The Nylon Riots of 1945-46

In the aftermath of World War II, full time civilian manufacturing resumed. But not at pre-war levels at first. There was a lot of retooling to be done to get the factories, who had switched to making mostly military goods for the war back up to speed. (It’s a leap from live bunker busters back to cute baby blankets.) So in the following days and weeks after VJ Day, manufacturers were quick to tell consumers to be patient as they ramped up civilian production.

The shortages didn’t last long for most and everything was at full speed by mid-1946. However, there was one product that would not wait; Nylon hosiery.

Women standing in line for nylon stockings outside Miller's Department Store in Oak Ridge, TN in January 1946. Image: Wikipedia

Dupont Chemical invented nylon in 1939 as an alternative to silk, Japan had embargoed all silk exports to the United States. So nylon became a not only a replacement, but an affordable one. 

When World War II broke out, nylon was used for making parachutes and other military items. Civilian production was nearly ceased.

Silk and nylon stockings which could no longer be worn were being collected in stores throughout the country for conversation into powder bags which propel the projectile in big naval and coast defense guns. Image: U.S. National Archives

So women had to take especially good care of their nylon hose. Wearing them only on special occasions. But runs, sags and holes still laid waste to them all. It had actually gotten to the point where makeup-like products were introduced for women to color their bare legs just to replicate the look of nylon hose. 

Woe to the ladies who wore this stuff with white dresses and skirts in public......

There were also actual black markets for nylon stockings.

So when Dupont announced they were resuming full production of nylon stockings in 1945, women across America cheered. But there was a problem.

They announced it too soon. They promised a full production of pairs in the first shipment. The nation had millions of women who wanted to feel nylon on their legs again. Now.

But Dupont could only deliver a small fraction of that due to the actual speed of ramping up production (it couldn't be done overnight.) And that’s when all hell broke loose.

Store managers begged female customers to be patient. Department store windows were smashed in Washington D.C. In Pittsburgh, 40,000 women fought over 13,000 pairs of nylon stockings.

Dupont owned the patent and only when faced with anti-trust suits in 1951, long after the riots were over did Dupont license the manufacture of nylon to competitors.

L'eggs, L'aura & L'erin

Somewhere suspiciously next the ubiquitous L'eggs pantyhose display stand in any supermarket of the early '80 was the L'erin cosmetics stand.

Most people already figured this was a natural place to put the makeup. But for L'eggs, it was uniquely important; They owned L'erin.

L'eggs is a product of underwear conglomerate Hanes. They were introduced in 1969 with their famous plastic egg containers, which had zillions of uses (some women would keep jewelry in them, some people made arts and crafts out of them. In fact, some people bought them just for the big plastic egg containers, which sadly, they have long since phased out.)

Seeing an complimentary advantage to their very successful pantyhose line, in 1980, L'eggs created the L'aura cosmetics line.

Wait....What?

L'aura was the original name for L'erin. But everybody got it mixed up with that big French cosmetic conglomerate, L'Oreal. It was quickly renamed L'erin.


But L'erin cosmetics as a product? Well, the verdict wasn't good.

First, most women were used to the idea of makeup being a distinctly personal art. They wanted something glamourous and luxurious. And all other cosmetic companies were working overtime to accommodate this image.

But L'erin just wasn't that. At all. L'erin's commercial tag line for it's first few years was "Put Your Face On And Forget It". Which sounds like something their dads would say when he needed to use the bathroom.

L'erin was trying to be simpler and more practical, aiming for the young, active woman who wanted less drama and fuss in their makeup kits. But being sold primarily in supermarkets and discount stores (this wasn't exactly Estee Lauder), the cosmetically savvy ladies just weren't impressed. They viewed L'erin as cheap and chintzy.

And it was. The makeup quality itself was also notorious, as millions of raccoon-eyed girls staring back from their '80s high school yearbooks can testify. The mascara was clumpy right out of the bottle, the eyeliner and eye shadow ran under hot lights or in the hot sun. By this time, boys were getting into makeup (the Duran Duran thing and the first wave of glam metal had hit) and I remember girls experimenting on us with their once-used L'erin cosmetics....And then laughing their butts off when we walked outside on a hot day.

The eternal price of trying to be cool (Sigh!)

L'erin lasted until 1984. It was sold in 1983 by Consolidated Foods (now Sara Lee) to another makeup company and after a few attempts to resuscitate the brand, L'erin was discontinued. 

Furr (Magna-Glide, 1977)

Who was Furr?

We still don't know. But from the knee-high go-go boots, coloured spandex pants, sequined trench coats and bad face makeup. I'm guessing we're dealing with a "If Peter Criss can do it, we can too!" kind of band.

And from the look and sound of them, that wouldn't be too far off the mark.



Furr comes off like one of those Chinese knockoffs of a famous Western name brand product. And considering 1977 was when Kiss was at the height of their careers and the similarities of Kiss and Furr's logos, it only made one wonder.

This album was produced by legendary bubblegum pop producers Jerry Kasenetz and Jeffery Katz (Ohio Express, The Kasenetz-Katz Singing Orchestral Circus, etc.) for the New York based label Magna-Glide. Not much is known about Magna-Glide either except they did sign '60s R&B singer J.J. Jackson to the label in the mid-'70s and they were distributed by London Records.

But there was just simply no way Furr could ever compete with the stratospheric popularity of Kiss at that time. And this was Furr's only known album.

"Total Eclipse" Klaus Nomi (1981)

Happy Record Store Day 2015!,

Today, I thought I'd dig up a little chestnut I rediscovered by way of a buddy when we sat up talking about lost and forgotten new wave classics. Whilst talking about the German bands and artists, this guy came up.

I will never forget the first time I saw Klaus Nomi. It was an early Sunday morning in 1982 and I was watching MTV for as long as I can before my mom assumed control of the TV for her religious shows.

Then this video came on. And I immediately saw his genius. (Or at least after I spit out my Grape Nuts.)

Yes, one minute he was channeling Joel Grey, the next, Beverly Sills. But more than anything else he was making his male pattern baldness work for him.

Not even Phil Collins could do that.

Normally, balding male pop singers grudging accept their follicle fates and pluck it all off eventually. Or hide it under cowboy hats. Not Klaus Nomi. He used his to become the human embodiment of Astro-Boy.

He also simply had the greatest rendition of "You Don't Own Me". Ever.

This LP does not contain a Klaus Nomi cover of the Lynyrd Skynyrd song. Just sayin'. 

Sadly, Klaus Nomi passed away from AIDS in 1983. He was 39. 

The Perfume Counter: Fragrance Commercials of The '70s

Enjoli

                                

Charlie

Hai Karate

Windsong

Brut

Halloween Hits: "Fire" The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown (1968)

When I was a little kid, this song's opening used to scare the crap out of me.

Long before Insane Clown Posse, before Marilyn Manson, before King Diamond, before Twisted Sister, before Motley Crue.

Before Kiss, before David Bowie and even before Alice Cooper, there was Arthur Brown in 1968. He originated the kabuki makeup look in rock n' roll - LONG before everyone else.

Shaggy 2 Dope and Violent J....Meet your GRANDDADDY!

With the scary makeup and declaration at the beginning of this song, as corny as this song is, it still got banned off many radio stations in the Bible Belt.

Arthur Brown also has the distinction of being the first rock artist to explore fear as a main topic of his albums, also LONG before all the other kabuki-coated imitators that followed him.....

Halloween Hits: "Something In My House" Dead Or Alive (1987)

From the follow-up album  to their 1985 super-smash Youthquake, which features the '80s party classic "You Spin Me 'Round (Like A Record)" . This album didn't do as well as Youthquake, but it had a few lesser hits on it, including this song and "Brand New Lover"

However, for sheer terror value, NOTHING can top what Dead Or Alive's lead singer Pete Burns has done to his face in the years since.....

Pete Burns, 1985

Pete Burns, 2010

Halloween Hits: "Halloween" King Diamond (1986)

King Diamond was the Marilyn Manson of the '80s. A self proclaimed Satan worshipper and frontman of the occult-metal band Mercyful Fate who went solo with a new band in 1986. He plays with both bands today.

If not exactly the most ORIGINAL guy on earth......

Pete Wentz? OK, yeah, he came later.....But see what Satanic music does to you, kids?

King Diamond and Mercyful Fate were popular with hardcore metal fans, but had virtually no commercial rock radio airplay (that darned devil warshipping thang put most major rock radio station managers teeth on edge.) It also didn't help their label, Roadrunner Records (now home to Nickelback.) was still a struggling Dutch independent until the '90s.

This is off King Diamond's first full album, Fatal Portrait. 

"Renaissance" The Village People (1981)

The Village People had an image problem in 1981. 

They were a disco band at a time when disco was pretty much dead. 

Their old label, Casablanca had just been acquired by PolyGram and PolyGram went straight to work dropping all the old disco acts from it's roster, Donna Summer went to Geffen and The Village People signed to RCA. And they revamped to a new wave image. 

Out went the costumes, in came SUPER dorky outfits, makeup and really, really, bad hair. 

This was the album's only single: "Five O' Clock In The Morning"

This is considered one of the WORST album covers of all time......

Bonne Bell Lip Smackers

Bonne Bell Lips Smackers were a lip gloss that came in SUPER cool flavours. Like Coca Cola, Dr, Pepper, 7-Up, Hires Root Beer, Orange Crush and many others.

But alas, it was a lip gloss for girls. The boys were stuck with ChapStick....unless they wanted their lips really shiny...... 

UPDATE: They're still available (in "Party Packs" even!)

http://www.lipsmacker.com/productListing.php?id=8