Bettie Page playing cards

Published December 13, 2023 Updated December 13, 2023

Bettie Page pin-up playing cards with photographs taken by Bunny Yaeger.

2004 USA Dark Horse Bunny Yaeger Photography Pin-up

Bettie Mae Page (1923 – 2008) was an American model who gained notoriety in the 1950s for her pinup photos. She was often referred to as the “Queen of Pinups”, “The Queen of Curves” and “The Dark Angel”. In 1951, Bettie’s image appeared in men’s magazines such as Wink, Titter, Eyeful and Beauty Parade, and in 1955 she won the title “Miss Pinup Girl of the World”. She continued to model until 1957.

The aces and court cards of this pack, produced by Dark Horse Deluxe in 2004, feature pinup photographs of Bettie Page taken by Bunny Yaeger (1929-2014), herself a model who turned pinup photographer, and who helped to jump-start Page’s career. Each suit has a different pastel colour background: spades – blue; hearts – red; clubs- yellow; diamonds – green. The pip cards are standard and have the same colour background as the courts. Two different jokers complete the pack. See the box

Bettie Page playing cards with photographs taken by Bunny Yaeger, produced by Dark Horse Deluxe, United States, 2004 Bettie Page playing cards with photographs taken by Bunny Yaeger, produced by Dark Horse Deluxe, United States, 2004 Bettie Page playing cards with photographs taken by Bunny Yaeger, produced by Dark Horse Deluxe, United States, 2004 Bettie Page playing cards with photographs taken by Bunny Yaeger, produced by Dark Horse Deluxe, United States, 2004

Above: Bettie Page playing cards with photographs taken by Bunny Yaeger, produced by Dark Horse Deluxe, United States, 2004. Printed in China. © Bettie Page, © 2004 Bunny Yaeger.

avatar
531 Articles

By Peter Burnett

Member since July 27, 2022

I graduated in Russian and East European Studies from Birmingham University in 1969. It was as an undergraduate in Moscow in 1968 that I stumbled upon my first 3 packs of “unusual” playing cards which fired my curiosity and thence my life-long interest. I began researching and collecting cards in the early 1970s, since when I’ve acquired over 3,330 packs of non-standard cards, mainly from North America, UK and Western Europe, and of course from Russia and the former communist countries.

Russian Playing Cards

Following my retirement from the Bodleian Library in Dec. 2007 I took up a new role as Head of Library Development at the International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP) to support library development in low-income countries. This work necessitated regular training visits to many sub-Saharan African countries and also further afield, to Vietnam, Nepal and Bangladesh – all of which provided rich opportunities to further expand my playing card collection.

Since 2019 I’ve been working part-time in the Bodleian Library where I’ve been cataloguing the bequest of the late Donald Welsh, founder of the English Playing Card Society.

Related Articles

2022 Beowulf

Beowulf

Jackson Robinson's Beowulf playing card deck inspired by the Old English pagan poem.

2018 Keith Haring playing cards

Keith Haring playing cards

Energetic graffiti images by the American artist Keith Haring.

2022 Jim Lyngvild playing cards

Jim Lyngvild playing cards

Photographs of Danish royalty as imagined by fashion designer Jim Lyngvild.

1975 The Tarot of Meditation – Yeager Tarot

The Tarot of Meditation – Yeager Tarot

Marty Yeager’s original Tarot of Meditation from 1975, republished later by U.S. Games Systems, Inc....

1988 Adobe Deck

Adobe Deck

The first digitally-produced deck of cards.

1819 Seminole Wars deck

Seminole Wars deck

Seminole Wars deck by J. Y. Humphreys, Philadelphia, c.1819.

1972 The UCR Deck

The UCR Deck

Giant-size cards designed by Thomas Sanders to advertise courses and facilities at UCR.

1984 Tarot Actuel 1984

Tarot Actuel 1984

Major arcana to cut out, issued with the French magazine Actuel, using photographic images.

2015 Fredericks & Mae playing cards

Fredericks & Mae playing cards

A rainbow pack from the design team of Fredericks & Mae and Benjamin English.

2018 Cathedrals, Abbeys & Minsters playing cards

Cathedrals, Abbeys & Minsters playing cards

54 pictures of different famous cathedrals, abbeys and minsters in England and Wales.

1979 Baraja Turística del País Vasco

Baraja Turística del País Vasco

Basque poker deck of 55 cards published by Fournier with scenic views of the Basque Country.

2004 Red Hat Society playing cards

Red Hat Society playing cards

Society that encourages women in their quest to get the most out of life.

1975 Mountain Dream Tarot

Mountain Dream Tarot

Groundbreaking Tarot created by Bea Nettles, using photographs and photo montage.

2021 Junior Playing Cards

Junior Playing Cards

Child-friendly versions of standard English pattern cards designed by Louie Mantia, Jr.

2021 Last Call Cats playing cards

Last Call Cats playing cards

Bar-crawling cats, designed by artists Arna Miller and Ravi Zupa.

2022 The Malt Whiskies of Scotland

The Malt Whiskies of Scotland

Three packs featuring photographs by Duncan McEwan of malt whisky distilleries in Scotland.