BETTIE PAIGE
AMERICA'S FAVORITE PIN-UP GIRL
I have never been the girl next door-Bettie Page.
Pin-ups have always played an important role in keeping American troops motivated and reminding them that these beautiful women was one of the reasons they fought to protect their county. Although Bettie Paige did not come on the scene until after WWII was over, she none the less today is the representative image of the "Pin-up" as we know it.
Born in Nashville, TN despite a tumultuous childhood, Bettie had always possessed an interest in beauty; she and her sister imitated their favorite movie stars by experimenting with different hairstyles and make-up. A good student, she was voted "Most Likely to Succeed". After divorcing her husband, she moved to New York City, where she hoped to find work as an actress. In the meantime, she supported herself by working as a secretary. In 1950, while walking along the Coney Island shore, she met Jerry Tibbs, an African American police officer with an interest in photography. She was a willing model, and Tibbs took pictures of her and put together her first pinup portfolio. To hide her high forehead, it was Tibbs that suggested she wear bangs, which became her signature look and the style she would wear for the rest of her life.
Bettie became a popular pin-up and fetish model in the 1950's in serious demand, but after converting to Christianity, she retired from modeling and with the exception of reports about her dealing with mental illness and being arrested, she was forgotten and became a recluse. Her image became very popular again in the 1980's. With this revival of her popularity, opportunities for interviews followed; but she declined the attention because she wanted people to remember her they way she was. When she did give an interview it was off camera. With this resurgence of Bettie's popularity from posters to tattoos, it seemed that everyone was cashing in on Bettie's image, that is except Bettie. With the help of Hugh Hefner, owner of Playboy Magazine and another dear friend, they helped her with the legal challenges over the use of her image so that she could benefit from her image financially making the last years of her life comfortable. Bettie seems to have never lost her ability to connect with every generation since she became a popular model. Most recently Beyonce channeled her "inner Betty" for her video "Why don't you love me?"
On a personal note, what I admired most about Bettie is that she had an edge to her. She was not sugary sweet but had just enough tart and sass to separate her from the cookie cutter collective. She could go from virgin to vixen with just one pose which shows her versatility.Sadly we lost Bettie less than 2 weeks before Christmas in 2008, of all the models past and present, she remains my favorite Pin-up and my Div'Icon of the month!
