Pop Culture

Ben Marks, our pal at Collectors Weekly, says, "We just published an article on Zoe Mozert, Pearl Frush, and Joyce Ballantyne, who created some of the most memorable pin-up art in the 1940 and '50s. While most people today associate pin-up art with male artists like Alberto Vargas, George Petty, and Gil Elvgren, the contributions of these women are every bit as important, and their work every bit as good. For her article, associate editor Lisa Hix interviewed a number of authorities on pin-up art, from art dealer and author Louis K. Meisel to Marianne Ohl Phillips, who got to know both Mozert and Ballantyne before they died. “You find mistakes in the male paintings,” Phillips told me. “Elvgren’s got a famous painting where she’s got two left feet, and there are just these things that don’t fit every once in a while. The women never made those mistakes. I think they looked in the mirror a lot and they got things more right. The men tended to make the breasts larger, and they made the legs longer. The women tended to paint very proportionate women, more of a 36-26-36 look, whereas men would make them a little top-heavy.” Three female artists who shaped the American Pin-Up

SF/thriller writer Iain Banks has weighed in to quash a rumor that he only wrote his amazing SF novels to pay the bills because the (also amazing) high-brow literary thrillers didn't bring in enough: I wish I did have the time to reply to everybody individually but I don’t. I think I’ll only comment on any of the posts if there’s something factually wrong mentioned in them, and so far the only point I can remember is one where an ex-neighbour of ours recalled (in an otherwise entirely kind and welcome comment) me telling him, years ago, that my SF novels effectively subsidised the mainstream works. I think he’s just misremembered, as this has never been the case. Until the last few years or so, when the SF novels started to achieve something approaching parity in sales, the mainstream always out-sold the SF – on average, if my memory isn’t letting me down, by a ratio of about three or four to one. I think a lot of people have assumed that the SF was the trashy but high-selling stuff I had to churn out in order to keep a roof over my head while I wrote the important, serious, non-genre literary novels. Never been the case, and I can’t imagine that I’d have lied about this sort of thing, least of all as some sort of joke. The SF novels have always mattered deeply to me – the Culture series in particular – and while it might not be what people want to hear (academics especially), the mainstream subsidised the SF, not the other way round. And… rant over. Banks is dying of cancer, and it's an awful shame. 20 May Update from Iain (via IO9)

Kim Kardashian has the best baby shower invitations ever, Zoe Saldana defends Allure magazine, and Demi Moore‘s new boyfriend may have something Ashton Kutcher doesn’t have. Now that you’ve gotten a taste of VH1′s new scripted series, Hit the Floor, check out the full first episode days ahead of its broadcast! Catch all of the action in the clip above, read more about the series, and get a second hit by tuning in for the airing Monday, May 27 at 9 p.m. ET. [VH1] If you recently received a music box playing tunes from Kanye West, you’ve probably been invited to Kim Kardashian’s baby shower. The festivities are slated for June 2, coincidentally the same date as the season premiere for Keeping Up With the Kardashians. [MTV] Zoe Saldana doesn’t see anything wrong with Allure magazine revealing her weight for their cover story featuring an interview with the actress. The Internet was abuzz with criticism last week, wondering if an actor would be subject to a similar disclosure and if it only solidified the image of waifish starlets. Saldana tried to clarify the tone, saying the magazine was conveying that her small frame sometimes misleads people to think she’s a pushover (she’s not, by the way). [San Francisco Chronicle] Demi Moore’s new man Will Hannigan is a hot yogi who hails from Australia. Oh, and he may or may not have a pearl in his penis. [Huffington Post]

Angelina JolieIt's been a while since we last featured Worth1000, but their "let's photoshop celebrities into Renaissance paintings" contest is full of all sorts of win. Check out the rest of the winning entries: Link - via Co.CREATE Hugh Laurie Steve Carrell Natalie Portman... and how could we not see this one coming?Honey Boo Boo's Mama June

Have you ever seen maraschino cherries in colors other than red or maybe, MAYBE green?This photo was in a BuzzFeed post about how maraschino cherries are made, which reads kind of like one of those Mister Rogers' Neighborhood "Picture, Picture" explanations of how things are made, only on this one, the narrator is obviously horrified.

Another clever Google Glass spoof. This one featuring our friend Mark Malkoff as he walks around New York tricking people into thinking he's wearing Google Glass when actually it's a '90s video game.Link: Via Mashable

Jason Criss's knuckles tattoo shows the Enterprise-D from Star Trek: The Next Generation. He writes:It took me a while to figure out what kind of Star Trek tattoo I wanted to get. I finally decided that the enterprise d on my knuckles was the best choice for me. It’s still a work in progress there will be more shading and colors after the initial outline heals. let me know what you think of them so far.Note that he can perform a saucer separation by just moving his fists apart.Link

Wisconsin's Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream has some refreshingly honest ad-copy on the side of its vans. The photo was snapped by a Consumerist reader named David, and shows a van whose advert disclaims any nutritional merit, proudly proclaiming "gobs of rich Wisconsin cream" as well as lots of "real ingredients" (whatever those are). My own experience has been that eating food high in grass-fed animal fat is good for me, so that sounds about right to me -- though carrots are good, too! Ice Cream Company Knows What You’re Here For: You Want Nutrition? Eat Carrots

Ugh. Thanks Lil Wayne!

"I was 14 years old, all on my own because my friend bailed on me at the last minute, and relatively clueless," says science writer Steve Silberman in the story of how he became a Grateful Dead devotée. "Then the Dead came out... I knew I had never heard music as beautiful, adventurous, and alive as this in my entire life. That was the moment I became a Deadhead, and I never stopped."