1 00:00:02,279 --> 00:00:06,199 Speaker 1: Hey, listeners. This episode is part of our new playlist 2 00:00:06,240 --> 00:00:08,920 Speaker 1: to help everybody get through these times we're living in. 3 00:00:09,440 --> 00:00:12,400 Speaker 1: It's our host faves playlist. Yeah, these are just some 4 00:00:12,480 --> 00:00:15,000 Speaker 1: of our personal favorites, ones that we had a particular 5 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:18,599 Speaker 1: affinity for, and because these are stressful and trying times, 6 00:00:18,680 --> 00:00:22,240 Speaker 1: we tried to stick to the ones that weren't quite 7 00:00:22,280 --> 00:00:25,160 Speaker 1: as dour. So hopefully they'll give you a little lift. 8 00:00:25,320 --> 00:00:31,560 Speaker 1: Stay safe. Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, 9 00:00:31,840 --> 00:00:41,600 Speaker 1: a production of I Heart Radio. Hello, and welcome to 10 00:00:41,640 --> 00:00:46,040 Speaker 1: the podcast. I'm Tracy V. Wilson and I'm Holly fry So. Uh, 11 00:00:46,240 --> 00:00:50,599 Speaker 1: summer's coming, at least in theory. I think I think 12 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:55,880 Speaker 1: summer has definitely arrived where you are. Yeah, I mean, 13 00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:58,480 Speaker 1: I guess technically, it's still cooler than it usually would 14 00:00:58,520 --> 00:01:01,640 Speaker 1: be this time of year. Uh, it is not warm 15 00:01:01,680 --> 00:01:04,600 Speaker 1: at all. It's fifty seven degrees right now. We're recording 16 00:01:04,640 --> 00:01:08,279 Speaker 1: this on May. Yeah, Like, I think our high today 17 00:01:08,360 --> 00:01:10,800 Speaker 1: might be eighty, which sounds hot to some people, but 18 00:01:10,920 --> 00:01:14,800 Speaker 1: for Atlanta at the end of May, that's really not. Yeah. Yeah, 19 00:01:14,840 --> 00:01:18,040 Speaker 1: it's it's been a We've had an unseasonably cool um 20 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:21,840 Speaker 1: May up here in New England anyway, though at least 21 00:01:21,880 --> 00:01:24,960 Speaker 1: in theory, summer is either on the way or here 22 00:01:25,400 --> 00:01:28,080 Speaker 1: for most but not all of our listeners, so it 23 00:01:28,080 --> 00:01:33,080 Speaker 1: seems like a good time talk about swimming. We yes, specifically, 24 00:01:33,080 --> 00:01:36,000 Speaker 1: we are talking about Annett Kellerman, who gets a lot 25 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:40,040 Speaker 1: of the credit for developing the woman's one piece bathing 26 00:01:40,080 --> 00:01:43,399 Speaker 1: suit and then for making it socially appropriate for women 27 00:01:43,440 --> 00:01:45,480 Speaker 1: in a lot of the English speaking world to put 28 00:01:45,480 --> 00:01:48,480 Speaker 1: on an outfit that you could actually swim in without 29 00:01:48,560 --> 00:01:51,640 Speaker 1: drowning and then go out in public that way. Uh, 30 00:01:51,680 --> 00:01:55,440 Speaker 1: and perhaps kind of ironically, she was Australian, where it 31 00:01:55,560 --> 00:02:00,880 Speaker 1: is definitely not coming on summer. So Australians, we have 32 00:02:00,960 --> 00:02:05,640 Speaker 1: some Australian history today that is uh, seasonally incongruous for 33 00:02:05,760 --> 00:02:09,120 Speaker 1: where you actually live. Yeah, unless you happen to be uh, 34 00:02:09,160 --> 00:02:11,400 Speaker 1: somebody who's downloading it late in the game, in which 35 00:02:11,400 --> 00:02:16,079 Speaker 1: case store hooray summer for you as well. Annette Kellerman 36 00:02:16,320 --> 00:02:19,000 Speaker 1: was born in the suburbs of Sydney, Australia. She was 37 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:21,960 Speaker 1: coy about her birth date, and it's variously cited as 38 00:02:22,040 --> 00:02:25,840 Speaker 1: July five or sixth of eighteen eighty six, eighteen eighty seven, 39 00:02:25,960 --> 00:02:29,359 Speaker 1: or eighteen eighty eight. The sixth is the most frequently 40 00:02:29,400 --> 00:02:33,520 Speaker 1: cited date. Her father, Frederick, was a violinist born in Australia, 41 00:02:33,600 --> 00:02:36,280 Speaker 1: and her mother, Alice, was a pianist and a music 42 00:02:36,320 --> 00:02:39,720 Speaker 1: teacher who was originally from France. When she was young, 43 00:02:39,880 --> 00:02:42,680 Speaker 1: Annette had to wear braces on her legs because of 44 00:02:42,720 --> 00:02:46,880 Speaker 1: persistent weakness, and not only were these braces painful to wear, 45 00:02:47,160 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 1: but she also found them embarrassing. The cause is unclear. 46 00:02:51,560 --> 00:02:55,080 Speaker 1: A few sources site ricketts or polio, and later on 47 00:02:55,240 --> 00:02:57,520 Speaker 1: in her life she speculated that hip might have been 48 00:02:57,560 --> 00:03:01,040 Speaker 1: a calcium deficiency her a warning to her own account. 49 00:03:01,080 --> 00:03:04,320 Speaker 1: Actual doctors at the time said that it was because 50 00:03:04,360 --> 00:03:06,360 Speaker 1: she had been allowed to learn to walk too early, 51 00:03:06,840 --> 00:03:09,240 Speaker 1: or that she had chalk in her bones. Neither of 52 00:03:09,280 --> 00:03:12,680 Speaker 1: those are real things would have caused her to need 53 00:03:12,840 --> 00:03:17,160 Speaker 1: leg braces. Um so totally unclear, but the braces were 54 00:03:17,360 --> 00:03:19,280 Speaker 1: a real part of her life. That's what you get 55 00:03:19,320 --> 00:03:22,880 Speaker 1: when you go to cartoon doctors. Like chalk in your 56 00:03:22,919 --> 00:03:27,000 Speaker 1: bones sounds like such a cartoon diagnosis, and chalk bones 57 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:31,960 Speaker 1: is a nickname for like one congenital bone condition, but 58 00:03:32,040 --> 00:03:35,240 Speaker 1: it has nothing to do with what she was experiencing. 59 00:03:35,360 --> 00:03:38,040 Speaker 1: Is a totally different set of symptoms, so very weird. Yeah, 60 00:03:38,400 --> 00:03:42,040 Speaker 1: whatever the cause of her disability, eventually her father visited 61 00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:45,600 Speaker 1: a doctor who recommended swimming lessons, and at first and 62 00:03:45,640 --> 00:03:48,880 Speaker 1: That was really terrified of this plan, possibly because it 63 00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:51,440 Speaker 1: meant exposing her legs to people, which she did not 64 00:03:51,520 --> 00:03:54,520 Speaker 1: want to do because they were visibly undeveloped, and she 65 00:03:54,600 --> 00:03:56,600 Speaker 1: begged not to have to go. But her parents and 66 00:03:56,640 --> 00:04:00,200 Speaker 1: the doctor were all certain that swimming would really help. Oh. 67 00:04:00,280 --> 00:04:03,000 Speaker 1: She and her brothers were taken to Frederick Cavell's baths 68 00:04:03,000 --> 00:04:05,360 Speaker 1: so they could learn to swim, and the Cavils were 69 00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:08,160 Speaker 1: actually a whole family of swimmers there in the International 70 00:04:08,200 --> 00:04:11,480 Speaker 1: Swimming Hall of Fame for their combined contributions to the sport. 71 00:04:12,760 --> 00:04:15,040 Speaker 1: It took a net a lot longer to get the 72 00:04:15,080 --> 00:04:17,440 Speaker 1: hang of swimming than it took her brothers. They were 73 00:04:17,480 --> 00:04:19,960 Speaker 1: both able to swim on their own after a handful 74 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:22,560 Speaker 1: of lessons, but it took a net close to twenty 75 00:04:22,800 --> 00:04:25,359 Speaker 1: But once she knew how to do it, as predicted, 76 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:28,120 Speaker 1: it really did help her build her strength up and 77 00:04:28,200 --> 00:04:31,800 Speaker 1: her legs and with the water supporting her, she could 78 00:04:31,839 --> 00:04:35,120 Speaker 1: move around without having to wear the braces and that 79 00:04:35,240 --> 00:04:38,320 Speaker 1: would later describe her gradual improvement through swimming as a 80 00:04:38,400 --> 00:04:41,760 Speaker 1: process of intense joy. By the time she reached the 81 00:04:41,760 --> 00:04:44,360 Speaker 1: age of thirteen, her muscle development was more or less 82 00:04:44,400 --> 00:04:47,720 Speaker 1: typical for a child her age, although she was susceptible 83 00:04:47,760 --> 00:04:50,480 Speaker 1: to muscle strains and had to wear very tightly laced 84 00:04:50,520 --> 00:04:53,560 Speaker 1: boots until she was eighteen. A lot of the swimming 85 00:04:53,600 --> 00:04:56,720 Speaker 1: strokes that are recognized and used competitively today were still 86 00:04:56,839 --> 00:04:59,480 Speaker 1: new or in the process of being developed and refined, 87 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:03,080 Speaker 1: So what Annett learned at first was basically the breaststroke, 88 00:05:03,360 --> 00:05:05,480 Speaker 1: and that was the stroke that she used mostly when 89 00:05:05,520 --> 00:05:09,080 Speaker 1: she was exercising at first. At about the age of fifteen, 90 00:05:09,200 --> 00:05:13,000 Speaker 1: she started branching out into learning other strokes, putting dedicated 91 00:05:13,040 --> 00:05:15,960 Speaker 1: effort into practicing them and getting better at them, and 92 00:05:16,080 --> 00:05:18,719 Speaker 1: soon she told her parents that she wanted to start 93 00:05:18,760 --> 00:05:22,880 Speaker 1: competing in swimming. Her first swimming race was a local event, 94 00:05:23,240 --> 00:05:27,120 Speaker 1: and she won it. Annette's father had been incredulous when 95 00:05:27,120 --> 00:05:29,920 Speaker 1: she said she wanted to enter a swimming race. He 96 00:05:30,000 --> 00:05:32,400 Speaker 1: had thought of swimming as something she was doing because 97 00:05:32,440 --> 00:05:35,839 Speaker 1: of her disability, not as something she would seriously pursue 98 00:05:35,920 --> 00:05:38,599 Speaker 1: for her own sake. But once she had that first 99 00:05:38,600 --> 00:05:41,600 Speaker 1: win under her belt. He was instrumental in her progress 100 00:05:41,640 --> 00:05:45,080 Speaker 1: as a competitive swimmer, essentially becoming both her trainer and 101 00:05:45,120 --> 00:05:49,480 Speaker 1: her coach. As soon as she started seriously competing, a 102 00:05:49,560 --> 00:05:53,800 Speaker 1: net started winning races and setting records. In nineteen o two, 103 00:05:53,880 --> 00:05:56,159 Speaker 1: at the age of about sixteen, she won a one 104 00:05:56,200 --> 00:05:59,800 Speaker 1: hundred yard championship for New South Wales and also set 105 00:05:59,839 --> 00:06:02,680 Speaker 1: a world record for swimming a mile with a time 106 00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:06,520 Speaker 1: of thirty two minutes and twenty nine seconds. That same year, 107 00:06:06,680 --> 00:06:10,599 Speaker 1: she started participating in long distance swimming races and public 108 00:06:10,680 --> 00:06:16,320 Speaker 1: diving demonstrations. Her time in the water wasn't only about competition, though, 109 00:06:16,440 --> 00:06:21,400 Speaker 1: She started doing mermaid shows in Australian aquariums along with 110 00:06:21,520 --> 00:06:24,640 Speaker 1: other aquatic performances while she was still in her teens. 111 00:06:25,360 --> 00:06:27,839 Speaker 1: Although she was winning races and making a name for 112 00:06:27,920 --> 00:06:31,039 Speaker 1: herself as a competitive swimmer, she wasn't really able to 113 00:06:31,040 --> 00:06:34,000 Speaker 1: earn an income from doing so. So Annette and her 114 00:06:34,040 --> 00:06:36,240 Speaker 1: father moved to England with the hope of finding more 115 00:06:36,320 --> 00:06:41,120 Speaker 1: lucrative opportunities to compete and perform. Once they arrived in England, 116 00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:44,560 Speaker 1: they had a really hard time getting started. Although Annette 117 00:06:44,640 --> 00:06:48,279 Speaker 1: already held multiple records and swimming. They didn't know anyone, 118 00:06:48,600 --> 00:06:51,200 Speaker 1: and Annette didn't have a local reputation to try to 119 00:06:51,279 --> 00:06:54,080 Speaker 1: build on, so her father hatched a plan to drum 120 00:06:54,160 --> 00:06:57,920 Speaker 1: up some publicity. She would swim twenty six miles, which 121 00:06:57,960 --> 00:07:01,120 Speaker 1: was forty two kilometers down the Tims from Putney to 122 00:07:01,160 --> 00:07:05,359 Speaker 1: black Wall. In nine five. Annett, at about age eighteen, 123 00:07:05,480 --> 00:07:08,919 Speaker 1: became the first woman to make this swim. Although it 124 00:07:08,960 --> 00:07:11,320 Speaker 1: did indeed bring in a lot of media attention, the 125 00:07:11,360 --> 00:07:15,440 Speaker 1: swim itself was terrible. The Thames was filthy, and Annette 126 00:07:15,480 --> 00:07:18,120 Speaker 1: later said she felt like she'd swallowed big mouthfuls of 127 00:07:18,160 --> 00:07:21,360 Speaker 1: oil from the surface of the river. She'd also had 128 00:07:21,400 --> 00:07:24,560 Speaker 1: to dodge a lot of flotsam, garbage, tugboats and barges 129 00:07:24,680 --> 00:07:29,400 Speaker 1: along the way. But afterward, a sports editor from the 130 00:07:29,480 --> 00:07:34,040 Speaker 1: Daily Mirror approached her with another idea. The Daily Mirror 131 00:07:34,120 --> 00:07:37,080 Speaker 1: was the first paper in the UK to use photographs 132 00:07:37,200 --> 00:07:40,640 Speaker 1: rather than illustrations, and the editor thought that articles on 133 00:07:40,640 --> 00:07:44,160 Speaker 1: a net complete with photographs of her in the scandalous 134 00:07:44,240 --> 00:07:46,600 Speaker 1: swimwear that we're going to talk about a little bit 135 00:07:46,600 --> 00:07:49,040 Speaker 1: more later, if you thought that would sell a lot 136 00:07:49,040 --> 00:07:51,560 Speaker 1: of papers. So we offered to back her in attempts 137 00:07:51,640 --> 00:07:54,840 Speaker 1: in an attempt to swim across the English Channel, along 138 00:07:54,880 --> 00:07:58,680 Speaker 1: with paying for and writing about swims along the coast 139 00:07:58,800 --> 00:08:03,360 Speaker 1: to train for it. This entire enterprise was wildly successful 140 00:08:03,440 --> 00:08:07,360 Speaker 1: in almost every way. Annett's training swims down the coast 141 00:08:07,440 --> 00:08:10,920 Speaker 1: drew huge crowds, and the articles and their corresponding photos 142 00:08:10,920 --> 00:08:14,360 Speaker 1: sold lots of papers. She swam an average of forty 143 00:08:14,360 --> 00:08:17,840 Speaker 1: five miles or seventy two kilometers per week, increasing the 144 00:08:17,880 --> 00:08:20,200 Speaker 1: distance of each swim until she had done the twenty 145 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:23,800 Speaker 1: four miles stretch from Dover to Ramsgate. At that point 146 00:08:23,840 --> 00:08:26,200 Speaker 1: she thought she was ready to try to conquer the Channel. 147 00:08:26,400 --> 00:08:29,440 Speaker 1: Although that's a slightly shorter distance than her swim down 148 00:08:29,440 --> 00:08:32,280 Speaker 1: the Thames, swimming in the English Channel is far more 149 00:08:32,320 --> 00:08:35,400 Speaker 1: difficult due to the very cold water, the waves, and 150 00:08:35,440 --> 00:08:39,520 Speaker 1: the tides. She made her first attempts to swim across 151 00:08:39,520 --> 00:08:44,120 Speaker 1: the English Channel along with six men on August five. 152 00:08:44,760 --> 00:08:47,320 Speaker 1: They all started their swim at about three in the morning, 153 00:08:47,559 --> 00:08:50,320 Speaker 1: all from different points along the coast, based on where 154 00:08:50,320 --> 00:08:52,440 Speaker 1: they thought the currents and the tides would be the 155 00:08:52,440 --> 00:08:56,520 Speaker 1: most advantageous. Each swimmer was accompanied by a steam tug 156 00:08:56,520 --> 00:08:58,840 Speaker 1: in a rowboat in case they fell into some distress 157 00:08:58,920 --> 00:09:02,520 Speaker 1: along the way, and then periodically hot chocolate or food 158 00:09:02,640 --> 00:09:05,600 Speaker 1: could be handed down to the swimmers from these boats 159 00:09:05,640 --> 00:09:09,160 Speaker 1: to keep their energy up. An advertiser had given a 160 00:09:09,280 --> 00:09:12,160 Speaker 1: net chocolate to eat along the way, but the combination 161 00:09:12,200 --> 00:09:15,199 Speaker 1: of chocolate and the choppy water really made her seasick. 162 00:09:15,880 --> 00:09:18,280 Speaker 1: The further she went, the bigger her pay day would be. 163 00:09:18,320 --> 00:09:21,240 Speaker 1: Those so she kept herself going through that seasickness by 164 00:09:21,240 --> 00:09:24,839 Speaker 1: thinking the longer you stick, the more you get. She 165 00:09:24,920 --> 00:09:27,000 Speaker 1: stuck it out for about six and a half hours, 166 00:09:27,040 --> 00:09:30,480 Speaker 1: and she was paid thirty pounds. This was the first 167 00:09:30,480 --> 00:09:33,880 Speaker 1: of Kellerman's three attempts to swim swim the English Channel, 168 00:09:34,640 --> 00:09:36,920 Speaker 1: and as with her swim down attempts, she was the 169 00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:40,720 Speaker 1: first woman to make the attempt. The closest she came 170 00:09:40,800 --> 00:09:43,439 Speaker 1: in these three attempts to actually crossing was about three 171 00:09:43,520 --> 00:09:46,880 Speaker 1: quarters of the way, which took ten and a half hours. Later, 172 00:09:47,120 --> 00:09:49,960 Speaker 1: Kellerman would say she thought she had the endurance to 173 00:09:50,000 --> 00:09:53,200 Speaker 1: swim the channel, but not the raw strength. In her 174 00:09:53,880 --> 00:09:56,839 Speaker 1: eighteen book How to Swim, she wrote that she didn't 175 00:09:56,840 --> 00:09:59,640 Speaker 1: think a woman would ever successfully swim the English Channel. 176 00:10:00,200 --> 00:10:03,800 Speaker 1: She was proven wrong in when Gertrude utterly crossed in 177 00:10:03,880 --> 00:10:07,640 Speaker 1: fourteen hours thirty nine minutes, not only swimming the channel, 178 00:10:07,679 --> 00:10:10,960 Speaker 1: but beating the previous record time by more than two hours. 179 00:10:11,760 --> 00:10:16,199 Speaker 1: Today there are lots of women swim across the English Channel, 180 00:10:16,760 --> 00:10:20,440 Speaker 1: including swimming at three consecutive times, like swimming it across 181 00:10:20,480 --> 00:10:22,480 Speaker 1: one way and then going back and then going back 182 00:10:22,520 --> 00:10:28,200 Speaker 1: across again, which is astounding to me. So in Kellerman's 183 00:10:28,240 --> 00:10:31,160 Speaker 1: first attempt to swim across the English Channel, the male 184 00:10:31,280 --> 00:10:34,320 Speaker 1: swimmers who were swimming that night were allowed to be nude, 185 00:10:34,760 --> 00:10:37,280 Speaker 1: but she had to wear a swimsuit that chafed her 186 00:10:37,320 --> 00:10:40,840 Speaker 1: skin just terribly. And this brings us to her efforts 187 00:10:40,840 --> 00:10:43,960 Speaker 1: to make suitable swimwear for women, which we will talk 188 00:10:44,000 --> 00:10:56,520 Speaker 1: about more after a sponsor break. That swim down the 189 00:10:56,600 --> 00:10:59,480 Speaker 1: Thames and the attempts to cross the English Channel, we're 190 00:10:59,520 --> 00:11:02,839 Speaker 1: not an at Kellerman's only long distance races in the 191 00:11:02,920 --> 00:11:07,760 Speaker 1: nineteen hundreds. Before leaving Australia, she had taken multiple long 192 00:11:07,800 --> 00:11:11,440 Speaker 1: distance swims down the Yarra River, including becoming the first 193 00:11:11,559 --> 00:11:15,480 Speaker 1: woman to complete a ten mile stretch. In nineteen o five, 194 00:11:15,559 --> 00:11:18,160 Speaker 1: she participated in a race down the sin where she 195 00:11:18,320 --> 00:11:22,079 Speaker 1: tied for third with with Thomas William Burgess in her 196 00:11:22,080 --> 00:11:24,480 Speaker 1: account of this race and How to Swim, she wrote 197 00:11:24,480 --> 00:11:27,960 Speaker 1: that well meeting spectators kept calling out that she was 198 00:11:28,040 --> 00:11:31,400 Speaker 1: almost there and had just two bridges more, and when 199 00:11:31,400 --> 00:11:34,760 Speaker 1: she realized she was not almost there, and she became 200 00:11:34,800 --> 00:11:38,200 Speaker 1: just really discouraged because she had worn herself out doing 201 00:11:38,240 --> 00:11:40,920 Speaker 1: what she thought was her final push to the finish line. 202 00:11:41,600 --> 00:11:43,560 Speaker 1: So when Burgess caught up to her and saw that 203 00:11:43,600 --> 00:11:47,600 Speaker 1: she was crying in a very lovely show of sporting behavior, 204 00:11:47,679 --> 00:11:49,760 Speaker 1: he stayed with her and encouraged her for the rest 205 00:11:49,760 --> 00:11:51,400 Speaker 1: of the of the race, and that is how they 206 00:11:51,440 --> 00:11:55,439 Speaker 1: came to tie. In June of nine six, Kellerman also 207 00:11:55,600 --> 00:11:58,439 Speaker 1: won a twenty two mile or thirty six kilometer race 208 00:11:58,559 --> 00:12:02,320 Speaker 1: down the Danube. I think anyone also who has ever 209 00:12:02,400 --> 00:12:05,880 Speaker 1: run a race knows the the ire of please don't 210 00:12:05,880 --> 00:12:08,200 Speaker 1: tell me if you're almost there, when you're not, when 211 00:12:08,240 --> 00:12:10,880 Speaker 1: you're not now. And it was a little bit unclear 212 00:12:10,920 --> 00:12:12,960 Speaker 1: to me whether these were the people in the guide 213 00:12:13,000 --> 00:12:15,559 Speaker 1: boat or the people who were just spectators who were 214 00:12:15,559 --> 00:12:19,160 Speaker 1: saying this. But like she they got her a couple 215 00:12:19,160 --> 00:12:21,439 Speaker 1: of times, and then like time number three of them 216 00:12:21,440 --> 00:12:23,520 Speaker 1: being like, you're almost there, she was like, no, I'm 217 00:12:23,520 --> 00:12:26,920 Speaker 1: not well, right, and it's almost always well intentioned, like 218 00:12:27,040 --> 00:12:30,320 Speaker 1: if you but let this be a note if you're 219 00:12:30,320 --> 00:12:33,839 Speaker 1: ever spectating a sporting event, please don't fib to the participant, 220 00:12:34,280 --> 00:12:36,959 Speaker 1: because it does more to harm their head game than 221 00:12:37,120 --> 00:12:40,080 Speaker 1: than help. UH. And in most of these events, Kellerman 222 00:12:40,240 --> 00:12:42,559 Speaker 1: was one of very few women, and sometimes she was 223 00:12:42,600 --> 00:12:45,440 Speaker 1: the only woman, and she typically swam them wearing a 224 00:12:45,440 --> 00:12:48,960 Speaker 1: swimsuit that was actually made for men. So this was 225 00:12:49,000 --> 00:12:53,040 Speaker 1: not unheard of in Australia at this point. UH swimming 226 00:12:53,200 --> 00:12:56,679 Speaker 1: was already a more established sport in Australia than it 227 00:12:56,800 --> 00:12:59,600 Speaker 1: was in the United Kingdom or the United States, but 228 00:12:59,679 --> 00:13:02,560 Speaker 1: it was astonishing in a lot of the rest of 229 00:13:02,600 --> 00:13:06,920 Speaker 1: the English speaking world, where water was for bathing, not 230 00:13:07,120 --> 00:13:10,640 Speaker 1: for swimming. Bathing meant getting into the water a little 231 00:13:10,679 --> 00:13:13,520 Speaker 1: way and you might wait or play or maybe float 232 00:13:13,840 --> 00:13:16,960 Speaker 1: a little out there, but you didn't really swim, and 233 00:13:17,000 --> 00:13:19,160 Speaker 1: a lot of people didn't even know how to swim. 234 00:13:19,640 --> 00:13:24,600 Speaker 1: The idea of man made swimming pool was also still 235 00:13:24,679 --> 00:13:27,080 Speaker 1: quite recent at this point, like there had not even 236 00:13:27,120 --> 00:13:32,920 Speaker 1: been one built for the Olympics yet, So like bathing 237 00:13:33,040 --> 00:13:35,520 Speaker 1: was a thing that happened at a beach, whether it 238 00:13:35,559 --> 00:13:38,440 Speaker 1: was like a lakeside beach or a seashore beach. It 239 00:13:38,480 --> 00:13:41,160 Speaker 1: did not really happen in a pool, and even if 240 00:13:41,200 --> 00:13:44,000 Speaker 1: you wanted to swim, if you were a woman around 241 00:13:44,080 --> 00:13:46,720 Speaker 1: the turn of the twentieth century, your bathing entire was 242 00:13:46,800 --> 00:13:50,439 Speaker 1: not something you could actually swim in. The standard bathing 243 00:13:50,480 --> 00:13:53,400 Speaker 1: costume for women was essentially a dress with a length 244 00:13:53,440 --> 00:13:55,880 Speaker 1: that ranged within a couple of inches above or below 245 00:13:55,920 --> 00:13:59,360 Speaker 1: the knee. It had a blousey top and puffy, usually 246 00:13:59,520 --> 00:14:03,520 Speaker 1: short leaves, sometimes with the sailor's collar. It was cinched, 247 00:14:03,600 --> 00:14:06,520 Speaker 1: belted or ribboned at the waist, and worn with stockings 248 00:14:06,600 --> 00:14:10,240 Speaker 1: and bathing slippers or sometimes even bathing boots that went 249 00:14:10,280 --> 00:14:12,880 Speaker 1: all the way up the calves, and many women wore 250 00:14:12,920 --> 00:14:18,200 Speaker 1: their bathing clothes with corsets and other underpinnings. Here is 251 00:14:18,280 --> 00:14:21,600 Speaker 1: what and that Kellerman had to say about these outfits. 252 00:14:21,800 --> 00:14:24,680 Speaker 1: Quote there is no more reason why you should wear 253 00:14:24,720 --> 00:14:30,760 Speaker 1: those awful water overcoats, those awkward, unnecessary, lumpy quote bathing suits. 254 00:14:31,120 --> 00:14:34,600 Speaker 1: Then there is that you should wear lead chains. Heavy 255 00:14:34,640 --> 00:14:38,320 Speaker 1: bathing suits have caused more deaths by drowning than cramps. 256 00:14:38,360 --> 00:14:41,120 Speaker 1: I am certain there isn't a single reason under the 257 00:14:41,240 --> 00:14:45,680 Speaker 1: sun why everybody should not wear lightweight suits. Anyone who 258 00:14:45,720 --> 00:14:49,760 Speaker 1: persuades you to wear the heavy scurty kind is endangering 259 00:14:49,840 --> 00:14:55,320 Speaker 1: your life. Just thinking about wearing tights into the water 260 00:14:55,640 --> 00:15:00,120 Speaker 1: is a horrifying prospect to me. Oh, I don't know why, 261 00:15:00,160 --> 00:15:05,040 Speaker 1: it just kind of grosses me out. Uh. For competitive 262 00:15:05,080 --> 00:15:08,440 Speaker 1: women's swimmers, there was a grudging exception to the standard 263 00:15:08,440 --> 00:15:11,360 Speaker 1: of dress. They could wear a men's bathing suit, which 264 00:15:11,400 --> 00:15:14,400 Speaker 1: was more like a T shirt and shorts, sometimes constructed 265 00:15:14,440 --> 00:15:17,480 Speaker 1: all as one piece. But this also starts a whole 266 00:15:17,560 --> 00:15:20,720 Speaker 1: chicken and egg situation. Women weren't supposed to be seen 267 00:15:20,800 --> 00:15:23,760 Speaker 1: and attired that they could actually swim in, which created 268 00:15:23,760 --> 00:15:27,560 Speaker 1: a huge barrier for entry for the sport of swimming. Yeah, 269 00:15:27,560 --> 00:15:29,600 Speaker 1: if people were like, well, I guess you can wear 270 00:15:29,880 --> 00:15:33,240 Speaker 1: a men's suit for this race, that left the question of, 271 00:15:33,280 --> 00:15:35,040 Speaker 1: like all the training you would need to do to 272 00:15:35,040 --> 00:15:38,000 Speaker 1: be able to compete in the race in the first place. 273 00:15:39,240 --> 00:15:42,320 Speaker 1: It was this whole social standard of what was acceptable 274 00:15:42,360 --> 00:15:45,760 Speaker 1: for women to wear that led Kellerman to invent a 275 00:15:45,760 --> 00:15:49,360 Speaker 1: new swimsuit. In five she was scheduled for a swimming 276 00:15:49,360 --> 00:15:52,040 Speaker 1: performance at London's Bath Club and some of the royal 277 00:15:52,120 --> 00:15:55,480 Speaker 1: family was to be in attendance. The men's bathing suit 278 00:15:55,520 --> 00:15:58,440 Speaker 1: that she had been wearing was determined to be inappropriate 279 00:15:58,480 --> 00:16:01,480 Speaker 1: because it was two revealings. So Kellerman bought a pair 280 00:16:01,520 --> 00:16:04,000 Speaker 1: of black stockings and she sewed them to the legs 281 00:16:04,080 --> 00:16:07,360 Speaker 1: of her men's bathing suit, creating what was effectively a 282 00:16:07,440 --> 00:16:10,200 Speaker 1: one piece garment that covered her from her shoulders to 283 00:16:10,280 --> 00:16:14,040 Speaker 1: her feet. From there, she began tweaking and refining this 284 00:16:14,120 --> 00:16:18,040 Speaker 1: original design, eventually developing a one piece, form fitting garment 285 00:16:18,120 --> 00:16:21,760 Speaker 1: without sleeves. The lengths of the legs varied from full 286 00:16:21,840 --> 00:16:26,160 Speaker 1: length and stalking like to stopping at the thigh. Although 287 00:16:26,160 --> 00:16:29,320 Speaker 1: this would be considered pretty modest swimwear by a lot 288 00:16:29,360 --> 00:16:32,440 Speaker 1: of today's standards, it was not at all modest by 289 00:16:32,480 --> 00:16:35,000 Speaker 1: the standards of the day. Like we said before the 290 00:16:35,040 --> 00:16:38,320 Speaker 1: first break, the very idea of a woman in public 291 00:16:38,400 --> 00:16:41,640 Speaker 1: and such a garment was enough to sell newspapers. It's 292 00:16:41,720 --> 00:16:46,560 Speaker 1: widely reported that in seven Kellerman was arrested for indecency 293 00:16:46,600 --> 00:16:50,560 Speaker 1: on Revere Beach in Massachusetts while wearing one of these swimsuits. 294 00:16:50,600 --> 00:16:53,160 Speaker 1: Although there's no arrest in the log books, it's a 295 00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:55,640 Speaker 1: story that came up again and again and again during 296 00:16:55,640 --> 00:16:59,920 Speaker 1: her own lifetime, including from her own mouth like at 297 00:17:00,000 --> 00:17:02,680 Speaker 1: don't think she made this up, but people have noted that, 298 00:17:02,720 --> 00:17:05,879 Speaker 1: like they can't find a document that actually details the arrest. 299 00:17:06,720 --> 00:17:09,600 Speaker 1: In spite of heavy resistance to the idea of women 300 00:17:09,640 --> 00:17:14,800 Speaker 1: being out in public so relatively unclothed, Kellerman persisted. She 301 00:17:14,920 --> 00:17:17,600 Speaker 1: launched her own line of women's swimwear, some of which 302 00:17:17,640 --> 00:17:20,560 Speaker 1: came with a Modesty Panel, which was a close fitting 303 00:17:20,560 --> 00:17:23,280 Speaker 1: skirt that went from waste to knee, covering the thighs 304 00:17:23,280 --> 00:17:26,119 Speaker 1: but bringing along far less fabric and weight than the 305 00:17:26,160 --> 00:17:30,720 Speaker 1: previous era of swimsuits. She became so closely associated to 306 00:17:30,800 --> 00:17:33,800 Speaker 1: this type of swimwear that soon people were calling anything 307 00:17:33,800 --> 00:17:36,520 Speaker 1: that looked like it and a net Kellerman or just 308 00:17:36,560 --> 00:17:39,520 Speaker 1: a Kellerman, although it was a name she trademarked and 309 00:17:39,560 --> 00:17:42,320 Speaker 1: went to court to defend when she needed to, and 310 00:17:42,480 --> 00:17:47,360 Speaker 1: at some beaches, Kellerman type suits were actually banned. As 311 00:17:47,440 --> 00:17:51,639 Speaker 1: Kellerman became more famous and her swimsuits became more widely adopted, 312 00:17:51,680 --> 00:17:54,800 Speaker 1: it gradually became more acceptable for women to be seen 313 00:17:54,800 --> 00:17:57,280 Speaker 1: in them, and for women to participate in the sport 314 00:17:57,320 --> 00:18:01,800 Speaker 1: of swimming, and compounding that for swimming in general to 315 00:18:01,840 --> 00:18:05,560 Speaker 1: be seen as a recreational activity. Some of this was 316 00:18:05,600 --> 00:18:08,920 Speaker 1: part of an overall growth in the popularity of swimming, 317 00:18:09,040 --> 00:18:13,320 Speaker 1: but it wasn't just happenstance. Kellerman was an active advocate 318 00:18:13,400 --> 00:18:16,240 Speaker 1: for women to learn to swim, and for swimming to 319 00:18:16,280 --> 00:18:20,280 Speaker 1: be seen as an acceptable form of exercise, recreation, and 320 00:18:20,359 --> 00:18:24,639 Speaker 1: competition for women. She wrote quote, I am not trying 321 00:18:24,640 --> 00:18:27,280 Speaker 1: to shut men out of swimming. There's enough water in 322 00:18:27,320 --> 00:18:29,880 Speaker 1: the world for all of us. But as men can 323 00:18:29,880 --> 00:18:32,879 Speaker 1: indulge in so many other sports where women can make 324 00:18:32,920 --> 00:18:36,320 Speaker 1: a poor showing or cannot compete at all, swimming may 325 00:18:36,320 --> 00:18:41,400 Speaker 1: well be called the women's sport. But unfortunately this progress 326 00:18:41,440 --> 00:18:45,280 Speaker 1: did not apply to all women. Even though Kellerman herself 327 00:18:45,320 --> 00:18:48,720 Speaker 1: wrote things like quote there is nothing more democratic than swimming, 328 00:18:48,920 --> 00:18:52,440 Speaker 1: and a clean, cool, beautiful, cheap thing we all from 329 00:18:52,480 --> 00:18:56,639 Speaker 1: cats to kings can enjoy, swimming was not actually accessible 330 00:18:56,680 --> 00:19:00,520 Speaker 1: to everyone. In the United States, public beaches and as 331 00:19:00,520 --> 00:19:04,240 Speaker 1: they were built, public swimming pools were often racially segregated, 332 00:19:04,400 --> 00:19:07,639 Speaker 1: and the Indigenous population was barred from many public swimming 333 00:19:07,640 --> 00:19:11,600 Speaker 1: areas In Australia, So while Kellerman was a staunch advocate 334 00:19:11,640 --> 00:19:15,520 Speaker 1: for making swimming accessible to women, that was really most 335 00:19:15,560 --> 00:19:19,119 Speaker 1: applicable to white women. And to add another layer to 336 00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:21,840 Speaker 1: all of this, a lot of the swimming strokes that 337 00:19:21,880 --> 00:19:24,919 Speaker 1: she learned as a child and then helps to popularize 338 00:19:24,960 --> 00:19:28,679 Speaker 1: and as an adult were either patterned after or directly 339 00:19:28,720 --> 00:19:33,800 Speaker 1: taught to white swimmers by Indigenous Australians and indigenous people 340 00:19:33,840 --> 00:19:36,800 Speaker 1: from elsewhere in the Pacific. So like a lot of 341 00:19:36,840 --> 00:19:41,040 Speaker 1: the art and skill of swimming drew from indigenous knowledge, 342 00:19:41,119 --> 00:19:44,320 Speaker 1: but indigenous people were excluded from a lot of public 343 00:19:44,359 --> 00:19:49,160 Speaker 1: swimming locations. In addition to contributing to the popularity and 344 00:19:49,320 --> 00:19:53,240 Speaker 1: at least for some accessibility of swimming, and that Kellerman's 345 00:19:53,280 --> 00:19:56,240 Speaker 1: fame and skill led to a completely different aspect of 346 00:19:56,280 --> 00:20:00,200 Speaker 1: her career, Vaudeville and Hollywood. We're going to talk about 347 00:20:00,200 --> 00:20:13,000 Speaker 1: that after we paused for a sponsor break. A lot 348 00:20:13,160 --> 00:20:16,239 Speaker 1: of Annette Kellerman's fame as a swimmer came because she 349 00:20:16,480 --> 00:20:21,480 Speaker 1: was naturally a performer. She was definitely talented. I don't 350 00:20:21,520 --> 00:20:25,560 Speaker 1: want to overlook that at all. She legitimately won races 351 00:20:25,640 --> 00:20:27,639 Speaker 1: and she set records, and she was one of the 352 00:20:27,680 --> 00:20:30,679 Speaker 1: best swimmers of her era. But a lot of the 353 00:20:30,760 --> 00:20:34,520 Speaker 1: attention that she got for those successes was due to showmanship. 354 00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:37,680 Speaker 1: And an openness with her body that was not really 355 00:20:37,680 --> 00:20:41,840 Speaker 1: typical for the time. A woman's swimmer was already relatively 356 00:20:42,000 --> 00:20:45,200 Speaker 1: novel in a lot of places, and a woman swimmer 357 00:20:45,240 --> 00:20:50,119 Speaker 1: who flaunted social expectations to proudly wear a scandalous swimsuit 358 00:20:50,240 --> 00:20:53,959 Speaker 1: was a real attention getter. This attention actually led her 359 00:20:54,000 --> 00:20:57,399 Speaker 1: to a career in vaudeville. In nineteen o six, having 360 00:20:57,400 --> 00:21:00,920 Speaker 1: performed at the London Hippodrome and one numerous races in Europe, 361 00:21:01,240 --> 00:21:04,000 Speaker 1: she sailed for the United States to perform at amusement 362 00:21:04,040 --> 00:21:08,840 Speaker 1: parks and theaters. Her vaudeville act involved a combination of swimming, 363 00:21:09,040 --> 00:21:12,919 Speaker 1: high diving, water stunts, and mermaid shows, for which she 364 00:21:13,040 --> 00:21:16,320 Speaker 1: often designed all of her own costumes. She would eventually 365 00:21:16,440 --> 00:21:19,199 Speaker 1: donate all of her costumes and memorabilia to the Sydney 366 00:21:19,200 --> 00:21:21,280 Speaker 1: Opera House. We will put a link in the show 367 00:21:21,320 --> 00:21:24,160 Speaker 1: notes where you can go look at them. There's a lot. 368 00:21:24,400 --> 00:21:26,600 Speaker 1: There are lots and lots of pictures of this collection 369 00:21:26,640 --> 00:21:30,240 Speaker 1: that you can browse through, and they are fascinating. Although 370 00:21:30,280 --> 00:21:33,880 Speaker 1: water shows already existed in vaudeville, Kellerman added a lot 371 00:21:33,920 --> 00:21:37,159 Speaker 1: of her own flare and incorporated ballet and other movement 372 00:21:37,240 --> 00:21:40,840 Speaker 1: in what would become a precursor to synchronize swimming. Her 373 00:21:40,880 --> 00:21:44,120 Speaker 1: biggest production at the New York Hippodrome included a core 374 00:21:44,240 --> 00:21:48,280 Speaker 1: of two hundred mermaids, all swimming in tandem. She also 375 00:21:48,320 --> 00:21:51,120 Speaker 1: tried her hand at other types of performance, including male 376 00:21:51,160 --> 00:21:56,320 Speaker 1: impersonation and high wire walking. By Kellerman had become one 377 00:21:56,320 --> 00:22:00,719 Speaker 1: of the highest paid performers in vaudeville. All during her 378 00:22:00,720 --> 00:22:04,200 Speaker 1: time in vaudeville, she got married after proposing to her manager, 379 00:22:04,320 --> 00:22:07,800 Speaker 1: Louis Sullivan, who was known as Jimmy, in nineteen twelve. 380 00:22:08,760 --> 00:22:12,760 Speaker 1: Running parallel to her time in vaudeville, Kellerman also began 381 00:22:12,800 --> 00:22:16,000 Speaker 1: acting in films. Her first films were a series of 382 00:22:16,040 --> 00:22:18,320 Speaker 1: silent shorts made while she was trying to work out 383 00:22:18,320 --> 00:22:22,639 Speaker 1: a contract dispute between two different theater managers. Later on, 384 00:22:22,760 --> 00:22:25,600 Speaker 1: when other people started to copy her water act and 385 00:22:25,760 --> 00:22:29,280 Speaker 1: her pay in vaudeville consequently plummeted, she turned to film 386 00:22:29,359 --> 00:22:35,440 Speaker 1: almost entirely. Kellerman's film roles involved lots of water and swimming, 387 00:22:35,680 --> 00:22:38,159 Speaker 1: and sometimes they also played off the fact that the 388 00:22:38,200 --> 00:22:42,480 Speaker 1: South Pacific was pretty exotic to American audiences, which meant 389 00:22:42,480 --> 00:22:46,119 Speaker 1: that Kellerman herself was often seen as exotic as well. 390 00:22:47,000 --> 00:22:50,160 Speaker 1: Her first full length movie was Neptune's Daughter, which came 391 00:22:50,160 --> 00:22:53,879 Speaker 1: out in nineteen four She played a mermaid wearing sheer 392 00:22:53,920 --> 00:22:57,720 Speaker 1: body suits that matched her skin tone. In nineteen sixteen, 393 00:22:57,760 --> 00:23:00,200 Speaker 1: she started a film called The Daughter of the Gads, 394 00:23:00,240 --> 00:23:03,600 Speaker 1: which was a fantasy drama. She played Anisia, who was 395 00:23:03,640 --> 00:23:06,520 Speaker 1: the daughter in question. In this film, she had a 396 00:23:06,560 --> 00:23:09,320 Speaker 1: scene in which she was completely nude, although part of 397 00:23:09,320 --> 00:23:12,160 Speaker 1: her body was covered by her hair. It was one 398 00:23:12,160 --> 00:23:15,040 Speaker 1: of the first fully nude appearances by a major star 399 00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:19,199 Speaker 1: in a non pornographic movie. Her final film, Venus of 400 00:23:19,240 --> 00:23:24,080 Speaker 1: the South Seas, came out in There are definitely people 401 00:23:24,160 --> 00:23:28,040 Speaker 1: who call the Daughter of the Gods role like the 402 00:23:28,119 --> 00:23:32,080 Speaker 1: first nude appearance by a woman in film, and that 403 00:23:32,200 --> 00:23:35,280 Speaker 1: seems a little there. It needs a little more caveats 404 00:23:36,240 --> 00:23:41,600 Speaker 1: than that. Um Kellerman mostly retired from performing in the 405 00:23:41,680 --> 00:23:44,800 Speaker 1: nineteen thirties. She and her husband moved to California, where 406 00:23:44,800 --> 00:23:47,080 Speaker 1: she opened a health food store. She was apparently a 407 00:23:47,160 --> 00:23:50,960 Speaker 1: vegetarian her whole life. By this point she had published 408 00:23:51,040 --> 00:23:53,920 Speaker 1: books on swimming and on fitness, and one called Physical 409 00:23:53,920 --> 00:23:57,600 Speaker 1: Beauty and How to Keep It. This one, to a 410 00:23:57,640 --> 00:24:01,600 Speaker 1: modern reader is maybe a little weird. It's simultaneously acknowledges 411 00:24:01,760 --> 00:24:06,040 Speaker 1: the double standards that women face regarding our bodies and appearances. 412 00:24:06,760 --> 00:24:08,480 Speaker 1: But at the same time it is a how to 413 00:24:08,640 --> 00:24:10,919 Speaker 1: manual for how to have an ideal body, and it 414 00:24:11,080 --> 00:24:14,639 Speaker 1: clearly spells out that the point in doing so is 415 00:24:14,680 --> 00:24:17,640 Speaker 1: to keep from losing your figure and consequently your husband 416 00:24:17,680 --> 00:24:21,040 Speaker 1: as you age. So in some ways, like in some 417 00:24:21,080 --> 00:24:23,000 Speaker 1: ways she was way ahead of her time, and in 418 00:24:23,040 --> 00:24:25,919 Speaker 1: some ways she was squarely a product of it. The 419 00:24:26,000 --> 00:24:28,399 Speaker 1: system is really bad, but here's how to buy in. 420 00:24:29,119 --> 00:24:35,520 Speaker 1: Yeah that yeah, uh that book Also, like it's a 421 00:24:35,560 --> 00:24:40,240 Speaker 1: little I don't really know what what Annett Kellerman's racial 422 00:24:40,359 --> 00:24:44,720 Speaker 1: views were about, like the contributions of indigenous swimmers to 423 00:24:44,720 --> 00:24:46,399 Speaker 1: swimming and all of this sort of stuff. That she 424 00:24:46,520 --> 00:24:50,640 Speaker 1: has a couple of lines in this book that, like 425 00:24:50,760 --> 00:24:57,200 Speaker 1: you can tell there are some problematic racial and racist 426 00:24:57,280 --> 00:24:59,119 Speaker 1: views in there, Like at one point she says that 427 00:24:59,240 --> 00:25:02,240 Speaker 1: the only people who need corsets are children and savages, 428 00:25:03,160 --> 00:25:06,520 Speaker 1: and by savages in quotation marks, she means Africans, Like 429 00:25:08,200 --> 00:25:10,360 Speaker 1: I don't want to I don't want to gloss over that. 430 00:25:10,440 --> 00:25:13,720 Speaker 1: But like that's it's a weird intrusion in a book 431 00:25:13,760 --> 00:25:18,600 Speaker 1: that's definitely about um, you know, middle class white women 432 00:25:18,640 --> 00:25:25,479 Speaker 1: retaining their figures, which has its own set of social play. 433 00:25:27,080 --> 00:25:31,000 Speaker 1: Kellerman also established health spas. She wrote newspaper columns on 434 00:25:31,080 --> 00:25:34,800 Speaker 1: health and beauty. She stridently advocated for women to be 435 00:25:35,000 --> 00:25:37,520 Speaker 1: encouraged to be fit and active, and she wrote eight 436 00:25:37,560 --> 00:25:40,919 Speaker 1: children's book called Fairy Tales of the South Seas. But 437 00:25:41,040 --> 00:25:43,479 Speaker 1: in a lot of ways she had become famous for 438 00:25:43,520 --> 00:25:46,639 Speaker 1: her bathing suits and for the body under them. In 439 00:25:46,760 --> 00:25:50,480 Speaker 1: nine Dr Dudley, Sergeant of Harvard, had taken the measurements 440 00:25:50,520 --> 00:25:53,000 Speaker 1: of about one thousand women and compared them to the 441 00:25:53,040 --> 00:25:56,879 Speaker 1: measurements of the Venus de Milo. Kellerman's were closest, and 442 00:25:56,920 --> 00:26:00,360 Speaker 1: he dubbed her the perfect Woman, which, along at that 443 00:26:00,560 --> 00:26:05,879 Speaker 1: Revere Beach arrest, became part of her ongoing marketing in 444 00:26:05,960 --> 00:26:09,760 Speaker 1: the Harvard Collections, like the Harvard Special Collections, are still 445 00:26:09,880 --> 00:26:13,120 Speaker 1: boxes and boxes of these women's measurement cards that were 446 00:26:13,119 --> 00:26:18,920 Speaker 1: part of this study, which baffles me on a number 447 00:26:18,960 --> 00:26:21,639 Speaker 1: of different It doesn't baffle me that the cards are 448 00:26:21,680 --> 00:26:24,359 Speaker 1: still in the collection. It baffles me that, like, let's 449 00:26:24,400 --> 00:26:27,040 Speaker 1: measure a thousand women and compare them to a statue 450 00:26:28,520 --> 00:26:32,679 Speaker 1: was a study in the first place, so her fame 451 00:26:32,840 --> 00:26:36,080 Speaker 1: for her figure and the clothing being bathing suits on 452 00:26:36,119 --> 00:26:40,880 Speaker 1: it persisted long after the first decade of the nineteen hundreds, 453 00:26:40,920 --> 00:26:44,920 Speaker 1: which was really when Annette Kellerman had introduced and become 454 00:26:44,960 --> 00:26:48,520 Speaker 1: famous for this bathing suit. In nineteen thirty five, an 455 00:26:48,560 --> 00:26:52,040 Speaker 1: Associated Press reporter tractor down and got her opinion on 456 00:26:52,119 --> 00:26:55,240 Speaker 1: some subtorial hubbub and Yonkers New York that was over 457 00:26:55,280 --> 00:26:59,560 Speaker 1: women wearing shorts. She recalled that it had only been 458 00:26:59,600 --> 00:27:02,399 Speaker 1: a couple of decades since that time. She was arrested 459 00:27:02,760 --> 00:27:05,560 Speaker 1: and then said, quote, but I've always preached the importance 460 00:27:05,560 --> 00:27:08,000 Speaker 1: of caring for the female figure, so the girls will 461 00:27:08,040 --> 00:27:10,399 Speaker 1: have to look to their shapes and not to the 462 00:27:10,440 --> 00:27:14,359 Speaker 1: courts when they appear in suits. But remember, please, I 463 00:27:14,400 --> 00:27:23,959 Speaker 1: am not a nudist. Uh An Associated Press headline from 464 00:27:24,720 --> 00:27:27,760 Speaker 1: seven read quote and that Kellerman still draws crowd legs 465 00:27:27,800 --> 00:27:31,800 Speaker 1: of diving venus holed former beauty so like people were 466 00:27:31,840 --> 00:27:37,320 Speaker 1: still basically writing about her body years after she stopped 467 00:27:39,119 --> 00:27:42,080 Speaker 1: be performing with it, like she was still the go 468 00:27:42,200 --> 00:27:45,240 Speaker 1: to person to talk to you about scandalous swimwear and 469 00:27:45,320 --> 00:27:50,080 Speaker 1: women's figures. Kellerman and her husband returned to Australia a 470 00:27:50,080 --> 00:27:52,960 Speaker 1: couple of times during the nineteen forties, including during World 471 00:27:53,000 --> 00:27:55,840 Speaker 1: War Two when she entertained troops in the South Pacific. 472 00:27:56,920 --> 00:28:00,320 Speaker 1: In nineteen fifty two, Esther Williams played her in the 473 00:28:00,359 --> 00:28:03,719 Speaker 1: film Million Dollar Mermaid. Kellerman was not a fan of 474 00:28:03,720 --> 00:28:06,480 Speaker 1: this film. They called it quote a silly little yarn 475 00:28:07,080 --> 00:28:11,480 Speaker 1: and also quote a namby panby attempt. She was frustrated 476 00:28:11,560 --> 00:28:14,320 Speaker 1: that she was played by an American in this movie, 477 00:28:14,440 --> 00:28:16,480 Speaker 1: and also that the film was more of a swimming 478 00:28:16,560 --> 00:28:20,480 Speaker 1: spectacular than an actual biography of her. As kind of 479 00:28:20,480 --> 00:28:22,479 Speaker 1: a side note, she was also not a fan of 480 00:28:22,480 --> 00:28:25,280 Speaker 1: the bikini after it was introduced, calling it far too 481 00:28:25,320 --> 00:28:29,080 Speaker 1: revealing and noting that almost nobody had the figure to 482 00:28:29,119 --> 00:28:32,919 Speaker 1: actually wear one. Kellerman and her husband moved back to 483 00:28:32,960 --> 00:28:36,880 Speaker 1: Australia for good in nineteen seventy. She was inducted into 484 00:28:36,880 --> 00:28:40,120 Speaker 1: the International Swimming Hall of Fame in nineteen seventy four, 485 00:28:40,480 --> 00:28:43,440 Speaker 1: and she died on November six, nineteen seventy five, at 486 00:28:43,440 --> 00:28:48,280 Speaker 1: the age of roughly eighty seven. Both sources say eighty 487 00:28:48,320 --> 00:28:52,040 Speaker 1: seven or eighty eight. It's uh, it's a little her 488 00:28:52,120 --> 00:28:55,640 Speaker 1: late eighties, her late eighties, who wants to end with 489 00:28:55,680 --> 00:28:59,040 Speaker 1: a poem. I do. I'm really excited We've gotten to 490 00:28:59,160 --> 00:29:04,040 Speaker 1: end some episode with poems lately. This poem ran in 491 00:29:04,080 --> 00:29:09,600 Speaker 1: the Boston Post on November seven. No more the Gibson 492 00:29:09,640 --> 00:29:13,800 Speaker 1: bathing girls shall grace the Newport's summer World. Annett declares 493 00:29:13,880 --> 00:29:18,240 Speaker 1: her garments wrong at both ends, too extremely long. The 494 00:29:18,320 --> 00:29:22,040 Speaker 1: Gibson girl maybe a peach as she perambulates the beach. 495 00:29:22,480 --> 00:29:25,440 Speaker 1: But now if in the swim she'd be she must 496 00:29:25,520 --> 00:29:29,520 Speaker 1: with sweet Annette agree her heavy skirt she must replace 497 00:29:29,600 --> 00:29:33,000 Speaker 1: with filmy raiment for the race. Thank you, she will 498 00:29:33,040 --> 00:29:42,680 Speaker 1: consent to dress in such approach to nothingness. Uh Callerman. 499 00:29:42,960 --> 00:29:45,680 Speaker 1: Sometimes you will see her name spelled with two ends 500 00:29:45,720 --> 00:29:48,320 Speaker 1: instead of one end, which was apparently a nod to 501 00:29:48,520 --> 00:29:51,440 Speaker 1: her German heritage that she used when she published her books. 502 00:29:52,360 --> 00:29:56,280 Speaker 1: But most sources and as biographies have it just with 503 00:29:56,360 --> 00:30:04,640 Speaker 1: one end. Thank you so much for joining us today 504 00:30:04,640 --> 00:30:07,280 Speaker 1: for this classic. If you have heard any kind of 505 00:30:07,320 --> 00:30:09,680 Speaker 1: email address or maybe a Facebook you are l during 506 00:30:09,720 --> 00:30:11,920 Speaker 1: the course of the episode, that might be obsolete. It 507 00:30:12,000 --> 00:30:14,520 Speaker 1: might be doubly obsolete because we have changed our email 508 00:30:14,560 --> 00:30:18,360 Speaker 1: address again. 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