Bettie Page The Lost Years

I knew nothing about Bettie Page beyond her gorgeous photos, and it was very gratifying to learn about her in her own words to her loved ones. You get a real sense of her personality in these letters - they're an amazing window into her life. I will admit: I first picked up this book for the photos, and they are very compelling. But hearing how Bettie reacted to events in her life - and how she always maintained a positive attitude! - was what made this book for me. Highly recommended for Bettie Page fans and anyone else who's been captivated by her pictures and wants to learn more about this fascinating woman.

I received a digital ARC from the publisher via Netgalley.

This was a fun book to read. It fills in a lot of the missing information about this most famous of pin-up ladies.

What a great book! This is a book for those new to Bettie Page, the die hard fans, and those in-between.

The book is full of awesome photos, ranging from her modeling days to family times, and handwritten letters to her sister Goldie (aka Gloria). The authors do an excellent job at describing the letters and then stating what was happening in Bettie’s life at the time. At no point was I bored with this book, despite having watched documentaries and read about Bettie over the years. This book gives a look into how normal of a person Bettie was and how ahead of her times she was. I think we tend to put her on this pedestal and forget she’s not just the legendary pin-up queen. She is someone’s sister, daughter, aunt, etc. and the letters show that. You’ll get a good idea about Bettie’s personality and humor throughout the book. At the end of the book, you will learn more about her sister, Goldie, and her nephew, Ron. Why Goldie didn’t become as famous as Bettie, I don’t know...when you see Goldie’s photo’s, you’ll wonder the same thing.

This book would make an excellent gift or if you’re a Bettie fan, it’s a must have. I will be purchasing this for myself and one for a friend who loves Bettie. Overall, I recommend the book and can’t say anything bad about it.

For those who need a little more info about the book layout: foreword by Tempest Storm, introduction, followed by four parts (The Early Years, The Pinup Years, The Lost Years, Meet Goldie Jane), then epilogue and acknowledgments.

While reading this book, I couldn’t help but wonder what mental illness and health problems did she really have? Was it what they said or something else (we’ve come a long way with medical advances/learning about diseases/illness since she was diagnosed)? How did she maintain such a positive attitude despite everything that happened in her life? The authors mentions the body positive movement (I thought the same thing at multiple times throughout the book), and wonder how Bettie would feel now about her photo being taken as she aged.

Parental Advisory/Trigger Warnings: talks of Bettie’s time in psychiatric hospitals due to her threatening others with knives/injuring them, lots of body image talk (dieting, indulging in food, gaining/losing weight, growing old and dislike for it), talk of suicide if she ends up in a wheelchair or bed-ridden, gambling, marriages and divorces, religion, sexual assaults (briefly mentioned, not detailed).

Thank you to the authors, publishers, and Netgalley for allowing me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

#BettiePageTheLostYears #NetGalley #Reading #Books #QueenOfPinups #BettiePage #Vintage

Bettie Mae Page may be one of the most popular poster girls of all time. Her curved bangs and body were infamous, as was her reputation. Journalist Tori Rodriguez did some deeper digging to find out more about the real Bettie. In 2013 the documentary Bettie Page Reveals All stuck to a very strict "no photos" rule because of Page's worry that people would picture her older, and no longer as the pinup they idolized.  In her collection, Rodriguez was able to get access to approximately 29 letters and pictures from 1949 to 2000 that show the secret life of a woman everyone thinks they know. She has compiled them into a collection called Bettie Page: The Lost Years. 

Bettie Page: The Lost Years is a difficult read. Rodriguez does an incredible job of gleaning important information on Page's post pinup life, but the stories are often fraught with troubles of the mind and many issues with money. There's discussions of her marriages, her worries, and her wishes to be with the family she had such an odd relationship with. 

Bettie Page: The Lost Years is to be released November 1, 2018.

I found this to be an intimate look at the life of Bettie Page. There were thing fans have always wanted to know about the pin-up icon through the years, seeing her pictures. She grew in fame yet became ever more reclusive as she aged and felt more insecure about how she looked, so she shunned the spotlight and avoided having pictures taken. Almost everyone has seen pictures of her in yer heyday and wondered about what she’s like and what her life is like after her modeling days, I know I have. Heck, I even share a birthday with her (April 22) although she was born back in 1923 and her modeling career had ended before I was born.

This book is filled with pictures of her and her sister Goldie that Goldie had saved and put away, among other family pictures included and also has letters written to family by Bettie that give insight into the years after her career. Together they form a memoir of Bettie Page that is surprising and a rare look into her life. It details her battles with aging, money struggles, how she was studying in different areas and working to be positive and maintain good health, among other things. I found it interesting to say the least, and enjoyed it. My thanks for the advance electronic copy that was provided by #netgalley, author Tori Rodriguez, and the publisher for my fair review.

Lyons Press
Pub: Nov 5th, 2018

What a powerful and interesting book. We have all heard about Bettie Page in her heyday and some of her life before becoming a model but not much about her life after. This was written not only from the people that knew her but from her own words. I have to admit I found the book a little sad knowing she did get much money from her modeling and also how she hid herself so that people would not remember her aging. The rare photo I have seen of her as an elderly woman I thought she still was a very pretty women. Highly recommend this book as it is a wonderful memory of a woman who showed the world not only beauty but strength as well.

This book includes personal family photos, early modeling shots (some with her sister Goldie), and biographical info to tie things together but perhaps the best thing is the postcards, cards, and letters penned by Bettie (some written by her own hand) that feature her particular language and quips. A treasure trove.

“Bettie Page: The Lost Years” (2018) is the second book written by Tori Rodriguez about the life of the pin-up queen icon Bettie Page (1923-2004). Rodriguez, a journalist, therapist and fitness expert manages Betty Page fan clubs and websites. Bettie Page’s nephew Ron Brem has provided new material for this oversized lavish pictorial volume. Recommended by a friend, I didn’t want to miss this book. Many thanks to The National Book Network via NetGalley for the DDC for the purpose of review.

Like many new Bettie Page fans, I had never heard of her until I purchased a shopping bag and trading cards with her image. With her dark curly hair, trademark bangs sparkling blue eyes, perfect figure, engaging smile and vintage costume—she simply stood apart from the celebrity actresses’ and models of her era. It was apparent Bettie loved to entertain, there was a unique dazzling charm about her, and her dancing and modeling was always tastefully done with style and class-- her fans loved her!

Bettie was from Nashville, Tennessee and remained close to her sister Goldie and her brother Jimmie throughout her life. Bettie’s career was very brief; she retired from the spotlight in 1957, was married four times and had no children. Featured in the popular cult classic “Teaserama” (1955), she was discovered by the photographer Irving Klaw. Most of the earliest photos and snapshots were taken by unknown photographers on Coney Island, and she worked for various modeling agencies before also being cast in movies.

Bettie was plagued by health problems as she aged, mainly related to arthritis that restricted her mobility, yet she exercised and maintained a healthy diet. Bettie embraced the Christian faith, and volunteered at the Billy Graham Crusades. Later on, she experienced mental health problems and was admitted twice to the Patton Psychiatric State Hospital in San Bernardino County, CA. There were copies of letters Bettie wrote detailing her stay at Patton, she seemed to be stable and reasonably happy, though she distanced herself from her fans and did not wish to be seen publically as she aged, preferring that fans remember her when she was young and beautiful.

This book contains memorabilia and personal family photos from Ron Brem’s collection. The book is more of a tribute to his mother and her relationship with Bettie. Both sisters modeled and danced burlesque together, Goldie promptly quit working when she married, by this time Bettie had been divorced from her first husband Billy Neal (1947) as her career as a famous iconic “Queen of Pinup’s” began in the early 1950’s.The photo spread in the conclusion of the book features Goldie (who later changed her name to Gloria) and not Bettie. Still, this is an important well organized book containing many never before seen snapshots and fascinating information that Bettie Page fans will appreciate.