Sex symbol
Theda Bara in a publicity shot for A Fool There Was (1915) - Frank Powell [Amazon.com]
Key photo: Sophia Loren eyeing Jayne Mansfield's breasts (ca.1957/58), photo by Joe Shere.
Definition
A sex symbol is a famous person, male or female, who is found sexually attractive by the general audience. The term was first used circa 1911.
The movie industry played an important part in the rise of sex symbols. It disseminated images of beautiful people around the world, especially in the time of silent film, when there were no language barriers. One of the first sex symbols was the Danish actress Asta Nielsen in the 1910s and 1920s.
Although movies are still important, sex symbols nowadays are often created by television in general and soap operas and music videos in particular. Many "supermodels" of the fashion industry are also regarded as sex symbols.
Sometimes sex symbols can even be people who are not physically attractive, but possess other qualities that make them desirable. For example, powerful political figures such as Henry Kissinger or Donald Rumsfeld have often been admired as sex symbols. As Kissinger himself once put it, sometimes "power is the greatest aphrodisiac." Even Adolf Hitler was regarded as a sex symbol in Nazi Germany. --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_symbol [Jun 2004]
Some female sex symbols
- Christina Aguilera
- Pamela Anderson
- Josephine Baker
- Theda Bara
- Brigitte Bardot
- Clara Bow
- Louise Brooks
- Claudia Cardinale
- Mariah Carey
- Laetitia Casta
- Helena Christensen
- Cindy Crawford
- Elisha Cuthbert
- Marlene Dietrich
- Carmen Electra
- Farrah Fawcett
- Janina Frostell
- Betty Grable
- Jean Harlow
- Heidi Klum
- Anna Kournikova
- Hedy Lamarr
- Dorothy Lamour
- J. Lo
- Sophia Loren
- Madonna Ciccone
- Jayne Mansfield
- Marilyn Monroe
- Evelyn Nesbit
- Bettie Page
- Britney Spears
- Sharon Stone
- Elizabeth Taylor
- Tina Turner
- Mamie Van Doren
- Dita Von Teese
- Raquel Welch
- Mae West
Theda Bara [...]
[s]creen vamp Theda Bara explained, "The reason good women like me…is that there is a little bit of vampire instinct in every woman." Late twentieth-century feminists argued over whether the notion of the femme fatale was implicitly misogynist. Essayist Camille Paglia ventured: "The femme fatale …wields the sexual power that feminism cannot explain and has tried to destroy….Through stars like [Elizabeth] Taylor, we sense the world-disordering impact of legendary women like…Helen of Troy and Salome." --http://www.kewatt.com/Salome.htmlSome male sex symbols:
- Backstreet Boys
- Ben Affleck
- Charles Atlas
- Humphrey Bogart
- Sean Connery
- Tom Cruise
- Matt Damon
- James Dean
- Leonardo DiCaprio
- Kirk Douglas
- Douglas Fairbanks
- Errol Flynn
- Mel Gibson
- Rock Hudson
- Enrique Iglesias
- Mick Jagger
- Tom Jones
- Ricky Martin
- New Kids on the Block
- Luke Perry
- Brad Pitt
- Elvis Presley
- Keith Richards
- Axl Rose
- Justin Timberlake (and other members of NSYNC)
- Mark Wahlberg
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