It is only May 2009 however BearFilms already has their 2010 calendar out: "Twelve months of your favorite furry fuckers for only $12.95! Check out the steaming hot 2010 calendar from BearFilms. Packed with some seriously woofy men, this calendar is sure to provide you with hours of visual pleasure... oh, and it tells you the date, too. So decorative and so functional!". Click here to get your own copy.

Some cool news from Butch Bear (the same guys who bring you BEAR magazine):

"Village Lighthouse, Inc. today inked an exclusive merchandise licensing agreement with Butch Media, Ltd., a Bear Omnimedia company, to publish and distribute Butch Bear branded books, calendars, greeting cards and other products under its BIG Daddy and PROVOCATEUR divisions. Butch Bear has become known for the best adult films staring muscular hairy men, and this new merchandise will feature some of the hottest models from their most popular titles, each one full of furry eroticism for Bear lovers.

"Through its quality and consistency, Butch Bear has become a leader in the adult marketplace for producing content for those who love Bear men", said Ron Miller, President of Village Lighthouse, Inc. "Butch Bear knows their customer very well, and the products we create with the impressive photography of Teddy Mark will continue to reflect that dedication to the desires of their core audience".

"Village Lighthouse Inc. is well known for their strength in producing and distributing erotic specialties and publications. This partnership offers strong support for our hyper-masculine, Butch Bear point of view, and meets the demand for a high quality, hot line of products for those who celebrate the unapologetically unshaven man", said Butch Bear CEO Wolfe Thompson.

A book of photography entitled 'Muscle + Fur' will be published in May 2009 by PROVOCATEUR featuring some of the best photography by Teddy Mark of the Butch Bear models. This book follows PROVOCATEUR's popular December 2008 release of Uncensored featuring photography by acclaimed celebrity photographer Joe Oppedisano.

A 2010 Butch Bear wall calendar will be published in June 2009 by BIG Daddy. BIG Daddy will also publish a complementary line of Butch Bear greeting cards this summer".

A 'better late than never' posting, as I only got word of it today - you should still pick up a hot little Butchdick Collection 2009 calendar, done by Loren Macias (website - profile). Actually there's 2 kinds of calendar, a Wall calendar and a Bears calendar. And while you're at it, there's other merchandise you can purchase, not to forget the actual drawings as well.

Some news from BearFilms: "Thank you for an awesome 2008! To show our gratitude, we are offering free ground shipping on all of our products. Order any DVD, tshirt or calendar and get free ground shipping (when checking out use coupon code 'HOLIDAY08'. Offer valid for orders placed by January 5th).

Secondly - 2009 Calendar on Sale for $5.95. Our lowest price of the year! Get your copy now. Why spend a whole year looking at photos of sunsets or beaches when you can enjoy 12 of the hottest BearFilms models on your '09 calendar? The BearFilms.com 2009 Bear & Cub Calendar features our steamiest Bears, baring it all for you! No matter whether you like Cubs, furry Daddies or the big guys, you're sure to enjoy the whole 365 days. Each month features a different model with multiple photos and an inside look at what makes each guy go".

Way back in February (articles), I mentioned that photographer Antinoo was working on a calendar (cover) with the Norway Bears (Den Norske Bamseklubben) using images from classical Nordic paintings.

This calendar is also about safe sex with the motto "Bearback Yes! Bareback No!". From Antinoo's blog: "'Bearback Yes! Bareback No!' is a not-for-profit project financed by different Bear organizations at a national and international level, with the aim of promoting joint activities (such as publicity campaigns) with various social organizations, health institutions, networks of people living with HIV/AIDS, in the educational sphere and with relevant international agencies. Its aim is to promote prevention and safer sex through condom use, and to improve the quality of life of people living with HIV/AIDS and members of social groups most vulnerable to the disease".

Bubba of Bubbaclicks is informing us that his newest 'Bear Men 2009 Calendar' (cover) is now available. You can grab yourself a copy at Amazon (here) or at 10percent (here with photo examples of the models) and at Amazon (here). It is also available at some other smaller websites and in local gay retailers.

Bubba is already working on his 2010 calendar (this guy is way organized... I need to pay him just for some organizational skills). From Bubba: "I am in the process of shooting my 2010 calendar right now and also working on a cub calendar too. I will be at Bear Bust this year in Orlando.... anyone coming to Fort Lauderdale and looking for pictures or possibly being in a calendar or magazine, should hit me up".

You might think it's a little early to be thinking about 2009, but the guys over at BearFilms love to be ahead of the game and they already have out their 2009 Calendar.

From BearFilms: "Why spend a whole year looking at photos of sunsets or beaches when you can enjoy 12 of the hottest BearFilms models on your 2009 calendar? The BearFilms Bear & Cub Calendar has just arrived and features our steamiest Bears, baring it all for you! No matter whether you like cubs, furry daddies or the big guys, you're sure to enjoy the whole 365 days. Each month features a different model with multiple photos and an inside look at what makes each guy go. As an introductory special, you can get the new 2009 Calendar until July 31st for just $9.95! We know it's early, but heck at that price, you can do your shopping for the year!".

I've been going thru my old bear-pics folders and I keep finding so many gems... especially photos sent in by Italian photographer GianOrso (website - TubeBear profile - articles). Only a few weeks ago I posted photos he sent in from a Calendar he worked on (photos here), and this time I found some great 'toga' party photos. There's quite a few of them (88 in all), so check them out here.

Here are some excellent photos taken by GianOrso (website - TubeBear profile), the well known Italian photographer sent me during the days when I was running bear-pics (the site before PlanetBears). These photos were taken for a calendar he was working on called 'Food 4 Bears' - some of these photos made the calendar, some are outtakes.

I gotta say, going through my old bear-pics folders is kicking up some nostalgia in me. Anyhow, enough about me, click here to enjoy this very cool set. Thanks GianOrso. Make sure to check out his website. The man is a genius when it comes to photography (and I was also graced by meeting him when he came to Canada).

I need to make a correction; In a previous article I wrote entitled Antinoo Calendar - I mentioned about Antinoo (website), his calendar and his work he has done with the Mad Bears of Spain... ok no correction needed so far... however I go on to mention that the Norway Bears ~ Den Norske Bamseklubben ~ wrote an article about the calendar. I need to make a small rectification here... or this could also be considered an announcement:

Antinoo is going to be working with the Norway Bears and he is going to be making images using motifs from classical Nordic paintings (much like he did with the Mad Bears)... what Antinoo does is that he manipulates these images by placing cute Bears into the paintings. My bad for not getting the whole story straight... it's because I was pretty much guessing what this article from the Norway Bears was all about.

There is this very cool looking 2008 calendar involving Bears and very old paintings. Ok so it's already the middle of February but that should not stop you from picking up your own copy. It's a calendar done by photographer Antinoo (website) who works with the Mad Bears (musical front page) of Madrid, Spain.

You can pick up a copy here and you can see a few previews right here, and if you want to see calendars that Antinoo has done in the past, go here. He also has a WordPress page which you can visit. Lastly, if you want a read up about this calendar, go here - altho it's in Norwegian written up by the Norway Bears.

Photographer Bubba is already busy working on his 2009 calendar for 10percent as his 2008 version was a big hit and has been sold out for awhile now. Bubba states that his 2009 calendar is going to be even hotter and it should be available for early summer. Check out his professional site BubbaClicks and you will see a sweet array of men he's photographed ~ from muscular guys to Bearish types.

Go Fujimoto of JapanimationBears is one of the better known Japanese artists when it comes to Bear drawings and anime. He's also known for his calendars which have been considered as collector's items. This year's calendar for 2008, however, will not be available.

The following is from Fujimoto's shop section - BearGrand: "please accept my apologies, for due to a sudden illness, the 2008 Fujimoto calendar will not be completed. In September I suffered a disc herniation. Up until now, I've lead a fairly healthy life, but while trying to get better finishing the calendar - along with the other work I've been juggling - unfortunately hasn't been a possibility. And I'm aware that I'm not meeting expectations that others may have for me, and I'm filled with regret at this, but healing my body is a top priority, and it's been a terribly difficult and saddening decision to make. As for being able to do the calendar next year? It could happen, but first I need to put my focus on recovering my health. In other words: all we can do now, is wait...".

One of my favourite artists is known as Go Fujimoto and he has a great site called Japanimation Bears. Every year he comes out with an excellent calendar and now he also has some very fine looking t-shirts. There's a new section to his site called BearGrand (English version) which is where you can buy his goods. Also make sure to check out his blog - altho it's in Japanese, there's a ton of fun pics for us non-Japanese speaking folks.

2007 is quickly becoming a memory as 2008 lures in our future, foretelling us of all the possible fortunes and frolicking one could possibly enjoy...

It also means it's almost time to pick up a new calendar for your home office or near your kitchen sink, and a great way on celebrating  the upcoming 2008 months is by lusting over the ButchBear models. The calendar Muscle + Fur is out and availaible, promising "36 hot and exclusive color nude pictures of Butch Bear models, plus a centerfold of one of our new hot discoveries Matthew Ford" (TubeBear profile).

Also - check out their newest model for the month of October. His name? Fittingly - Butch Grant is on the cover of Butch Bear.