Irving Klaw

Irving Klaw (November 9, 1910 – September 3, 1966), self-named the "Pin-up King", was an influential American merchant of sexploitation, fetish, and Hollywood glamour pin-up photographs and films. Like his predecessor, Charles Guyette, who was also a merchant of fetish-themed photographs, Klaw was not a photographer, but a merchandiser of fetish art imagery and films. His great contribution to the world was to commission fetish art (with models like Bettie Page, June King, Joan Rydell, Jackie Miller, et al.) and sponsor illustrative artists (like Eric Stanton, Gene Bilbrew, and many others), and to indirectly promote the legacy of Charles Guyette and John Willie. Irving Klaw is a central figure in what fetish art historian Richard Pérez Seves has designated as the "Bizarre Underground," the pre-1970 fetish art years. Movie Star News Klaw was born Isadore Klaw in Brooklyn, New York. His business, which eventually became Movie Star News, began in 1938 when he and his sister Paula opened a struggling basement level used bookstore at 209 E. 14th St. in Manhattan. After he discovered teenagers were frequently tearing out photos from his movie magazines, he switched to selling movie star stills and lobby photo cards which sold so well he stopped selling books and moved the store from the basement to the street-level storefront. Business thrived, and the self-named "Pin-Up King" moved to 212 E. 14th St., eventually taking the name Movie Star News. Klaw also had a brisk international mail-order business selling cheesecake photos and Hollywood glamour pin-ups. Fetish art In 1948, a collector/enthusiast known as Little John "inspired/sponsored Klaw's full-blown entry into the fetish art business." Irving Klaw was also influenced by magazine publisher Robert Harrison. Early Klaw fetish models included Harrison models Barbara Leslie, Vicky Hayes, Joan "Eve" Rydell, Lili Dawn, Shirley "Cici" Maitland, Kevin Daley, Roz Greenwood, and finally Bettie Page.