Bikini in popular culture
Encyclopedia
The bikini appears in competitions, films, magazines, music, literature, magazines and even video games. Despite the easy availability of more revealing glamor imagery, bikini modeling remains popular and can still stir controversy. Portrayals of the bikini in popular culture led, to a large extent, to its acceptance by Western society
at large. In 1960, Brian Hyland
's pop song "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini
" inspired a bikini-buying spree. The white bikini
worn by Ursula Andress
as Honey Ryder in the 1962 James Bond
film Dr. No
has been cited as the most famous bikini of all time and an iconic moment in cinematic and fashion history. By 1963, the movie Beach Party
, starring Annette Funicello
and Frankie Avalon
, led a wave of films that made the bikini a pop-culture symbol. Playboy
first featured a bikini on its cover in 1962. The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
debuted two years later. This increasing popularity was reinforced by its appearance in contemporary movies like How to Stuff a Wild Bikini
featuring Annette Funicello and One Million Years B.C featuring Raquel Welch
. Hollywood stars like Marilyn Monroe
, Jayne Mansfield
, Gina Lollobrigida
and Jane Russell
helped the growing popularity of bikinis further. Pin up posters of Monroe and Mansfield, as well as Hayworth, Bardot and Raquel Welch distributed around the world contributed significantly to the popularity of the bikini.
A bikini contest is a beauty contest
where women compete against each other in bikinis. Bikini contests can take place in bar
s, nightclub
s, strip club
s, on beaches, and at beauty pageants. Related companies regularly sponsor such contests to discover and attract new talents to promote their products. Bikini contests can also take place over the Internet
by women submitting pictures of themselves in bikinis.
Contestants often wear sashes indicating where they are from in bikini contests, in line with other beauty pageants. It is becoming more and more common for women to wear bikinis as part of the swimsuit
competitions at major pageants. Participants in some beauty contests, such as the Miss Teen USA
pageant, are required to wear bikinis as part of the competition.
s were an American 1960s genre of feature films which often starred Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon. Walt Disney
reluctantly consented to Funicello, a former main cast member of The Mickey Mouse Club, wearing a bikini. The series was originally intended as a low-budget imitation of both the Elvis Presley
musical and the Doris Day
sex comedy, aimed at the teen market, but they ended up taking on a life of their own. The "classic" series was produced by American International Pictures
, and imitated in turn by numerous other studios. Beach Party
(1963), Muscle Beach Party
(1963), Bikini Beach
(1964), Pajama Party
(1964), Beach Blanket Bingo
(1965), How to Stuff a Wild Bikini
(1965), The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini
(1966) are titles that were made as part of the classic beach party genre. The final entry in the original series was The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini
, released in 1966. The end credits for another AIP Avalon comedy, Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine
(1965) reveal that the original title planned for this film was The Girl in the Glass Bikini, and that Funicello and Avalon were slated to appear. However, Funicello and Avalon both passed, and the leads in The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini were played by Tommy Kirk
and Deborah Walley
.
Avalon and Funicello starred in Paramount Pictures
Back to the Beach
in 1987, playing off their original roles and subsequent careers. The 1965 movie Ski Party
(with Dwayne Hickman
, Yvonne Craig
, Lesley Gore
and James Brown) is also notable for employing many of the same actors and schtick
s, only transplanted to a ski resort
in the Sawtooth National Forest
. The 1996 movie That Thing You Do!
touches briefly on the phenomenon, with the Wonders making an appearance in a fictional beach party movie, Weekend at Party Pier. A 2001 episode of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch ("Beach Blanket Bizarro") also paid homage to the series, with Avalon appearing as himself. Bikini Cavegirl
, The Bikini Carwash Company
, How to Stuff a Wild Bikini, The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini
, and It's a Bikini World
are some of the many films that have plotlines revolving around the bikini. Kelly Killoren Bensimon
wrote in The Bikini Book, "It was really all about Annette Funicello. If the girl next door wanted to wear a bikini, then everybody wanted to wear a bikini. We didn't want to be a bad Bond girl. We all really wanted to be the good girl. Another Film depiction of the Bikini are the films depicting blood-thirsty water animals or Mutants (e.g. Jaws,Piranha 3D,Dinoshark,Dinocroc,Supergator.) many female victims were wearing Bikinis at the time of Attack.
emerged from the sea wearing a white bikini
in Dr. No
. The Dr. No bikini scene has been quoted as one of the most memorable scenes from the British spy film series. Channel 4
of UK
declared it as the top bikini moment in film history, Virgin Media
puts it in 9th position in its list of top ten movie bikini, and the top position in the list for top ten Bond girl
s. The Herald (Glasgow)
put the scene as best ever bikini scene on the basis of a poll.The white bikini is regarded as perhaps the most important in the history of the bikini and sales of the two piece bikini rocketed after the appearance of Andress in Dr. No. In a survey of 1000 women to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the bikini, Ursula Andress in her white bikini was voted "The Ultimate Bikini Goddess".Andress said that she owed her career to that white bikini,
Other memorable bikini moments in movies include Raquel Welch as the prehistoric cavegirl in the 1966 film One Million Years B.C.
, and Phoebe Cates
in the 1982 teen film
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
. These two bikini moments were recently ranked 86 and 84 respectively in Channel 4
(UK)'s list of 100 Greatest Sexy Moments in Film. Raquel Welch in a strategically as the value of the film by five interjected repetitions of 'Raquel Welch in a fur bikini' which was the one special thing that makes people want to see it again and again. Actresses kicking butt in movies like Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
and Blue Crush
have made the two-piece, according to Gina Bellafonte of The New York Times
, "the millennial equivalent of the power suit."
A variant of the bikini popular in fantasy literature
, originating from the cover-art of Earle K. Bergey
(a direct inspiration for Princess Leia's outfit), is a bikini that is made up of metal to serve as putative armor. It is sometimes referred to as a "chain mail
bikini" or "brass bikini". The outfit worn by the character Red Sonja
is a famous example of such. The game Poxnora
is another example, in which all the women wear bikini-like clothing. A facetious term for female characters whose attire emphasizes sex appeal far more than actual practicality in combat is babes-at-arms (parodying "men-at-arms" for fully armored soldiers). In science fiction, Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
features the notable "Princess Leia's metal bikini". It is worn by the character Princess Leia when she is held captive by Jabba the Hutt
at the film's beginning. This particular "bikini" has since been elevated to pop culture icon status, spawning various spoofs and parodies (notably the episode of Friends
, "The One with the Princess Leia Fantasy") and even a dedicated fansite — Leia's Metal Bikini.
, a single written by Paul Vance and Lee Pockriss, has become a part of the history of the bikini. Released on August 8, 1960, it was also the first single sung by Brian Hyland to enter Billboard Hot 100
. The song features in 1961 Billy Wilder
film comedy One, Two, Three
, as well as films like Sister Act 2 and Revenge of the Nerds II. It also features in commercials for Yoplait
light yogurt, YWCA
, and TV Easy magazine.
Do The Bikini Dance, a single by Dee Dee Ramone
, was released on the day Ramones
were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2002. In the Gang of Four
song "I Found That Essence Rare", the Bikini is suggested to be "...dressed for the H-Bomb...". In 1997 the French-German Electronic band Stereo Total
released an album named Monokini. Hungarian
rock band Bikini, Riot Grrrl
movement induced punk rock
band Bikini Kill and Los Angeles, California
based electro-pop duo Cherry Bikini had names inspired by the bikini.
The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
is published annually by Sports Illustrated
. It features fashion models wearing swimwear in exotic locales. Inclusion is considered a stick by which supermodel
s are measured. In addition, the issue is a media nexus that in 2005 carried $35 million in advertising. New issues come out around the middle of February or later. First published in 1964, it is credited with making the bikini a legitimate piece of apparel. The issue that got the most letters was the 1978 issue. The best selling issue was the 25th Anniversary Issue with Kathy Ireland
on the cover in 1989.
Urbe Bikini
(UB) is a Venezuelan, Maxim
-styled monthly created by Urbe's editor-in-chief & creative director, Gabriel Torrelles and publisher, Carlos Lizarralde, who sold the company to Cadena Capriles, the largest publisher in Venezuela. It is the largest circulation glossy in the country and a cultural and circulation phenomenon in itself for more than 10 years. Sports magazines like Inside Sport
or automotive magazines like the Lowrider Magazine
regularly features bikini-clad women on the cover to appeal to a predominantly young male audience. In 2006, the Maxim magazine created 33 metres (108 ft) wide vinyl
-mesh
bikini in the desert of southern Nevada
, United States
featuring Eva Longoria
of Desperate Housewives
fame, claiming that it could be seen from outer space space.
In September 2011, Lilac magazine has become the first Arabic magazine to show a cover with a bikini. The 22 year old model, Huda Naccache, from Haifa
, Israel
is pictured posing in a black sequinned bikini.
The Bikini Planet
is a science fiction
comedy written by David S. Garnett
and released exclusively in the UK as a paperback. It was written as a sub-sequel to an earlier story by Garnett in 1994, entitled Stargonauts, and features some of its settings and characters.
Bikini News
is a series of satirical news
videos featuring two comediennes performing in bikinis in a comedic style similar to The Daily Show
and Saturday Night Live
available in podcast
and vodcast form, as well as in mov
and wmv file formats. As of October 2007, over 90 episodes and 80 bloopers/sketches have been created. NCIS
, an American
police procedural
television series revolving around a fictional team of special agents, had an episode on Bikini Wax (18th episode, 2nd season). Bikini Bottom is a city that appears in the Nickelodeon
animated
television series, SpongeBob SquarePants
. Located at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean
, it is where the series' main characters live, and where most of the episodes take place.
The Bikini Karate Babes
is a digitized 2D fighting game
developed by Creative Edge Studios. It features an all-female cast of 19 fighters, all clad in bikinis and played by real actresses.
The Swedish Bikini Team
was a group of American female models who appeared in an advertising campaign
for Old Milwaukee
beer
. These commercials ran for several months in 1991 in the United States, playing with American stereotype
of blonde and big breastsed Scandinavia
n women. Feminist activists found the ads misogynistic
. Though the campaign generated widespread interest, the advertisements were dropped after protests by the National Organization for Women
and female employees of the Pabst Brewing Company
.
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
at large. In 1960, Brian Hyland
Brian Hyland
Brian Hyland is an American pop recording artist who was particularly successful during the early 1960s. He continued recording into the 1970s...
's pop song "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini
Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini
"Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" is a novelty song telling the story of a shy girl wearing a revealing polka dot bikini at the beach, who in the first verse is too afraid to leave the locker where she has changed into her bikini; in the second, she has made it to the beach but sits...
" inspired a bikini-buying spree. The white bikini
White bikini of Ursula Andress
The White bikini of Ursula Andress was a white bikini worn by Ursula Andress as Honey Ryder in the 1962 James Bond film, Dr. No...
worn by Ursula Andress
Ursula Andress
Ursula Andress is a Swiss actress and a sex symbol of the 1960s. She is known for her roles as Bond girl Honey Ryder in Dr...
as Honey Ryder in the 1962 James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
film Dr. No
Dr. No (film)
Dr. No is a 1962 spy film, starring Sean Connery; it is the first James Bond film. Based on the 1958 Ian Fleming novel of the same name, it was adapted by Richard Maibaum, Johanna Harwood, and Berkely Mather and was directed by Terence Young. The film was produced by Harry Saltzman and Albert R...
has been cited as the most famous bikini of all time and an iconic moment in cinematic and fashion history. By 1963, the movie Beach Party
Beach Party
Beach Party was the first of several beach party films from American International Pictures aimed at a teen audience. It was directed by William Asher and written by Lou Rusoff. The main actors included Robert Cummings, Dorothy Malone, Frankie Avalon, and Annette Funicello...
, starring Annette Funicello
Annette Funicello
Annette Joanne Funicello is an American singer and actress. She was Walt Disney's most popular cast member of the original Mickey Mouse Club, and went on to appear in a series of beach party films.-Early life and early stardom:...
and Frankie Avalon
Frankie Avalon
Frankie Avalon is an American actor, singer, playwright, and former teen idol.-Career:By the time he was 12, Avalon was on U.S. television playing his trumpet. As a teenager he played with Bobby Rydell in Rocco and the Saints...
, led a wave of films that made the bikini a pop-culture symbol. Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
first featured a bikini on its cover in 1962. The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue is published annually by Sports Illustrated. It features fashion models wearing swimwear in exotic locales. According to some, the magazine is the arbiter of supermodel succession. In addition, the issue is a media nexus that in 2005 carried in advertising....
debuted two years later. This increasing popularity was reinforced by its appearance in contemporary movies like How to Stuff a Wild Bikini
How to Stuff a Wild Bikini
How to Stuff a Wild Bikini is a 1965 beach party film from American International Pictures. The sixth entry in a seven-film series, the movie features Mickey Rooney, Annette Funicello, Dwayne Hickman, Brian Donlevy, and Beverly Adams...
featuring Annette Funicello and One Million Years B.C featuring Raquel Welch
Raquel Welch
Jo Raquel Tejada , better known as Raquel Welch, is an American actress, author and sex symbol. Welch came to attention as a "new-star" on the 20th Century-Fox lot in the mid-1960s. She posed iconically in a animal skin bikini for the British-release One Million Years B.C. , for which she may be...
. Hollywood stars like Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
, Jayne Mansfield
Jayne Mansfield
Jayne Mansfield was an American actress working both in Hollywood and on the Broadway theatre...
, Gina Lollobrigida
Gina Lollobrigida
Gina Lollobrigida is an Italian actress, photojournalist and sculptress. She was one of the most popular European actresses of the 1950s and early 1960s. She was also an iconic sex symbol of the 1950s. Today, she remains an active supporter of Italian and Italian American causes, particularly the...
and Jane Russell
Jane Russell
Jane Russell was an American film actress and was one of Hollywood's leading sex symbols in the 1940s and 1950s....
helped the growing popularity of bikinis further. Pin up posters of Monroe and Mansfield, as well as Hayworth, Bardot and Raquel Welch distributed around the world contributed significantly to the popularity of the bikini.
Bikini contest
Beauty contest
A beauty pageant or beauty contest, is a competition that mainly focuses on the physical beauty of its contestants, although such contests often incorporate personality, talent, and answers to judges' questions as judged criteria...
where women compete against each other in bikinis. Bikini contests can take place in bar
Bar (establishment)
A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
s, nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
s, strip club
Strip club
A strip club is an adult entertainment venue in which striptease or other erotic or exotic dance is regularly performed. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or bar style, but can also adopt a theatre or cabaret-style....
s, on beaches, and at beauty pageants. Related companies regularly sponsor such contests to discover and attract new talents to promote their products. Bikini contests can also take place over the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
by women submitting pictures of themselves in bikinis.
Contestants often wear sashes indicating where they are from in bikini contests, in line with other beauty pageants. It is becoming more and more common for women to wear bikinis as part of the swimsuit
Swimsuit
A swimsuit, bathing suit, or swimming costume is an item of clothing designed to be worn by men, women or children while they are engaging in a water-based activity or water sports, such as swimming, water polo, diving, surfing, water skiing, or during activities in the sun, such as sun bathing.A...
competitions at major pageants. Participants in some beauty contests, such as the Miss Teen USA
Miss Teen USA
Miss Teen USA is a beauty pageant run by the Miss Universe Organization for girls aged 14–19. The reigning titleholder is Danielle Doty of Texas....
pageant, are required to wear bikinis as part of the competition.
History of bikini in major pageants
| Year | Pageant | Organizer | Location | Decision | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Miss World Miss World The Miss World pageant is the oldest surviving major international beauty pageant. It was created in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley in 1951... |
Eric Morley Eric Morley Eric Douglas Morley was born in Holborn, London, England. He was the founder of the Miss World pageant. He was married to now head of the pageant Julia Morley from 1960.-Life and career:... |
London London London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... , England England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental... |
Founded in the United Kingdom as Festival Bikini Contest | - |
| 1952 | Miss World | Eric Morley | London, England | Tones down its swimsuits to more modest designs from the bikini Bikini The bikini is typically a women's two-piece swimsuit. One part of the attire covers the breasts and the other part covers the crotch and part of or the entire buttocks, leaving an uncovered area between the two. Merriam–Webster describes the bikini as "a woman's scanty two-piece bathing suit" or "a... s the pageant featured in its inaugural year |
- |
| 1997 | Miss America Miss America The Miss America pageant is a long-standing competition which awards scholarships to young women from the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands... |
Miss America Organization | - | Contestants are allowed to wear bikinis for the first time since 1947 | The change was made to appease Roman Catholic protesters |
| 1997 | Miss Universe Miss Universe Miss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers.... |
Donald Trump Donald Trump Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have... |
- | Contestants are allowed to wear bikinis for the first time | - |
| 1997 | Miss USA Miss USA The Miss USA beauty contest has been held annually since 1952 to select the United States entrant in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operates both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA... |
Donald Trump | - | Contestants are allowed to wear bikinis for the first time | - |
| 1997 | Miss Teen USA Miss Teen USA Miss Teen USA is a beauty pageant run by the Miss Universe Organization for girls aged 14–19. The reigning titleholder is Danielle Doty of Texas.... |
Gulf and Western Industries | - | Contestants are allowed to wear bikinis for the first time | - |
| 2000 | Miss USA | Gulf and Western Industries | - | Tankini Tankini The tankini is a bathing suit combining a tank top, mostly made of spandex-and-cotton or Lycra-and-nylon, and a bikini bottom introduced in the late 1990s. This type of swimwear is considered by some to provide modesty closer to a one piece suit with the convenience of a two piece suit, as the... s are provided as an option for contestants for the first and last time |
- |
| 2000 | Miss Teen USA | Gulf and Western Industries | Palm Springs Palm Springs, California Palm Springs is a desert city in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 37 miles east of San Bernardino, 111 miles east of Los Angeles and 136 miles northeast of San Diego... , California California California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area... |
Tankinis are provided as an option for contestants for the first and last time | - |
| 2003 | Miss Earth Miss Earth Miss Earth is an annual international beauty pageant promoting environmental awareness. Miss Earth is also one of the most publicized beauty contests in the world.... |
Carousel Productions Inc. | Quezon City Quezon City Quezon City is the former capital and the most populous city in the Philippines. Located on the island of Luzon, Quezon City is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the National Capital Region. The city was named after Manuel L... , Philippines Philippines The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam... |
Vida Samadzai Vida Samadzai Vida Samadzai is Miss Afghanistan 2003. Although, the Republic of Afghanistan never recognized Samadzai as Miss Afghanistan... represents Afghanistan Afghanistan Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world... , as her appearance in a bikini causes an uproar in her native country |
Afghanistan competes at any major international pageant for the first time in decades |
Movies
Beach Party filmBeach Party film
Beach party movies were an American 1960s genre of feature films created by American International Pictures with their surprise 1963 hit, Beach Party, and copied by virtually every other studio...
s were an American 1960s genre of feature films which often starred Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon. Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
reluctantly consented to Funicello, a former main cast member of The Mickey Mouse Club, wearing a bikini. The series was originally intended as a low-budget imitation of both the Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
musical and the Doris Day
Doris Day
Doris Day is an American actress, singer and, since her retirement from show business, an animal rights activist. With an entertainment career that spanned through almost 50 years, Day started her career as a big band singer in 1939, but only began to be noticed after her first hit recording,...
sex comedy, aimed at the teen market, but they ended up taking on a life of their own. The "classic" series was produced by American International Pictures
American International Pictures
American International Pictures was a film production company formed in April 1956 from American Releasing Corporation by James H. Nicholson, former Sales Manager of Realart Pictures, and Samuel Z. Arkoff, an entertainment lawyer...
, and imitated in turn by numerous other studios. Beach Party
Beach Party
Beach Party was the first of several beach party films from American International Pictures aimed at a teen audience. It was directed by William Asher and written by Lou Rusoff. The main actors included Robert Cummings, Dorothy Malone, Frankie Avalon, and Annette Funicello...
(1963), Muscle Beach Party
Muscle Beach Party
Muscle Beach Party is the second of seven beach party films produced by American International Pictures. It was made in 1964 and was directed by William Asher, who also directed four other films in this series...
(1963), Bikini Beach
Bikini Beach
Bikini Beach is a 1964 teen film directed by William Asher and starring Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello. The film belongs to the beach party genre of movies, popular in the 1960s. This is the third in a series of seven films produced by American International Pictures .-Plot:School is out and...
(1964), Pajama Party
Pajama Party (film)
Pajama Party is a 1964 beach party film starring Tommy Kirk and Annette Funicello. This is the fourth in a series of seven beach films produced by American International Pictures...
(1964), Beach Blanket Bingo
Beach Blanket Bingo
Beach Blanket Bingo is an American International Pictures beach party film, released in 1965 and was directed by William Asher. It is the fifth film in the beach party film series...
(1965), How to Stuff a Wild Bikini
How to Stuff a Wild Bikini
How to Stuff a Wild Bikini is a 1965 beach party film from American International Pictures. The sixth entry in a seven-film series, the movie features Mickey Rooney, Annette Funicello, Dwayne Hickman, Brian Donlevy, and Beverly Adams...
(1965), The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini is the seventh of the American International Pictures beach party films and was released in 1966. The entire film takes place in and around a haunted house with no beach in sight, with the teenage gang instead cavorting in and around it and the adjacent swimming...
(1966) are titles that were made as part of the classic beach party genre. The final entry in the original series was The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini is the seventh of the American International Pictures beach party films and was released in 1966. The entire film takes place in and around a haunted house with no beach in sight, with the teenage gang instead cavorting in and around it and the adjacent swimming...
, released in 1966. The end credits for another AIP Avalon comedy, Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine
Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine
Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine is a 1965 American International Pictures film directed by Norman Taurog and starring Vincent Price, Frankie Avalon, Dwayne Hickman, Susan Hart and Deborah Walley...
(1965) reveal that the original title planned for this film was The Girl in the Glass Bikini, and that Funicello and Avalon were slated to appear. However, Funicello and Avalon both passed, and the leads in The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini were played by Tommy Kirk
Tommy Kirk
Thomas Lee "Tommy" Kirk is a former American actor, and later a businessman.-Disney years:Kirk was discovered by talent agents at the age of thirteen in a production of Eugene O'Neill's Ah, Wilderness! at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, California...
and Deborah Walley
Deborah Walley
Deborah Walley was an American actress.-Biographical Information:Deborah Walley was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, to Ice Capades skating stars and choreographers Nathan and Edith Walley. She attended Central High School in Bridgeport. At fourteen she was playing summer-stock theatre. She...
.
Avalon and Funicello starred in Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
Back to the Beach
Back to the Beach
Back to the Beach is a 1987 comedy film starring Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello, directed by Lyndall Hobbs. The original music score is composed by Steve Dorff. The film generated a total domestic gross of $13,110,903...
in 1987, playing off their original roles and subsequent careers. The 1965 movie Ski Party
Ski Party
Ski Party is a B-movie, directed by Alan Rafkin, and released in 1965 by American International Pictures. Ski Party is part of the 1960s Beach Party film genre, with a change of setting from the beach to the slopes - although the final scene places everyone back at the beach...
(with Dwayne Hickman
Dwayne Hickman
Dwayne Bernard Hickman is a former American actor and television executive at CBS.He is known primarily for his "teenage" actor roles on television sitcoms. The naturally brown-headed Hickman is best known for playing Chuck MacDonald, Bob Collins's crazy teenaged nephew, on the popular 1950s...
, Yvonne Craig
Yvonne Craig
Yvonne Joyce Craig is an American actress best known for her role as Batgirl from the 1960s TV series Batman, and as the Orion Marta in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode “Whom Gods Destroy”.-Early life and career:...
, Lesley Gore
Lesley Gore
Lesley Gore is an American singer. She is perhaps best known for her 1963 pop hit "It's My Party", which she recorded at the age of 16. Following the hit, she became one of the most recognized teen pop singers of the 1960s.- Biography :Gore was born in New York City, New York. She was raised in...
and James Brown) is also notable for employing many of the same actors and schtick
Schtick
A shtick is a comic theme or gimmick. "Shtick" is derived from the Yiddish word shtik , meaning "piece"; the closely related German word Stück has the same meaning. The English word "piece" itself is also sometimes used in a similar context...
s, only transplanted to a ski resort
Ski resort
A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing and other winter sports. In Europe a ski resort is a town or village in a ski area - a mountainous area, where there are ski trails and supporting services such as hotels and other accommodation, restaurants, equipment rental and a ski lift system...
in the Sawtooth National Forest
Sawtooth National Forest
Sawtooth National Forest is in Idaho and Utah was protected in 1905 by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt as the Sawtooth Forest Reserve. Today the forest administers over 2.1 million acres of some of the most remote forestland in the lower 48 states, and there are over 1,000 lakes and 3,000...
. The 1996 movie That Thing You Do!
That Thing You Do!
That Thing You Do! is a 1996 comedy-drama musical film written and directed by Tom Hanks. Set in the summer of 1964, the movie tells the story of the quick rise and fall of a one-hit wonder rock band...
touches briefly on the phenomenon, with the Wonders making an appearance in a fictional beach party movie, Weekend at Party Pier. A 2001 episode of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch ("Beach Blanket Bizarro") also paid homage to the series, with Avalon appearing as himself. Bikini Cavegirl
Bikini Cavegirl
Bikini Cavegirl is a softcore pornographic film made by Fred Olen Ray under his pseudonym Nicholas Medina. It is an erotic remake of Ray's earlier Dinosaur Island...
, The Bikini Carwash Company
The Bikini Carwash Company
The Bikini Carwash Company is a 1992 comedy film directed by Ed Hansen. It featured Joe Dusic, Kristi Ducati, and Ricki Brando. The sequel, The Bikini Carwash Company II, was released in 1993...
, How to Stuff a Wild Bikini, The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini is the seventh of the American International Pictures beach party films and was released in 1966. The entire film takes place in and around a haunted house with no beach in sight, with the teenage gang instead cavorting in and around it and the adjacent swimming...
, and It's a Bikini World
It's a Bikini World
It's a Bikini World is an American musical comedy film released in 1967 starring Tommy Kirk, Deborah Walley and Bobby "Boris" Pickett of "Monster Mash" fame. The film features cameos by the music groups The Gentrys, The Animals, Pat & Lolly Vegas, The Castaways and R&B girl group The Toys...
are some of the many films that have plotlines revolving around the bikini. Kelly Killoren Bensimon
Kelly Killoren Bensimon
Kelly Killoren Bensimon is an author, jewelry designer, former model, and former editor of Elle Accessories. She appeared on Bravo The Real Housewives of New York City seasons 2-4.-Early life:...
wrote in The Bikini Book, "It was really all about Annette Funicello. If the girl next door wanted to wear a bikini, then everybody wanted to wear a bikini. We didn't want to be a bad Bond girl. We all really wanted to be the good girl. Another Film depiction of the Bikini are the films depicting blood-thirsty water animals or Mutants (e.g. Jaws,Piranha 3D,Dinoshark,Dinocroc,Supergator.) many female victims were wearing Bikinis at the time of Attack.
Bikini icons
In 1962, an icon was born as Bond Girl Ursula AndressUrsula Andress
Ursula Andress is a Swiss actress and a sex symbol of the 1960s. She is known for her roles as Bond girl Honey Ryder in Dr...
emerged from the sea wearing a white bikini
White bikini of Ursula Andress
The White bikini of Ursula Andress was a white bikini worn by Ursula Andress as Honey Ryder in the 1962 James Bond film, Dr. No...
in Dr. No
Dr. No (film)
Dr. No is a 1962 spy film, starring Sean Connery; it is the first James Bond film. Based on the 1958 Ian Fleming novel of the same name, it was adapted by Richard Maibaum, Johanna Harwood, and Berkely Mather and was directed by Terence Young. The film was produced by Harry Saltzman and Albert R...
. The Dr. No bikini scene has been quoted as one of the most memorable scenes from the British spy film series. Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
of UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
declared it as the top bikini moment in film history, Virgin Media
Virgin Media
Virgin Media Inc. is a company which provides fixed and mobile telephone, television and broadband internet services to businesses and consumers in the United Kingdom...
puts it in 9th position in its list of top ten movie bikini, and the top position in the list for top ten Bond girl
Bond girl
A Bond girl is a character or actress portraying a love interest, of James Bond in a film, novel, or video game. They occasionally have names that are double entendres or puns, such as "Pussy Galore", "Plenty O'Toole", "Xenia Onatopp", or "Holly Goodhead"...
s. The Herald (Glasgow)
The Herald (Glasgow)
The Herald is a broadsheet newspaper published Monday to Saturday in Glasgow, and available throughout Scotland. As of August 2011 it had an audited circulation of 47,226, giving it a lead over Scotland's other 'quality' national daily, The Scotsman, published in Edinburgh.The 1889 to 1906 editions...
put the scene as best ever bikini scene on the basis of a poll.The white bikini is regarded as perhaps the most important in the history of the bikini and sales of the two piece bikini rocketed after the appearance of Andress in Dr. No. In a survey of 1000 women to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the bikini, Ursula Andress in her white bikini was voted "The Ultimate Bikini Goddess".Andress said that she owed her career to that white bikini,
Other memorable bikini moments in movies include Raquel Welch as the prehistoric cavegirl in the 1966 film One Million Years B.C.
One Million Years B.C.
One Million Years B.C. is a 1966 British adventure/fantasy film starring Raquel Welch, set - loosely - in the time of cavemen. The film was made by Hammer Film Productions, and was a remake of the 1940 Hollywood film One Million B.C., and it recreates many of the scenes of that film...
, and Phoebe Cates
Phoebe Cates
Phoebe Cates is an American film actress, model, and entrepreneur known for her roles in several teen films, most notably Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Gremlins.-Early life:...
in the 1982 teen film
Teen film
Teen films is a film genre targeted at teenagers and young adults in which the plot is based upon the special interests of teenagers, such as coming of age, first love, rebellion, conflict with parents, teen angst, and alienation...
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a 1982 American coming-of-age teen comedy film written by Cameron Crowe and adapted from his 1981 book of the same name...
. These two bikini moments were recently ranked 86 and 84 respectively in Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
(UK)'s list of 100 Greatest Sexy Moments in Film. Raquel Welch in a strategically as the value of the film by five interjected repetitions of 'Raquel Welch in a fur bikini' which was the one special thing that makes people want to see it again and again. Actresses kicking butt in movies like Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle is a 2003 American action comedy film. It is the sequel to 2000's Charlie's Angels. It opened in the United States on June 27, 2003, and was number one at the box office for that weekend and made a worldwide total of $259.2 million.The cast again includes Cameron...
and Blue Crush
Blue Crush
Blue Crush is a 2002 surfer film directed by John Stockwell and based on the Outside magazine article "Life's Swell" by Susan Orlean. Starring Kate Bosworth, Michelle Rodriguez, Sanoe Lake, and Mika Boorem, it tells the story of three friends who have one passion: living the ultimate dream of...
have made the two-piece, according to Gina Bellafonte of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, "the millennial equivalent of the power suit."
Fantasy bikini
Fantasy literature
Fantasy literature is fantasy in written form. Historically speaking, literature has composed the majority of fantasy works. Since the 1950s however, a growing segment of the fantasy genre has taken the form of films, television programs, graphic novels, video games, music, painting, and other...
, originating from the cover-art of Earle K. Bergey
Earle K. Bergey
Earle K. Bergey was an American illustrator who painted cover art for a wide diversity of magazines and paperback books...
(a direct inspiration for Princess Leia's outfit), is a bikini that is made up of metal to serve as putative armor. It is sometimes referred to as a "chain mail
Mail (armour)
Mail is a type of armour consisting of small metal rings linked together in a pattern to form a mesh.-History:Mail was a highly successful type of armour and was used by nearly every metalworking culture....
bikini" or "brass bikini". The outfit worn by the character Red Sonja
Red Sonja
Red Sonja, the She-Devil with a Sword, is a fictional character, a high fantasy sword and sorcery heroine created by Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith, and loosely based on Red Sonya of Rogatino in Robert E. Howard's 1934 short story "The Shadow of the Vulture"...
is a famous example of such. The game Poxnora
PoxNora
PoxNora: Battlefield of the Immortals is a multiplayer online game that combines a collectible card game with a turn-based strategy game in a fantasy setting. PoxNora was originally launched via Java Web Start through a browser and can be played on Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux...
is another example, in which all the women wear bikini-like clothing. A facetious term for female characters whose attire emphasizes sex appeal far more than actual practicality in combat is babes-at-arms (parodying "men-at-arms" for fully armored soldiers). In science fiction, Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi is a 1983 American epic space opera film directed by Richard Marquand and written by George Lucas and Lawrence Kasdan. It is the third film released in the Star Wars saga, and the sixth in terms of the series' internal chronology...
features the notable "Princess Leia's metal bikini". It is worn by the character Princess Leia when she is held captive by Jabba the Hutt
Jabba the Hutt
Jabba the Hutt is a fictional character in George Lucas's space opera film saga Star Wars. Designed as a large, slug-like alien, his appearance has been described by film critic Roger Ebert as "Dickensian," a cross between a toad and the Cheshire Cat....
at the film's beginning. This particular "bikini" has since been elevated to pop culture icon status, spawning various spoofs and parodies (notably the episode of Friends
Friends
Friends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
, "The One with the Princess Leia Fantasy") and even a dedicated fansite — Leia's Metal Bikini.
Music
Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot BikiniItsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini
"Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" is a novelty song telling the story of a shy girl wearing a revealing polka dot bikini at the beach, who in the first verse is too afraid to leave the locker where she has changed into her bikini; in the second, she has made it to the beach but sits...
, a single written by Paul Vance and Lee Pockriss, has become a part of the history of the bikini. Released on August 8, 1960, it was also the first single sung by Brian Hyland to enter Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. The song features in 1961 Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder was an Austro-Hungarian born American filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, artist, and journalist, whose career spanned more than 50 years and 60 films. He is regarded as one of the most brilliant and versatile filmmakers of Hollywood's golden age...
film comedy One, Two, Three
One, Two, Three
One, Two, Three is a 1961 American comedy film directed by Billy Wilder and written by him and I.A.L. Diamond. It is based on the 1929 Hungarian one-act play Egy, kettö, három by Ferenc Molnár, with a "plot borrowed partly from" Ninotchka, a 1939 film co-written by Wilder...
, as well as films like Sister Act 2 and Revenge of the Nerds II. It also features in commercials for Yoplait
Yoplait
Yoplait is a brand of yogurt produced by a company owned by two French holdings, SODIAAL and PAI Partners.-History:In 1964, 100,000 French farmers merged their regional dairy cooperatives to sell nationally. In 1965, two co-ops, "Yola" and "Coplait", merged, becoming "Yoplait"...
light yogurt, YWCA
YWCA
The YWCA USA is the United States branch of a women's membership movement that strives to create opportunities for women's growth, leadership and power in order to attain a common vision—to eliminate racism and empower women. The YWCA is a non-profit organization, the first of which was founded in...
, and TV Easy magazine.
Do The Bikini Dance, a single by Dee Dee Ramone
Dee Dee Ramone
Dee Dee Ramone was an American songwriter and musician, best known as founding member, bassist and main songwriter of the punk rock band the Ramones....
, was released on the day Ramones
Ramones
The Ramones were an American rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first punk rock group...
were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2002. In the Gang of Four
Gang of Four (band)
Gang of Four are an English post-punk group from Leeds. Original personnel were singer Jon King, guitarist Andy Gill, bass guitarist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham. They were fully active from 1977 to 1984, and then re-emerged twice in the 1990s with King and Gill...
song "I Found That Essence Rare", the Bikini is suggested to be "...dressed for the H-Bomb...". In 1997 the French-German Electronic band Stereo Total
Stereo Total
Stereo Total is a Berlin-based multilingual, French-German duo comprising Françoise Cactus and Brezel Göring . Both Cactus and Göring sing and play multiple instruments...
released an album named Monokini. Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
rock band Bikini, Riot Grrrl
Riot grrrl
Riot grrrl was an underground feminist punk movement based in Washington, DC, Olympia, Washington, Portland, Oregon, and the greater Pacific Northwest which existed in the early to mid-1990s, and it is often associated with third-wave feminism...
movement induced punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band Bikini Kill and Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
based electro-pop duo Cherry Bikini had names inspired by the bikini.
Magazines
Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue is published annually by Sports Illustrated. It features fashion models wearing swimwear in exotic locales. According to some, the magazine is the arbiter of supermodel succession. In addition, the issue is a media nexus that in 2005 carried in advertising....
is published annually by Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
. It features fashion models wearing swimwear in exotic locales. Inclusion is considered a stick by which supermodel
Supermodel
The term supermodel refers to a highly-paid fashion model who usually has a worldwide reputation and often a background in haute couture and commercial modeling. The term became prominent in the popular culture of the 1980s. Supermodels usually work for top fashion designers and labels...
s are measured. In addition, the issue is a media nexus that in 2005 carried $35 million in advertising. New issues come out around the middle of February or later. First published in 1964, it is credited with making the bikini a legitimate piece of apparel. The issue that got the most letters was the 1978 issue. The best selling issue was the 25th Anniversary Issue with Kathy Ireland
Kathy Ireland
Kathleen Marie "Kathy" Ireland is an American former model, actress, and entrepreneur. She is the CEO and designer of her eponymous brand product marketing company, Kathy Ireland Worldwide.-Life and career:...
on the cover in 1989.
Urbe Bikini
Urbe Bikini
Urbe Bikini is a Venezuelan, Maxim-styled monthly men's magazine with original photographs of famous models and editorial content geared to men 25 to 40. From its launch in December 2003, Urbe Bikini has become the largest circulation glossy in the country...
(UB) is a Venezuelan, Maxim
Maxim (magazine)
Maxim is an international men's magazine based in the United Kingdom and known for its pictorials featuring popular actresses, singers, and female models, sometimes pictured dressed, often pictured scantily dressed but not fully nude....
-styled monthly created by Urbe's editor-in-chief & creative director, Gabriel Torrelles and publisher, Carlos Lizarralde, who sold the company to Cadena Capriles, the largest publisher in Venezuela. It is the largest circulation glossy in the country and a cultural and circulation phenomenon in itself for more than 10 years. Sports magazines like Inside Sport
Inside Sport
Inside Sport is an Australian sport magazine published by nextmedia. Inside Sport largely comprises articles by freelance journalists, covering a wide array of sports. It focuses on sporting content, sports photography, and the attention given to models and their photo shoots...
or automotive magazines like the Lowrider Magazine
Lowrider Magazine
Lowrider Magazine is a monthly magazine about cars, focusing almost exclusively on the style known as a lowrider. The magazine has also released a series of videos available on DVD. It was founded in 1977 with the first issue coming out of San Jose, California.- External links :*...
regularly features bikini-clad women on the cover to appeal to a predominantly young male audience. In 2006, the Maxim magazine created 33 metres (108 ft) wide vinyl
Vinyl
A vinyl compound is any organic compound that contains a vinyl group ,which are derivatives of ethene, CH2=CH2, with one hydrogen atom replaced with some other group...
-mesh
Mesh
Mesh consists of semi-permeable barrier made of connected strands of metal, fiber, or other flexible/ductile material. Mesh is similar to web or net in that it has many attached or woven strands.-Types of mesh:...
bikini in the desert of southern Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
featuring Eva Longoria
Eva Longoria
Eva Jacqueline Longoria is an American actress, best known for portraying Gabrielle Solis on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives...
of Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
fame, claiming that it could be seen from outer space space.
In September 2011, Lilac magazine has become the first Arabic magazine to show a cover with a bikini. The 22 year old model, Huda Naccache, from Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
is pictured posing in a black sequinned bikini.
Others
Bikini Planet
Bikini Planet is a science fiction comedy written by David S. Garnett and released exclusively in the UK as a paperback. It is written as a sub-sequel to an earlier story written by Garnett in 1994, entitled Stargonauts, which features the some of the same settings and characters from the first...
is a science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
comedy written by David S. Garnett
David S. Garnett
David S. Garnett is a UK science fiction author and editor whose novels include Cosmic Carousel, Stargonauts and Bikini Planet. He edited a paperback anthology revival of Michael Moorcock's New Worlds magazine, two Zenith anthologies of original British SF stories, and three Orbit Science Fiction...
and released exclusively in the UK as a paperback. It was written as a sub-sequel to an earlier story by Garnett in 1994, entitled Stargonauts, and features some of its settings and characters.
Bikini News
Bikini News
Bikini News is a series of satirical news videos featuring two comedians performing in bikinis in a comedic style similar to The Daily Show and Saturday Night Live. It includes sketch comedy elements, including plotlines where the main characters marry and have romantic affairs with ninjas. It is...
is a series of satirical news
News
News is the communication of selected information on current events which is presented by print, broadcast, Internet, or word of mouth to a third party or mass audience.- Etymology :...
videos featuring two comediennes performing in bikinis in a comedic style similar to The Daily Show
The Daily Show
The Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
and Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
available in podcast
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
and vodcast form, as well as in mov
MOV
MOV may refer to:* MOV , a mnemonic for the copying of data from one location to another in the X86 assembly language* .mov, filename extension for the QuickTime multimedia file format...
and wmv file formats. As of October 2007, over 90 episodes and 80 bloopers/sketches have been created. NCIS
NCIS (TV series)
NCIS, formerly known as NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service, is an American police procedural drama television series revolving around a fictional team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which conducts criminal investigations involving the U.S...
, an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
police procedural
Police procedural
The police procedural is a subgenre of detective fiction which attempts to convincingly depict the activities of a police force as they investigate crimes. While traditional detective novels usually concentrate on a single crime, police procedurals frequently depict investigations into several...
television series revolving around a fictional team of special agents, had an episode on Bikini Wax (18th episode, 2nd season). Bikini Bottom is a city that appears in the Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
animated
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
television series, SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePants is an American animated television series, created by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg. Much of the series centers on the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the underwater city of "Bikini Bottom"...
. Located at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, it is where the series' main characters live, and where most of the episodes take place.
The Bikini Karate Babes
Bikini Karate Babes
Bikini Karate Babes is a digitized 2D fighting game developed by Creative Edge Studios. It features an all-female cast of 19 fighters, all clad in bikinis and played by real actresses.-Gameplay:...
is a digitized 2D fighting game
Fighting game
Fighting game is a video game genre where the player controls an on-screen character and engages in close combat with an opponent. These characters tend to be of equal power and fight matches consisting of several rounds, which take place in an arena. Players must master techniques such as...
developed by Creative Edge Studios. It features an all-female cast of 19 fighters, all clad in bikinis and played by real actresses.
The Swedish Bikini Team
Swedish Bikini Team
The Swedish Bikini Team was a group of American female models who appeared in an advertising campaign for Old Milwaukee beer. These commercials ran for several months in 1991 in the United States, playing with American stereotypes of Scandinavian women being blonde and having big breasts...
was a group of American female models who appeared in an advertising campaign
Advertising campaign
An advertising campaign is a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme which make up an integrated marketing communication...
for Old Milwaukee
Old Milwaukee
Old Milwaukee is an American lager-style beer currently brewed and owned by Pabst Brewing Company. The Old Milwaukee marquee is used by a family of products which includes Old Milwaukee, Old Milwaukee Light and Old Milwaukee Non-Alcoholic.-History:...
beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
. These commercials ran for several months in 1991 in the United States, playing with American stereotype
Stereotype
A stereotype is a popular belief about specific social groups or types of individuals. The concepts of "stereotype" and "prejudice" are often confused with many other different meanings...
of blonde and big breastsed Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
n women. Feminist activists found the ads misogynistic
Misogyny
Misogyny is the hatred or dislike of women or girls. Philogyny, meaning fondness, love or admiration towards women, is the antonym of misogyny. The term misandry is the term for men that is parallel to misogyny...
. Though the campaign generated widespread interest, the advertisements were dropped after protests by the National Organization for Women
National Organization for Women
The National Organization for Women is the largest feminist organization in the United States. It was founded in 1966 and has a membership of 500,000 contributing members. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S...
and female employees of the Pabst Brewing Company
Pabst Brewing Company
Pabst Brewing Company is an American company that dates its origins to a brewing company founded in 1844 by Jacob Best and by 1889 named after Frederick Pabst. It is currently the holding company contracting for the brewing of over two dozen brands of beer and malt liquor from defunct companies...
.