During the last few months we shared three Technicolor lithographs with glassine overlays of clothing that could be peeled back to reveal a nude model, and mentioned we thought the technique originated in France with Paris-Hollywood, a cover of which you see above. The magazine began publishing déshabillable—i.e. undressable—pin-ups in 1950, whereas the American undressables we’ve found date from no earlier than 1953. Though Statesiders may have been latecomers to the party, once they got the technique down they churned overlay pin-ups out by the hundreds. You can see three here, here, and here, and we’ll share more later.

The artist responsible for painting the centerfold in this issue of Paris-Hollywood was Roger Brard, and he was the brush for most of those the magazine featured, but at least one other artist was involved too. Elsewhere in the issue you get showgirls, showgirls, and more showgirls, including a three page spread on la vagabonde Cirque Z dancer and world traveler Katrina, a Venice carnival-inspired set involving a model wearing a lace mask (she also gets the back cover), and a weird photo essay with knives and six-shooters. All of this is from 1952. We have twenty scans below, and you can see many more issues of Paris-Hollywood by clicking its keywords at the bottom of this post.

We’ve shared five or six Paris-Hollywood magazines, including a few last year, but it’s been since 2012 that we found an issue with one of its trademark déshabillable—or undressable—centerfolds. Not surprising, since the magazine featured them for only a year or so. Anyway, we have an especially charming one inside this 1950 issue, painted by pin-up master Roger Brard, whose clever work we’ve shown you before. The issue also has an unrecognizable photo-illustration or painting of Lana Turner playing with soapsuds on the cover. We’d never have thought it was her, but it says so at lower right. Ten scans below, and more issues if you follow the links starting with this one. 

 

Paris Hollywood #108 gets playful its cover text where it says “derrière le rideau,” which means “behind the curtain.” If you glance below at Roger Brard's pin-up déshabillable, she’s behind a curtain, showing her behind. So, derrière le rideau is sort of a cute way of... Er, or maybe they didn’t mean it that way at all. Anyway, more scans below, including the rear cover featuring a cabaret dancer with the great name of Nilka. Sounds like a chocolate drink, don’t you think? 1951, on all of this. See more wonderful Roger Brard pieces by clicking his keyword below.

Above, the covers, centerfold, and two other interior pages of Paris-Hollywood #119, published 1951. The covers consist of two photographs from the series “La vallée de la soif” by Jacques Le Chevallier. The centerfold déshabillable—i.e. it undresses—is by Carols, who was actually Raymond Brenot under a pseudonym. And the two other pages feature burlesque goddess Lili St. Cyr. There's so much more in the magazine worth seeing, but today we're only covering the most important stuff. See another Carols here, and three more undressing centerfolds by Roger Brard here, here, and here. 

Below, La Vie Parisienne #79, published July 1957, with Roger Brard cover art along with beautiful interior pieces from Jihel, Donnés, Jac, Denis, van Homme, and others.

1950 issue of Paris-Hollywood, with cover star Rosine Luguey, who was an actress in France during the 1940s and 1950s. Also, this issue has another cool stripping centerfold by Roger Brard, as well as some bonus pin-up art as a finale, which we've chopped in half for better viewing. Sacrilege, we know, but we're prisoners of our 433 pixel column width. Maybe one day, if we get really ambitious, we'll make the art open in a separate, larger window. In the meantime, you can see the other Brard centerfold we posted here. 

Paris-Hollywood was a cinema and cheesecake magazine published every two weeks in France from 1947 to 1973. Its first issue featured Rita Hayworth on the cover, and over the years dozens more movie stars, as well as scores of unknown models, graced its cover. This issue, from 1952, features not just a provocative cover shot, but one of the magazine’s favorite interior treats—a centerfold that strips. It’s ingeniously simple. The centerspread is a piece of semi-transparent white paper inked in such a way as to strategically block portions of the pages beneath. In this case, a silhouette of black ink creates the image of a woman in a catsuit. But lift the white paper and you see the same figure nude. The coolness of this trick can only be described using the word on the magazine’s cover: “espièglerie”—the state of being mischievous or frolicsome. Take a look below and see if we aren’t right, and note the rear cover with American actress June Haver.