Of the many ways Americans have supported the troops over the years, one surprisingly lasting tradition involves erotic imagery. Take, for example, the drawings of the great pin-up artist Gil Elvgren. During WW II, GIs would adorn their bunks with Elvgren's iconic pictures of sexy young ladies, and daydream about the girls they would eventually start the baby boom with after the war.

FortheTroopsOnline is keeping that tradition going by recreating Elvgren's pin-up drawings with live models. For only $8, you can have the 156-page book sent to an active soldier or a veteran in a VA Hospital. (If you want one for yourself, it'll cost you $19.95.)

So if you like your patriotism racy, below is a sampling of the originals with their recreations that may make you sing "God Bless America."


50 Most Memorable Pin-ups

    50. Shakira -- In almost any language, Shakira translates into "astounding abs." What's the origin of this six-pack wonder? Shakira fell in love with performing when her father took her to a Middle Eastern restaurant and she discovered belly dancing. (We only mention that detail to help you imagine Shakira belly dancing. It makes the poster even better.)

    49. Lisa Hartman -- Best known these days as Mrs. Clint Black, this Texas cutie burst onto the scene in 1976's "Tabitha," a TV series about the grown-up witch-child of Samantha and Darren Stevens from "Bewitched." She's bewitching, all right, and laying it all on the table.

    48. Tila Tequila -- What you don't know about Tila: her real name is Tila Nguyen, she was born in Singapore, and was once in a girl gang. What you do know: back before she "found love" on MTV, she held the record for the most MySpace friends ever (1.5 million and counting). And chances are every one of them had this poster.

    47. Cheryl Ladd -- Cheryl Ladd may forever be known as Farrah Fawcett's stand-in from "Charlie's Angels," but as soon as she was on the show she proved her cleavage could stand on its own. Nowadays, she spends more time golfing than acting, leaving the latter to her daughter, Jordan Ladd (who appeared in "Grindhouse" and has definitely inherited some of the DNA Chery's exhibits here. (Image from postershop.ch.)

    46. Mariah Carey -- While this pop superstar's music polarizes people, can't we all agree on the booty? Time to hold hands. (Image from adrants.com)

    45. Charlene Tilton -- You can see the talent of a former Hollywood High cheerleader blazing through Charlene Tilton's bikini in this shot. If you're under the age of 25, you may not realize she once starred as Lucy Ewing in the TV series "Dallas." Her talents will be sorely missed in upcoming movie version. (Image from imageshack.us.)

    44. Loni Anderson -- Peroxide blonde hair? Check. Feathered and blown-dried? Check. Absurd, multi-colored backdrop? Double-check. Oh yes, we have all the ingredients of an early-'80s scorcher. Once, Loni was the toast of "WKRP in Cincinnati" and then Mrs. Burt Reynolds. She may now be the faded punchline of "Love Boat" episodes, yet in this poster she's still a Technicolor dream.

    43. Alyssa Milano -- The second "Poison Ivy" movie represented that moment when Alyssa transformed from goodie-two-shoes child star to budding sexpot. Sure, she made plenty of cinematic missteps along the way -- including the vaguely erotic "Deadly Sins." Then she posed for this poster -- and we immediately forgave everything.

    42. Heather Thomas -- The good news: This poster had no room for Heather Thomas' notable co-star from "The Fall Guy" -- Lee Majors aka the Six-Million Dollar Man. The less-than-good news: This hot poster is as much skin we'll ever see from Ms. Thomas, who said, "I won't take my clothes off because I can't believe it's necessary. You can be sexy with your clothes on just as well as you can by taking off your blouse."

    41. Lita Ford -- How did '80s rock-chick Lita Ford sell more than 100 million records? Maybe it was her hot licks that could match any hair-metal god's. Maybe it was an armory full of Aqua Net. Or maybe it was a slew of posters like this one.