These young mid-century men were known as 'halbstraken' & a gay photographer's pics tell their story

Karlheinz Weinberger

This story originally ran on Advocate.com in October 2018.

Karlheinz Weinberger (Swiss, 1921-2006) had a lifelong obsession with photography, more specifically photographing men. By day, he worked in the warehouse department of a manufacturer, but in his free time, he roamed the streets of Zurich in search of subjects.

In 1958, Weinberger met a young man with whom he was immediately fascinated. The young man's look was distinctive -- slicked back hair, denim jeans and jacket, cowboy boots -- and, through him, Weinberger was introduced to a loosely organized band of working-class teens who rebelled against any type of Swiss, post-war, bland, middle-class conformity. Regular society derogatorily referred to these ragtag bands of "rebels" as the "halbstraken" (the 'half-strong'-- a reference to their immaturity). The young men formed gangs and adopted the demeanor of 1950s Hollywood depictions of rebelliousness: Marlon Brando's leather-jacketed ne'er-do-well in The Wild One, Elvis Presley's pompadour, James Dean's smoldering, tentative sexuality in Rebel Without A Cause. However, these "Halbstarken" modified the styling of their movie idols and created wholly new looks. They ratted and slicked back their hair, wore exaggerated belt buckles and chain necklaces emblazoned with images of their idols taken from fan magazines, and most remarkably, adorned their denim. Weinberger shot these rebels both in his home and at carnivals and festivals around Zurich. This body of work remains the best known of his extensive 50-year creative output.

Karlheinz Weinberger - Sports (Vol. 2), the second volume of works by Karlheinz Weinberger, is also available. The sports images were shot starting in the 1960s. Sturm & Drang presents a lesser-known but truly captivating side of Weinberger. Working for various sports newspapers and magazines, he covered athletes and contests in Switzerland and places such as East Germany. His fascination with the male physique was documented at bike races, wrestling matches, and weight-lifting events.

For more works by Karlheinz Weinberger's check out his Instagram, @karlheinzweinberger