Bettie Page , whose trademark raven hair and risque lingerie and bondage pin-up photos made her a cult favorite , died Thursday night at a Los Angeles hospital - nine days after suffering a heart attack .
Thursday night
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Bettie Page , whose trademark raven hair and risque lingerie and bondage pin-up photos made her a cult favorite , died <m> Thursday night </m> at a Los Angeles hospital - nine days after suffering a heart attack .
Bettie Page , whose trademark raven hair and risque lingerie and bondage pin-up photos made her a cult favorite , died <m> Thursday night </m> at a Los Angeles hospital - nine days after suffering a heart attack .
She was 85 .
Page was born Betty Mae Page in Nashville , Tennessee on April 22 , 1923 .
Smart and ambitious as a teenager , she was the salutatorian of her high school graduation class and was voted `` Most Likely to Succeed . ''
She earned a scholarship to attend George Peabody College , where she studied acting .
Page 's famous pin-up days lasted from 1951-1957 , where her slinky , curvy and scantily-clad or nude body graced magazines including Wink , Beauty Parade , Twitter and Playboy .
The Heff crowned Page Playmate of the Month in January of 1955 .
The same year she was also named , `` Miss Pinup Girl of the World . ''
Her photo and film work often depicted Page in pin-up , bondage or sadomasochistic themes , including the iconic ( and highest selling ) images of the model shown gagged and bound in a web of ropes from the Leopard Bikini Bound film .
Heffner told the AP on Thursday , `` I think that she was a remarkable lady , an iconic figure in pop culture who influenced sexuality , taste in fashion , someone who had a tremendous impact on our society ...
She was a very dear person . ''
Page married twice ; the first marriage to Navy man Billy Neal lasted from 1943 to 1947 , and her second to Armond Walterson in 1958 to 1963 .
After the collapse of her second marriage , she suffered a nervous breakdown and soon after became a born-again Christian .
After attending Bible school , she wanted to serve as a missionary but was turned down because she had been divorced .
Instead , she worked full-time for evangelist Billy Graham 's ministry .
Bettie 's life and photos enjoyed a revival of interest in 1976 with the publishing of the book , A Nostalgic Look at Bettie Page .
Page was also celebrated in the 2006 HBO movie , The Notorious Bettie Page , starring Gretchen Mol .