BETTIE PAGE

Spicy Saturday: Spy Vibe has paid tribute in the past to Hugh Hefner, the boy cartoonist who grew up to be a celebrated champion of sex and sophisticated leisure in the 1950s. There were many people in that era who bucked against the post-war suburban ideal and today we spotlight Bettie Page, Queen of the Pin-Ups. Page became a cult hero by modeling for cheesecake, pin-up, and bondage photographs in the 1950s. She appeared in images for under-the-counter portfolio projects as well as high-profile gigs for Playboy and others. She became the center of a Senate Committee investigation that attacked publishers and artists for challenging the strict sexual climate of the times. Page later became a cultural icon of the sexual revolution and appeared as a character in comics, pop art, films, and on merchandise. She passed away at the age of 85 in 2008. 

"I don't know what they mean by an icon. I never thought of myself as being that. It seems strange to me. I was just modeling, thinking of as many different poses as possible. I made more money modeling than being a secretary. I had a lot of free time. You could go back to work after an absence of a few months. I couldn't do that as a secretary." More info at her site here. Spy Vibe also recommends the 2005 bio-pic, The Notorious Bettie Page. 

Check Spy Vibe for recent posts about our fiendish villains archive, WWII spy Krystyna Skarbek, recycled James Bond covers, interview with Fu Manchu author William Maynard,  Man From UNCLE manga. new James Bond omnibus, Orson Welles the Shadow, rare Piero Umiliani Kriminal soundtrack, new Beatles Yellow Submarine game, James Bond audio book re-issues, Mid-Century Modern in Peanuts, Ralph Byrd Dick Tracy, my review of SKYFALL and more. Spy Vibe is now on Pinterest! Check out our image archives and follow us here.

Ian Fleming on Spy Vibe: recent posts include Ian Fleming Music Series links: Noel Coward, Whispering Jack Smith, Hawaiian Guitar, Joe Fingers Carr, new Ian Fleming Catalog, discovery of one of Ian Fleming's WWII Commandos, James Bond book covers, Ian Fleming's Playboy interview for Kindle, Spy Vibe's discovery of a rare Ian Fleming serialization, Fleming's Royal gold typewriter, Ian Fleming's memorial address, and our Ian Fleming image archive link here.

Can you help to support Spy Vibe? Please make a small donation with our secure Paypal tip-jar link at the top left of the main page. Nothing is too small to help cover the increasing bills for the domain, web-forwarding and other costs to maintain the site. Thank you!