BETTY GRABLE ICONIC WWII PIN-UP (1943) Photo by Frank Powolny

[Los Angeles: Twentieth Century Fox, 1943]. Vintage original 7 1/2 x 9 1/2″ borderless black-and-white single weight glossy silver gelatin photo. Minor edge wear, minor left edge corner crease, a bit of emulsion loss at top left corner. A bit of waviness to the paper blurb. About fine. 

An original print of perhaps the most popular and iconic pin-up of all time, and one of history’s most famous images. Taken as a publicity image in 1943 by Frank Powolny, it (as the original attached paper blurb indicates) was to promote her 1943-44 film efforts CONEY ISLAND, SWEET ROSIE O’GRADY and PIN-UP GIRL. The unique angle of her looking over her shoulder was necessitated by her pregnancy and the photo took on a life of its own — the most requested and collected by soldiers of WWII, lauded by Life magazine and the inspiration for Hugh Hefner to launch Playboy magazine.

Out of stock