History of Sexy Pin Up Girls

Summary:

            The name “pin up” had been created based on the fact that soldiers during the war would “pin up” pictures of beautiful women in their lockers. When artists began making drawings that were of sexual nature, the evolvement of the pin up girl truly began (this was around the 1930s). Pin ups would be drawn on the sides of planes during World War II for good luck. Pin ups began incorporating other types of art, such as bondage and fetish in the 1950s. Irving Claw and Bettie Page exemplified this new type of pin up. In 1953, Playboy put out a centerfold with Marilyn Monroe in its first issue of the magazine. There had been centerfolds prior to Playboy, but this was the first one where the girl had been naked. Playboy really brought pin ups into mainstream America during this time, around the 1960s is when it truly emerged. Playboy encouraged America’s demand for more graphic and vulgar imagery, causing the unique and original style of the pin up to diminish over time. More recently, the Internet has allowed pin ups to make a comeback. Artists have begun to draw new images illustrating the pin up and photographers have been creating new art with the pin up style. All of this today has been created with a modern edge to it and it seems to be doing pretty well.

Analysis:

            Pin ups began simply with drawings of artists of the ideal woman, which led to photographers using this idea to create art in their photographs of women representing this idea. At that point, pictures of these women with this unique style were pinned up on the walls of rooms and even in the lockers of soldiers away at war. But these women in sexy outfits soon became insufficient for America, leading to nude pictures of women beginning with Marilyn’s centerfold in the first Playboy issue. From that point on, the pin up style wasn’t good enough anymore with America’s new demand for such vulgarity. It’s unfortunate to see such greed in people’s desire for more. As far as what’s out the today, there simply is no more mystery – everything’s given to you on a silver platter.

Reflection Questions:

1.      What made Americans crave more than what was given to them in original pin up style pictures?

2.      How did Playboy change the pin up style forever?

Summersizzle, B. (Videographer) (2009). History of sexy pin ups girls 3 hot facts model bethany [Web]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgVYNdZDsF4