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The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever

The best bathing suits aren't always practical —Raquel Welch's prehistoric two-piece wouldn't have lasted long in open waters —but they’re impossible to forget. With a little help from InStyle Fashion Director Hal Rubenstein, we've compiled a slideshow of the most iconic swimsuits ever.
In Style // In Style
"The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever" // Brigitte Bardot in a bikini for The Girl in The Bikini, 1952 Next Slide
Brigitte Bardot, The Girl In The Bikini, 1952
Four years before her performance in And God Created Woman established Brigitte Bardot as an international sex symbol, she was made a stir as The Girl in the Bikini. And it’s easy to see why: The pale two-piece she wore in the 1952 film was simple, yet sensational.
Video:The History of the Bikini>
©InStyle
1 of 21 Photo: Courtesy Everett Collection
Previous Slide "The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever" // Deborah Kerr and Burt Lancaster in 1953's From Here to Eternity Next Slide
Deborah Kerr, From Here to Eternity,1953
"I don’t think anyone knew I could act until I put on a bathing suit," Deborah Kerr once said, referring to her star-making turn as an adulterous wife in 1953's From Here To Eternity. But what a bathing suit it was! Sexy, yet structured, with a wide, waist-cinching belt, it was just the thing for a wave-splashed romp in the sand with co-star Burt Lancaster.
2 of 21 Photo: Courtesy Everett Collection
Previous Slide "The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever" // Elizabeth Taylor wearing a white swimsuit for 1959's Suddenly, Last Summer Next Slide
Elizabeth Taylor, Suddenly, Last Summer, 1959
Yes, the plot was rather melodramatic. But the pure white tank that Elizabeth Taylor wore in 1959's Suddenly, Last Summer —in which she played a mental patient disturbed after witnessing her cousin’s shocking death —was nothing short of perfection.
3 of 21 Photo: Courtesy Columbia Pictures
Previous Slide "The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever" // Ursula Andress in a white bikini with matching knife belt for 1962's Dr. No Next Slide
Ursula Andress, Dr. No,1962
The first-ever Bond girl, in 1962's Dr. No, set the bar pretty high. (Indeed, this was Rubenstein's pick for Most Iconic Suit.) "As Honey Rider," he said, "Ursula Andress stepped out of the Caribbean and into the fantasies of every guy longing to be James Bond. The matching knife belt was a cute touch."
Video:The History of the Bikini>
4 of 21 Photo: courtesy Everett Collection
Previous Slide "The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever" // Actress Sally Field in a pink-and-white bikini for 1965's Gidget Next Slide
Sally Field, Gidget,1965
Gidget, as played by Sally Field in the eponymous 1965 television series, was the ultimate California girl. A sturdy pink-and-white bikini suited the boy-crazy surfer perfectly as she went about on her Malibu misadventures.
5 of 21 Photo: Getty Images/ABC
Previous Slide "The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever" //  Raquel Welch wearing animal-skin two-piece for 1966's One Million Years B.C. Next Slide
Raquel Welch, One Million Years B.C.,1966
"If women in prehistoric times really looked and dressed like this," Rubenstein said of the animal-skin two-piece Raquel Welch wore in 1966's One Million Years B.C, "a lot more people today would be studying cave paintings. As fabulous as it is ludicrous, it may be film's most famous bathing suit that never got wet."
6 of 21 Photo: 20th Century-Fox Film Corporation, TM Copyright/courtesy Everett Collection
Previous Slide "The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever" // Actress Pam Grier in white a bikini for 1973's Coffy Next Slide
Pam Grier, Coffy,1973
In 1973's Coffy, Pam Grier played a nurse-turned-vigilante (or, as the film's poster would have it, a "one-chick hit squad") but she looks pretty sweet in this super-'70s macramé triangle top.
Video: How to Look Hot in a Bikini>
7 of 21 Photo: Courtesy Everett Collection
Previous Slide "The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever" // Farrah Fawcett wearing her signature hairstyle and red one-piece in 1976 Next Slide
Farrah Fawcett, 1976
To promote her instant celebrity in Charlie's Angels, a Cleveland poster company arranged to shoot Fawcett in a bikini at her house in 1976. As Rubenstein explained, "She wasn't comfortable so exposed, so she pulled this red one-piece from her closet. The company hated the pic, but Farrah had final approval (and retained photo rights). Smart girl: The poster sold over 12 million copies and is still for sale today."
8 of 21 Photo: Globe Photos/ZUMAPRESS.com
Previous Slide "The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever" // Bo Derek wearing beaded cornrows and a nude swimsuit in the 1979 movie 10 Next Slide
Bo Derek, 10, 1979
"Her perfect score has never been beaten," Rubenstein said of Bo Derek's appearance in a nude maillot in the 1979 movie 10. "She may have been the best thing to happen to sales of the one-piece," he added.
9 of 21 Photo: Courtesy Everett Collection
Previous Slide "The Most Iconic Swimsuits Ever" // Actress Phoebe Cates in a red bikini for 1982's Fast Times At Ridgemont High Next Slide
Phoebe Cates, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, 1982
In 1982's Fast Times At Ridgemont High, Phoebe Cates plays a sophisticated teenager with, as Rubenstein said, "a skimpy bikini as red as her lipstick." The scene in which she emerges in slow motion from a friend's backyard pool is still a classic.
10 of 21 Photo: Courtesy Everett Collection
Previous Slide InStyle Next Slide
20 of 21 InStyle
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