Product Advertisements are as much of our shared cultural heritage as popular culture. Note the number of product mascots and icons which are omnipresent in Western culture. Mr. Peanut. The Coppertone girl. The Coca-Cola polar bears.

The Coppertone Girl ad appeared in the late 1950s and has become recognizable around the world. Joyce Ballantyne, the artist, used her daughter Cheri to pose for the illustration on a hot summer afternoon, trying to capture the startled look which would appear in the ad. One of the most popular illustrators of the period, Ballantyne was also one of the top 10 pin-up artists of the 1940s, and her pin-up work like the Coppertone ad continues to endure. Ballantyne was a regular illustrator for Sports Afield magazine, and she and her family traveled often for her work. Though the image of the Coppertone Girl has endured, Ballantyne was paid only once for all the rights to the illustration.

Joyce Ballantyne and her daughter, Cheri, who had modeled for the illustration as a toddler, produced a limited edition signed lithograph shortly before Ballantyine’s passing in May 2006. Ballantyine signed approximately 1000 of the collectible prints.

The Coppertone Girl remains as popular today as it was more than 60 years ago, as we can see by the homage covers below.

Source: HuffPost.com