Dick Bacon

Dick Bacon (September 9, 1932 – August 18, 2000) was a nudist or naturist from Milwaukee, Wisconsin who was known for outdoor tanning every day of the year. He worked at Pabst Brewery in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He sun tanned year-round at Milwaukee's Bradford Beach on Lake Michigan. Bacon also frequented a nude beach in Milwaukee called Paradise Beach.

Tanning Bacon could be seen tanning at Bradford Beach from the 1960s through the 1990s, including in freezing weather. If the beach was covered in snow, Bacon would have a path cleared to his tanning spot.

Bacon said that he only wanted to work enough to support himself. He claimed to be planning for retirement from the time he was a child. Newspapers called him a crusader for nude beaches. Bacon claimed that he fell in love with nudity while modeling for artists at the University of Wisconsin.

When Bacon died, the Madison, Wisconsin State Journal deemed him a "Beach Legend".

Arrests In 1977, he was charged with lewd and lascivious behavior for bathing in the nude at Bradford Beach in Milwaukee on New Year's Day. In 1991, Bacon was arrested for appearing nude just north of Bradford Beach in Milwaukee.

Awards In 1973 in Indiana, Bacon won the Mr. Nude America contest. One of the judges of the contest was a novelist, Erskine Caldwell. The prize for winning the contest was $500. Bacon was very proud to be a nudist and he owned a white van emblazoned with his nickname, “The Nude Dude.” He won three nude modeling contests during the mid-1970's.