Howard Chandler Christy’s “Gee!! I Wish I Were a Man” Navy recruitment poster was a rallying cry for both patriotism and feminism. Christy (1873 – 1952), patriotic creator of the beautiful and independent Christy Girl, initially became a celebrity for the scenes he drew from the Spanish-American War directly from the battlefront for several magazines. Although he was almost exclusively known for the more than 6,000 images of his Christy Girls which were printed in numerous national magazines Christy also painted allegories, historical works, and portraits of celebrities.