hope that my Monday posts will carry the mantle for this short period away. I continue to be...

Yours in shirtlessness,
Nandita
President
IMS

The Man Hug

I know that this is not a bona fide shirtless picture, but after seeing Anthony Mackie on the Today Show last week promoting his new movie, "The Adjustment Bureau" with Matt Damon and Emily Blunt, I developed a little bit of a crush on him and think he should be shirtless soon. The arms in the above photo support my belief. He was simply so charming and humble and cute as he flirted with Ann Curry that I had to look him up and post him. So Mr. Mackie, please take your shirt off soon! He also said that he was a big supporter of hugging and then got into a hug-off with Al Roker. What is not to love about this guy?!

Apologies for the lack of posts last week. I found myself facing some rather difficult circumstances on a personal front and could not bring myself to concentrate on good male shirtlessness. I think you all can tell from that mere fact how heavy said circumstances were. Trouble seems to have cleared for now, but I am still wrestling with how to deal with people who act in an unjust way. I don't think I would have felt better if these people had demonstrated good shirtlessness while acting, but suffice it to say that they did not, which made the situation all the worse.

In any case the second show of the season will start previews tomorrow. No one takes their shirt off in this show either, but the quick changes suggest that there is a lot of shirtlessness happening backstage. I won't complain. Alabama is warming up, and I believe that some good male shirtlessness paired with my favorite accessories of kindness and compassion are in the air. Until then, I am...

Yours in shirtlessness,
Nandita
President
IMS