CARNAL NATION

Pin-up support and inspiration for soldiers during times of war have taken many different forms over the years. Letters, photographs, calendars, small pocket fiction adorned with pin-up art, and airplane nose art are all historical examples of the symbolic power of women’s efforts to provide both a human connection and fantastical escape for soldiers from the harsh realities of their violent environment. The New York Times reports on the recent discovery of Donna Reed’s correspondences with soldiers during World War II. Reed’s daughter, who found a shoebox full of letters her mother had saved, stated that, “I knew she had feelings about her country and participating as a concerned citizen.” But, she added, her mother did not talk about the letters. Ms. Reed lamented to a female pen pal in 1942 that “my effort to win the war hasn’t amounted to much” and “I wish I could find more to do.”

This creative, sensual, and intimate form of morale boosting for American troops is still going strong in the U.S. today. Each person involved in this historic form of human connection with soldiers takes their own individual approach to the art: 

Pin-Ups for Troops produces modern pin-up pictures, calendars, and playing cards specifically to raise money for servicemen and women. The popular modern pin-up photography of Roger Johnston and Viva Van Story of such delicious models as Sabina Kelly, Heidi Van Horn, and Kitten De Ville makes for some very sexy pin-up art.

Kay O’Hara’s Operation: Pin-Up takes a very personal service approach to connecting with service members. She sends personally dedicated photographs of herself overseas for the sole purpose of boosting morale. 

The Pin-Up Angels, created in the spring of 2007 by Miss Kitty Baby, a former U.S. Marine, and Lola Dee, the sister to two currently serving Marines, put together care packages for “servicemen and women serving in Iraq and Afghanistan with the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard.”

It is wonderful to see that personal intimacy has not been forgotten in an age when technology has overtaken all aspects of society. Regardless of whether you agree or disagree with America’s choice to go to war, it is almost impossible not to appreciate these fine examples of human interaction, which can only make life a little easier and perhaps sweeter for the men and women who have sacrificed so much for the rest of us. Happy Memorial Day!