The legendary pinup model was the most reluctant of icons. She modeled for five years, mostly for small niche-market publishers (including the then-new Playboy).

She then utterly and completely retired from what faint spotlight she had.

Everything since, the whole Bettie phenom, was completely the work of avid fans (and a few ambitious publishers of her public-domain photos). It was several years into the revival that she even heard about it, and several more before she successfully gained legal control over her name and likeness rights.

(Rocketeer comic-book creator Dave Stevens was a key figure in both in promoting the Page revival and in getting her some financial renumeration from it. Stevens died this past March from leukemia at age 52.)