Today is National Legwear Day! Enoch Bolles has them covered

 

Today's celebration is right up our man Enoch's alley. While painting covers for Filim Fun and other magazines in the 1920s Enoch had a busy side gig going in the advertising field. I've posted examples of his trolley card work and a few example of his fashion illustrations, but had intended to save his hosiery box art for the Bolles book (which is back in play) until now. On this special day I couldn't resist and we see what I consider a masterpiece of ilustration art. Or as they used to say, she's the knees bees!

Bolles did box art for other stocking companies, many but not all of which feature the same model. The example below is an exception, and one I feel is particularly charming. It's chock fully of Bolles' stylistic flourishes. How many can you find? No examples of the original art of this work have yet been found, but there is always hope.

  

September 12 is National Police Women Day

 Our rather aerodynamically uniformed Bolles girl is hot on the chase. She looks pretty determined despite those high heal leather boots. Could this theme be another of Enoch's firsts? As hard as I've looked I've yet to find an earlier biker girl pinup. Bolles included another first in this image. Less obvious but no less notable, the "speed lines", also known as Hites. First appearing in cartoons published in the 1880s, they were used not only to depict fast moving objects but an entire range of movements, emotions and energy (I saw an entire exhibit on them at the fabulous Billy Ireland Museum of Cartooning). This is the only example I've found by Bolles and the next time it appeared in a pinup was 35 years later! 

It's an Elvgren girl suffering from the usual challenge of keeping her clothes on. Aside from the flowing hair and just a hint of a speed line coming off the mirror and back tire, there's not much to suggest she's more than puttering along (especially on a 100cc Yamaha Twin Jet). Take a look at the reference photo and you'll see that the kickstand is down. Janet Rae, the great Elvgren model is in no actualy danger (this is also a good example of how closely Elvgren worked from photo references). 

The biker girl trope continues to show up now and then in pinup, but has played more prominantly in popular music. Artists such as Britney Spears and Pink have gone down the road as a biker girl (though Britney clearly could use some riding lessons) and Madonna has featured the leather biker girl look throughout her long career. They look great, but if you ask me our Bolles biker girl has left them all in the dust. 

May 25 is also Towel day! Bolles has her covered.

 Here's a rather unusual composition by Bolles that often either goes unattributed or sometimes ascribed to Earle Bergey. The latter connection could be understood. Aside from working on several of the same titles, Bergey often worked in complete backgrounds, some verging on photorealistic. But despite the similarities, this is most definitetly by our man Bolles. The main reason this image is so atypical is that Enoch used a reference photo for the cover, something he rarely resorted to. And when I dig it up I'll add it to this post. 

Finally, we have below the only other towel wearing Bolles girl I've found, published three years earlier in a 1929 issue. Her situation is a bit more precarious, but clearly it must have been an important call.