Friday, Feb 23, 2007    Text size: 

After 40 years in business, COLT President John Rutherford told XBIZ he was most proud of the fact that the studio had become an icon in the gay community.

“We’ve been there almost from the beginning, creating a positive image for men in the gay community,” Rutherford said. “For me, our place in the gay community hit home when California State Assemblyman Mark Leno accepted our invitation to join us for our 40th anniversary party.”

Rutherford said Leno also was working to give COLT a proclamation from the state of California in recognition of the company’s contributions to the gay community.

COLT opened its doors in 1967 when photographer Jim French, using the pseudonym Rip Colt, began shooting beefcake pictures that rejected the traditional “closeted sexuality,” COLT President John Rutherford said.

“We created a more palatable brand of eroticism,” Rutherford said. “Jim’s work had sexy male models that appealed to a wide audience, but he didn’t put the hardcore stuff in the audience’s face. If they wanted hardcore, it was there, they just had to dig a little more.”

French’s work focused on the nude male figure set against erotic backdrops. Over time, those works came to define what the world now knows as COLT Men.

In 2003, Rutherford, a 14-year veteran of Falcon Studios, took the helm at COLT with the goal of continuing French’s legacy into the next evolution of the company.

Today, the studio’s roster of COLT Men include Carlo Masi, Chris Wide, Mike Dasher, Gage Weston, Luke Garrett, Skye Woods, Antton Harri and all-new Adam Champ and Darin Hawk.

In addition to its COLT line of products, the company also has its Buckshot Productions line, which recently released “Big Rig: Extended Cab Premium Edition” starring Gus Mattox in his last appearance before retiring, as well as Colby Taylor and Jason Crew.

COLT plans to keep its current release schedule of 12-15 titles per year, which allows the company to focus on quality over quantity, Rutherford said, adding that COLT also works to put out a diverse range of products.

COLT will release the 43rd installment of its COLT Men Magazine in conjunction with its 40th anniversary.

The company also markets a line of novelties in connection CalExotics as well as a clothing line that features everything from leather gear to hats and T-shirts.