LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – The long-standing mystery behind one of the most iconic photos of the Atomic Age has finally been solved.
The Atomic Museum announced Friday that the woman in the photograph has been identified as Anna Lee Mahoney of the Bronx, New York. She was initially identified as Lee A. Merlin, which was later revealed to be a stage name.
The man behind the discovery was founding museum member and historian Robert Friedrichs, who shared the revelation after 25 years of research and investigation.
The photo was captured on May 24, 1957, by Las Vegas News Bureau photographer Don English, featuring Mahoney as a Copa showgirl in the Nevada desert wearing a mushroom cloud swimsuit made of cotton.
With the mushroom cloud becoming a defining symbol of the atomic bomb, Mahoney was transformed into “Miss Atomic Bomb” and cemented Las Vegas as the “cultural epicenter of the Atomic Age.”
“‘Miss Atomic Bomb’ captured the imagination of a generation and became a global symbol of the Atomic Age,” said Friedrichs. “To now put a name and story to her face is a tribute to the enduring cultural legacy of that extraordinary time in history.”
The Atomic Museum also noted that the photo was taken around the time of Operation Plumbbob at the Nevada Test Site, a series of 29 nuclear tests conducted by the US military.
“We have 7.5 million images in the LVCVA Archive, and the ‘Miss Atomic Bomb’ photo is one of the most requested images that we have,” said Kelli Luchs, archivist, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority Archive.
Born Aug. 14, 1927, Mahoney trained in ballet and modern dance in Los Angeles before performing in various shows and musicals under the stage name Lee Merlin. In 1957, Mahoney began performing as the lead dancer in the Sands Hotel Copa showroom in Las Vegas, where she later took part in the historic photo shoot.
In 1962, she married and moved to Hawaii, where she worked as a mental health counselor. The Atomic Museum also learned that she later moved to Santa Cruz in the late 1990s, where she raised funds for student scholarships at the Cabrillo College Foundation.
She passed away in 2001 after battling cancer.
In honor of Mahoney, the Atomic Museum has unveiled plans for a temporary exhibit about the discovery that will be displayed in the summer.
“Las Vegas played a vibrant and unique role in the Atomic Age, and ‘Miss Atomic Bomb’ has always been a symbol of that era’s colorful history,” added Joseph Kent, Deputy Director and Curator, of the Atomic Museum. “Thanks to Robert Friedrichs’ tireless dedication, we now have the opportunity to connect her story to the history we preserve at the Atomic Museum.”
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