Chili Williams
American pin-up model (1921–2003)
Marian Uhlman (née Sorenson; December 16, 1921 – October 17, 2003), known as Chili Williams or the Polka Dot Girl, was an American pin-up model and actress. A photograph of her wearing a polka-dot two-piece bathing suit appeared in Life magazine in 1943 and became one of the most popular pin-up photographs of World War II. Following the popularity of her pin-up photographs, she also appeared in approximately 20 motion pictures between 1944 and 1952.
Early years
Williams was born Marian Sorenson in 1921 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her mother was Norwegian and her father Danish. She graduated from Marshall High School. After graduating from high school, she worked as a stenographer and model for a fur store in Saint Paul, Minnesota. She also posed for photographs, one of which was seen by New York glamor artist Earl Moran.
Modeling and acting career
The Polka Dot Girl
In June 1943, Marian Sorenson moved to New York City and joined Harry Conover's modeling agency. Conover gave Sorenson the name "Chili Williams". Conover had come up with the name previously and was waiting for the right girl.
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This entry incorporates text from “Chili Williams” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.