The man known as “Sailor Jerry“, whose real name was Norman Keith Collins, was the tattoo artist responsible for what we think of as the typical style of tats worn by most people who had them in the early to mid 20th century, from around the ’30s to the ’60s, give or take. And back then, the only people who tended to have tats at all were members of the military, and maybe “bad boys” in greaser gangs. ¨Proper¨ ladies and gentlemen simply did not exhibit such things on their bodies.

And if anyone did have a tat or two back then, it was highly likely that the Sailor Jerry style is what they had, usually featuring long-legged, sexy women in alluring poses, or sometimes items like anchors, playing cards, and the like. Because of the popularity of the Sailor Jerry style, nowadays when you tell one of your grandparents that you are getting a tattoo, part of the reason they freak out is because when they think of tattoos, they’re not thinking of the elaborate and detailed body art of today–they’re thinking you’re getting a somewhat crass image of a woman lounging in a giant martini glass waving a flag.

Of course, those Sailor Jerry style tats do have their charm, and thanks to One Perfect Shot, we’ve learned that artist Emma Munger has created a series of designs in the Sailor Jerry style featuring the characters from David Lynch’s cult classic series Twin Peaks. Making the connection between the Sailor Jerry tattoos and Twin Peaks makes perfect sense when you think about it; the series was filled with lots of beautiful women. But they weren’t  just beautiful, they were beautiful in a classic, “golden age of Hollywood” kind of way that evoked the ’40s and ’50s–the same era that Sailor Jerry’s tattoos were all the rage.

Of course, to be current with the times, Emma Munger has made these illustrations not just for the women of Twin Peaks, but for the men as well, inlcuding a few featuring the dashing Special Agent Dale Cooper, played by Kyle MacLachlan, posing in his not-so-sexy FBI issue undies. Even the demonic spirit known only as BOB gets a sexy pose, which, if you’re familiar at all with the show, is disturbing as all get out.

You can see a sampling of Munger’s Twin Peaks inspired designs in our gallery below, but be sure to check out her own site for the rest of them, plus more of her amazing pin-up style art.

What do you think of these amazing Twin Peaks illustrations? Let us know your thoughts down below in the comments.

Images: Emma Munger