The first year of Hot Rod Magazine was humble. They pretty much published the magazine by the book - taking few risks that would alienate the publication from the dime store news racks. Hot Rodding had yet to garner the 100% clean cut image promoted ... <BR><BR>To read the rest of this blog entry from The Jalopy Journal, click here.
Pin ups have "come a long ways". It is interesting to see how the "kustom kulture" has really taken pin ups a whole different direction. Like Betty Page style girls with lots of tattoos, crazy hair and "attitude". Rebel Rodz recently featured "Malice". God, I was really disgusted. Not at all attractive. The fact that they featured her and puffed her up as though she was some kind of "rebel queen" or whatever. She was just gross. In good taste. Pinups should be good lookin!
An old advertising adage is "sex sells". Ridgid calendars were always a highlight of going to my uncle's machine shop when I was a pubescent teen. Bought a copy of Hot Rod Deluxe the other day and I must say that what is considered a pin up today isn't what I'd be fantasizing over late at night if I was 14 again.
Though they followed the "rules" and tried to promote a positive image one has to remember that the title "Hot Rod" itself was controversial as it conjured up images of hell raising hooligans tearing up the streets in loud greasy jalopies. So "Parts With Appeal" had to remain somewhat tame but still appeal to young men. They were quite litterally treading on thin ice as there was a very strong movement to outlaw hot rodding and still is.
These gals are wearing more than 90% of the ladies at the Oscars last night. Been to the beach lately? I hurt my neck severely at one last summer. Doc said I had Whiplash. You could ship a modern swimsuit with a letter stamp.
I agree Ryan. Just like many of the car builds of today, you can see that it's vintage inspired, but it has been infused with some newer element that makes it a hybrid of old and new. Whether it be punk rock, goth, metal, emo, whatever it may be, many of the new "pin-ups" of today fall into the neo-traditional than the truly authentic. Channeling your Model A - Traditional Channeling your Model A 15 inches so your head is a foot over the windshield - Neo-trad Pin-ups - traditional Pinups with tattoos of dice, cherries and other retro-cliches - Neo-traditional It's no different to me
I saw that Rebel Rodz as well. The fact that cover was chosen almost makes me not want to let a shoot I did for a friend get submitted to that magazine. There's nothing wrong with some tattoos, big hair and attitude. I can only vouch for myself and some of the girls I know, but we shouldn't be restricted to "no modifications." You can't say that hot rods and customs haven't caught up with the times as well. Everything will change over time. You have to watch out for the super traditional girls, because she might yell at you if you aren't wearing '56 underwear, haha. I know I couldn't replicate those photos, and the class those girls had, so I will sit and admire those former beauties. Thanks for sharing those pics Ryan. I wish that's how performance parts were still advertised, but alas. We can only reminisce. I would still enjoy seeing ads like that in the magazines.
kind of reminds me of Christmas. the "presents" always seem a little nicer when someone has taken the time to wrap them attractively! and there was always FUN in unwrapping!!!!!
I think of all the new stuff out there, Hot Rod Deluxe has done a good job of keeping nice looking girls on there that aren't trashy. There's nothing wrong with the occasional tattoo or whatever, but it shouldn't be a prerequisite for getting into a car magazine. Getting really tired of outrageousness within and outside of the hobby. This was a great read, Ryan.
Don't know why anybody gets uptight seeing a pretty girl in a mag. Hope i never get too old to enjoy it.
Too bad none of them were showing off a pair of chrome plated King Bees. They could have used a two word caption: "Nice headlights!"
Did you see the Rebel Rodz magazine cover and article that is being talked about? If you saw it, you would understand. It was relatively tacky and the girl was not pretty, just...nasty? I am not a fan of that part of the hobby. http://www.mooneyesusa.com/shop/product.php?products_id=2442 It is also sad that the magazines are already 3 months ahead of themselves too...but that's how it has always been.
Ryan, For the most part I would agree, but there are a few artists (left) that have at least some assemblance of style and/or taste in these days of "a weird fetish." -The twisted take on 30's 40's and 50's pinups is not lost on all. .....In the 40's, a talented young artist known as George Petty plied his skills for an established ladies lingerie manufacturer. 'Bestform' approved some of Petty's sketches to run in nation wide magazines including Life magazine. For a brief moment in time the artistic talent of this little craftsmen became nationally published while he himself moved on to do bigger and better things... Not to be forgotten, his style was recently resurrected only to be displayed on the sides of a motorcycle tank at the local world of wheels in 2010.... The innocent faces of the models chatting on the phone for the most part was missed by many a passerby. But there were some that were old enough to remember the large format of life magazine and the often seen but somewhat 'risque' content placed within. And some might have even remembered the ad style of the 'Petty' models with their phone in hand.... For a brief moment in time, at least for the artist, the owner (Mark) and maybe for the odd passerby, Life would again stand still. As for Petty's 1944 artistic take on 'pinups'? it has not been totally lost or disgraced. -There are still a few greybeards that can remember what Life was really like. .
Speaking only for myself, I don't buy car magazines to look at pictures of scantily clad women and it annoys me that the women in those pictures have a bad habit of blocking my view of the trick mechanical details on the car that I bought the magazine to see. If I want to look at pictures of scantily clad women I know places to find them on the internet for free. (Which I will not be linking here for what I think are obvious reasons. ) Of course, iif a magazine wants to pose a woman who is connected to the car or its owner (or IS its owner) behind the car or seated inside it, that's okay. I'm also content to see a friendly looking pooch in the shots. I like doggies, and if you ask me doggies often go with vintage vehicles better than trashy women do. For example: That there is somebody's riding buddy.
...so then Ryan decides to put up a "Parts with Appeal" post, something I've always waited for someone else to start 'cause I didn't want to look like the wierdo with all the old girlie pictures!! Some I have scanned. In no particular order...
Like the movies of old where you had to use your imangreation remember night of the living dead black and white but you could see the gore in you mind, you were thinking, Bettie rest in peace gave us the same as well as the Vargus girls. Ms Grable on a bomber noise, or Ms Lake on a tank it was as my dad said its about the valleys and peaks son.
I like how she looked. But I also like the traditional pin up girl as well. It's just a matter of taste. However one style shouldn't dominate over another. We cant forget the roots but we also cant keep change from happening. It does get annoying when the mags have a hot woman covering an even hotter part though.
Although most would relate the 'pinup girl' to pictures of curvaceous movie stars of the 40's and 50's, the truth is that the original Pinup girls were simple drawings and illustrations (dating into the 1880's). These risque drawings would predate Bettie Page and Rita Hayworth by more than half a century. Among one of the most famous of pin up artists was George Petty (1894 - 1975). Upon his graduation and after a short stint in a Paris Art school, Petty turned to the states and began his career in his father's photography studio retouching photos. By the mid 1920s, he had moved on and was working as a freelance illustrator providing images for calenders. His real big break came in 1933 when one of his artworks appeared in Esquires First Issue. "Darling, what -- kachoo -- difference does age-- kachoo -- make anyway?" Besides Esquire Magazine, Petty's list of clients included Marshall Field's and Old Gold Cigarettes and all the while he continued to work the calender business into the 40's.. By 1940, Petty's relationship with Esquire Magazine had worn thin. Having moved on he was replaced by a South American by the name of Alberto Vargas. Right around this time, Petty's version of Rita Hayworth would grace the cover of Time magazine. This was more or less a pin up picture of a real pin up girl for 1941. George kept busy and around about 1940, he even designed a 'Petty Girl' swimsuit for the Jantzen Swimsuit Company. Throughout his long career Petty retained his sense of wit and humor. In 1945 Petty placed his ad in the Art Directors annual in the illustrators classifieds. Most artists listed their qualifications dryly: "Advertising illustrations," "Water color and oil," "Posters and Book Design," etc. Petty's ad was different. It read, "Telephones tenderly rendered." Petty marched on, In 1945 he entered into contract with True magazine where the 'Petty Girl' would appear every month as a centerfold. True Magazine also published the Petty Girl calendars in '47 and '48. These contained some of the Petty's most admired works. "I think this calls for you" Into the 50's, Petty was forced to drop his trademark 'telephone' renderings while working for the Ridgid company on their famous calenders. It was September 1950 when Columbia Pictures released "The Petty Girl" starring Joan Caulfiled. The story line involved a young artist, known for his calender girl renderings falling in love with one of his subjects. The movie poster featured what else, a pin up of Joan talking on a telephone. Some time in 1955, George agreed to return to Esquire Magazine for a series of calenders. For this he would rely heavily on old sketches, some of which were featured in ads from his early career. Like this rendering for an Album cover. George 'moved on' in 1975 at the age of 81 but throughout his life he never stopped rendering pretty girls with telephones...... .
This subject is getting a little abuse because of the changing times. We are in a muchmore graffic and unrestricted age of showing more than was accepted in the 40's and 50's. I understand the resistence to the new tats and aggresive females. I personally accept it easier by having a vintage clothing store with a 60's - 70's overtone and a tat shop. The new wave of gals are doing what they are seeing around them as all generations do. Nothing is cooler than the Petty/Vargas styles, but that time frame is lost forever. I love that the scene is happening and accept the new wave of this ages realities. Nothing will ever be as cool as the old school stuff, but we must try to adjust our reality. my 2 cents. Here aare a couple of pix of one of aOmaha's cuties taken at my friends mid-century house, my friends Johnny and Lacy Lane from western Nebraska were in town doing some model shooting and I took these shots as they were working, as you can see tats are in the works and they didn't detract from the cute models look at all. ~sololobo~
In general, I agree "pin-up" art shouldn't be reproduced today. The one exception to that for me is the work of HANDIEDAN. It's obviously not straight forward "pin-up", more inspired by....and obviously more fine art/abstract. I collect a lot of screenprint/giclee art prints(mainly gig posters) and these things are the nicest darn prints I got! She prints on old music sheets and catalog paper. A lot of hand finishing in these things, the jpeg's do not do them justice. Man, I wish I was the only one who digs her stuff, but when she drops a print or original it's like winning the lottery to score one.....