by “ModelBrat60s”
The Editors of All the Teen Magazines Knew They Had a Hot Property in Colleen Corby
COLLEEN CORBY was one of the all-time favorite SEVENTEEN models.
Starting her career at a very young age, posing for American Girl, The Girl
Scout magazine, Co-ed,Teen, Ingenue, she was already an experienced
model by age 16 when she first appeared on the cover of Seventeen in April
1963. The editors for all teenage oriented magazines knew they had a hot
property in COLLEEN CORBY.
And what a young beauty she was. She had that amazing dewiness, the
perfect glowing skin, hair and innocent on-camera movement that gradually
became more stylized as this young model grew into herself and her
signature look.
loved her. She knew exactly where her best light was and always
played to that. She was one of the first young models who capitalized
on the sultry look while retaining that innocent sweetness in the same
breath, a la junior VOGUE. By the time she’d been in Seventeen
regularly for a year or so, she would only crack a big smile if she was
asked to do so. She was a leader of sorts in “taking it to the next
level”. Cutesy young model poses were okay sometimes, but we were
beginning to get beyond that, finally, and to have fun with it.There was a fairly small group of models who seemed always to be
together in the ads and editorial pages shot for Seventeen, and those
ads often also appeared in Mademoiselle and Glamour. This tight
group worked so smoothly together, playing off one another, just like a
band playing music, naturally finding the perfect harmonies. It was true
creativity, and Colleen was often at center position, quietly commanding
the position she loved. She was a great team player too, and was
always ready to compliment the lead taken by a cohort. That synergy
was what commanded the higher daily rates for ads that eventually
came with that territory.
The 60s was a magic era of modeling and the editorial pages of
Seventeen were made for developing an almost decade-long following
for its favorite models of the time.
With her dark hair and piercing innocent eyes, Colleen was the perfect
cover girl. She was a bit more petite than some of the other regular
Seventeen models and yet had a boldness about her mixed with that
unmistakable innocence, a very alluring combination of qualities that
the Seventeen readership practically worshipped. She was a hero for a
whole generation of 13 to 18 year old girls, and boys, and received a
healthy-sized pile of fan mail on a monthly basis during her hottest
years.
The young readership would choose their favorite brunettes and
favorite blonds, depending usually on their own coloring. That’s what
we all love to do, to have our icons to “relate with”. It’s all part of the fun
of growing up, feeling a part of what’s happening, being “up with what
works” to maintain health and beauty, and of the utmost importance, as
always, WHAT DO I WEAR?, to school, to work, to dinner, to a party or
concert, or on a great vacation trip, so that I’m exuding the confidence
of my fave models. What would Colleen Corby or Terry Reno, or Joan
Delaney, or Rinske Hali or Wendy Hill or Jennifer O’Neil, or any of my
favorites wear to this event? And, where’s that new issue that just came
in the mail?!! I NEED IT NOW!!
And so, the beat goes on… Here we all are again, lapping it up,
reminiscing together about our glorious era, whether we were the
models, or the readership who made them “famous”.
Thanks to Colleen Corby and her cohorts of the 60s, we had a great
time, and now, we get to relive it here on MiniMadMods60s!!
mmm60s/70s 