PAN AM - MISS UNIVERSE 1953 - PAN AMERICAN WORLD AIRWAYS

Regular price $2,200.00

Artist: Anonymous
Condition: B *
Dimensions: 27 x 41.3 in. / 68.6 x 105 cm.
Circa: 1953
Linen Backed
* See Condition Grading section for further details
The poster was folded once vertically and twice horizontally; edge and corner wear, small tears, and creasing; multiple tack holes in each corner; surface toning and smudges, most noticeable in the outer portions of the poster; some surface accretions/stains in the middle of the poster near the bottom edge; tax stamp bottom left corner; this very rare Pan Am airline travel poster should display rather nicely once framed.

This vibrant poster promotes the election of "Mademoiselle Ciné-Revue," Belgium's ambassador to the 1953 Miss Universe pageant. A glamorous pin-up style illustration shows the winner in a pink swimsuit and ermine-trimmed cape, crown atop her head and scepter in hand, posed before a stylized globe. A Pan American airliner soars above, reflecting the airline's real-world sponsorship of the Miss Universe pageant during the 1950s alongside Universal-International Studios and Catalina Swimsuits, the era's dominant pageant swimwear brand.

The poster doubles as advertising for Max Factor Hollywood cosmetics ("le maquillage des stars... et le vôtre!") and for Ciné-Revue, the Belgian entertainment magazine that organized the national selection. This intersection of aviation, Hollywood glamour, cosmetics, and pageantry makes it a distinctive crossover piece appealing to multiple collecting categories beyond traditional travel poster buyers.