Thursday 9 June 2011






























Bettie Page Tribute…

Hi everyone I though I comment on one of the great models of our times. Some of you may know her other perhaps not. Bettie Page was in my opinion the first bondage supermodel. Truly a beautiful woman that took bondage photography to another level. She influenced photography, comic art and fashion.

Bettie Page (April 22, 1923 – December 11, 2008)

Bettie Page (her real surname) wanted to be actress moving to New York after the war in the 1940’s. There she was spotted by a photographer (how could you not). When she entered the world Glamour and pinup modeling. She would soon catch the eye of Irving Klaw making her principle model for his photographs with pin-up, bondage or sadomasochistic themes, making her the first famous bondage model. He also made movies with her as well for rich clients.

One of the reasons Bettie Page is well remember is the style of these photos and films. These silent features showed women clad in lingerie and high heels, acting out fetishistic scenarios of abduction, domination, and slave-training; bondage, spanking, and elaborate leather costumes and restraints were included periodically. Page could easily alternated between playing a stern dominatrix, to a helpless victim bound hand and foot.

A lot of these photos become iconic images, such as his highest-selling photo of Page—shown gagged and bound in a web of ropes, from the film Leopard Bikini Bound. A

Klaw's photos and films were always all-female films (and still photos) never featured any nudity or explicit sexual content. Something which I think have influenced myself and other artists. Sadly Bettie stopped modeling in the late 50’s partly due to personal reasons but also in part to the attitudes of pornography. See The "Kefauver Hearings" of the Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency in 1957 (think McCarthy-style hearings but for porn industry)

I think I leave the last word to Hugh Hefner:


"I think that she was a remarkable lady, an iconic figure in pop culture who influenced sexuality, taste in fashion, someone who had a tremendous impact on our society,” Playboy founder Hugh Hefner

Gone but never forgotten god bless Betty Page.