The VJ Day Kiss

"Made almost 70 years ago, it remains one of the most famous photographs—perhaps the most famous photograph—of the 20th century: a sailor kissing a nurse in Times Square on V-J Day in August 1945. That simple, straightforward description of the scene, however, hardly begins to capture not only the spontaneity, energy and exuberance shining from Alfred Eisentaedt's photograph, but the significance of the picture as a kind of cultural artifact. "V-J Day in Times Square" is not merely the one image that captures what it felt like in America when it was announced, after a half-decade of conflict, that Japan had surrendered and that the War in the Pacific—and thus the Second World War itself—was finally over. Instead, for countless people, Eisentaedt's photograph captures at least part of what the people experience when war, any war, is ended. (It's worth noting that many people view the photo as little more than the documentation of a very public sexual assault, and not something to be celebrated.)"

- Ben Cosgrove

The famous kiss an ecstatic sailor plants on a very surprised nurse he just grabbed off the street for the express purpose of kissing (see page image) when the end of World War II is announced in New York City is the most commonly parodied VDay photograph, though there are others.

The photo was taken by Alfred Eisenstaedt, titled "V-J Day in Times Square", and originally appeared in (not on the cover of) the August 27, 1945 issue of LIFE Magazine. The subjects of the photo melted into the crowd before he could catch their names. As a result of this, and the natural obfuscation of the subjects' features, several different people have come forward claiming to be the kisser and kissee.

See Foot Popping for what that nurse was doing with her right leg.

Comic Books

 * Justice League of America: Ice, the former love of Guy Gardner's life, was resurrected after years of being deceased during an affair between the Birds of Prey and the Secret Six. In the aftermath of the Sinestro Corps War, the two ex-lovers met once again in Times Square and shared a single long and passionate kiss.

Film

 * Watchmen puts the openly lesbian character Silhouette in the place of the Sailor. A sailor walks past them as they kiss, even briefly glancing at them before moving on. This apparently started a relationship, as that same nurse was seen sitting with Silhoutte at a Watchmen dinner and then murdered along with Silhouette later in the title sequence.
 * Larry and Amelia Earhart jump into a large print of it in Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian.

Live Action Television
"Bulldog: God, I didn't think I'd ever see this place again. It's like we're soldiers comin' back from the war. (grabs a passing woman and imitates the VJ Day kiss. She gives him a tremendous slap and storms off.) Bulldog: (ecstatic) I'm home!"
 * Frasier. When Frasier and the gang return to KACL after it reverts back to talk show format.


 * The M*A*S*H episode "Abyssinia, Henry" has Colonel Blake recreating this with Major Houlihan, after the former is inaudibly advised/dared to do so by Hawkeye.
 * Parodied by John Oliver, and an unknown actress, on The Daily Show in a feature about the iPad getting the use of the Verizon network ('VZ Day').

Video Games

 * The Team Fortress 2 blog parodies it at the end of its WAR Update with the Heavy Weapons Guy kissing the Scout's mother.

Web Comics

 * Girl Genius has it as a Funny Background Event in here.
 * Possibly, Sandra and Woo here.

Western Animation

 * Once parodied in The Simpsons. From "Bart the General", Bart and Milhouse parade Nelson, tied up in the wagon. Lisa stands in the street surveying the damage, when a soldier boy rushes up and kisses her, the moment captured forever in a photo. Lisa slaps him and yells, "Ewww, knock it off!"

Real Life

 * Katy Perry reenacted the kiss with a Marine when she was giving a show during the New York Fleet Week.