Cover Girls: An Appreciation for Women on Comic Book Photo Covers 1 1

[jpepx78]

Cover Girls: An Appreciation for Women on Comic Book Photo Covers

Golden age photo covers were not initially one of the more popular comic collecting niches. However slabbing and increasing book prices have increased interest in cover-oriented collecting that contain unintentionally lurid, humorous or celebrity covers. Since good-girl art covers are popular, photo covers with these women might also be of interest to collectors. These three women started out as models and later became actors with varying success. Here is a look at some of these photo covers.

Part 1
Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn is the most or one of the most photographed women ever and she has appeared in hundreds of American and international magazine covers. Her first magazine cover appearance was in the April 13 1946 issue of the British magazine Leader. Her first US cover was the April 26 1946 issue of Family Circle magazine. She also appeared in many other pinup/cheesecake tabloids.


Pageant June 1946, Foto Parade Dec 1949, Laff Magazine Aug 1946

3D Movie Magazine Sept 1953, Marilyn reading 3D Movie Magazine

Her look has changed over the years due to some plastic surgery done around 1949 or 1950 which can be seen in this photo montage over the years.

She has appeared in only a few comic book photo covers: Teen-Age Diary Secrets 6 & Sweethearts 119. She also appeared in the Australian edition of Young Love 30 published by Atlas Communications. There was some debate whether she was really on the cover of Diary Secrets 6 but other photos from the same photo session indicate that she is on that cover because she was wearing the same outfit.

In spite of her dumb blonde image, Marilyn was very intelligent and a voracious reader of books and magazines as seen from the many pictures of her reading.

Since she was a voracious reader, I would have liked to believe that she included comics in her literary diet. Here are a few pictures of Marilyn in her Hollywood Hills home from the early 1950s that led me to believe that she did read some comics.

I think Marilyn liked to read crime comics since you will notice a stack of Crime Does Not Pay comics on the bottom shelf. Crime Does Not Pay #80 is on top.

In another picture from the same photo session, the stack of comics can be barely seen on the bottom shelf at her feet.

 

Edited November 28, 2017 by jpepx78

[jpepx78]

Cover Girls: An Appreciation for Women on Comic Book Photo Covers

Part 2
Hazel Brooks

Hazel Brooks (1924-2002) was born in South Africa, moved to Boston and was a young New York model in 1941. In late 1941 she was signed by a talent agent from MGM studios and moved to Hollywood. In Hollywood she meets and eventually marries the head art director of MGM Studios Cedric Gibbons in 1944. Eyebrows were raised and the couple became tabloid fodder since Gibbons was 51 and she was 19 when they married. Another famous Hollywood couple with a large age difference who married was Humphrey Bogart who at age 44 married Lauren Bacall when she was 19 in 1945.

Hazel was the pinup girl for the January 7th 1945 issue of Yank Magazine.

Cedric Gibbons had an illustrious life and career in Hollywood as an art director, production designer and architect. His second wife was the actress Dolores del Rio whom he divorced in 1941. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Production Design 39 times and won 11 Oscars. He won Oscars for the films: The Bridge of San Luis Rey, The Merry Widow, Pride and Prejudice, Blossoms in the Dust, Gaslight, The Yearling, Little Women, An American in Paris, The Bad and Beautiful, Julius Ceasar & Somebody Up There Likes Me. Other notable films that he was nominated were: The Wizard of Oz, National Velvet, Annie Get Your Gun, Brigadoon, Blackboard Jungle & Lust for Life. Also he oversaw the design of the Academy Awards statuette “Oscar” in 1928.

Hazel had long legs, dark hair with distinctive lidded sloe eyes and a glamorous look. Even with her financial resources and movie industry connections, her movie career was limited to only 15 films with her best known film Body and Soul in 1947. She retired from films in 1955, became a still photographer and worked for a number of children's charities.

Hazel in 1947

Hazel in Look Magazine 1948, photo from Body & Soul 1947

Hazel was on the cover for many American and international magazines.

Images du Monde 4-1-48 France, Photoplayer 11-15-47 Australia, Tua 12-9-48 Italy

Keen Magazine June 1950, Underworld Detective Nov 1949

Hazel was on the cover of several notable comics.
Flaming Love 6, Forbidden Love 1, Love Scandals 4, Secret Loves 5

Many people believe the cover to Spirit 22 was based on Lauren Bacall. However I found a picture of Hazel in a similar pose to that cover that Eisner could have used as a photo reference.

In the book Will Eisner: A Spirited Life, when Eisner was asked about the model for the “Skinny Bones” character on the cover of Spirit 22, he said she was based on a woman whom Eisner once dated who happened to look a lot like Lauren Bacall. It is unknown if Eisner knew Hazel but she left New York for Hollywood in 1942 and she would have been a teenager at the time.

 

[jpepx78]

Cover Girls: An Appreciation for Women on Comic Book Photo Covers

Part 3
Alice Kelley

Alice Ann Kelley (1932-2012) born in Springfield Missouri, moved to Burbank California in 1939, modeled at an early age and was crowned Miss Junior America 1948.
She was discovered by a talent scout who was attracted to her unusually deep and sparkling dimples. In 1952 she was awarded a long-term contract with Warner Brothers.
She had a successful modeling career but a limited acting career with only 14 credits from 1948 to 1954.

Kelley in 1951 and Ivory soap ad

She appeared on many magazine covers from the late 1940s to early 1950s.

Pageant magazine July 1949, June 1951, August 1951

Cosmopolitan magazine December 1950, March 1951, December 1951

Not only was Alice a magazine cover model, she was also a swimsuit model. Alice is in a yellow swimsuit from Aug 1950.

She also was on the cover of an Atlas tabloid magazine that many of you might not have seen...

Focus magazine June 24 1953

Alice was also a painting subject by the famous pinup artist Alberto Vargas when she was Miss Junior America 1948. (20 X 16 inch painting sold for $14686 in 2016)

Here are her known comic book photo covers.

I wonder if by mentioning these issues with these three women, will there be an increase in demand?  

 

Edited November 28, 2017 by jpepx78

[Mmehdy]

SUPER, best post of the year..excellent research..thanks 

[Pickie]

Mon Dieu!

(*faints*)

[Hudson]

Awesome post.

I clicked on this expecting to see a copy of Reform School Girl or something along those lines.

This was far better and more educational.

Thanks for an AWESOME POST!

[lpsunburst]

Fantastic research and background, very well done!

[Jayman]

Very interesting and well done posts! 

[cupny]

Great work. More please

[sagii]

Hazel Brooks 

Forbidden Love #1 will always be one of my top two favorite photo covers of them all!

[Sqeggs]

My copy of the MM Teen-Age Diary Secrets 6 (sometimes mistakenly referred to as Diary Secrets 6).

[Sqeggs]

11 hours ago, jpepx78 said:

Cover Girls: An Appreciation for Women on Comic Book Photo Covers

Part 2
Hazel Brooks

Hazel Brooks (1924-2002) was born in South Africa, moved to Boston and was a young New York model in 1941. In late 1941 she was signed by a talent agent from MGM studios and moved to Hollywood. In Hollywood she meets and eventually marries the head art director of MGM Studios Cedric Gibbons in 1944. Eyebrows were raised and the couple became tabloid fodder since Gibbons was 51 and she was 19 when they married. Another famous Hollywood couple with a large age difference who married was Humphrey Bogart who at age 44 married Lauren Bacall when she was 19 in 1945.
 

Many people believe the cover to Spirit 22 was based on Lauren Bacall. However I found a picture of Hazel in a similar pose to that cover that Eisner could have used as a photo reference.

In the book Will Eisner: A Spirited Life, when Eisner was asked about the model for the “Skinny Bones” character on the cover of Spirit 22, he said she was based on a woman whom Eisner once dated who happened to look a lot like Lauren Bacall. It is unknown if Eisner knew Hazel but she left New York for Hollywood in 1942 and she would have been a teenager at the time.

 

Sensational find! Hard to believe that she wasn't his model for Spirit 22. 

[Dr. Love]

outstanding job on a subject near and dear to my heart 

[MrBedrock]

As Tony Curtis would say, "Do Yvonne DeCarlo!"

 

[MrBedrock]

There is a very nice copy of Forbidden Love #1 (the sultriest Hazel Brooks cover) in the upcoming ComicConnect auction.

[Sqeggs]

26 minutes ago, MrBedrock said:

There is a very nice copy of Forbidden Love #1 (the sultriest Hazel Brooks cover) in the upcoming ComicConnect auction.

One of my favorites.  Here's my copy, purchased raw from @jimjum12 as a 7.0.  

[sagii]

2 minutes ago, Sqeggs said:

One of my favorites.  Here's my copy, purchased raw from @jimjum12 as a 7.0.  

Gorgeous! And the condition ain't so bad either 

[comicnoir]

Just saw this thread. Absolutely great with terrific research and visual aids. Much thanks.

[Robot Man]

Thanks for posting this. That took a lot of work. Much appreciated!

[1950's war comics]

great thread