A statue, depicting the famous scene of a sailor kissing a woman in New York's Times Square as people celebrate the end of World War II, has been vandalised with red spray paint spelling out #MeToo.

The graffiti covers the ankle-to-knee area of the left leg of the woman being kissed, said police in Sarasota, Florida where the statue is on loan to the city.

The vandalism is believed to have been committed on Monday, a day after the death of the sailor in the iconic photo, George Mendonsa, at the age of 95.

In that image, taken by photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt for Life magazine, Mendonsa is seen ecstatically bending over and kissing a woman in a white nurse's uniform.

Eisenstaedt has described watching the sailor running along the street and grabbing any girl in sight.

The #MeToo campaign arose to defend victims of sexual assault, harassment and abuse.

Sarasota police said there is no surveillance video from the area of the vandalism and or known witnesses. They estimated damage as costing $1,000 to fix.