The term sex symbol was first used between the 1910s and 1920s to describe the first emerging film stars of the era. Movie studios have relied heavily on the looks and sex appeal of their actors to be able to attract audiences.[2][3] The use of this concept increased during World War II.[4] In the 20th century, sex symbols could be male as well as female: actors such as the romantic Sessue Hayakawa and the athletic Douglas Fairbanks were popular in the 1910s and 1920s. Archetypal screen lover Rudolph Valentino's death in 1926 caused mass hysteria among his female fans.[5][6] In Hollywood, many film stars were seen as sex symbols, such as Errol Flynn, Gary Cooper, and Clark Gable.
The "bad boy" image of the 1950s was epitomized by sex symbols such as James Dean and Marlon Brando,[7] and women like Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, Mamie Van Doren and French superstar Brigitte Bardot were seen as the archetype of the blonde bombshell.[8] While until the 1950s, the sex symbol was just seen as a sexual ideal, in the 1960s it was seen as a symbol of the emancipation of bodies and sexuality with the sexual revolution.[9]
In the late 1980s and 1990s, martial artist and actor Jean-Claude Van Damme was considered a sex symbol.[10][11] In the 1990s, Pamela Anderson gained international recognition for her starring role of "C.J." Parker on the action drama series Baywatch, further cementing her status as a sex symbol.[12]
Sports
In sports, many female athletes have become sex symbols.[13][14] Young males often prioritise female athlete's physiques over their performance.[15] Women are more likely to show more skin than men.[16] With Sports Illustrated being a main competition for ESPN, ESPN launched The Body Issue in 2009. The Body Issue caused controversies regarding perceived sexual objectification.[17] Sex appeal of female athletes is often used to promote their sport. During a Dan Patrick interview, Hope Solo expressed her concern over marketing of female athletes after she did The Body Issue.[18]
In online fandoms, certain fictional characters may gain massive popularity as sex symbols, particularly on the website Tumblr. On Tumblr, these characters are known as "sexymen", and are notable for having substantially large followings. In addition, they are often the subject of large quantities of fan art and are often shipped with other characters. Examples of sexymen in Tumblr fandoms include the Once-ler as depicted in the 2012 Lorax film, as well as Sans from the video game Undertale.[24] Sans in particular is considered to be the most popular sexyman, having beaten other characters such as Arataka Reigen from the manga Mob Psycho 100 in a poll that gained the attention of Toby Fox, the creator of Undertale.[25]
Similarly, in otaku communities, characters from animeormanga that fans find sexually or romantically attractive are referred to as "waifus" or "husbandos".[26]
^ abPam Cook, "The trouble with sex: Diana Dors and the Blonde bombshell phenomenon", In: Bruce Babinigton (ed.), British Stars and Stardom: From Alma Taylor to Sean Connery, pp. 169–171. Quote: "– the sex symbol is usually defined in terms of her excessive sexuality"
^Williams, Gregory Paul (1990). The Story of Hollywood: An Illustrated History. B L Press. ISBN978-0977629923.
^Flexner, Stuart Berg; Soukhanov, Anne H. (1997). Speaking freely: a guided tour of American English from Plymouth Rock to Silicon Valley. Oxford University Press. p. 373. ISBN978-0-19-510692-3.
^Weinberg, Thomas S.; Newmahr, Staci, eds. (2014). Selves, Symbols, and Sexualities: An Interactionist Anthology: An Interactionist Anthology. Los Angeles: Sage Publications. ISBN978-1483323893.
^King, S. (2019). Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield. Blurb. ISBN978-1388059033.
^Bourget, Jean-Loup (1998). Hollywood, la norme et la marge. Armand Colin. ISBN978-2200341763.
