Person doing a backbend or hanging upside down in dense foliage

[Filly]

O.K. ummmmmm I had not seen this until now. I hadn't looked at the photographs in the Seattle newspaper.

I do believe this to be a guy. One eye is open. It appears a man is standing in back of him. Alcala? You can see jeans. IMO this man is either not alive or being tortured. He seems to have reddish hair. Could this be the man holding the little boy up over his head in another photograph?

This is #76 in the Seattle newspaper pictures. Who is he?


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/photogalleries/localnews2011323273/76.html

 

[RubyRed]

This is a very disturbing photo, considering where it came from.


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/photogalleries/localnews2011323273/76.html

 

[jessunlil]

I was just about to start a thread about this one! It's definitely an odd photo.

I can't tell if there there's a person standing near him or if he is bending over backwards.

 

[Filly]

This is a very disturbing photo.

Isn't it? Unfortunately I came upon it. I took another look because I saw the man's eye. I thought perhaps it was a female from back when alot of women didn't shave under their arms. However, there's no breasts. Plus women wouldn't have under arm hair grow in that pattern.

The other thing is could he be doing a handstand? In ratio to the guy behind him's jeans they're about even. I have a feeling this is the man with the little boy over his head. Maybe Alcala told him to do something whacky and when he had him vulnerable who knows?

Again, horrific. Maybe we can find this man.

 

[jessunlil]

I flipped the image, cropped it a bit and made it slightly larger.
This view is even more disturbing. (click to enlarge)

 

[Filly]

I was just about to start a thread about this one! It's definitely an odd photo.

I can't tell if there there's a person standing near him or if he is bending over backwards.

You are right, Jess. A backbend. That's a weird place to do a back bend. Maybe he was forced?

We don't know much if anything about Alcala's male friends. I do think you are right though. Back bend.

 

[Filly]

I flipped the image, cropped it a bit and made it slightly larger.
This view is even more disturbing. (click to enlarge)
View attachment 8345

Oh Jessunlil. Not good.

Thank you for doing that though. I think that ruled out a fun handstand.

I know there's shadows all over the place. This Alcala had to purposely play with shadows. Had to because he s*cks as a photgrapher otherwise. Look at the guy's adams apple. Is there maybe a small hole?

 

[believe09]

jessunlil-thanks-what is over his right shoulder on your edit of the photo? Does that look like a person/head/hair to you?

His face is suffused with blood like he is upside down, but from the angle of his neck and it's length, he does not look alive to me.

I think you could argue for ligature-like marks on his neck and that shadow running down his nose to his forehead does not look like a shadow to me.

Oh My God.

 

[believe09]

The original looks like a man in jeans doing a backbend, but when you crop it, man oh man.

 

[Billylee]

If that's a man he has very long hair. But then that was the style in the 70's. And I agree with the back bend.

 

[jessunlil]

I enlarged the flipped image a bit more, I think he does have long hair.

 

[believe09]

I enlarged the flipped image a bit more, I think he does have long hair.

I agree as well.

 

[punklove]

Are we sure this isnt a woman? The area I circled seems a bit.. Fleshy to me?

 

[carbuff]

It just looks like a guy doing a backbend to me -- I suspect the weird cropping is because he has his jeans unzipped.

 

[Bargle]

It just looks like a guy doing a backbend to me -- I suspect the weird cropping is because he has his jeans unzipped.

I agree. I also seem to recall running across this position being called a 'bridge'.
I think it was in a Victorian era novel.

 

[Filly]

The jeans look wet or either that sparkly kind they used to make.

The thing is though who would be doing a back bend there? Why stick your head in a bunch of bushes? Man or woman.

Alcala was known for positioning bodies. That's what struck me about it. The person's eye is what really got me. I see where you mean though PunkLove the fleshy part.

 

[Pink Panther]

I think this guy is doing a "bridge". Weird for adults to be doing this in wooded areas but that's what I think it is. The eye and flipping pics of someone who is "upside down" will naturally produce some strange effects. We aren't used to seeing people upside down are we??? Interesting that LE would choose to release this cropped pic. Obviously something about it raised their curiousity. What's missing interests me more than what we can see...

 

[Sleuthster]

Doesnt look good to me either.

Also, there is bruising on chest by underarm and on arms and possibly neck.

 

[Sleuthster]

IMO it looks like he is deceased and was laying on stomach for a bit which would cause the blood to pool down and cause the brushing on his face and chest. Skin looks really weird on neck.

 

[punklove]

Just a thought - we know that Alcala liked to pose the bodies, if someone looped a rope around a tree branch, tied it and the positioned the body in the loop so the rope goes around that persons lower back you would get a very similar pose.