| Luke Halpin's Chest -
A Visual Analysis
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| This Visual Analysis provides a brief overview of Luke Halpin's chest development that spans the entire five years (1963 - 1967) that Luke worked in Flipper. Scenes from the films and the tv series are represented in the following graphic: |
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| (click the graphic for enlargement) | |||||||||
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| Frame 1: One aspect that may impress new fans is how well-developed Luke Halpin's chest already was even as far back as the first feature film. (Flipper (1963) full size) Luke's chest muscles are displaying considerable bulk, quite in contrast with many pictures that tend to make him look flat-chested. That is partly a lighting problem and the general quality of an old film. However, if you are viewing the DVD with a high definition screen, you may be able to see some missing details and see a truer picture of Luke's chest. Still, this and other pictures prove that Luke Halpin's chest possessed considerable development even at the early stages of his growth. Frame 2: Many scenes in the second feature film, Flipper's New Adventure, tend to make Luke appear rather flat-chested, but this closeup provides a better illustration of the impressive bulk and density in his chest development at the time. (Flipper's New Adventure (1964) full size). In addition, the picture also reveals increased muscularity in his shoulder and upper arms. Frame 3: The third frame is devoted to one of the first episodes of the tv series, Season 1, Ep 2 - The Red Hot Car. This episode contains some of the most impressive illustrations of Luke's chest early in the series. The skin quality is especially impressive in this picture. (Ep 2 full size) Frame 4: Season 2 was brimming with excellent illustrations of Luke's maturing chest. In Ep 32, part 1 of "Dolphin In Pursuit," we see that Luke's chest was already noticeably more mature in development at the very beginning of the season. (Ep 32, full size) In this scene, Luke stands in the absolute center of the scene. The camera focuses directly on his upper body. This is a very unforgiving shot because any imperfection in a person's body would be glaringly obvious. But even this difficult shot is unable to mar the remarkable muscle maturity of Luke's chest. On the contrary, Luke Halpin's chest is simply magnificent. The light rays and shadows seem to bounce up and down as they travel over the peaks and valleys that separate the numerous muscles that cover his upper body. Frame 5: Ep 33, part 2 of "Dolphin In Pursuit" contains a very unusual shot of Luke. Sandy is talking to Bud shortly after the two return from a swim. Normally the camera is pointed at eye level when Sandy and Bud are in conversation. But this time, the camera is actually looking up at Sandy. This presents a unique perspective of Luke's growing chest size. (Ep 33, full size) In this scene, Luke Halpin's body towers over his co-actor. Even the green tree behind him is overpowered by Luke's powerful muscles. The expanse of the blue sky further amplifies the stature of his build as if to suggest that even the planet earth was not capable of fully containing the total stature of his body. Luke's bare chest dominates the scene like a mountain rising toward the heavens. It is hard to imagine anyone gazing at this sight without being completely overwhelmed by Luke's magnificent chest. Frame 6: No survey of Luke Halpin's chest would be complete without the famous shirt removal scene in Ep 58 - Deep Waters. This scene is classic Luke, and remains probably his most memorable moment in all his years in Flipper. Yet this scene is also an outstanding opportunity to examine the fine details of Luke's impressive chest. The sight of Luke's chest virtually defines the standard for every teen actor that strives for the highest form of physical excellence. (Ep 58, full size) Once again, Luke Halpin's bare upper body completely towers over that of his co-star. Normally, being fully clothed makes a person look bigger. But despite being fully covered, Bud is no match for the muscularity presented by his bare-chested older brother. Luke's powerful chest is framed by his well-toned arms at his sides, his strong shoulders on top, and his highly defined abs below. In addition, Sandy's face wears a no-nonsense seriousness appropriate for one who has just braved a dangerous one-man rescue dive and must now contemplate his next move. Luke's hard-muscled body makes Sandy look practically superhuman as he takes on severe physical demands to rescue the stranded submarine.
In Season 3, we see the peak development of Luke's teenage chest. Episode after episode in this spectacular season revels in the jaw-dropping definition and density of Luke's mature chest. It is as if the producers of the tv show intinctively knew that they were witnessing one of the milestones of early color tv history, Luke Halpin's remarkable body, and felt obligated to document it as thoroughly as possible. Three frames are devoted to Season 3. Frame 7: The first frame comes from Ep 68 - Whale Ahoy. Luke's total scenes in this episode are actually quite short, since this episode focuses mainly on his costar. Yet the few scenes that Luke does have turn out to be among the most interesting of the episode. This picture from the long scene that Sandy has with Bud displays his mature chest at its finest. (Ep 68, full size)
Frame 8: This scene from Ep 70 - Executive Bud, is another example in which Sandy literally towers over Bud. Because of Sandy's height, Bud finds himself at eye level of Sandy's chest and must bend his neck up in order to speak to him. Imagine what it would be like to look upon Luke Halpin's bare chest at such close range, especially at its highest point of development. The closeup profile of Luke Halpin's chest is certainly worthy of numerous views. (Ep 70, full size) Frame 9: The final frame is devoted to a late episode of Season 3. Episode 85 - Devil Ray. Broadcasted only a few weeks before the end of the series, Ep 85 provides one of the final views in the series of the teenage Luke Halpin's fully matured chest. (Ep 85, full size). |
