By Halley Bondy
Told through a series of black-and-white photographs of a woman's legs, “Legs Talk” is the story of a woman and her affair with a legophile. The story has a beginning, a middle and a surprise ending, but in this case, the real story is in the telling. When the narrator likes her leg-friendly fetishist, she hurls her feet in the air beside the text: “I fell head over heels for him.” When she hates the pervert, she crosses her legs tightly next to the words: “The kitchen is closed!” The result is a charming visual journey that leaves a lot – her face, for example – to the imagination.Author and Queens native David Eugene Boone was inspired by female noir characters and Hitchcock movies when he created his monochromatic, long-limbed protagonist.”I noticed that women's legs were used to communicate something,” he said, “especially when they were walking away.””Legs Talk” began as an idea for a feisty greeting-card series. He gathered relationship stories from his female friends and found that the card industry had it all wrong.”Greeting cards always say things like 'I'm glad I met you,' and 'Miss you,'” said Boone. “Women don't talk like that. They say, 'Why didn't you call?'”The greeting cards morphed into a solid storyline. With the help of photographer Marc Burgess and model Natsuko Koizumi, “Legs Talk” eventually became a pictorial gift book that has sex appeal for men and sass appeal for women. “It's sexy, but I'm not selling sex,” said Boone. “I'm not alienating women by throwing a 6-foot-2 model in there. It's visual enough for men, but all the women I speak with see their own story in here.”Boone studied graphic design at Touro College and earned his MBA in media management at Metropolitan College. He works as a paralegal and part-time owner of his Jamaica-based publishing company, Global Force Media. A native of Hollis and resident of Jamaica, Boone is constantly inspired by his native borough.”I love seeing the approachable energy and diversity here,” he said. “I planned 'Legs Talk' in Starbucks [stores] all over Queens.” “Legs Talk” is Boone's first book. Through Global Force Media, he hopes to advance into more gift books and greeting cards with playful relationship themes. “We all experience break-ups and failed relationships,” he said. “Sometimes it's better to stay away from the Dr. Phil stuff and have fun with it.”
