The bikini has had a long and often sordid history with mainstream culture. From a scandalous garment that no modest lady would be caught seen in to a mainstay on reality TV shows like Survivor and Big Brother (and any other show that can work in a hot tub scene), bikini acceptance has certainly changed over the years. Sexy swimwear bikinis are now a very common sight. Celebrities frolic in them while hoping the obliging paparazzi are nearby. Fitness magazines splash bikini clad women on their covers along with promises to whip the average reader into a buff bikini body. While there are no shortages of bikinis in all colors and styles, popular culture has elevated a few of these sexy swimsuits to iconic status.
Is there a more popular bikini than the one worn by Ursula Anders in Dr. No? In 1962, she was filmed rising from the sea in a white bikini and, in an instant, made movie history. Anders career took off like wildfire and the bikini itself went on to fetch £35,000 at an auction in 2001. A year after the original swimsuit went on the auction block, Halle Berry replicated the famous movie scene wearing in orange bikini in the Bond film, Die Another Day. In 2007, forty-five years after the original film, the dramatic sea entrance was rated as the second Sexiest Movie Moment. Just four year earlier, in a separate survey, the same scene was rated number one.
The second iconic bikini on this list actually does not exist as a tangible garment, yet its praises have been sung since 1960. The Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini went straight to the number one spot on Billboard Hot 100 and landed in the top ten on other charts around the world. Paul Vance, the writer of this extremely catchy ditty, called the song "a money machine" as he counted the millions of dollars he earned in royalties. After the song's release, bikini sales soared. Hollywood jumped on the proverbial bandwagon and ushered in first wave of surf movies. The song is even said to be one of the major contributing factors in pushing bikinis into positive acceptance.
This next bikini is not well known. It is, however the most important bikini in fashion history. In 1946, Louis Réard took 30 square inches of cloth screened with newsprint, fashioned it into a g-string bikini and choose Micheline Bernardini to model it at a fashion show. Bernadini was, in fact, modeling the first modern bikini. After this groundbreaking appearance, she received over 50,000 fan letters.
Although no longer a garment to be worn solely by the brazen, the bikini is still an object of fascination. As these three sexy swimwear bikinis take their place in the hallowed halls of history, we know it's only a matter of time before another one joins their ranks. Perhaps it will occur during a routine celebrity sighting or maybe it will be through another movie event. However it occurs, we will always think with a certain fondness of these tiny garments that create such a massive stir.
