It’s that time of the year, time for the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, when young hetero boys first discover the joys of women in bathing suits, when angry mothers and librarians fire off letters to SI decrying the pornography that the magazine has become. In tribute, here’s a quick review of some of the most famous photos from years past.

This article appears in Feb 5-11, 2009.

John Royal is a native Houstonian who graduated from the University of Houston and South Texas College of Law. In his day job he is a complex litigation attorney. In his night job he writes about Houston...