[News Terms] Woman Embraced by Ukrainian Soldier... 'Pin-up Girl'

Woman in Photo Pinned to Wall and Locker
Boosting US Troop Morale During World War II

The 3rd Independent Assault Brigade, a mechanized infantry brigade of the Ukrainian army that has been at war with Russia for 2 years and 8 months, reportedly started a new recruitment campaign featuring beautiful women in a 'pin-up girl' concept earlier this month, according to The Washington Post (WP) on the 14th (local time).

Pin-up refers to a photo that is pinned and fixed on walls or lockers. The person in the photo is called a pin-up model, and if the model is female, she is called a 'pin-up girl.' Although there are male models as well, pin-up usually refers to photos of women.

The characteristic of a 'pin-up girl' is a young female model showing off sensual charm by exposing or emphasizing body parts such as the chest, hips, and legs through clothing and poses. It is also common to direct people's attention more to the female model than to the photo background.

Ukraine 'Pin-up Girl' Recruitment Advertisement.
[Photo by 3rd Independent Assault Brigade Website]

In the Western world, the term 'cheesecake' has long been used synonymously with 'pin-up girl.' Male models are sometimes called 'beefcake,' but this term has been used less frequently. Cheesecake is a kind of slang, but its origin is uncertain. However, there are several theories about it.

First, it is said that George Miller, a photographer for the Bain News Service in the United States, took a photo of Elvira Amazar, the 'Russian diva,' in September 1915. A gourmet news editor who saw the photo exclaimed, "This is better than cheesecake!" This photo is claimed to be the first cheesecake photo published in the American media.

Another anecdote tells that photographers said "Say cheese" to induce a smile from the model, and a photographer from the New York Journal reportedly exclaimed "What cheesecake!" upon seeing the actress's flesh in the developed photo.

Figures credited with creating the first works embodying the pin-up girl concept include Fernand Paillet, a French painter and model from the late 19th to early 20th century, and Charles Gibson, an American painter who popularized the 'Gibson Girl.' However, the term 'pin-up girl' was solidified by the U.S. military during World War II.

From the late 19th century, actresses produced many cheesecake-style photos or paintings appealing to sexual attraction to promote themselves or their plays. During World War II, U.S. soldiers pinned these photos or paintings on barracks walls, pillars, or lockers with supply pins and called them 'pin-up girls.'

The idealized and fantasy-like image of women served as a morale booster for soldiers. Famous pin-up girls include Betty Grable and Marilyn Monroe. Military entertainment shows inviting idol groups from photos or TV share the same context.

Marilyn Monroe attending a US military morale-boosting performance
[Photo by Pixabay]

After the war, 'pin-up' became a concept that greatly influenced popular culture, corporate marketing strategies, and society at large. If a soju product advertisement poster featuring female models distributed in large quantities to restaurants or bars by major liquor companies is in the cheesecake style, then the year-end fundraising calendar featuring 'handsome firefighters' can be seen as a typical example of the beefcake style.