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Ginger Rogers won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1941 for her role in Kitty Foyle. Jean Harlow may have passed away before World War II, but her image lived on. More than just a pinup girl, Ida Lupino served as a Lieutenant in the Women’s Ambulance and Defense Corps during World War II. Her debut film, The Outlaw, was almost pulled by censors who were concerned about the amount of cleavage she showed.Īfter starring in Intermezzo: A Love Story, Ingrid Bergman was a popular World War II pin-up girl before going on to star in Casablanca in 1942. Jane Russell was nicknamed the “sweater girl” after the garment that best emphasized her breasts.
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to raise money for war bonds.ĭuring a career revival, Katharine Hepburn became a popular pin-up girl before experiencing a slow down in her career after the war. Besides being a famous WWII pin-up girl, Veronica Lake also traveled throughout the U.S. This was to encourage women working in war industry factories to follow her lead. After the war, Grable became the most highly paid woman in America, earning about $300,000 a year.Ĭarole Landis was the female lead in the 1940 film One Million B.C., and was known as “The Ping Girl” and “The Chest” because of her curvy figure.ĭuring World War II, Veronica Lake traded in her trademark peek-a-boo hairstyle at the urging of the government for a more practical, safer hairstyle. Betty’s studio, Twentieth Century Fox, provided five million copies of one pinup photo to distribute to troops. Vivien Leigh was an actress and singer best known for originating the role of Miss Adelaide in the musical theater production Guys and Dolls.īetty Grable was perhaps the most popular pinup girl during WWII. Rita’s two brothers bought served in WWII, and was also involved in selling war bonds.ĭuring World War II, Lana Turner was a popular pinup girl because of her popular roles in films like Ziegfeld Girl, Johnny Eager, Slightly Dangerous, and four films with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s Clark Gable. Here are the top 18 vintage WWII pinup poster girls that you may have found in Pearl Harbor in the days before, during and after the attack.Īs one of the most famous pinup girls during WII, Rita Hayworth’s photos were taken across the Pacific to Hawaii by troops in 1941. To this day, pinup fans emulate the vintage style of pinups that was triggered during WWII. These vintage WWII pinup posters adorned servicemen’s lockers, the walls of barracks, and even the sides of planes. For the first time in history, the US military unofficially sanctioned the creation and distribution of pinup pictures, magazines and calendars to troops in order to raise morale and remind young men what they were fighting for. World War II in 1941 was the golden age of pinups. Playing cards, zippo lighters, confidential reports, Army helmets – and plenty of beautiful black and white pinup photos. Reporting to duty at Pearl Harbor Warbirds is like going back in time and immersing yourself in history.Īs you enter the office, you’ll hear sounds of typewriters typing, smell the distinct aroma of Old Spice and see plenty of things reminiscent of December 1941.
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