Striptease: The Untold History of the Girlie Show, by Rachel Shteir (HC, 2004, $5.50)
I've only read the introduction, but already I am learning stuff.
Shteir defines striptease as "a distinctly American diversion that flourished from the Jazz Age to the era of the Sexual Revolution." For the first thirty years it was "classic" striptease, both an expression of women's new sexual freedom, and an expression of men's oppression. As Shteir points out, "At a time when women were entering the work force and making strides in public social life, it is not accident that striptease emerged as a form of entertainment mostly directed at men."
Striptease was not "quite" pornography, and not "quite" prostitution. Mostly it was "theater", and about what Gypsy Rose Lee called "illusion". Stripping usually led to poverty, not fame., especially for those dancing in low-end burlesque theaters. How far the stripping went, depended, according to Shteir, on the city, the theater, or even upon the performance. And usually the stripper showed a sense of fun along with her flesh.
During the war, stripping, and pin-up girls, were seen as patriotic! In the 50s stripping became just "stripping". There certainly wasn't much teasing going on, whether it was on stage or in the photos of the new magazine, Playboy. By the time the end of the 60s rolled around, women wore mini-skirts in public, nudity sometimes showed up in traditional theater, and striptease was dead. Or almost. Shteir describes what is now left as"topless and bottomless lap dancing and pole dancing. They are part of the pornography industry: big business, not show business." On either coast, however, some posh nightclubs have started shows of "retro" striptease. (!)
All this information just fascinates this preacher's kid. I was pleased to find that the book does include information on Sally Rand and her Fan Dance. Now how, you may be asking, would a preacher's kid know about Sally Rand? Well, I just happen to collect Viewmaster and other 3D stuff, and views of Sally Rand are some of the most expensive out there! I of course, do not have any Sally Rand views. Mine are more in the vein of Bush Gardens, the Lone Ranger, and the coronation of Queen Elizabeth. Well... I do have the Ponderosa TV show reels.... but, hey, if it took Viewmaster years to figure out what the cast was up to, then how was I to know?
But back to my job of selling this book... You can find it on the new non-fiction table. I don't think it will be around long, but if it is, look for it in the sexuality section.
