DESCRIPTION OF ITEM

ONE OF THE RARE VARGA PRINTS ACCOMPLISHED FOR ZIEGFELD FOLLIES GIRLS IN THE ROARING FLAPPER GIRL 1920'S.  THIS ONE IS TITLED QUEEN OF HEARTS.  HAS A GREAT ART DECO STYLE IN THIS PIN UP ARTWORK OF ESQUIRE'S VARGA'S FAME - ORIGINALLY A PRINT WITHIN THE RARE SHADOWLAND THEATER MAG

PLEASE SEE PHOTO FOR DETAILS AND CONDITION OF THIS NEW POSTER

SIZE OF POSTER PRINT - 12 X 18 INCHES

DATE OF ORIGINAL PRINT, POSTER OR ADVERT - 1922

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The PosterPrints are printed on high quality 48 # acid free PREMIUM GLOSSY PHOTO PAPER (to insure high depth ink holding and wrinkle free product)

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MOST POSTERPRINTS HAVE IMAGE SIZE OF 11.5 X 17.5.

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DESCRIPTION OF ITEM: additional information:

Joaquin Alberto Vargas y Chávez (9 February 1896 – 30 December 1982) was a Peruvian-American painter of pin-up girls. He is often considered one of the most famous of the pin-up artists. Numerous Vargas paintings have sold and continue to sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Life and career

Born in Arequipa, Peru, he was the son of noted Peruvian photographer Max T. Vargas. Alberto Vargas moved to the United States in 1916 after studying art in Europe, particularly in Zurich and Geneva, prior to World War I. While he was in Europe he came upon the French magazine La Vie Parisienne, with a cover by Raphael Kirchner, which he said was a great influence on his work.

His early career in New York included work as an artist for the Ziegfeld Follies and for many Hollywood studios. Ziegfeld hung his painting of Olive Thomas at the theater, and she was thought of as one of the earliest Vargas Girls. Vargas' most famous piece of film work was the poster of the 1933 film The Sin of Nora Moran, which portrays a near-naked Zita Johann in a pose of desperation, bearing little resemblance to the real actress. The poster is frequently named one of the greatest movie posters ever made.

Vargas became famous in the 1940s as the creator of iconic World War-II era pin-ups for Esquire magazine known as "Vargas Girls." Between 1940 and 1946 Vargas produced 180 paintings for the magazine. The nose art of many American and Allied World War II aircraft was inspired and adapted from these Esquire pin-ups, as well as those of George Petty, and other artists.

In 2004, Hugh Hefner, the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Playboy, who had previously worked for Esquire, wrote: "The US Post Office attempted to put Esquire out of business in the 1940s by taking away its second-class mailing permit. The Feds objected, most especially, to the cartoons and the pin-up art of Alberto Vargas. Esquire prevailed in the case that went to the Supreme Court, but the magazine dropped the cartoons just to be on the safe side". A legal dispute with Esquire over the use of the name "Varga" resulted in a judgement against Vargas. He struggled financially until 1959 when Playboy magazine began to use his work. Over the next 16 years he produced 152 paintings for the magazine.^[1] His career flourished and he had major exhibitions of his work all over the world.

Vargas' artistic work, paintings and color drawings, were periodically featured in some issues of Playboy magazine in the 1960s and 1970s.

The death of his wife Anna Mae in 1974 left him devastated, and he stopped painting. Anna Mae had been his model and business manager, his muse in every way. The publication of his autobiography in 1978 renewed interest in his work and brought him partially out of his self-imposed retirement to do a few works, such as album covers for The Cars (Candy-O, 1979) and Bernadette Peters (Bernardette Peters, 1980; Now Playing, 1981). He died of a stroke on 30 December 1982, at the age of 86.

Many of Vargas' works from his period with Esquire are now held by the Spencer Museum of Art at the University of Kansas. It was given those works in 1980 along with a large body of other art from the magazine.

At the December 2003 Christie's auction of Playboy archives, the 1967 Vargas painting Trick or Treat sold for $71,600.

His work was typically a combination of watercolor and airbrush. His mastery of the airbrush is acknowledged by the founding of the Vargas Award, awarded annually by Airbrush Action Magazine, which was named after him. Despite always using figure models, he often portrayed elegantly dressed, semi-nude to nude women of idealized proportions. Vargas' artistic trait would be slender fingers and toes, with nails often painted red.

Vargas is widely regarded as one of the finest artists in his genre. He also served as a judge for the Miss Universe beauty contest from 1956 to 1958.

Notable women painted by Vargas include Olive Thomas, Billie Burke, Nita Naldi, Marilyn Miller, Paulette Goddard, Bernadette Peters, Irish McCalla, Ruth Etting and Candy Moore from The Cars' Candy-O album.

The Ziegfeld Follies was a series of elaborate theatrical revue productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 to 1931, with renewals in 1934 and 1936. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air.

Founding and history

Inspired by the Folies Bergère of Paris, the Ziegfeld Follies were conceived and mounted by Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., reportedly at the suggestion of his then-wife, the stage actress and singer Anna Held. The shows' producers were turn-of-the-twentieth-century producing titans Klaw and Erlanger.

The Follies were a series of lavish revues, something between later Broadway shows and the more elaborate high class vaudeville and variety show. The first follies, The Follies of 1907, was produced that year at the Jardin de Paris roof theatre.

During the Follies era, many of the top entertainers, including W. C. Fields, Eddie Cantor, Josephine Baker, Fanny Brice, Ann Pennington, Bert Williams, Eva Tanguay, Bob Hope, Will Rogers, Ruth Etting, Ray Bolger, Helen Morgan, Louise Brooks, Marilyn Miller, Ed Wynn, Gilda Gray, Nora Bayes and Sophie Tucker appeared in the shows.

The Ziegfeld Follies were also famous for their display of many beautiful chorus girls, commonly known as Ziegfeld Girls, who "paraded up and down flights of stairs as anything from birds to battleships." They usually wore elaborate costumes by designers such as Erté, Lady Duff-Gordon and Ben Ali Haggin.

The "tableaux vivants" were designed by Ben Ali Haggin from 1917 to 1925. Joseph Urban was the scenic designer for the Follies shows starting in 1915.

After Ziegfeld's death his widow, actress Billie Burke, authorized use of his name for Ziegfeld Follies in 1934 and 1936 to Jake Shubert, who then produced the Follies. The name was later used by other promoters in New York City, Philadelphia, and again on Broadway, with less connection to the original Follies. These later efforts failed miserably. When the show toured, the 1934 edition was recorded in its entirety, from the overture to play-out music, on a series of 78 rpm discs, which were edited by the record producer David Cunard to form an album of the highlights of the production and which was released as a CD in 1997.

Films based on the Ziegfeld Follies

In 1937, at the 9th Academy Awards, the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film, The Great Ziegfeld produced the previous year won the Best Picture (called "Outstanding Production"), starring William Powell as Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. and co-starring Myrna Loy (as Ziegfeld's second wife Billie Burke), Luise Rainer (as Anna Held, which won her an Academy Award for Best Actress), and Frank Morgan as Jack Billings Featuring numbers by Ray Bolger, Dennis Morgan, Virginia Bruce, and Harriet Hoctor, the film gave a glimpse into what the Follies were really like. The show-stopper was the Irving Berlin-composed "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody", which, by itself, cost more to produce than one of Ziegfeld's entire stage shows.

In 1941 MGM released Ziegfeld Girl, starring Judy Garland, Lana Turner, Hedy Lamarr, James Stewart and Tony Martin. The film was set in the 1920s. Celebrated numbers from Ziegfeld Revues were recreated, including the famed "Wedding Cake" set which had been used for Metro's earlier film, The Great Ziegfeld. Judy Garland was filmed on the top of the cake. Charles Winninger, who had performed in the Follies of 1920, appeared as "Ed Gallagher"  with Gallagher's real-life partner, Al Shean to recreate the duo's famous song "Mister Gallagher and Mister Shean". According to modern sources, Turner's character was modeled after Ziegfeld Girl Lillian Lorraine, who suffered a drunken fall into the orchestra pit during an extravagant number.

In 1946 MGM released a third feature film based on Ziegfeld's shows titled Ziegfeld Follies with Fred Astaire, Judy Garland, Lena Horne, William Powell (as Ziegfeld), Gene Kelly, Fanny Brice, Red Skelton, Esther Williams, Cyd Charisse, Lucille Ball, Kathryn Grayson, and others performing songs and sketches similar to those from the original Follies. Ziegfeld Follies was awarded the "Grand Prix de la Comedie Musicale" at the Cannes Film Festival in 1947, and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration (black and white).

The 1964 stage musical Funny Girl, starring Barbra Streisand as Fanny Brice, depicts Fanny Brice's success with the Follies. The 1968 Columbia Pictures film of Funny Girl also starred Barbra Streisand as Brice and Walter Pidgeon as Florenz Ziegfeld.

A pin-up model (known as a pin-up girl for a female and less commonly male pin-up for a male) is a model whose mass-produced pictures see widespread appeal as part of popular culture. Pin-up models were variously glamour models, fashion models, or actresses whose pictures were intended for informal display, i.e. meant to be "pinned-up" on a wall, which is the basis for the etymology of the phrase. These pictures are also sometimes known as cheesecake photos. Cheesecake was an American slang word that became a publicly acceptable term for scantily-clad, semi-nude, or nude photos of women because pin-up was considered taboo in the early 20th century.

The term pin-up may refer to drawings, paintings, and other illustrations as well as photographs (see the list of pin-up artists). The term was first attested to in English in 1941 even though the practice is documented at least back to the 1890s. Pin-up images could be cut out of magazines or newspapers, or they could be on a postcard or lithograph. Such pictures often appear on walls, desks, or calendars. Posters of these types of images were mass-produced and became popular starting from the mid-20th century.

Male pin-ups (known as beefcake) were less common than their female counterparts throughout the 20th century, but they have always been around. In particular, pictures of popular male celebrities were targeted at women or girls; examples include James Dean, Jim Morrison, and Fabio.

History

Beginning in the early 19th century, pin-up modeling had "theatrical origins"; burlesque performers and actresses sometimes used photographic advertisement as business cards to advertise shows. These promotion and business cards could often be found backstage in almost every theater's green room, pinned-up or stuck into "frames of the looking-glasses, in the joints of the gas-burners, and sometimes lying on-top of the sacred cast-case itself." "To understand both the complicated identity and the subversive nature of the 19th-century actress, one must also understand that the era's views on women's potential were inextricably tied to their sexuality, which in turn was tied to their level of visibility in the public sphere: regardless of race, class or background, it was generally assumed that the more public the woman, the more 'public,' or available, her sexuality”, according to historian Maria Elena Buszek. Being sexually fantasized, famous actresses in early-20th-century film were both drawn and photographed and put on posters to be sold for personal entertainment. Among the celebrities who were considered sex symbols, one of the most popular early pin-up girls was Betty Grable, whose poster was ubiquitous in the lockers of G.I.s during World War II.

In Europe, prior to the First World War, the likes of "Miss Fernande" (who some identify as Fernande Barrey), were arguably the world's first pin-ups in the modern sense. Miss Fernande displayed ample cleavage and full frontal nudity, and her pictures were cherished by soldiers on both sides of the First World War conflict.

Other pin-ups were artwork depicting idealized versions of what some thought a particularly beautiful or attractive woman should look like. An early example of the latter type was the Gibson Girl, a representation of the New Woman drawn by Charles Dana Gibson. "Because the New Woman was symbolic of her new ideas about her sex, it was inevitable that she would also come to symbolize new ideas about sexuality." Unlike the photographed actresses and dancers generations earlier, fantasy gave artists the freedom to draw women in many different ways. The 1932 Esquire "men's" magazine featured many drawings and "girlie" cartoons but was most famous for its Vargas girls. Prior to World War II they were praised for their beauty and less focus was on their sexuality. However, during the war, the drawings transformed into women playing dress-up in military drag and drawn in seductive manners, like that of a child playing with a doll. The Vargas girls became so popular that from 1942 to 1946, owing to a high volume of military demand, "9 million copies of the magazine-without adverts and free of charge was sent to American troops stationed overseas and in domestic bases." The Vargas Girls were adapted as nose art on many World War II bomber and fighter aircraft; Generally, they were considered inspiring, and not seen negatively, or as prostitutes, but mostly as inspiring female patriots that were helpful for good luck.

Among the other well-known artists specializing in the field were Earle K. Bergey, Enoch Bolles, Gil Elvgren, George Petty, Rolf Armstrong, Zoë Mozert, Duane Bryers and Art Frahm. Notable contemporary pin-up artists include Olivia De Berardinis, known for her pin-up art of Bettie Page and her pieces in Playboy.

Feminism and the pin-up

Maria Buszek (author of Pin-up Grrrls) said that the pin-up girl "has presented women with models for expressing and finding pleasure in their sexual subjectivity".

According to Joanne Meyerowitz in "Women, Cheesecake, and Borderline Material" an article in Journal of Women's History, "As sexual images of women multiplied in the popular culture, women participated actively in constructing arguments to endorse as well as protest them."

As early as 1869, women have been supporters and protesters of the pin-up. Female supporters of early pin-up content considered these to be a "positive post-Victorian rejection of bodily shame and a healthy respect for female beauty."

Additionally, pin-up allows for women to change the everyday culture. The models "...succeed in the feminist aim of changing the rigid, patriarchal terms".

It has further been argued by some critics that in the early 20th century, these drawings of women helped define certain body images—such as being clean, being healthy, and being wholesome—and were enjoyed by both men and women; as time progressed these images changed from respectable to illicit.

Conversely, female protesters argued that these images were corrupting societal morality and saw these public sexual displays of women as lowering the standards of womanhood, destroying their dignity, reducing them to mere objects to pleasure men and therefore harmful to both women and young adolescents.

Pin-up modeling has been described as a subculture that is invested in promoting positive body images and a love for one's sexuality, "...pin-up would also find ways to… encourage the erotic self-awareness and self expression of real women".

Hair and makeup style

The classic style of the pin-up originates back from the 1940s. Due to the shortages of materials during World War II, this period of makeup is considered the "natural beauty" look. The US was immersed in war-time economy, which put distribution restrictions on consumer goods. General rationing was supported; women applied mild amounts of products. Despite the rations, "Women were encouraged to keep buying lipstick and to send letters to the front covered in 'lipstick kisses' to boost the morale of the soldiers."

The products consisted of:

• Foundation – A cream base, liquid foundation that matched their natural skin tone
• Compact Powders – used to set the foundation and even the overall complexion
• Eyes and brows – neutral contour on brow bone and lid. Eyebrows were shaped but kept full
• Eyeliner – the wing effect became popular by the 1950s
• Lashes – extended the barriers of the eye to appear slightly larger
• Blush – pastel and rose colors applied to the apple of the cheek
• Lips – vibrant red and matte color, applied to look plumper.

In the 1950s, the overall look was the red lip was often matched with rosy cheeks. Eyeliner became bold and made a widening effect to make the eye appear larger. Natural eyebrows were embraced as opposed to the thin brows of the 1920s and '30s. 1940s brows were shaped and clean but filled in with a pencil to appear fuller.

Lipstick "turned into a symbol of resilient femininity in the face of danger  and was seen as a way to boost morale during the war. The shape of the lip was also iconic of the 1940s. The lips were painted on to look plumper, a broad outline of the lip was added for roundness. This fuller look is known as the "Hunter's Bow", invented by Max Factor.

The pin curl is a staple of the pin-up style, "women utilized pin curls for their main hair curling technique". Originating in the 1920s from the "water-waving technique", the hair style of the 1940s consisted of a fuller, gentle curl. The drying technique consists of curling a damp piece of hair, from the end to the root and pin in place. Once the curl is dry, it is brushed through to create the desired soft curl, with a voluminous silhouette.

Victory rolls are also a distinctive hairstyle of the pin-up. The Victory roll is curled inward and swept off the face and pinned into place on the top of the head. Soft curls, achieved through the pin curl technique, finish off the look of pin-up.

As a makeup style, the classic pin-up underwent a revival in modern fashion. The red lip and winged eyeliner made a re-emergence in 2010, with singer Katy Perry being the most accessible example of modern pin-up makeup.

Some people believe there is a lack of representation in the media of black women as pin-up models, even though they were influential to the construction of the style and were just as glamorous.

As a makeup style, it is simple and sleek makeup, that is noticeable and glamorous.

Pin-up in the contemporary age

Although pin-up modeling is associated with World War II and the 1950s, it developed into a subculture which can be seen represented in the styles of some celebrities and public figures. Pamela Anderson was considered the "perennial pin-up" due to decades' worth of modeling for Hugh Hefner's Playboy magazine. The American singer Lana Del Rey, whose style is comparable to that of the classic pin-up model, has performed a song called "Pin Up Galore". Beyoncé has recorded a song titled "Why Don't You Love Me" which pays tribute to the American pin-up queen of the 1950s, Bettie Page. The burlesque performer Dita Von Teese is often referred to as a modern pin-up. She has appeared in a biographical film about Bettie Page, Bettie Page Reveals All, in which Von Teese helps to define pin-up. Katy Perry makes use of the ideas associated with pin-up modeling, and has included these in music videos and costumes. The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show can be comparable to burlesque show, whereas their yearly advent calendar can compare to pin-up in general.

The pin-up modeling subculture has produced magazines and forums dedicated to its community. Delicious Dolls, a magazine that began in 2011 and has both a print and digital version, was described in 2015 as "the most-liked" pin-up magazine in the world. One of the magazine's mission statements is "to promote and showcase retro and modern pin-up girls". Another well known modern pin-up magazine featuring pin-ups in vintage dress, Retro Lovely, is the modern day pin-up Magazine with the most sold digital and print copies. It began in 2010 and ran until 2014 when it took a four-year hiatus but resumed publication in July 2018 until present. Both of these magazine supports pin-up-related events throughout the United States and allows anyone to be featured in the magazine as long as they have worked with an approved photographer. Retro Lovely has been sold in Newsstands and Bookstores on and off since its debut. Within this subculture there are opportunities to perform in pin-up contests, including one which takes place during the Viva Las Vegas rockabilly festival.

African-American pin-up

Though Marilyn Monroe and Bettie Page are often cited as the classic pin-up, there were many black women who were also considered to be impactful. In the 1920s the most notable black burlesque dancer was Josephine Baker. Dorothy Dandridge and Eartha Kitt also added to the pin-up style of their time, using their looks, fame, and personal success. African-American pin-up finally had a platform when the magazine, Jet, was created in 1951. Jet supported pin-up as they had a full page feature called, "Beauty of the Week", where African-American women posed in a swimsuits and such. This was intended to showcase the beauty these women possessed as they lived in a world where their skin color was under constant scrutiny. It was not until 1965 that Jennifer Jackson became the first African American to be published in Playboy as Playmate of the Month. And it was not until 1990 that Playboy's Playmate of the Year was an African-American woman, Renee Tenison. Historically, black women in pin-up are still not as common as their white counterparts. However, the recent revival of pin-up style has propelled many black women today to create and dabble with the classic pin-up look to create their own standards of beauty. In Jim Linderman's self-published book, Secret History of the Black Pin Up, he describes the lives and experiences of African-American pin-up models.