PIN-UP GIRLS, THE LIFES BEHIND THE LOOKS.

Well a pin up girl is certainly not a lamp! but The term pinup girl or pinup model,often also known as 'cheesecake' (the counterpart to the male 'beefcake') can be broadly defined as a female, whose photo images are mass-produced and have wide appeal as pop culture.The term was apparently first attested to in English language in 1941; however the use of it is documented back at least to the 1890s (is it just me or were people way too saucy for their own good back then!). Pin-up pictures are intended to be collected for informal display and are usually sold in the form of posters and calendars. Pin-up girls themselves are usually glamour models, fashion models, actresses or other performing arts.

Pinups may also be drawings, paintings, CG graphics and other illustrations done in the style of these photos.

This image: My tribute to Miss Julie Numar.
The only catwoman

Pinup models really became popular in the 1940's. During World War II, these lovely ladies were every GI's "girl back home". Their smiling and flirtatious pictures kept the soldiers "morale" up and pinup images were a staple among their possessions. The girls' images were also painted on the nose of many fighter planes which sometimes unofficially bore their names.

One of the most popular of the classic pin-up girls to grace the G.I.s locker was Betty Grable.Who's swimsuit clad curves and million dollar legs combined with a coquettish look over the shoulder made the defining image of the 'forces sweetheart'....warm, fun, inviting and non-threatening. Quite different from the untouchable femme fatal type of the 20's and 30's.

Other pin-ups were artwork depicting fantasy idealized women, with endless legs, tiny wasp waists and impressively impossible breasts. An early example of the latter type was the Gibson girl in her 'S'bend corset, drawn by Charles Dana Gibson. And many artists have made their living specializing in the field, including Alberto Vargas, George Petty and Gill Elvgreen. And then later, following in their vein, the fabulous Olivia, who's series of portraits of,the then aging fetish and pinup queen, Betty Page brought her luscious curves to a whole new audience....and a whole new level...but this page is not about them.

Now these days when you say "pinup" to most people, a very distinctive type of image comes to mind, and it is not Katie Price (Jordan),Lady Ga Ga or Madonna or even Angelina Jolie...even though by the definition at the top of this page they all qualify... it is a vintage look, a look of cultivated glamour, a look of natural curves in un-natural structured lingerie,it is seamed stockings and 5 inch heels, its is red lipstick and perfect curls.It is Bettie Page, Marilyn Monroe and Rita Hayworth.Its the women who keep the style alive today like Bernie Dexter, Angela Ryan, Morgana and Dita Von Tease. To us now these are not just women, but an idea of beauty passed into legend.
To those who love it and live it, I suppose it is about a lifestyle where looking good to a specific set of standards that are truly your own is important, regardless of mainstream fashion.Its not about being slutty or indiscreet, but erotically feminine and suggestive of more than you reveal.
The restrictions placed on women back in the days where these styles came from no longer apply to the modern woman. So we are free to choose the manner of our appearance as never before. It could be argued that this has devalued the importance of appearance overall, which can be seen as good or terrible depending on your point of view, but to me it means one thing. When you exercise your right to choose, and use that choice to wear things that have been, in the past, feminist issues, (like corsets for example) you claim back sexuality for yourself rather than for the social norms. Pinups uphold a natural feminine sexuality, where women can be women and men can love it!.

But even though pin-up girls were the consummate sex symbols for most of the 20th century, their pictures were very different from the aggressive and often cynical sexuality we seem to be surrounded by today. Seldom ever revealing more than a two-piece swimsuit, pinup models relied on expressions and subtle body language to convey sexuality. There is still something very hot and captivating about that subtlety, inspie of, or perhaps because of todays media.

Because of this I think the pin-up girls' style is equally appealing to both men and women, and it is almost certainly her appeal to her fellow females that has ensured her survival.

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