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Ex-Navy pinup girl lauded for boosting morale

PORTAGE, Ind. — A former Navy pinup girl whose curvy image graced the sides of American bombers during World War II has been honored for her role in boosting troops’ morale.

At the height of the war, Aline Osborn’s seductive photos were on the walls of thousands of troops’ bunks and her image was painted on the sides of bombers by love-struck troops.

Osborn, now 81, said she sometimes received 120 or so letters a day from troops who had her sexy pinups and wrote to her asking for a date.

“All through the war I entertained the servicemen, and when I couldn’t do it, I got my friends to do it for me,” Osborn said.

She was honored Friday for her role in the Valentines for Veterans campaign during a ceremony at Golden Living Centers-Fountainview in Portage, where she’s nursing a broken femur.

State Rep. Greg Simms, D-Valparaiso, presented her with a proclamation from the Indiana House of Representatives honoring her work six decades ago.

Debra Dudek, director of student services for Portage Township Schools, said students helped make more than 1,600 cards for veterans after hearing Osborn’s story and learning about the project.

“This is an act of love for our veterans,” Dudek said. “I sent out one request, and the cards just poured in.”

Members and auxiliary of American Legion Post 260, church members and students from day care centers also helped make the cards, which the auxiliary will deliver to the Indiana Veterans’ Home on Valentine’s Day.

Osborn, a Lake Station resident, began modeling in the 1940s in Chicago. She had a few modeling jobs, but the Navy pinup series was her big break and got her in a lot of magazines.

Her nights were spent dancing with troops at the Aragon Ballroom and other Chicago hot spots, all under the watchful eye of her protective father.

“My dad used to take me home. He wouldn’t let any of the boys take me,” she said.

Looking back on her modeling days, Osborn said the best thing was meeting James Osborn, a minor-league baseball player for the Chicago Cubs and White Sox who became her husband.

“He was tall, dark and handsome, and I fell in love immediately,” she said. “I still love him as much as the day I met him.”

A job at Inland Steel brought the couple to northwestern Indiana, where they raised six children.

Eileen Osborn, one of their daughters, said her mother’s stories are fascinating.

“We have photo albums, and she’s always talking about how she had bundles and bundles of letters from sailors,” she said.

While Aline Osborn does still enjoy attention, she said she’s looking forward to recovering from her broken femur so she can return home to her husband of 60 years.

“We were a dandy couple,” he said. “We still are.”