I was looking to have some photographs made for my husband, and this book gave me some wonderful ideas! I love the world of pin-ups and back in the day when you could be sexy without being a size 0. Or having to take every stitch of clothing off … have to leave something to the imagination!!
Rating: 5 / 5

Bruno Bernard – “Bernard of Hollywood”, as his sobriquet ran – was one of classic Hollywood’s greatest glamour and pin-up photographers. His specialty was “cheesecake” photography, of which he was the grand master, but he photographed untold legions of the loveliest of vintage Hollywood’s actresses. Marilyn Monroe? Jayne Mansfield? Joan Collins? Lili St. Cyr? Anita Ekberg? Mamie Van Doren? Eartha Kitt? Candy Barr? Monique Van Vooren? They’re all here, along with many, many others.

Susan Bernard, his daughter, has assembled hundreds of his best images into a truly dazzling work. Only Taschen, the German publisher renowned for its ultra-high-quality books on all sorts of unusual subjects, could truly have done justice to the project, and so they have, in a gorgeous oversize format crammed with full-page photography on high-quality paper, accompanied by extensive texts in English, French and German.

One of the most idiotic things I’ve done in the last five years is to sell off my first copy of this book. I needed to raise money, but that was no excuse. Works of art like this should never, ever be disposed of once you bring them into your collection, come hell or high water. Thankfully, I was able to get ahold of another copy this summer – and even more thankfully, for pretty close to the original list price. That’s a minor prodigy in itself; because this book is in such high demand, sellers are naturally going to ask a corresponding premium. As well they should. This book is worth every single cent you may pay for it.

No one…and I mean NO ONE…who claims to be a fan of classic glamour photography or old-time Hollywood can be taken seriously as such without this book in their library. I’m serious. If you’re reading this review, you’re interested enough to buy this book – so do it today.
Rating: 5 / 5

The photographs of Bruno Bernard are historic treasures documenting a period of Americana when purity and innocence masked the prurient. As teenagers when my friends and I joined the military after Pearl Harbor, we considered ourselves to be tough men; our images of naughtiness were induced by the pin-up.

The Ultimate Pin-Up is a coffee table collection of beautiful photographs–the colors are brilliant, the hair styles and clothing which drape the subjects who found their way to Hollywood or Las Vegas in the forties and fifties are significant representations of the American spirit post WWII; this being an era of US military might and rapid technological changes. Decades ago I felt these photographs were of loose women yet as I peruse the book I am amused by the sweetness and demurenss of the models and their poses.

The book is printed with high quality paper, the collection is heavy so it needs to rest on a table. It is fun to peruse; each page delights and tickles my memories of the days before the younger generation elected JFK to the White House.

This book makes me happy. Bernard of Hollywood will be remembered for his documenting history. Although the book is filed with the topic “Sex” I feel it should be referenced as “History”. The images are certainly “Art”. Smithsonian.
Rating: 5 / 5