As we’ve seen in prior posts like Steve McQueen, universities back in the day would ask celebrity males to objectify judge the female beauties on campus for fun and entertainment. In this 1943 Jayhawker commencement issue, pin-up artist Alberto Varga did the honors.
Chris from the muscleheaded blog should appreciate this. A copy of the letter is included:
And the winner was…Grace McCandless!
I Don't Get It 
Interesting stuff. Kind of like the Mad Men era on campus. At least Varga was a clever wordsmith.
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🙂
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Well, Kerbey.
1. Never trust a guy who shortens his name by merely chopping off the last letter. Vanity move, totally.
2. On the other hand, his letter was rather sweet and all-encompassing, if more complimentary to Nature than the very women he was judging.
3. I hope winner Grace felt good about herself, the way she lived and laughed and carried her personality, as much as she did getting the big Varga.
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The big Varga? It looks oddly close to Viagra, now that I look at it. The two could definitely prove helpful in the same department.
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The man certainly went about this assignment with a certain flourish, did he not?
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Mark struck out the side, 1 2 3, with his comment. I can only add that Varga brings vulgar to mind.
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Well, as we know how Hispanic surnames can go on and on, technically he was Joaquin Alberto Vargas y Chávez. So he was Joaquin when Joaquin wasn’t cool. In 1896.
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You know, Sandra, what a time that was where the guy could make a great living out of being totally smug and semi-smutty.
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Yes, those were the days, Mark. But then again isn’t there a 90 year old man who is alive and well with a 19 year old wife or two living in a bunny mansion and collecting an obscene amount of money in his smoking jacket?
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I think you’re now referring to an older post: drier than a dead dingo’s donger. Sorry.
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You’re right! My apologies.
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Oh, God, The Hef. My generation made the dude an Icon. You are right about that, Sandra. Guilty as charged.
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You’re not to blame, Mark. I can’t fault the guy for being successful and living out his dream. The thing I find odd is how he carries on with girls who are barely adults. But I’m guilty too because I faithfully watched in disbelief his reality show that was on a few years back.
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…and just think, Hef’s daughter is 61.
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No way! He has a daughter??!!!
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Claro que si. She is the CEO of Playboy!
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Ay dios mio
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I do think they adore his big house, big cars and bigger wallet, Sandra.
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I recall that Vargas used to paint provocative pin-up Playboy magazine girls. Plenty of pulchritudinous portraits.
Whilst I perused the magazine solely for the articles (cough) I admit his drawings skewed my paradigm of the ideal woman for years and years.
( I think I just won the Sesame Street prize for alliteration using the letter “P”. Also a 3,047 point score in Scrabble for use of “pulchritudinous”. )
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I’m pretty sure Mr. Snuffleupagus is the one who will be presenting the prize to you. This is eerie bc just this morning I read a comment from a man named Paul, using all P words, so this is the 2nd incidence of P alliteration. Huh? Well, as a girl, I always thought the Varga girls looked pretty. They don’t arouse anything in me, except the desire to look so leggy.
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oh but she is lovely. Fun that you have readers remembering such things. All new to me. And that word pulchritude slays me, always has.
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I know I can google it, but off the top of my head, I got nothing.
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Had a boyfriend in college who liked to tell me I had pulchritude. He was a pompous a$$ (but good looking, so I let that go) and thought using big words made him special.
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Well, if a man calls you beautiful, what can you do? I’m quite certain my husband will never the P word on me.
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I’d rather hear the B word.
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must. not. make. comment…..:)
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Beauty! Beauty!
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No doubt, only having facial features to look at would have been a great hindrance to him.
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But it allows all the portlier girls who have been told all their lives, “You have such a pretty face.” Although how many of those would there have been in ’43?
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From Gibson Girls to Varga pin ups to Miley Cyrus. I would not call that progress. The fella’ sure could draw. And Ms. KU is definitely pretty.
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Yes, she is pretty in an unskanky way, speaking of Miley and how we’ve regressed as a society.
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hahahaha… what’s not to like? 😀
Vargas made a great choice, too ! 🙂
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He did, he did.
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Vintage Vargas !
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Reblogged this on The Muscleheaded Blog.
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