“Unveiling the Mystery: The Surprising Truth Behind the Iconic ‘Miss Atomic Bomb’ of 1957 Revealed!”
The iconic photograph was published on May 24, 1957, just a few days before the start of the Operation Plumbbob testing, and has remained well-known ever since. It is, in fact, one of the defining photographs of the era and was even featured on the cover of The Killers’ “Miss Atomic Bomb” single in 2012, once again bringing the photo into the cultural spotlight.
Wikimedia CommonsThe cover for The Killers’ single “Miss Atomic Bomb.”
But although English credited the model in the photograph as Lee Merlin, uncovering more information about her proved to be difficult. What did eventually become clear is that Lee Merlin was only a stage name, and the woman’s real identity was a mystery.
It was only after more than two decades of research and investigation, aided by a professional detective agency, that Friedrichs found conclusive evidence linking two names to a single social security number: Lee Merlin and Anna Lee Mahoney.
Communication with a living relative and birth records further supported the connection, revealing that Mahoney used “Lee Merlin” as a stage name in Las Vegas. Now, the world finally knows more about the woman in this historic photograph.
Anna Lee Mahoney: The True Identity Of “Miss Atomic Bomb”
Anna Lee Mahoney was born on August 14, 1927 in the Bronx, New York. She later moved to Los Angeles to train in ballet and modern dance under Madame Bronislava Nijinska, where she went on to perform in various shows and musicals under the stage name Lee Merlin.
Her career eventually led her to Las Vegas, where she performed as the lead dancer at the Sands Hotel Copa showroom. In 1957, she was asked to be a model in the Las Vegas News Bureau photoshoot, during which Don English snapped the famous Miss Atomic Bomb photograph.
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