Adorable Story #130: The Story Behind Two Iconic Rita Aarons' Photos
A hot summer day in Hawaii in 1955, the famous photographer of the "rich and happy people" is struck by the full swimsuit of his wife Rita...
“Slim was an anthropologist with his camera”
— Douglas Friedman
This week we uncover the story behind two iconic photographs that Slim Aarons took of his wife, Rita Aarons: (1) Christmas Sun in Hollywood and (2) Rita Aarons in Hawaii.
Table of Contents: Rita & Slim / Hollywood / Hawaii / Did you know?
If you aren’t subscribed yet, hit the subscribe button below to receive the Adorable Stories every weekend, directly in your inbox:
Rita & Slim
After witnessing the horrors of battle during the Allied landings in Europe and Africa, Slim — then still known by his birth name, George Allen Aarons — resolved that beaches should be remembered not as sites of violence, but as places where beautiful, carefree women basked in the sun.
Determined to replace those memories with visions of elegance and ease, he dedicated his life to capturing “attractive people who do attractive things in attractive places,” a motto that would come to define both his work and his legacy.
After the end of WWII, Slim Aarons’ photographs have been etched into the collective imagination — even for those who may not know his name.
He captured not professional models, but the genuinely rich and glamorous of his time: European aristocrats, socialites, millionaires, and Hollywood stars, who welcomed him into their circles because he was “one of us.”
“I knew everyone”
— Slim Aarons
Famously, he needed no stylists or makeup artists to stage his images. Everything was authentic and real, and wonderfully so.
Slim Aarons has often immortalized his wife Lorita Dewart (who would become known simply as Rita Aarons).
After the end of WWII, Rita and Slim first met at the editorial offices of Life magazine, where she worked as an assistant.
Becoming the subject of her husband’s lens was, in a sense, a point of pride for Rita.
Hollywood
“It was cold, and she was furious”
— Slim Aarons
Among many images of Rita is a first iconic one: Christmas Swim (1954).
It features a bathing beauty floating in a pool, bobbing alongside metallic holiday ornaments. Behind her, three children play with the floating, shining orbs.
And because it’s not Slim Aarons unless there’s an element of lavish frivolity, a Christmas tree emerges from the water, festooned with swags of aluminum-foil-colored tinsel and metallic bows.
The tree is somehow anchored to the bottom of the pool, and at the highest point of the tree is a Christmas star, glinting in the California sun. Off in the distance we can see the Hollywood sign.
The composition is peaceful, relaxed and shining with an almost “magical” final effect.
Reality was much different though.
“She was freezing and mad. It looks idyllic now, but to get it just right in a cold and dirty pool took a while.”
— Mary Aarons, Slim Aarons’ daughter
Hawaii
One year later, in 1955, Slim Aarons captured another one of his most memorable images of his wife during a trip to Hawaii.
They were there for the filming of Mister Roberts, John Ford’s naval drama starring Henry Fonda (featured in the Adorable Story #105), Jack Lemmon (Adorable Story #70), James Cagney, and William Powell.
The cast was entirely male — the story unfolded on a warship — but Slim had Rita by his side.
One afternoon, during a break from work, he noticed the striking contrast before him: her modest one‑piece swimsuit with its delicate pleats paired with the bold red color, her sun‑flushed cheekbones, and the mischievous, irresistible look in her eyes.
The sunglasses pushed up onto her head, catching the curl of hair glimmering with reflections of the Hawaiian sun. Finally, a glass in hand, holding the last trace of a drink.
What would later become an iconic photograph came about almost by chance.
“I photograph people who wear clothes, and then those clothes become fashionable”
— Slim Aarons
It proved true: that red swimsuit model would become a trend in the USA and around the world.
—Alberto @ Adorable Times
Did you know?
Alfred Hitchcock‘s film, Rear Window (1954), whose main character is a photographer played by Jimmy Stewart, is set in an apartment reputed to be based on Slim Aarons’ apartment.
Do you know anyone who would love to read this Adorable Story? Show your support by sharing Adorable Times’ Newsletter and earn rewards for your referrals.