Ms. Cherry Bomb was the image of a pin-up girl illustrated on the nose of a WWII plane. Pin-up girls were sensual and often erotic depictions of women. They originated with illustrations made for Life magazine by Charles Gibson in 1895 depicting curvaceous American beauties. He was inspired by the increasing tolerance of the female physique following the invention of the bicycle, which gave women an excuse to normalize more convenient attire than large, unrevealing dresses. At this time, it was still very unusual for women to show much of their skin or shape. Gibson Girls were extremely popular and morphed over time into the pin-up girls that could be found on erotic calendars and posters. Come 1917, the US government realized the value in advertisements depicting women, and the feminine form jumped from calendars to WWI recruitment posters. Following WWI and the Roaring 20s, women gained even more freedom, and feminine physique became more normalized. Progressively more and more erotic illustrations were found on WWII posters that helped sell the war effort and bonds. On the front lines, pin-up girls like Ms. Cherry Bomb were found painted on the noses of fighter planes and bombers and taped to the insides of soldier’s helmets. They provided hope for the Allied forces by reminding them what they were fighting for and what would be waiting for them when they got back home.
Interested in World War II history?
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