Nu-West/Leda Part One

In my post on April 29, 2010 regarding my own 'Beginnings' I made a reference to Nu-West. NuWest was one of the earliest publishers of items that dealt with more of the 'Domestic Discipline' subjects instead of the 'BDSM' subjects that were more plentiful at the time. I am not sure how I found Nu-West but it was probably an ad that they ran in one of the 'adult' magazines in the early 1980's. I keep all the 'good stuff' I have collected over the years and have a trunk dedicated to the storage of my 'treasures'. Included in my collection are all of the publications I have received from Nu-West (and later Leda).

The oldest publication in my collection is NuWest 'Catalog Number Four'. It appears this catalog was published sometime in 1982, 28 years ago! Looking back at this catalog is like opening a time capsule. Many of the offerings were 'Photo-Cassette' sets. These consisted of packages of photos (12 to 18) along with an audio cassette-tape. These were priced at between $25.00 to $35.00. Also included in this catalog were Super-8 films. These were 8 mm films that required a projector to display on a screen. These were priced at $50.00 for each selection. And in the final pages of the catalog were offered VHS video tapes, which were priced at $89.95.

The majority of the subject matter of the selections in this catalog were either Female spanks Female (F/F) or Male spanks Female (M/F) but there were a few which dealt with Females spanking Males. At the time, I don't believe there was any source of Females spanking Males in a domestic discipline setting. This was truly a break-through.

At the time, I purchased their 8mm film, "Spanked Males" which is still in my collection. I also purchased one or two of their audio Cassettes which were titled, "You are Disciplined" and one of their publications, "The Complete Guide to Home Discipline and Petticoat Punishment". Note that in searching through my collection of items from Nu-West (and Leda) I came across this publication and laid it on Cora's pillow. She made a comment and will undoubtedly be reading it tonight!

However, there apparently was not as much demand for the F/M stuff and a note in Nu-West Catalog #6 (1984) stated, "The reason for this sparse supply of female dominant videos is simple - very little demand for such tapes". Yet this forward thinking company kept making them. I am guessing on the time frame but I believe it was about 1986, Nu-West sent a flyer announcing 'Beatings '86'. This was a video tape that included 7 scenes of women spanking men in a domestic discipline setting. This was truly a 'dream come true'. While some of the offerings from Nu-West previously were ground-breaking, this was truly the culmination of 'real' Female spanks Male subject matter. Of course, I ordered this tape and it still retains a place of honor in my collection. At the bottom of the flyer was, "Leda Productions", which I believe is the first reference to 'Leda'.

As Nu-West kept expanding, they added more and more to their catalog and it did include more F/M subject matter. However in 1990 the first edition of the 'LedaGram' was published. This was a monthly publication that self proclaimed, "Correct me if I'm wrong but I think the Ledagram is the only female dominant newsletter available at this time". Indeed, I knew of no other monthly publication of its kind and looked forward to each issue as it was published. There was just no other F/M domestic discipline publication at the time and the Ledagram filled a tremendous void. I would have subscribed at twice the price. Also published in 1990 was the first 'Leda Productions Female Dominant Catalog'.

In July, 1987 the first issue of a Female Dominant publication from Nu-West hit the news stands as 'Ma'am'. This wonderful magazine featured some of Nu-West's dominant Ladies such as Margaret Morley, Anne Bowman, Christine Justice, Simone Devon, Mildred Scott and a very young Joanne Jameson. In addition were articles on spanking and F/M related stories. It was a great magazine and was followed by 7 others. I have all but issue number 6 in my collection. Sadly, the last issue (number 8) was published in 1999 with no others to follow that I am aware of.

Those followers of this blog know that I have a 'thing' for women who wear girdles, especially panty girdles. There are many pictures on this blog of Cora wearing one and I find that a woman wearing a girdle just fits the pattern of the 'women in authority' when I was growing up. And even some of the readers of this blog sharethis image based upon some of the comments and e-Mails I have received.

Well, it appears that I am not alone in my attraction for women wearing girdles and especially women wearing girdles who spank. Many of the women depicted in the Nu-West/Leda scenarios are also wearing girdles. I have included a picture (with permission) of Vanna (one of my favorite Leda Ladies) applying a cane to a male's backside while wearing a very tight panty girdle. No doubt, Ms. Vanna is a Woman with authority!

The Ledagram continued monthly publication until August, 1995 then switched to a quarterly publication in October, 1995. It appears to have switched back to a monthly publication in October 1997 and the last issue in my collection is the July, 1998 edition. It was one of the best publications of F/M Domestic Discipline material ever created and I treasure my collection.

I was even quoted in the May, 1998 issue on page 6 - Note that my letter was signed 'Ken R, Seattle, WA' (My middle initial is 'R'). I consider being quoted in the Ledagram as a real honor.

Today, you will see references to Nu-West/Leda as the two identities are essentially one and the same with the Leda nameplate associated with the F/M material. They still continue to produce video publications of all kinds including their Female Dominant series. In my opinion, they are some of the best available, although there is now some fairly stiff competition. However, the competitors probably own much to Nu-West/Leda for being the 'first'.

Finally, one of the other items offered by Nu-West/Leda was their 'Instruments of Corrections'. Included in my collection is a catalog of these items under the 'Leda' publisher, but there is not date. Previous catalogs did include many of the items in this catalog. I was lucky enough to have purchased one of their classic hairbrushes, a cane, and two of their 'Spencer' paddles. I bought a second one as this quickly became one of my favorite paddles and I wanted to make sure I had a 'back-up' in case one broke. However, since these paddles are made out of 7-ply plywood, I believe they are indestructible. I do regret that when I submitted an order for one of their straps, I was informed that they were no longer available. Some of these out of production implements have been the inspiration of some of the items I have recently been making on my own.

I believe that the contributions from Nu-West/Leda has made a major impact on the F/M 'Domestic Discipline' scene. They opened the 'portals' and many of us found a publisher that (finally) produced items for those of us into that particular scene. It also sent a message that there were others out there like us.

Note that there is an extensive history of Nu-West available on their web site. The above was intented to be a history of my own experiences with them and how it has influenced me. There is a definite connection with what I have described to the creation of this blog.

I will continue this post at a later time and address one of my favorite titles: "Leda Lady".