From the Garden of Eden to Dirk Diggler and Kim Kardashian—plus everything long, short, plump, and pubic in between.
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1
B.C.
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Eve is tempted to take a bite of fruit from the tree of knowledge, offers to Adam. The naked couple recognize their own nudity and make clothes of fig leaves and loincloth, Gen. 3:7.[18]. After that, "naked" is referenced in the King James version of the bible 104 times. Oh, and humanity falls from grace.
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2
11th Century
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Lady Godiva rides a horse naked through the streets of Coventry to protest her husband's tax policies.
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3
1797–1800
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Francisco Goya paints La maja desnuda, a fully nude woman with pubic hair. Spanish society is enraged.
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4
1920s
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Photographer Alfred Cheney Johnston specializes in unretouched, full frontal images of showgirls from the Ziegfield Follies.
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5
1933
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Actress Hedy Lamarr fakes an organsm in Ecstasy, appears fully nude on screen, and (spoiler alert) has pubic hair and nipples.
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6
1953
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Marilyn Monroe appears naked in the centerfold of the first issue of Playboy. Men rush to the newsstands for the articles.
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7
1968
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John Lennon and Yoko Ono release Unfinished Music #1: Two Virgins and appear au naturel on the album cover.
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8
1974
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As English actor David Niven introduces Elizabeth Taylor at the 46th Academy Awards, photographer and art gallerist Robert Opel streaks across the stage, flashing the audience a peace sign, among other things.
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9
1978
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A 12-year-old Brooke Shields appears nude for her role as a preteen prostitute in Pretty Baby.
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10
1978
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A 12-year-old Brooke Shields appeared nude for her role as a preteen prostitute in Pretty Baby.
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11
1980
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To the delight (or was it shock and awe) of women everywhere, Richard Gere becomes the first man to do full-frontal in American Gigolo.
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12
1991
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Demi Moore poses pregnant and nude on the cover of Vanity Fair, follows it up with two more naked (albeit body painted) covers.
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13
1991
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Nirvana Nevermind album cover features naked baby in water.
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14
1992
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Sharon Stone flashes her lady parts in Basic Instinct.
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15
1995
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Showgirls becomes the first and only NC-17 film to be given a wide release.
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16
1997
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Mark Wahlberg dons a 13-inch prosthetic penis in Boogie Nights.
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17
2002
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An ad for YSL's M7 fragrance features martial arts champion-turned-male model Samuel de Cubber totally naked; GQ declines to run, only appears in European magazines.
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18
2003
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Abercrombie & Fitch ceases publication of their softcore magazine A+F Quarterly with a splashy final issue that features images of group sex and nude young adults frolicking in a river.
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19
2004
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Janet Jackson's nipple, encircled by a silver nipple shield, slips out for a hot second during Superbowl Super Bowl XXXVIII. Nipplegate ensues.
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20
2007
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Approximately 18,000 naked people pose for photographer Spencer Tunick in Mexico City, setting a new record.