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1 of 12MGM actress Lillian Bond with an armload of fireworks for a Fourth of July celebration, Hollywood, California, circa 1930.Getty Images -
2 of 12MGM actress Lillian Bond with an armload of fireworks for a Fourth of July celebration, Hollywood, California, circa 1930.Photo colorization by Sanna Dullaway for TIME / original image: Getty Images -
3 of 12Members of the Greenbriar Amateur Movie Club of White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia with their rocket for 4th July celebrations, circa 1933.Getty Images -
4 of 12Members of the Greenbriar Amateur Movie Club of White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia with their rocket for 4th July celebrations, circa 1933.Photo colorization by Sanna Dullaway for TIME / original image: Getty Images -
5 of 12Actress Louise Synder wearing a patriotic hat to light fireworks on the beach during Fourth of July celebrations, circa 1950.Hulton Archive/Getty Images -
6 of 12Actress Louise Synder wearing a patriotic hat to light fireworks on the beach during Fourth of July celebrations, circa 1950.Photo colorization by Sanna Dullaway for TIME / original image: Getty Images -
7 of 12American Actress Gloria Shea rehearsing in New York to celebrate Independence Day on July 4, 1932.Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images -
8 of 12American Actress Gloria Shea rehearsing in New York to celebrate Independence Day on July 4, 1932.Photo colorization by Sanna Dullaway for TIME / original image: Getty Images -
9 of 12No Fourth of July is complete without a picnic, and no picnic is complete without pretty girls. RKO Radio starlet Myrna Dell typifies the American girl at a traditional independence celebration. Hollywood, California, 1948.Bettmann Archive/Getty Images -
10 of 12No Fourth of July is complete without a picnic, and no picnic is complete without pretty girls. RKO Radio starlet Myrna Dell typifies the American girl at a traditional independence celebration. Hollywood, California, 1948.Photo colorization by Sanna Dullaway for TIME / original image: Bettmann Archive/Getty Images -
11 of 12Costumed actors promote 4th of July celebrations as they pose with fireworks, Chicago, Illinois, circa 1940.Getty Images -
12 of 12Costumed actors promote 4th of July celebrations as they pose with fireworks, Chicago, Illinois, circa 1940.Photo colorization by Sanna Dullaway for TIME / original image: Getty Images
By now, the pinup photograph is as much a part of America’s culture as apple pie and fireworks.
Named after the photographic ads that burlesque models would “pin up” on the walls of theaters’ waiting room, pinups became iconic during World War II when Hollywood kept American the G.I. well-supplied with photographs of stars like Betty Grable, Rita Hayworth, Esther Williams and Jane Russell. These models were–and continue to be–celebrated for their beauty. And, though it’s impossible to ignore the sex appeal of the photos, their patriotism-tinged sensuality seems almost innocent.
Ahead of the Fourth of July, TIME commissioned freelance photo editor Sanna Dullaway—who has previously worked with photos of Indy 500 racing, Queen Elizabeth II and much more—to colorize several images that bring together these pin-up models and America’s celebrations of Independence Day. With fireworks, sparklers and red, white and blue get-ups, they’re surely cause for celebration.
Sanna Dullaway is a photo editor based in Sweden. See more of her work here.
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