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Katrina McCloy
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rebellion surfaced in the form of bodgies and widgies, who congregated in local milkbars and attracted public ire. But you could also say it was the ‘glory days’ in terms of full employment, a booming economy and of course, all the fantastic pop culture and fashion influences filtering through from Europe and America. This issue we’re pleased to introduce two brand new columnists who each cover very different aspects of the vintage lifestyle. Firstly, Andy Millar joins us with The Rockabilly Rant, a column dedicated to everything rockabilly. We’re also delighted to welcome vintage parenting writer, Malayka Yoseph. (If you’re wondering what ‘vintage parenting’ entails, check out her debut column- Here’s Looking at You, Kid on pp 72). We understand some of you ‘vintage types’ may prefer to read an ‘old fashioned’ hard copy of the magazine- now thanks to Peecho you can. Simply follow the instructions through Issuu now. By now, you’ve probably noticed our first ever cover boy gracing this issue. Sam is a barber from Tauranga who specialises in vintage cuts and actually has his own salon in Tauranga’s Historic Village... talk about a vintage lifestyler! Didn’t he, and our other models Darren and Leah do an excellent job of modelling in our drag racer fashion spread? L-R: Editors Rose Jackson, Natasha Francois, and Claire Gormly. In front, Art director Stephen Templer.
Editor’s Letter It’s been a hectic few months at Glory Days HQ as we’ve been scurrying about the country pulling together our special fifties-flavoured issue. Although none of us were around back then (alas we’re mainly seventies babies!), it’s hard not to have a fascination with an era which has become so synonymous with style – from Dior’s bold new look and glamorous eyeliner flicks to amazing rockabilly quiffs and sleek modernist lines of mid-century design. Not to mention the abundance of classic cars resplendent in chrome and fins. It’s all damn sexy if you ask us! However, let’s not forget how staid and conservative New Zealand was in the fifties; the Cold War was raging, censorship went mad and there were valiant efforts to ban not only rock and roll, but also teen films such as Rebel Without a Cause. No wonder 4
The fashion team nearly roped in the whole of the Bay of Plenty to achieve just the right look – from the amazing cars that were polished to a mirror shine, the atmospheric garage location that was used thanks to Sean from Little Death Photography’s auntie and uncle, assorted mum’s and friends that drove people to and from the shoot and of course all the fantastic New Zealand stores that lent us clothing to feature in the shoot. Check it out on pp 15. As usual, we’re proud to bring you the widest possible mix of stories for both guys and gals – from articles about bodgies and widgies and experimental furniture designers, to stories on bullet bras and ideas for recreating fifties finger food –so you’re sure to find something for you within these pages. If you have an idea for a possible article or have something to say, please get in touch. We love to read your feedback. We’re now at a point where we need to raise funds – not only would we love to give back to our wonderful contributors, we’ve also got our sights set on saving
up for a printed version in the not-so-distant future. To help us in our quest, we’re adopting the “Pay What You Want” model- made famous by Radiohead and Amanda Palmer. It’s a unique type of crowdfunding which has the old fashioned values of trust and giving at its heart. We feel it’s the perfect fit for a vintage lifestyle magazine and its readership.
THE TEAM
We’re very excited about seeing where this takes us. We aspire to become part of the internet future, a future where the community can decide the value of what they consume. We promise to keep you posted on how we go. So, if you enjoy what you read, you now have the opportunity to choose how much you’d like to pay for the experience whenever you read each new issue via our website.
Carlos De Treend, Clarissa Dunn, Faye Lougher, Grace La Belle, Luke de Large, Leimomi Oakes, Mandy Neugebauer, Mark Roulston, Melanie Freeman, Rose Jackson, Sarah Lancaster, Sean Joyce, Malayka Joseph, Andy Millar, Ella Macedo, Von Vonski, Debbie Hodder, Claire Regnault, Jade Lucas.
A special thanks must go to our wonderful advertisers who have supported us so far – check out their websites and please give them your business if you can. We love to champion our New Zealand vintage scene and we hope you do too!
art director
Natasha, Rose and Claire,Eds.
EDITORS/publishers Claire Gormly, Natasha François, Rose Jackson editors@glorydaysmagazine.com
CONTRIBUTORS
PHOTOGRAPHERS Little Death Photography, Mandi Lynn, Rose Jackson
Stephen Templer
DEsigner Nathalie Gregory
PUBLICITY Rose Jackson
ADVERTISING & EVents Claire Gormly - advertising@glorydaysmagazine.com
Published by glory days publishing ltd. The opinions expressed by the contributors are not necessarily those of the publishers, but we like to encourage different opinions, healthy debate and a variety of ideas at Glory Days. The content and design of this publication is the copyright of Glory Days Publishing Ltd and therefore may not be reproduced in part or whole without permission of the publishers. Having said that, we do love to share so just drop us a line if you would like to feature anything from within the pages of this magazine.
Cover Credits:
Anyone providing material for Glory Days must ensure they acquire permission if necessary before submission. We make every effort to trace copyright holders, but apologise if we make any transgressions. Do get in touch if you feel that your work has not been properly acknowledged and we will right any wrongs.
Photography - A La Mode Photography Styling - The Vanity Case and Decadia Vintage clothing - James Dean Jacket, 50’s cut jeans, white tee from Duncan Inc. Model - Sam.
The editors would like to thank: All our fabulous contributors and designers – we could not have done it without you. The New Zealand vintage community – so many talented and enthusiastic people to cover in this magazine!
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Contents
Features:
.Fashion:
Page 24 - Youth Gone Wild: In the mid fifties, a Page 01 - Glory Girl: Ahoy Cutie! The divine new breed of juvenile deliquent captured the public imagination.
Page 28 - Everything Old is New Again: The starlets of yesteryear were no stranger to fad diets, dodgy pills or bizarre beauty aids’, says Mandy Neugebauer.
Page 30 - the buzz about honey: Von Vonski
Katrina McCloy.
Page 15 - Drag Racer: Hearts race and engines throb as our fashion team takes rockabilly style to the streets.
Page 52 - Fully Fashioned - Crinoline Ladies in the Nuclear Age: The full-skirted
catches up with Miss Pinuup 2013 winner Honey L’Amour, aka. Brigette Baker.
silhouette might be dubbed the ‘New Look’, but the design was entirely rooted in the past, says Leimomi Oakes.
Page 38 - Grand Designs: A new exhibition
Page 62 - People Watching: Street Style at the
shines the spotlight on iconic Californian design.
Very Vintage Day Out.
Page 47 - Provenance - The Bikini Chair:
Page 76- The Beauty Spot - Perfecting the flick: Rose Jackson demonstrates the art of the cat’s
Experimental furniture designer Garth Chester’s ‘bikini chair’ brought sex appeal to the table.
Page 50 - Back in My Day - Dapper Dan, the Hairdressing Man: The life and times of a hairdressing pioneer.
Page 54 - From the Footlights: Clarissa Dunn charts the history of Wellington’s State Opera House 6
eye flick.
Lifestyle: The Gentlemen’s Club: Brought to you by Lambretta Page 42 - The Dapper Gent: Carlos de Treend salutes the unpretentious grace of the rotary dial Bakelite telephone.
Page 44 - Duck Tales: Julian and Sue Maloney celebrate the rise of the ‘hair cult’ – the first time in the 20th century that guys had the chance to outshine girls in the fashion and hair stakes.
Page 68 - Cinema Scope: Mark Roulston explains why quintessential teen drama, Rebel Without a Cause represents classical Hollywood at its very best.
Page 70 - Net Worth: Melanie Freeman chats with Vintage Vixen blogger Solanna Cornell.
Page 73 - Paper Shaker: The secret life of Hollywood legend Ingrid Bergman.
Every issue: Page 04 - Editor’s letter: Welcome to our 1950s issue!
Page 08 - Meet the Contributors: The talented people behind your favourite vintage magazine.
Page 46 - The Rockabilly Rant: The debut column from our brand new rockabilly columnist, Andy Millar.
Page 10 - Speak Easy: Your feedback from
Page 56: Hopped Up - Ruby, Will You be mine? Faye Lougher proudly shows us her 1973
PAGE 11 - The Scoop: All the news, hot off the wire;
Lilliput Gazelle caravan, ‘Ruby’.
PAGE 72 - Here’s Looking at You, Kid: Introducing our new vintage parenting columnist, Malayka Yoseph.
Page 74 - Make, Do and Mend - Gosh Darn It!
Facebook, Twitter and the blogosphere.
event reports, recommendations and reviews.
PAGE 84 - Hot Dates: What to do, with whom, where and when.
PAGE 87 - glory days telegram: A bit of news about Glory Days’ exciting new venture!
Sarah Lancaster revisits the lost art of darning.
Page 78 - What’s Cookin’ Good Lookin’? Devilled eggs, pigs in a blanket and cheese balls. Debbie Hodder teaches us how to entertain; 1950s style.
Reviews: Page 58 - This Vintage Town: Christchurch It may be down, but it’s not out – especially when it comes to amazing vintage sights, sounds and entertainment says Jo Nixon-Sparks.
Page 64: High Fidelity - Cry Baby Jo: Introducing the most hip shakin’, foot stompin’, top tappin’ musicians ever to grace the Garden City.
Page 82 - The Burlycue Review: Grace La Belle riffs on bullet bras. 7
Nutrition teacher and indulged my fashion sense through up-cycling. I now run my own Wearable Art Gallery (handmade and vintage clothes) in Warkworth and indulge my food sense writing for Glory Days.
Mark Roulston My fascination with the cinema came from growing up in the 80s, and staring at the macabre covers of a million trashy horror flicks at my local Video Village – a scene I would return to by working in video stores for the best part of a decade, later on in life. My inner movie geek was, like so many others, fed on classic family fare like Star Wars, Labyrinth and The Princess Bride before I started to reach further back into the pantheon, and discovered the joys of Classical Hollywood.
Debbie Hodder Food and fashion have always been twin passions of mine. My first fashion memories are of forcing my mother to cut out elaborate paper crowns for me (perhaps I was channelling the Victorian era at the age of 4?). I progressed to absorbing every word in Vogue at the age of 13 and later turned into a thrifty cook, making dinner for my family for just $1 per meal. In my 20s, I made slightly more money working part-time at a wearable art boutique and via parttime nutritional counselling. Something went slightly awry when I met and married a Kiwi bloke and moved from Sante Fe, New Mexico to New Zealand and began milking cows. You can bet I had the best matching gumboots, hats and gloves to coordinate with my overalls! Food came to the forefront with exquisite New Zealand ingredients and hungry farmers to feed. Eventually I became self-employed via coffee, cafes and catering. I then morphed into a Food and 8
After gorging on the works of Hitchcock, Curtiz and Welles, I started seeking out books and documentaries about the history of film, and after a largely cinema-free jaunt overseas, eventually earned a film degree. Somewhere along the way I started writing my own blog, reviewing films and occasional features. Nowadays my day job consumes most of my time, but I manage to maintain a diet of around 300 films a year, and constantly play catchup with the classics.
Jo Nixon-Sparkes For me there has never been another way – it’s always been vintage. I spent my formative years trawling through the old shipping trunks in our basement which, to my good fortune, were filled with my mum’s old clothes. I could spot an outfit in an old black and white photo that predated my own existence and then go and discover it there, ready-towear, like the day it was made. When I went flatting, I found I much preferred to fill my place with retro goodness. I admired the stylish lines of vintage furniture and fittings, and couldn’t (and still don’t) understand what people saw in new stuff. It was about thinking outside the square and going with what appealed to you, not about liking something because the masses did. Some years on and I’m still living the vintage lifestyle and I can’t imagine it ever changing. I have a wonderful husband who also embraces all things retro (he has an amazing collection of 50’s and 60’s tin robots) and we have our own rockabilly band called Cry Baby Jo. I have two tweenaged kids who are not so keen on “old stuff ’ but I know that one day they will see the light. They won’t be able to help themselves. 9
From facebook: I’m so excited to have found this magazine, thank you Glory Days! - Charlotte Cake Have finally read issue two - lovin’ it. Well done on another excellent read. Love the variety. - Michelle Parish Fab magazine, really look forward to seeing more. - Ruby Heels Wonderful magazine! Particularly liked the ‘Sizing up Vintage Fashion’ article! Pin-Up love from the UK xxx - Frantic About Frances Fantastic read ladies and gents!! There really was something for everyone and all articles were very interesting!! Keep up the great work... I’m starting to anticipate each edition now and love reading from - Von Vonski cover to cover :-) Great magazine and nice to meet you at Highwic House. I’m off on an amazing Route 66 trip in a couple of weeks and hope to find vintage goodies along the way. - U Pendergrast-Mathieson Hullo from your newest liker! Wish we got this mag in AU, it sounds FAB! I spent 5 yrs in NZ and was always astounded at how full to overflowing it was with undiscovered treasures :) - DarnSexySecondHand Loved the articles on vintage sizing and vintage trousers....for a WW2 issue it would have been nice to have included an article on women’s uniforms and the varied and all encompassing war effort by females! But realise you can only include so much as there has to be room for the regular columns too etc.... - Susie Ford Congratulations on a job well done Team Glory Days! :-) Time for a celebratory drink and feet up no doubt! - Melanie Russ
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FROM Twitter: James C C Yang, @JamesCCYang: Check out my photos in @glorydaysmag from the awesome launch party at Lucha Lounge Corso Mio, @CorsoMio: Love @Laneway_Esme’s vintage #tulle powder blue + lavender dress! Have you heard of @glorydaysmag from NZ? you’d <3 this! #fashion #vintage Esme & the Laneway, @Laneway_Esme: I’m featured in the @glorydaysmag talking about everyday vintage dressing! VOUTIQUE, @voutique: @glorydaysmag Lovely Magazine! X Temptation Cakes AKL, @temptationcakez: @glorydaysmag OMG thanks for the add I did not know you existed and wow what an awesome mag will spread the word X Ashley, @ Hollywood Noir: We need more publications like yours. You definitely do justice to all things vintage x Rachel Cahill, @anurbangypsy: Just reading @glorydaysmag & loving it! Love to see innovative, creative & diverse energy being showcased so accessibly. Awesome mag!
We love to read your feedback! Please drop us a line at editors@glorydaysmagazine.com Everyone who submits feedback for issue three will be entered into the draw for a prize pack from Decadia, Voluptuous Vintage and The Vanity Case worth over $50, so make sure you share your thoughts to be in to win!
WELLINGTON’S NAUGHTIEST SECRET The Bootleg Bar is a hidden
In May, Black Betty’s Vintage hosted “Shop & Bop” at the Hard Luck Cafe in Auckland. It was a concept market held in the famous Ironbank courtyard that brought together music, shopping and food. Visitors were able to bop along to vintage vinyl tunes by DJ Netti Page and Andy Millar, grab a slider and beer (or a juice and salad) at Hard Luck Cafe, then shop to their vintage heart’s content at dozens of stalls jam packed with treasure! Stalls included vintage from as far back as the Victorian era right up to the 90s. There was reworked vintage, vintage reproductions, cupcakes that were like biting into a cloud, tiki carvings, hand made head pieces that would make a showgirl squeal with delight, eye popping jewellery and accessories made of perspex and vintage hair and make up artists on hand to style you like a retro beauty. This market had it all!
treasure nestled behind Ivy Bar, inside the James Smith Arcade. The prohibition era bar is dark and mysterious but certainly not gloomy thanks to a beautiful centrepiece stacked with coloured bottles of grog, with labels removed to create that home brew feel. Mood-lighting and even more nooks by way of booths make it feel like Wellington’s naughtiest secret – our very own Speakeasy where one could almost expect the local bobby to crash the party and shut the joint down. The bar pays homage to legend as it’s said the space was used by none other than James Smith to brew his spirits, and it conjures visions of another legend, Marilyn Monroe, in the film Some Like it Hot. It would be exciting to see the 1920s/1930s feel carried to its full potential, with Speakeasy nights featuring cabaret and burlesque. Bailey McCormack
Black Betty mainly sells on Trade Me, but felt there should be more done to give people an affordable opportunity to sell great quality items face to face. It brought some online sellers out of cyberspace for the first time, and was a roaring success! Keep an eye on facebook.com/blackbettysvintage for updates and info on future ventures. Mandy Neugebauer Bailey McCormack gets in the Speakeasy spirit.
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The Jiving competition
VIVA LA VINTAGE!
Ella and Doris Mayday
With Micheline Pitt and Erika Reno of Pinup Girl Clothing
On March 28th, one of the world’s largest rockabilly gatherings, The 16th annual Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekender kicked off in spectacular style at the Orleans Hotel, Las Vegas. Pompadours and victory rolls were perfectly formed, swing dresses appropriately fluffed up with petticoats, greasers had their combs at the ready, while ladies clutched red lipsticks as they geared up for four jam packed days of total rockabilly immersion. My fiancee and I had been planning the trip over for nigh on a year and it certainly did not disappoint. We attended as many events we could; including the jiving competition, burlesque showcase and The Satin Dollz. It was also a unmissable opportunity to meet some of my online friends who I’ve been in contact with for nearly two years via Facebook, and to finally meet them in the flesh was one of the high points of the trip.The car show on the Saturday was one of the main events and featured tons of gorgeous cars with 12
The Car Show
With Pinup Girl Clothing models Masiumi Max and Angelique Noire
so many to ogle at and a great range of styles from various eras, as well as vendors and a mainstage with all day entertainment. Unsurprisingly, the shopping was to-die-for, there were mostly stalls from vintage reproduction brands like Pinup Girl Clothing (my personal favourite), Unique Vintage and Daddyo’s, with a few genuine vintage sellers mixed in as well. I went a little crazy, buying enough to have to drop shopping bags off to the hotel room within an hour of getting there. There was some great menswear stuff on offer too, Matt bought nearly as much as me! Viva Las Vegas is such a fun event and a great excuse for a trip to the USA. After a week in Vegas, we headed off for 5 nights in L.A and 3 nights in Hawai’i. We would love to get back for the annual event in the next few years and highly recommend it for anyone who can make the trip. By Ella Macedo
C A P T I VAT I N G ST YLE 1950s Melbourne National Gallery of Victoria, Australia until July 28 New Zealand-born Clarence Hall Ludlow has been described as Australia's first true couturier, opening a salon at the Paris end of Collins Street, Melbourne in 1949, then branches in Sydney and Hong Kong. Ludlow dressed Australia's jet setters and the social elite of the time; was esteemed by fashion photographers such as Helmut Newton, Athol Shmith and Bruno Benini and his designs were renowned for their elegance, innovative design, high quality craftsmanship and technical skill. This small exhibition pairs the work of designer Hall Ludlow and Thomas Harrison milliner, both acclaimed for their ingenious designs and technical prowess, with the fashion photography of Athol Shmith, the celebrated studio and street photographer. By Barbara Holloway
Faye at the beginning of the run to Onemana Beach, lined up along the waterfront at Whangamata.
hop TO IT!
I swear the Beach Hop gets bigger and better every year and the fashions get even more fabulous! Last year I decided to dress up for the first time and had an absolute ball, and now we’ve got a 1963 Thunderbird, there’s room for a whole week’s worth of outfits! We cruised up Monday with Ruby, our retro caravan attached, and Whangamata was already swarming with amazing cars. Wednesday was the Waihi Warm Up Party, one of my favourite days at the Hop. I walked away with the prize for best-dressed woman! Tairua was the destination for Thursday and the weather was glorious. After weeks of drought, we had rain every day of the Hop, but thankfully it seemed to rain overnight and clear by mid-morning. Friday is one of the biggest days at the Hop, and even though the run to Onemana Beach is the shortest, it takes the longest due to the sheer number of cars – well over a thousand on the run, and at least twice as many lining the roads to watch. Because we’d taken our caravan, we never got the chance to have a look at the rest of the cars due to the steady stream of people wanting to peek inside. Saturday was the classic caravan show. Again, Ruby was a hit. One woman, dressed as Marilyn Monroe, came over all emotional when I said she could go inside, and all I could hear was “wow, oh wow”! We had a ball (despite my beloved forgetting to fill the car before the grand parade, causing an unscheduled roadside stop) and hope we did our bit to promote the 1950s and 1960s. By Faye Lougher 13
pr int d esign pho t o gr aphy illust r at io n and mo r e n a t h a l i e . p. m . g r e g o r y @ g m a i l . c o m
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Drag Racer
hearts race and engines throb as rockabilly style takes to the streets Two tone polka dot dress and bolero - Lemonade on the Lawn Petticoat – Vamporium Shoes – Stylist’s own
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James Dean jackets and 50’s cut jeans - Duncan Mclean Shoes - Model’s own
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Blue and orange western shirt – Strangely Normal Jeans – Model’s own Bandana – Decadia Vintage
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Gingham checked shirt – Rita Sue Black capri pants and belt – Rita Sue Shoes – Vivienne Westwood for Melissa
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Rockbilly western shirt – Rita Sue Black denim pants – Strangely Normal Sunglasses – Model’s own
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Black polka dot halter dress – Rita Sue Stockings – Rita Sue Shoes – United Nude White and black polka dot sunglasses – Rita Sue
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Black polka dot halter dress – Rita Sue Stockings – Rita Sue Shoes – United Nude
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Left: Diablo cards shirt – Strangely Normal 50’s cut jeans - Duncan Mclean Converse Chuck Taylors
Right: Pinup country and western shirt – Strangely Normal 50’s cut jeans - Duncan Mclean Pride blue suede shoes - Strangely Normal
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Credits
Photography – A la Mode Photography, www.lamode.co.nz Art Director – Sean Joyce Styling – Decadia Vintage, www.decadiavintage.com and The Vanity Case, www.thevanitycase.co.nz Models – Leah, Darren, Sam Clothing – Duncan Inc, (04) 389 2466. Lemonade on the Lawn, stockists nationwide, (04) 387 9939. Rita Sue, www.ritasue.co.nz, Strangely Normal,www. strangelynormal.com Props – Retro America, (07) 574 3829 Thanks to Trevor Mildon for the 1956 Buick, Garth & Lynne Paton for the 1961 Chrysler Imperial, and Neil & Rhonda McNickle for the 1959 Chevrolet Apache Pickup Truck. A very special thanks to Teresa for lending us her house.
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By Natasha Francois
in the mid 50’s, a new breed of juvenile delinquent captured the public’s imagination...
In the mid 1950s, a wave of juvenile delinquency gripped the nation. Gangs of “bodgies” and “widgies” (New Zealand and Australia’s answer to Britain’s Teddyboys and America’s Greasers) captured the public imagination and sparked a moral panic. These strangely-dressed teens - the “bodgies” with their eye-wateringly tight stovepipe trousers (some were even sewn into their trousers), winklepickers, slicked back hair and drape coats; and the “widgies” resplendent in skin tight black jeans, lashings of black eyeliner, wide belts and low heeled pumps - loved nothing more than to congregate in American style milkbars (bodgies with motorbikes were dubbed “Milkbar Cowboys”) or
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lounge insouciantly in doorways trying to look tough. At night they would flood into dance halls to madly jive to swing (later rock and roll), before roaring off on their motorbikes with a “widgie” perched on the pillion, leaving a cloud of exhaust fumes in their wake. Primarily a white working-class subculture (unlike the beatniks who were middle class and preferred dimly lit coffee bars), the flamboyant newcomers soon had the authorities in a spin. Popular bodgie and widgie hangouts included The Majestic Theatre on Queen Street, The Beau Monde in Dunedin and Elbe’s milk bar in Lower Hutt.
Law-abiding citizens looked on in horror as these sexually-ambiguous, morally-questionable loafers took part in fighting, fornicating, drinking copious amounts of wine and beer and vandalising public property. Fuelled by sensationalist tabloid media reports, members of the public took it for granted that significant numbers of teenagers had gone off the rails. Frightened parents advised their offspring to avoid looking at the bodgies on trips to town, for fear that they might be tempted to join their ranks. Some adults advocated reintroducing the birch or packing them off to military training camps to jolt them out of their wayward ways. As Wellington social historian Redmer Yska relays in his book All Shook Up: The Flash Bodgie and the Rise of the New Zealand Teenager, (Penguin, 1993), the time was ripe for teenage rebellion. The country had undergone dramatic social, economic and political change in the wake of the Second World War, paving the way for the emergence of a brand new youth subculture. The Parker-Hulme murders were still fresh in public memory. In 1954, Christchurch school girls, Pauline
Parker and Juliet Hulme took turns bludgeoning Pauline Parker’s mother, Honora to death. And following a series of teen sex scandals involving girls under the age of 16, the New Zealand government launched a public enquiry into teen morality. The 1954 ‘Mazengarb report’ (Report of the Special General Committee on Moral Deliquency in Children and Adolescents) resulted in the ramping up of censorship laws. Meanwhile, American crime writer Mickey Spillane (Kiss Me Deadly, My Gun is Quick) became public enemy number one. His best-selling pulp novels were lambasted as “ entirely devoid of any literary or other merit, devoted to the wanton depiction in gross detail of brutality and violence and sex.”
Pulp fiction, the inexpensive paper novels created with low grade wood pulp and churned out en masse, were derided for being “corrupting and perverting matter” and were blamed for “destruction of standards and their shameless depictions of sexual intercourse.” Prompted into action by the moral’s committees fears of the dangerous influences of pulp fiction on youth, Parliament hurried through the Indecent Publications Bill in 1954. Importers and booksellers now faced stringent new rules to register with the
justice department, and had to stamp every book with their contact details to make it easier to trace the source of the indecent material. In an audacious display of fanaticism, police raided every library, milkbar and dairy and purged them of Spillane and Milestone books in June and July of 1955. Popular teen films also came under fire. And although the highly anticipated premiere of Rock Around the Clock failed to spark rioting teenagers as had been feared, The Wild One, starring Marlon Brando was banned outright in 1954 for the ‘dangerous anti-establishment attitudes’ depicted in the film. After being reviewed a year later, the film ended up being banned until 1977.
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Satan”, the 19 year-old bodgie, elicited excited screams from the pony-tailed girls in his audience, attracted sell out houses and became our first homegrown teen idol. Finally, New Zealand teens had music to call their own. The appearance of the pelvis swivelling Presley had earlier sparked a stream of protest from television viewers who firmly believed his gyrations had no place in the family living room. The “Devil’s music” with its sexually suggestive rhythms and lyrics became a threat to the social order. The New Zealand Broadcasting Service decided the best way to deal with the rock and roll menace was to pretend it didn’t exist. It was a time where censorship reigned supreme, the cold war was raging and anti-communist hysteria was gaining momentum - a catalyst for the communist paranoia was the landmark 1951 Watersider’s strike, which was blamed squarely on the “communist wreckers”.
The birth of the bodgie preceeded the birth of rock and roll, which overturned the British tradition for ballroom dancing and created a voracious appetite for Hollywood movies, comic strips and pop culture. Bodgies started off dancing to boogie woogie and other forms of black music, and later switched to rock and roll which was accused of inciting juvenile delinquency. In 1957, New Zealand’s answer to Elvis Presley, Johnny Devlin achieved notoriety. Dubbed the “Satin
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Rumours of debauchery in Wellington coupled with a suspicion of the new milk bars – due in part because they created untold opportunities for fraternising between the two sexes – further fanned the flames. As Yske explains, the 1955 “Milkbar Murder” also gave the tabloids plenty of salacious fodder for their front pages. Teenager Sharon Skiffington, of Hawera was gunned down by her spurned boyfriend at Somervill’s milkbar in Auckland causing a media sensation. Public interest was at fever pitch, the court was
Australian authorities, and created detailed case studies of the lives and behaviour of each individual (Manning uses pseudonyms to protect the privacy of each youth).
packed and the case scandalised the jury. Eventually Frederick Foster was sentenced to death for the murder (capital punishment for murder was reintroduced in 1950). Then in July 1955, 19-year-old ‘Paddy’ Black stabbed ‘Johnny McBride’ as he leaned over a jukebox in a Queen Street cafe. The fatal stabbing was the result of a rumble between a 16-year-old brunette in a beer house in Wellesley Street, rented by the accused, an Irish labourer and a self-proclaimed ‘bodgie.’ Now that the nation had evidence that bodgies were not only violent, but immoral too, the bodgie subculture came under added scrutiny. Auckland-based psychologist, A.E Manning decided to apply his own scientific methods to get to the heart of the matter. In his famous book The Bodgie: A Study in Abnormal Psychology (A. H & A.W Reed, Wellington, 1958), Manning conducted a comprehensive series of interviews with twenty young men and women – all labelled “juvenile delinquents” by the New Zealand and
With the book, he aimed to “clarify the `sociological and psychological problems facing a world with a substratum of troubled youth: to show their disturbed viewpoint and the reasons for it; and to show the conditions and factors that must be rectified for the sake of a good society and for the people who have been injured by social factors beyond their control.” The book, which Manning originally intended as a detached and unemotional look at an urgent social problem, turned into a crusade. He eventually concluded that juvenile delinquency existed primarily because society had failed the youths through a lack of understanding about youth psychology, therefore adults were to blame for the very problems they denounced. Manning added that “when a group of ten of these young people freely voice their complaints against society and suggest some remedies, society would be wise to listen.” Bodgies and widgies were the first distinctive post-war subculture and although they gradually disappeared from the scene in the mid 1960s, they were instrumental in blazing a trail for successive youth cultures including rockers, mods, hippies, surfies and punks. Today, their spiritual children can be found racing up and down the main street of every town and city in New Zealand, come a Friday or Saturday night.
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Everything Old By Mandy Neugebauer Reclining in a friend’s mid century modernist lounge, we began watching the 1939 movie The Women. It was late, I was tired. In the film, the fashions are divine, the script witty, but my eyes were heavy. Then a line in the movie “gluten free” pinched me and I woke up. I quickly asked my friend if I had heard correctly, if she had really asked for gluten free. Indeed she had. This immediately sparked a discussion between us on what women do now to maintain their bodies, and what they did then. It turns out we are less innovative than we are “sold” to believe. Watching what one eats can be tiring and labour intensive at the best of times. Open any women’s magazine from the 50s, and you’ll be bombarded with column ads for diet pills. These would never fly today – as they are so ridiculously artificial! One magazine I flicked though boasted no less than eight ads for pills and potions which promised to transform your body in mere weeks. No mention of ingredients, or how the pills should be taken in conjunction with healthy diet and exercise. Yet miraculously they all came with a doctor’s seal of approval and were described as “a proven and tested formula!” A single pill led to boundless energy and improved digestion (code for laxative), then you turn the page and there’s another magic pill which promises to cure anxiety, loss of appetite – all while taking inches off your waistline! Chances are the poor woman who takes this pill would then need the other to balance her out. Wait, is this sounding familiar? Don’t we read about celebrities and their battles with addiction and weight, all the time these days? Be it weight or appearance, famous celebrities of yesteryear had the same battles as we do, and may not have been the natural beauties we believe them to be. Rita Hayworth was subjected to electrolysis on her hairline for over a year, because the studio thought it too low and that it made her face appear too round. They dyed her fringe lighter during the transition to disguise her uneven hairline. This became a style trend called “the streak” and was avidly copied by fans. Little did they know she was actually being sculpted to the studio specifications. 28
is New Again! Other screen actresses may have had killer curves, but chances are their curves were killing them until they took their girdles off ! So much smoke and mirrors... Now I’m back flicking through my old magazines. And it seems, the only thing that outnumbers slimming ads, is body shaping ads. From creams promising to increase your bust to innovative latex shapewear, women in the 50’s were all about the fast track to beauty. And you know what? They were prepared to go all the way, and to hell with comfort! Today, comfort is king. And just look what he has done to our bodies! Lycra is everywhere, but has little power compared to the medical-grade bandage used in vintage girdles. If today comfort is king, in the 50s sacrifice was queen. She demanded much from women, and most opened their alligator purses to pay their respects. For sacrificing comfort promised such wonderful rewards. Ten years younger, flatter here, curvier there - you will feel better than you could ever imagine. So why wouldn’t you? Why today do we not want to sacrifice comfort for beauty? Surely in today’s world it’s a fair trade? Well the proof is all around you, walking to work, in shopping malls, bars and gyms. It seems today we would rather drag it out and pay top dollar, or not try at all. Comfort trumps sacrifice. Marketing has phased out the quick fix in order to extract more money from us; whether it’s by selling us long-term gym memberships, healthy eating and mediocre underwear that merely attempts to smooth us out rather than lace us in. Today we’re told there’s no quick fix. But in the 50s before you went out, all you had to do was down a few pills, pour yourself into your girdle - and feel like a million bucks. All for a little sacrifice! So next time you hear someone order a herbal tea to wash down their “supplements” and a glutenfree, macrobiotic salad after they’ve come back from their bikram yoga class, exposing their Spanx when they bend over to get their purse from their gym bag - have a giggle. Cause the women of the 50s did it first, faster, from home and with their femininity intact! 29
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It was hard to pin down Miss Pin Up New Zealand 2013, but busy mum Brigette Baker aka Honey L’Amour, found time one chilly Sunday evening to kick off her heels and reflect on her successful day at The Very Vintage Day Out on April 13 2013. With the strains of Chuck Berry crooning in the background, the petite pinup and self- confessed blonde, bubbly mummy sits down to talk to Glory Days about her Miss Pin Up experience and her goals for the future.
THE BUZZ ABOUT Honey By Von Vonski. Why did you decide to enter Miss Pin Up NZ? It actually took me a long time to build up the confidence to enter and I didn’t send my entry form in till the very last minute. But I decided that was the exact reason I needed to enter - to get my confidence back and get back in “the game” after taking a hiatus due to becoming a mother. At the risk of sounding cheesy – I also wanted to make my daughter proud, I hope that one day she will boast about her mummy winning Miss Pinup NZ back in 2013. You have said that Marilyn Monroe is your favourite icon - what traits of hers did you want to emulate for the competition? Marilyn had immaculate style, she always looked so polished but with a beautiful softness. She had a special light-heartedness about her which gave her a youthful essence. The trait of hers that I admire is her ability to be glamorous while still being light and fluffy. 31
THE BUZZ ABOUT Honey
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THE BUZZ ABOUT Honey
Run us through your day at VVDO: I had a lovely start to my day with high tea with some other contestants and competition winners. Then the rest of my time before the competition was spent flitting around chatting with friends and browsing the stalls for goodies. What do you like most about the vintage/pin up community in NZ? Everyone is so warm and welcoming itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s like a great big, really good looking vintage family. I love that through the use of social media I have built such a rapport with other vintage lovers who I have never even met in the flesh! Tell us about Brigette Boop Couture.. I started Brigette Boop Couture back in 2006 while studying Fashion Design at Whitecliffe College of Art and Design. BBC is inspired by the fun, flirty and glamorous clothing of the 1940s and 50s with a rockabilly twist. Most pieces are one-off designs and are made with love by myself in my home studio. You can see some of my pieces at www.facebook.com/brigetteboopcouture. 34
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THE BUZZ ABOUT Honey
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GRAND DESIGNS California Design, 1930–1965:
Living in a Modern Way By Jade Lucas Hendrik Van Keppel (1914‐1988, active Los Angeles and Beverly Hills) Van Keppel‐Green (Beverly Hills, 1939‐early 1970s) Lounge Chair and Ottoman, designed c. 1939; made c. 1959 Enameled steel, cotton cord (replaced) Chair: 24 ½ x 20 ½ x 33 in.; Ottoman: 12 x 20 ½ x 21 in. LACMA, Gift of Dan Steen in memory of Taylor Green Photo © 2011 Museum Associates/LACMA
California’s potential has always seemed unlimited. The bright lights of Hollywood and its sunny climate attracted romantics with carefree attitudes, alongside businessmen with an eye for the region’s oil fields and fertile agricultural land. In the 1950s, post-war era it absolutely flourished. America’s middle-class was growing at an unprecedented rate, matched with a rising appetite for consumer goods.
Recreation Pavillion in the Mirman House Photographer Julius Sherman became famous for his industrial images and modern California homes. This objective photography shows how postwar architecture benefited from the use of industrial materials. Looking at the Mirman house you can easily imagine it being anywhere in New Zealand. Inside-outside living really began in postwar California - Sherman’s images give us a glimpse into what modern California living was all about.
Working to a soundtrack of West Coast jazz, Bakersfield Country and a twang of folk, California’s artists, craftspeople and designers created some of the most influential products, furnishings and houses of mid-twentieth-century America. Auckland Art Gallery’s latest touring exhibition California Design, 1930–1965: Living in a Modern Way - explores the heyday of California cool. The following are but a few of the vast array of artworks, items and objects that feature in the exhibition... 38
Buff, Straub & Hensman (1955–1961, later Buff, Hensman and Associates) Recreation pavilion, Mirman House, Arcadia, 1958 Photo by Julius Shulman, 1959 Getty Research Institute © J. Paul Getty Trust. Used with permission. Julius Shulman Photography Archive, Research Library at the Getty Research Institute (2004.R.10)
Levi strauss & co. Most people think of Levi Strauss & Co. in terms of indigo blue jeans, known as ‘waist overalls’ until the 1950s when the word ‘jeans’ entered the American vocabulary. In addition to jeans, they developed sportswear in the 1950s that brought casual style to America and beyond. By 1960, these fashions would be seen from Mount Maunganui to Takapuna Beach.
Her aesthetic promoted relaxed lifestyle furniture housed in modern interiors. One of the key designers of this period, Grossman was internationally renowned for her ability to mix simplicity with imaginative and complex metalwork techniques. She was the first to say ‘…we’re living in the modern way’.
Levi Strauss & Co. (San Francisco, 1853–present) Pants and top, c. 1955 Cotton Levi Strauss & Co. Archives, San Francisco
Greta Magnusson Grossman (b. Sweden, 1906–1999, active Los Angeles) Ralph O. Smith Manufacturing Company (Burbank, c. 1949–54)
Photo © 2011 Museum Associates/LACMA.
Lamp Swedish émigré Greta Magnusson Grossman took her Scandinavian training and background and applied it to designing objects with great success in California.
Lamp, c. 1949; manufactured c. 1949–54 Iron, aluminum 51 x 14 7/8 x 12 1/4 in. (129.5 x 37.8 x 31.1 cm) LACMA, Decorative Arts and Design Council Fund © Great Magnusson Grossman Estate. Photo © 2011 Museum Associates/LACMA
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Lazlo Fabric Described as ‘the rich man’s architect’ by Time Magazine in 1952, interiors by Paul Lāzló were coveted by Hollywood’s elite. He counted Gary Cooper, Carey Grant and Barbara Stanwyck among his clientele and brought contemporary art to textile design so that the furniture and drapery would be completely integrated. Drawing on his early studies in architecture and interior design in Europe, he built up a diverse portfolio ranging from department stores to offices and hotels, as well as translating his opulent style for mass-produced furniture designs for manufacturers such as Herman Miller and Rattan Stylists.
to one of the monthly Open Late events featuring talks, music and refreshments for a truly immersive experience in California cool.
Visit www.aucklandartgallery.com for more information Buy tickets from www.eventfinda.co.nz
Paul László (b. Hungary, 1900–1993, active Beverly Hills) Paul Laszlo’s European Group textile, 1954 or before Rayon, cotton 105 1/2 x 48 5/8 in. (268 x 123.5 cm) LACMA, Gift of Peter and Shannon Loughrey © Paul Lászlo Estate/ADAGP, Paris/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
California Design at Auckland Art Gallery features 250 objects including furniture, textiles, fashion, graphics, industrial design, ceramics, jewellery, metalwork, architectural drawings and film something for all interests. We recommend heading 40
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Hello Operator... by Carlos de Treend The desperate race for technological advancement has often yielded astonishing results. We, as a civilisation, have largely benefited through improved living conditions and our lifestyles are now integrated with machinery and software which exponentially reduces manual labour and increases our leisure time. Generally speaking, the human race has developed in leaps and bounds since the 50s. However, we haven’t always gotten it right. We left more than a few good things behind in the name of progress, and we are now suffering immeasurably for it. Par exemple, we had in our sweaty little hands, the product of many years of lab-coat-clad scientific research, a product far surpassing any in its generation for simplicity, functionality and aesthetics, that it may well have been one of the most influential designs of the past century. A single man-made appliance that found its niche in the centre of every modern day home. Masterfully crafted yet mass produced on such a scale that it was within the financial grasp of nearly every average household on the planet. And I’m not even talking about the wind-up tin robot toys made from questionably sourced health hazardous materials. I’m speaking of course about the formidable rotary dial Bakelite telephone. 42
This nearly forgotten device was once the cornerstone of the 50s household. It’s functional design, built around clumsily large circuitry and housed in Bakelite plastic (usually black), left very little to the imagination as if to boldly say, “I am Telephone, accept me as I am.” However, what it lacked in style and flair, it compensated tenfold in practicality and dare I say, unpretentious grace. Equipped with a 15 decibel ringer, and obviously sans-’caller ID’, the spring-loaded bell mechanism signalled an event. TV sets were switched off, oven doors were left open and rubber gloves were placed on counters as soon as each residence became alerted to an incoming call. Before the invention of the answering machine, a missed call could render one sleepless for days. But to intentionally ignore a ringing telephone was a grand act of defiance and simply not a ‘done thing’. Essentially, an unanswered telephone transmission revealed in no uncertain terms to the caller you were either indulging in communist activities, or in the throes of an extramarital affair. See, placing a call was a deliberate decision. The rotating chrome finger wheel on front with ten holes punched out to reveal 1-0 stamped on the Bakelite casing underneath, pulsing as it rolled back to reset with each spin. Each and every call a purposeful gesture and a strong test in patience, as if to say “yes, I have spent half a minute dialling your number, in return I expect your undivided attention”. And of course, one would curse the telephone numbers that contained a few too many zeros as these would take up to 7 seconds each time for the rotating dial to roll back.
Weighing in at nearly five pounds, the standard telephone set was afforded its own desk, usually at the base of a stairwell. A regular bookshelf grimacing at its anchor-like dominance. Even the solid cast hand piece felt deliberate, as you hefted its bulk in your hand. The sheer weight of purpose and a sense of ‘doing’. Unsurprisingly, this same appliance has been used in many films as a murder weapon by method of blunt force trauma to the back of the skull (surpassed in frequency only by the decorative vase), so recurrent is this, that it is often the first area to be dusted for fingerprints by detectives.
But the single biggest asset this wondrously simplistic device offered was its unmatched power of stress relief, released by slamming the handset into its cradle. Bashing down the handset was an abrupt and mightily cold gesture. The immeasurable relief of the action released untold amounts of fury and left the receiver none the wiser. Imagine that! A virtual back-hand slap administered with zest and unbridled contempt but with no real-world repercussions. “You’re fired SLAM” / “Johnny is a homosexual SLAM” / “Your cheesecake was dreadful SLAM”...
The rotary dial mechanism in and of itself was sheer genius. Patented by Almon Brown Strowger on December 21, 1891, it was used in many forms of coding and generating electrical pulses but was never more widely accepted than it’s adaptation for the telephone. It’s introduction signalling a fond farewell to the era of the roller skating switchboard operator.
It’s really no wonder that the retro pin up scene is swathed in photos of women looping the spiraled handset chord around their fingers while spilling glorious gossip through the theatrical reenactment of this lackluster appliance.
Of course, the authentic tin squawk of the handset receiver rendered even the deepest baritone equipped voice a cartoon version of themselves. You could literally hear the waves of sound bouncing along miles of stretched cable wire.
I can only hope that even though the rotary dial Bakelite telephone has seen its days of glory, as with many things of yesteryear, we will always hold it dear.
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DUCK TALES
The Rise of the
Haircult the 1950s By Julian and Sue Maloney
Why do the 1950s still hold their status as the coolest decade of the last century? From a male perspective, it was a time when ‘men were men and women were women’; before the gender distinction became blurred with the long hair and hippy clothes of the 60s and 70s. It was a time of prosperity, when the bright and affluent USA took over from drab post-war England as the key influence on western culture. It was also the first time in the 20th century that guys had the chance to outshine girls in the fashion and hair stakes. From the Depression era right through to the early 60s, the standard, respectable men’s haircut didn’t change much. But within nonconformist sub-cultures and the world of showbiz during the 50s, men’s haircuts – including the flat top, the DA and the pomp - came into their own. Fifties haircuts were hugely influenced by popular culture. Tony Curtis, James Dean and, most importantly, Elvis Presley brought in the age of the 44
‘haircult’. For Frank Sinatra, his glossy hair was such a part of his personality that, after going bald relatively young , he wore wigs until he died. And good luck finding a photo of Tony Curtis in his twilight years without a high silver pomp wig. Barber to the stars Joe Cirello tended the coifs of both Sinatra and Presley in his time as a staff hairdresser at Warner Brothers Studios. He’s even credited with helping James Dean achieve his goal of ‘live fast, die young and leave a good-looking corpse’ by giving him his very last quiff. Members of 50s youth sub-cultures - Edwardians, Teds, Rockabillies, Leather Boys, Greasers and Milk Bar Cowboys - found a new tonsorial weapon in their battle against authority – the swept up, pomaded hair with the back combed around – the DA. Joe Cirello’s other claim to fame is creating the DA (Duck’s Ass) during his time as a barber in South
Philadelphia. He perfected the cut around 1939 by experimenting on a blind boy who used to keep him company in the shop. “He didn’t know what was going on,” Cirello recalled. “He didn’t ask. He just sat there. He was only too glad for the company. And I was only too glad to have him to work on.” Cirello’s DA took off, and swept him all the way to Hollywood. Mainstream society disapproved of and feared the rocker look; words like ‘spiv’ (possible coined from ‘suspicious itinerant vagrant’, or more likely from ‘spiffing’) and, here in the southern hemisphere, ‘bodgie’ (originally meaning fake, inferior or worthless) were coined to disparage the greasy-haired youth. So what does all this mean for the modern man? I believe we’re at a new dawn of men’s haircuts - a retrospective time; we have moved beyond recent unisex styles and the neo-pop-sports cuts (faux hawks and floppy fringes). As with women’s style, there is no stronger look than the past.
Barber Dan recently hung out at Sweeney Todd’s Barber Shop in LA with Almon Loos, ‘The Rocking Barber’. Almon lives and breathes the rockabilly lifestyle, and Sweeney Todd’s embodies timeless cool, with its vintage décor setting the standard. Dan was in the States for Viva Las Vegas, the ‘biggest rockabilly party in the world’ – check out this clip for some amazing looks, and book your tickets for April 2014! Another cool barber to check out is London’s Mr. Ducktail: a self-proclaimed ‘rock ‘n’ roll motherkutter’ in Carnaby Street’s ‘It’s Something Hells’ salon. He has been known to let bona fide rockabillies jump the queue, in front of try-hards or squares. While we don’t aim to compete with the top dogs overseas, our own Maloney’s Barber Shop does combine the modern with a big nod to the past. The final word goes to Barber Dan; when asked why the 50s rock his boat, he simply replied “New shit sucks”.
The biggest change in the barber shop is a move from the textural messy look to the sharp contrast of a slick back or side part with a tight skin fade or super short back and sides. The sides vary from high (military) to low (rockabilly). This look is achieved through modern twists on the classic tools of comb, brush and pomade. In reality, cutting techniques haven’t changed much since the 50s – but modern products have come a long way. Once heavy and petroleum-based, modern products like Layrite and JS Sloane are water soluble and easy to wash out, so you won’t leave greasy stains on your pillow. Guys now realise this kind of look isn’t instantly achieved – a bit of time and the right tools help, such as a vent brush to help heat from the dryer get directly to the hair and give a bit of volume for a quiff or pomp. Two years ago most guys wouldn’t have been seen dead with a comb in their top pocket – now one of Maloney’s biggest sellers is the Kent foldable comb, handmade in the UK. It’s not rocket science, but these cuts do need some styling effort. Let’s face it, if the ladies are willing to spend two hours perfecting their vintage hair and make-up, men can put in the hard yards too. 45
In my pre-teens, every house party my parents gave was greatly anticipated and always commenced with the ritual of pushing the lounge suite back to the walls. From my position by the record player I watched, goggle-eyed, grinning, as my mum and dad, aunts, uncles and friends jived, swung and twisted into the early hours of the morning, scarcely stopping for breath. It was a real treat for me as all I had to do was respond to requests for the next piece of vinyl to be spun. So to say I was instantly hooked would be a monolithic understatement. The record collection grew and often would migrate, in parts, to my bedroom.
A Peculiar History By Andy Millar This, my first column for Glory Days, is a short history of me. So, where do I begin? The nature of what I do, how I dress, the thoughts I have, the things I say cannot be summed up by the word ‘rockabilly’, or can they? I can barely believe I have commenced my first column by asking two nonrhetorical questions. Hardly a well-thought out plan really. A definition of rockabilly purely addresses the style of music, so, for me anyway, it cannot be that. I consider myself to be fortunate in that it is something that I grew up with, ergo, it is not out of the ordinary and it is not different in any way to normal life, but it is my way of life. My parents, like many couples in the UK in the 1950s, met in a local dance hall and their mutual favourite was a venue called ‘The Burma’. My mother had a long-standing debate with her best friend as to which new star was best; her choice, Elvis Presley, her friend’s, Tommy Steele. My father, having served National Service, stationed in Germany; and then worked in the Canadian Northern Territories, and then San Francisco, had a slightly wider influence and was a great fan of Nat King Cole, Janis Martin and Teresa Brewer. Therefore, my passion was born through a process of osmosis. 46
As I grew up fads came and went, however, the constants were always there. I was able to liberate items of clothing from my dad’s closet and found the Aladdin’s Caves that were second hand stores. At the early part of the 1980’s came a Rockabilly revival so I was suddenly and instantly at the forefront of a phenomenon, albeit for a brief period. Closely following this appeared psychobilly that, granted, injected old rockabilly numbers with punk energy. However, I was always roots deep in the 50s originals. I organised club nights that were well-attended and greatly received. There were, and still are, infrequent and unfortunate instances of conceit and snobbishness which inevitably emanates from those individuals who thankfully won’t last the pace. I still find this very odd as the culture is born from an embodiment of freedom, energy and excitement. I challenge anyone to listen to any of the rockabilly standards and not feel the fever. Or maybe that’s just me. So, I thank my parents for the influence they installed and continue to administer. For me, it’s the full package. The clothes are important - it is not ‘dress up’ so wear them well. The music is important, as are the cars and the motorbikes, but it is not a science and it is not short-lived. It should be shared with enthusiasm and without affectation. Moreover, it is what you have upstairs, in your head, and hold in your heart that counts, and that will come over. Until next time - take it greasy.
PROVENANCE
The Bikini Chair Bringing sex appeal to the table
Bikini Chair by Garth Chester, 1955-1960. Te Papa
By Claire Regnault, Senior Curator – Creative Industries Te Papa Tongariro In 1955, Garth Chester, an experimental and self-taught furniture designer, launched a new design - a three-legged chair which he named ‘the Bikini Chair’. As the name suggests, Chester took inspiration from the latest rage in swimwear, which although launched almost a decade earlier, still remained the preserve of only the most daring young women in the early 1950s. Chester first came to prominence as a furniture designer in the 1940s with his ‘Curvesse chair’; a sinuous cantilevered plywood chair that seemed to defy gravity – an achievement which was a world first. Having influenced generations of designers, the ‘Curvesse’ has become a New Zealand design icon. ‘The Bikini Chair’, which was Chester’s most commercially successful product and came in a range of variations, is considered to be Chester’s second most iconic design.
The 39 year-old Chester, perhaps with a little twinkle in his eye, designed the chair so that the plywood seat evoked a bikini brief and the back-rest a Promotion shot of Garth Chester’s Bikini Chairs and Table, c. 1955. Private Collection strapless bra. The chair could be purchased with a three-legged Bikini Table or a standard rectangular table, and also as a bar stool. While whimsical to today’s eyes, there was at least one Auckland housewife who found the Bikini Chair just a little too sexy for her household. On seeing the table and chairs that her husband purchased for their dinette, she firmly rejected them as ‘filthy minded’. Their return was prompt.
Bikini Chairs and Dining Table by Garth Chester, 1955-1960. Te Papa
While the Bikini Chair may not have been to every homemaker’s taste, the lightweight and easily portable chair proved popular among a number of Auckland’s more progressive businesses, including the Ca d’Oro coffee bar and the Sareta Beauty Salon. The black Bikini Chair and manicure table in Te Papa’s collection, which features a sloping arm rest for a pair of elegant hands and in-built lamp, was made especially for Sareta’s. In keeping with Chester’s habit of writing in pencil on the base of his works, the table bears the inscription ‘Manicure Table / Designed for Sareta Salons / By Garth Chester Ltd / 32 France Street / Auckland’.1 Chester had both a workshop and shop in France Street. Founded by Mrs Eleanor K Wright, Sareta Beauty Salon opened for business in Auckland’s Smith and Caughey Building on Thursday 27 June 1929. Declaring Sareta’s to be the most ‘luxurious and most up-to-date’ beauty salon in the dominion, Mrs Wright offered ‘a complete beauty service’, including hairdressing, facial massage, manicuring and chiropody. There was even a themed nursery for the little ones.2
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Harold Kissin, (perhaps best known to New Zealanders for roles in Close to Home and Mortimer’s Patch), and his friend Memé Churton. The daughter of a Chinese father and Italian mother, Memé Ching arrived in New Zealand for a three month holiday in 1950, and ended up marrying Jock Churton, a New Zealand intelligence officer whom she had met in Trieste in 1945. Like many post-war European immigrants, Memé - who thought nothing of wearing Dior while she cooked - found New Zealand ‘raw, uncultured’.5 New Zealander’s swore like troopers, drank too much and dressed like peasants – or even worse like the Queen Mother. The food was shocking, the coffee undrinkable.6
Bikini Chair and Manicure Table by Garth Chester for Sareta Beauty Salons, c. 1957. Te Papa
In July 1942 Monte Winter took over Sareta’s. Fondly remembered by staff and pupils as ‘a gentleman’, Winter was to become synonymous with hairdressing in Auckland for decades to come.3 Photographs taken of Monte Winter’s beauty salon in 1956 reveal a modern interior with a chequerboard floor. While Chester’s Bikini chair and manicure table are not to be seen, it is an interior they would have neatly slipped into with flair. Chester was no stranger to working for beauty salons. In 1953 he designed the furniture for another of Auckland’s leading beauty salons, Kays. Chester’s plywood collection for Kays included three child-sized barbers’ chairs, one of which is now in the collection of the Auckland War Memorial Museum.
Chairs by Garth Chester, circa 1955. Te Papa
The Ca d’Oro coffee bar was just a short walk from the Sareta Beauty Salon on Customs Street West. The coffee bar was established in 1957 by businessman-cum-actor
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Opening advertisement for Ca d’Oro, The Auckland Star, Thursday 11 July, 1957
Blessed with an entrepreneurial spirit, a vivacious personality and flair for cooking, Memé set out to improve the coffee and food stakes in Auckland at least, with a dash of Continental sophistication. Churton and Kissin transformed his family’s failing jewellery store into ‘a new gay colourful Espresso bar with all the atmosphere of Venice’7 with the aid of Dutch designer Peter Smeele, who in turn commissioned fellow Dutch émigré Frank Carpay to design a rod steel mural of a gondola for the cafe. Carpay’s flowing black lines worked perfectly with Chester’s flirtatious Bikini Chairs, which perhaps stood in for the bikini clad beauties of Lido Beach. Memé completed the fit-out with an imported espresso machine that cost 500 guineas, the price she recalls of an Austin car.8 Ca d’Oro or ‘house of gold’, soon became a lively meeting place for ‘the eccentrics, the misfits and the intellectuals of Auckland’, and as the decade rolled over for ‘dazzling drag queens aglow with the glitter and glitz of the 60s’9
Perched on one of Chester’s Bikini Chairs, patrons could dine on artisanal meats, breads, pastries and other delicacies sourced from a variety of European immigrants, and enjoy a convivial and lively atmosphere from 9am to midnight. When Memé established her second coffee bar, Trieste, she once again chose to furnish it with Chester’s ‘striking’ Bikini Chairs.10 Chester may not have been European, but his progressive designs imbued interiors with a modern and up-beat vibe. Following the success of the Bikini Chair, Chester continued to steadily produce new furniture designs, including lighting and heating.11 By the mid-1960s, however, Chester began to suffer from ill health. He sadly passed away in 1968 from emphysema, the result perhaps of routine exposure to paint, glue and lacquer fumes. He was only 52. Examples of Garth Chester’s work can be viewed at Te Papa in the exhibition Ngā Toi / Arts Te Papa and at the Auckland War Memorial Museum in the Encounter Gallery. To view more examples of Garth Chester’s furniture in Te Papa’s collection visit www.collections.tepapa.govt.nz
Bikini Chair (back view) by Garth Chester, 1955-1960. Te Papa
1- Earlier works by Garth Chester often feature an adhesive label reading ‘Riginals’, the name under which he operated until a fire destroyed his factory in 1954. Works following the fire tend to feature hand-written pencil notes. 2 - ‘A New Conception of Beauty Service’ (advertisement), Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 146, 22 June 1929, p15. 3 - Monte Winter opened his first Beauty Salon in 1931. In 1963 he added Winters Hairdressing School to his hairdressing empire. The school still operates today. 4 - The Auckland War Memorial Museum holds a series of photographs of Monte Winter’s beauty salon by Bill Sparrow of Sparrow Industrial Pictures. 5 - Ibid, 136. 6 - ibid,133-137. 7 - Ca d’Oro’s opening advertisement, The Auckland Star, Thursday 11 July, 1957, 8. 8 - Churton, 177 9 - ibid, 178. N. Te Awekotuku, ‘On Grafton and being careful’, Metro, January 1989, V9, No. 91, p.72 10 - ibid, 183 11 - Lloyd-Jenkins, 144.
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BACK In my DAY
the Hairdressing Man
The Life and Times of a Hairdressing Pioneer By Rose Jackson
Daniel O’Sullivan, or ‘Dapper Dan’ as he was better known, was the second son of Michael and Ellen O’Sullivan. Altogether they had eight children - four of whom were born in Coatbridge, Ireland, and four further children born in Wishaw, Scotland. Dan landed a part time job as a soaper at a hairdressers before The Great Depression. During this time the O’Sullivan’s moved out to New Zealand under the assisted immigrant scheme, as Dan’s father - “Big Mick the cutter-down” - found it hard to find work in the steel and Ironworks sector after the plant (in which he worked as a foreman) closed down. In September 1920, the rest of the family left South Hampton on the SS Remuera and travelled via the Panama Canal and Pitcairn Islands, to Auckland. Lodgings were booked in lower Symonds St and they soon decamped to Cambridge to stay with family. Dan managed to secure a part-time job at a men’s hairdressers briefly before moving back to Auckland. There he fell in love with Doris. The pair became engaged, but tragically Doris fell ill with meningitis and passed away before they could marry. Dan then returned to Wairarapa and secured a position at a Hamilton hairdressers. It was here that 50
Dan met and married Ivy, who was also involved in the trade. In the late 30s, the pair moved back to Auckland and Dan opened the prestigious O’Sullivans Beauty Salon located on the third floor of Queen’s Arcade– then one of New Zealand’s premiere shopping destinations. Downstairs was radio station 1ZB- where the likes of Aunt Daisy and other presenters broadcasted. Good buddies with the IZB staff, Dan promoted his salon over the airwaves twice a week at a cost of two and sixpence per ad. At the time, Dan and Ivy were living on Long Drive and doing well enough for themselves to purchase a brand new Ford. Around the same time, Dan banded together with several hairdressing associates to found the New Zealand Hairdressing Association which was inaugurated with a masquerade ball at the Peter Pan. In those days, alcohol was banned from dance halls, meaning a certain amount of subterfuge was necessary in order to get ‘refreshments’ into the hall. Not one to rest on his laurels, following the set up of the association, Dan played a major part in starting up a hairdressing trade journal. He was
Dan with the girls at O’Sullivans also instrumental in creating the NZ Hairdressing Championships, where he held the post of senior judge for many years. During WWII, Dan had no less than eight girls on staff –considered very impressive at the time. Eventually Dan was conscripted into the army and moved out to Papakura Military Camp. The salon continued without him, and Dan would pop in occasionally on one of his infrequent days off to visit the girls and was somewhat piqued to find that they were “doing very well” without him. Eventually O’Sullivan’s closed its doors and Dan opened a smaller salon in St Heliers, before moving to Norfolk Island in the 1960s. There he opened the Dan and Ivy’s Wedding Day
Dan’s handiwork island’s first ever salon. Intrigued residents had never seen a hood dryer before, so it was “the cause of much giggling when it was put on their head”. Dan then moved back to Auckland and ran the salon that used to be in the Hugh Wright’s building in the city until his retirement. Although ‘Dapper Dan’ passed away in 1985, he will be always be fondly remembered as a trail blazing member of New Zealand’s hairdressing community.
Glory Days would like to thank Karen Dobson for sharing her family history and helping to gather information.
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Embroidered ‘Crinoline ladies’ on a 1950’s apron, collection of the author.
By Leimomi Oakes Dior called them ‘flower women’ , with their trim torsos and slender stems of waists rising from the full petals of their skirts, supported by layers of stiff petticoat. They have become the archetypal look of the 1950s, almost to the point of being a cliché, but the paradigm is deserving. The glamorous model in yards of horsehair and taffeta, or the housewife in tulle and gathered cotton, are the perfect representation of the dichotomy of the 1950s. It was a decade at once obsessed with recreating an illusionary, perfect past, and with the futuristic possibilities of new technology and materials. The full-skirted, cinched waist silhouette was dubbed the ‘New Look’, but the design was entirely based in the past. The look specifically referenced mid19th century fashions, but even this was not a new innovation. In 1938 Norman Hartnell had taken the fashion world by storm when he turned away from the sleek ‘30s line and creating romantic, full-skirted frocks inspired by Winterhalter paintings for a royal visit to Paris. The look was further popularised by the 52
massive success of 1939’s Gone with the Wind. At the end of 1939 every woman wanted to be Scarlett O’Hara or Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother). The full skirt was put on hold for the period of the war, but brought back by Dior and Hartnell as part of the ‘New Look’. The ‘New Look’ silhouette is based on one of the oldest fashion tricks of all. From BCE Minoan women in tiers of stiff ruffles, through 16th century farthingales, 18th century paniers, and culminating in mid-19th century hoopskirts, dressmakers use an artificially full skirt to give the illusion of a tiny waist, heightening the wearer’s femininity, and fragility. The term ‘crinoline’ itself dates from the 1830s, when designers sought a way to support widening skirts without the weight of layers of petticoats. Full length 1950’s rayon taffeta and plastic Their invention was
horsehair petticoat, collection of the author.
‘crinoline’: a stiff fabric with a horsehair (‘crin’ in French) weft and linen (‘lin’) warp that sewed up into supportive petticoats. These were quickly replaced by a better invention: light steel hoops. The term crinoline was already so popular it became used for any full skirts supports, from stiffened cotton to wire hoops. Just as the 19th century crinoline silhouette was made possible by new innovations, technology underpinned the 1950s ‘flower women’. Their crinoline skirts were made not of horsehair or steel, but of taffeta and tulle made from newly developed petroleum-based fabrics like nylon. These fabrics were lightweight, easy to clean, and significantly cheaper than their natural-fibre counterparts such as silk marquisette. Over the petticoats went frocks of taffeta, organza, tulle, lace or brocade in petroleum-based synthetics or manufactured naturals made from wood pulp (rayon and viscose). Even 1950s cotton dresses owe their look to new technology: improvements in dyes and printing processes allowed brighter colours and more elaborate patterns. Under the petticoats went nylon stockings, synthetic slips, and bras and bustiers that cinched and supported with recently introduced underwires and elasticated fabrics.The silhouette was old-fashioned, but the materials used would have amazed Winterhalter’s women.
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To be ‘period accurate’ (with your petticoat hidden) your petticoat should be 1” shorter than your skirt. If you prefer your petticoat to peek, it should at least 1” longer than your skirt.
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Avoid too-short petticoats, as nothing is sadder than a lovely dress that ‘collapses’ without support all the way to the hem. If in doubt, go without – most dresses look better without a crinoline than with the wrong one.
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Even with a petticoat, a gathered skirt should still fall in gentle folds at the hem, and a circle skirt should have at least a suggestion of ripple at the hem. Avoid too-full petticoats that stretch your hem to its fullest expanse and bunch up underneath it.
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Invest in a number of smaller, less full petticoats rather than one super-full one. This will allow you to wear them under a less voluminous skirt, and you can always layer them to create the super-full effect (and a pretty rainbow of tulle colours).
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Look for petticoats that have a full lining, and fully-bound tulle edges – this will keep the tulle from scratching your legs or snagging your stockings. If you have an unlined petticoat, wear a slip and/or tap pants underneath to protect your legs and stockings.
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Make sure that your petticoat has a secure waistband – you don’t want to be tugging it up all day long.
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Dance every dance! Petticoats are meant to be moved in – enjoy the swish!
Advertisement for a full-skirted frock pattern, Women’s Weekly, August 18, 1956, collection of the author..
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From the Footlights THE STATE OPERA HOUSE, WELLINGTON: THE FAIRYTALE WITH A HAPPY ENDING By Clarissa Dunn
Don’t forget to look up as you step inside, because the foyers and auditorium are a visual feast; adorned with everything from flowers, fruits and wreaths to brackets, bas-relief panels and columns – and, of course, the large central dome. The fibrous plaster decoration, by Mr. O. Wasohatz of Melbourne, is one of the main reasons for the building being protected by the Historic Places Trust. Among the numerous decorations you will find Australian eucalyptus, New Zealand wildflowers and English roses. These elements form the signature design of J. C Williamson Ltd, a theatrical organisation which operated in each of those countries. American actor and entrepreneur James Cassius Williamson who established his theatre empire in Australia in the late 1870s, expanded his enterprise with profits earned through selling the Australasian performing rights for Gilbert and Sullivan operettas. His first New Zealand undertaking was on a Comic Opera Company tour in 1882.
Architectural Team and pictures of the new Opera House Published in the Free Lance, Volume XIV, Issue 716, 21 March 1914, Page 17 Credit: Alexander Turnbull Library
Wellington’s State Opera House is a little like Cinderella; she’s a bit dusty and dirty and often overlooked. Meanwhile, St James Theatre on Courtenay Place, with its flashing ‘name-in-lights’ board, attracts much more attention these days. Squeezed between a liquor store and a recycled clothing boutique, and dwarfed by surrounding buildings, the classical façade of the Opera House fails to make much of an impact. But there’s more to her than outward appearances. The Opera House is distinguished by her interior - on entering the ground floor foyer, a striking black and white checkerboard tile floor sets the tone. Heavy red velvet drapes cover the left and right stall entrances, while a central white marble staircase leads up to a magnificent foyer and balcony area. 54
The Grand Opera House was designed for J. C Williamson Ltd in 1911 by William Pitt, the most renowned theatre designer in Australia. The 1886 Princess Theatre in Melbourne’s famous Spring St is another of his creations. The Wellington Opera House, modelled on London theatres from the late 1880s, has a lavishly decorated Upstairs foyer of the Opera House, Manners Street, Wellington. Photograph taken by Gordon Burt, circa 1920. Credit: Alexander Turnbull Libraryt
three-tier auditorium with two tiers of boxes framing the stage, and a magnificent domed ceiling. Before the re-roofing in the 1950s, part of the dome could be rolled back to reveal the stars. This feature was designed for ventilation, which had been a major issue in the old Opera House. Another striking feature appears in a photo printed in the New Zealand Freelance newspaper in 1914. The photo shows the act drop curtain elaborately painted by Harold. L Bevan, a Wellington-based scenic artist from London. The scene depicts a sunset on the Wanganui River, bordered by Maori carvings and tiki. Bevan also painted the theatre’s stock scenery. In the 1970s the Opera House was deemed an earthquake risk and threatened with demolition. Margot Fonteyn and members of the Royal Ballet arrive in Wellington, 1959 tour. Fortunately Prince Charming, in the form of Credit: Evening Post Collection, Alexander Turnbull Library State Insurance, came to Cinderella’s rescue. State took over ownership of the Grand Opera House (now It wasn’t Pitt who was found dead, but his brotherthe State Opera House) in 1977, and spent a million in-law. About three months after the theatre dollars on strengthening and restoring the theatre, now opened, supervising architect Albert Liddy shot managed by Positively Wellington Venues. himself in his office at the rear of the theatre. There was no clear reason for his suicide but Royal Ballet prima ballerina Margot Fonteyn correspondence between the two suggests Albert developed an interest in the day-to-day running of got into hot water over business matters. the Opera House. She toured the country with the Royal Ballet in 1959 and bewitched full houses with Another horrifying incident involved a 19-year-old her classical beauty and charm. dancer called Phyllis Porter. Just before the curtain opened on ‘The Peep Show’ Phyllis stepped too close to Other stars to an electric switchboard. Metallic strips from the tinsel claim the Opera on her costume contacted with the switch terminals House stage causing it to spark. Within seconds she was engulfed in include rock star flames. She turned and ran into the alleyway outside the Tina Turner and stage door pursued by the stage manager who doused actress Vivien the flames with his coat. Phyllis was taken to hospital Leigh. In 1962, but died 3 -days later in May 1923. Leigh played Viola in the Old Theatres can be dangerous places, especially Vic Company’s backstage, but if you visit the State Opera House in production of Wellington, probably the worst that will happen is Shakespeare’s you may lose a jaffa or two down the raked floor of Vivien Leigh at the stage door of the Opera House in 1962. Twelfth Night. Credit: The Dominion Post Collection, Alexander Turnbull Library the stalls, or encounter one of the harmless resident ghosts also enjoying the show. Like many historic theatres, tales abound of ghosts who The State Opera House is managed by Positively claim the Opera House as their own. A popular myth Wellington Venues and is available for hire. prevails among supernatural enthusiasts that architect William Pitt, unhappy with aspects of the completed theatre, hanged himself in one of the theatre boxes. http://www.pwv.co.nz/our-venues/opera-house/ 55
Hopped up:
Ruby, will you be mine? By Faye Lougher Andy and I had only had our 1963 Thunderbird a few months when we decided a classic retro caravan would be the perfect accessory!
Above: Ruby and the Thunderbird at Onemana Beachduring the Beach Hop.
Below: Faye and husband Andy at Onemana Beach during the Beach Hop.
Luckily, we didn’t have to go far to find the perfect caravan - a 1973 Lilliput Gazelle had been sitting on Andy’s parents’ back lawn which they had owned for about 22 years, but had given up towing about 10 years ago due to their age. In no time, it had been liberated from its role as a sunroom, WOF’d and tucked away safely in our garage (yes, they’re small enough to store inside). Willy Pelzers, of Wilpro in Wanganui, fitted an awesome custom-made towbar to the car while we prepared to give the caravan (now christened ‘Ruby’) a 1960’s makeover. A friend resprayed the faded orange exterior side strip in Sting Red to match the car, while Andy painted the wheels and other trim in the same shade, as well as refurbishing the badges, number plate and tail lights. Pinstriping completed the retro look. The very 1970’s dark woodgrain interior was repainted cream and green (it took three attempts to get the right green!), decorated with new 56
curtains and seat covers and new retro-look vinyl was laid, all within a very tight budget and timeframe! The final touches were red and white striped window sunshades and a matching awning, made by Canvasland in Levin (not cheap, but they did a great job). After the interior had been filled with a vast assortment of retro knick-knacks sourced from local
Above: The interior before the renovations started.
charity shops, Ruby was ready for her debut at the Shannon car show in early February. She certainly was a huge hit with the public. After attending a few more local car shows, we were off to the Beach Hop.
Below: The American ice chest and retro picnic items.
Although the Thunderbird used about 20 percent more fuel towing ‘Ruby’, it was well worth it for the admiring reaction we received from thousands of Hop spectators. A week later we took Ruby to The Square Affair retro festival in Palmerston North. I was talked into entering the retro category of the Fashion in the Field competition and walked away with the runner-up prize. Meanwhile Ruby and the Thunderbird took out People’s Choice for top vehicle! Below:Shot of the interior after the renovation
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Anissa Victoria s Vintage Markets
By Jo Nixon-Sparkes My fair(ly broken) city of Christchurch may be down, but it’s not out when it comes to vintage sights, sounds and entertainment. So many of the city’s unique and special retro delights were lost to mother nature’s giant hissy fit, so that makes it all that much more special when a treasure is found. Here’s your guide to making that hunt a whole lot easier.
Entertainment: Alice Cinematheque Ye gads and little fishes! Alice’s is just divine! Positioned in the old High Street Post Office and opened post-earthquake, this exclusive little 38 seat arthouse cinema is decked out opulently in 1920’s Egyptian deco style, but has all the 21st century mod cons such as luxuriously plush seating and top quality sound and vision technology. It is a feast for the senses and the best (and quite possibly only) way to enjoy a movie. They even have black and white vintage ads playing before the main feature. It’s most definitely one of my happy places.
No self-respecting vintage lover could bypass Anissa Victoria’s Vintage Markets. Held at really cool locations like the amazing Pallet Pavillion or the Gap Filler Book Library and indoors at the Huxley Room, these markets will make you squeal with delight! All in one place at the same time you can find a cacophony of vintage treasures including clothing, nic nacs and bric a brac, delicious food, divine jewellery, sweets, crafts, retro entertainment and even vintage make overs by the wonderful Anissa herself. Check out Anissa Victoria Loves Vintage on Facebook for upcoming dates and stallholder enquiries.
Ayla s Angels Burlesque Circus A truly captivating and mesmerizing time is to be had at any Ayla’s Angels event. The cast of this burlesque circus consists of delicious dancers, comedians, musicians, fire performers, vaudevillians and sideshow and circus artists, all of whom bring you a unique and intimate theatrical experience. Two of my favourite burlesque acts are the inspiring founder and doyenne of the Angels, Nancy Nightshade, and the not-to-be-missed Bonita Danger Doll with her alluring giant champagne glass routine.
Ayla’s Angels not only put on fantastic shows, they also run burlesque classes and competitions and entertain at hen’s parties, private functions and festivals and the like. This is a must do on any vintage (ostrich feathered) fan’s list! 58
Swingtown Rebels
Tweed Riders
What better vintage way to keep fit and have a ton-o-fun than to swing dance. Swingtown Rebels teach Lindy Hop, Blues, Balboa, Charleston and The Shag and are a truly fun and social bunch. These lovely folks have regular events like themed dances, workshops and weekends away. They dance at all sorts of cool venues like the very hip “Dance-o-mat.”
The Christchurch Tweed Riders are, in their own words, ‘a group of semi-unorganised like-minded individuals who like to look dapper and ride old and old-style bicycles about.’ Anyone is welcome to join their rides but they do have a strict no carbon or lycra policy. Rides always involve a bite to eat and a tipple or two at an establishment along the way and are a guaranteed good time. So check out their website, don your tweed coats, kilts, gym frocks, twinsets, woolly tights, plus fours, pearls and cameos, tartan scarves and kid gloves and get pedalling! This is a Gap Filler project in which one of the many vacant lots in Christchurch has been turned into a dance floor but there is a twist - you have to feed an old converted washing machine some coins for it to play your music! It is well worth checking this out, especially with the Swingtown Rebels.
Shopping: The Vintage Cupboard
Rockin Fifties Jivin Jamborees
If you’re in search of boring middle-of-the-road music, you won’t find it here, no siree! However, if you want a blast of a night out dancing in an historic venue to the best rockin tracks ever, head over to the Governor’s Bay Hotel to a Jivin’ Jamboree. Check out Rockin Fifties’ Facebook page for details of when you can catch these gigs featuring rockabilly and rock n roll tracks played by a DJ. Get ready for the lights to be low and the music high. There sure won’t be any stopping for a cup of tea and a lie down!
Nestled in suburban Mairehau on Innes Rd is a wonderful treasure trove for those in the know. The Vintage Cupboard stocks a well-chosen selection of genuine vintage and retro clothing and accessories, as well as items inspired by these eras. Hanging on the racks are some utterly divine reproduction vintage dresses from labels such as Hell Bunny, Retro Spec’d and Bernie Dexter- each and every garment a vintage gal’s dream and sure to leave you drooling. Also available is the fantastic and authentically vintage 59
line of Besame cosmetics. The perfect red lipstick in a shiny gold bullet case is just to-die-for. Also of note is the cute and covetable giftwear range. The only issue with this shop is that I want to buy everything in it!
Retropolitan This place takes my breath away. Situated on the corner of Fitzgerald Ave and Hereford St, it is an entirely original 1940s house completely outfitted in kitschy 60s and 70s style and it’s all available for purchase! It’s like a museum that sells its exhibits!
You can buy everything you need for each room in the vintage home - furniture like couches, tables and chairs; fittings like mirrors, shelves and art; blankets and bedding, tablecloths and kitchenware and everything else you could desire. There is also an impressive range of women’s clothes, shoes, handbags, hats and gloves and they stock the largest and best range of men’s retro clothing ever! Oh my! Pass me the smelling salts. It’s all too much!
Buchan St Retro Located in the back streets of Sydenham above a very blokey type business is a wee gem called Buchan St Retro. Owner Emma has been collecting vintage since a tenderly young age, and opened the shop due
to lack of storage for the massive amount of treasure she had accumulated over the years. Of note are the fabulous 70s bits and pieces - some of which Emma claimed from her grandparents when they shifted house. It’s a double delight when visiting Buchan St Retro as a City Mission op shop is right next door. Time efficient vintage shopping indeed!
Etcetera Etcetera This is Christchurch’s go to place for WW2 and other such Militaria. Etcetera Ecetera, on the corner of Barbadoes St and Edgeware Rd, boasts an impressive selection of vintage uniforms and other objects d’war nestled amongst furs, sparkly retro dresses, old magazines, bevelled edged mirrors and fine
vintage furniture. You can also relax and admire your purchases over a coffee from the instore barista while a pair of white concrete swans stand sentry at the entrance. A little piece of paradise.
Food and Drink: The Wunderbar
The iconic Wunderbar with its retro dollshead and curler lampshades, quirky décor, crazy outdoor staircase, awesomely panoramic verandah and 60
legendary (but controversially banned) Jews vs Hitler table soccer, has risen like a phoenix from the ashes and is a star amongst the ruins in earthquake-ravaged Lyttelton. With a bar/poolroom and “The Back Room” for bands, you can catch many a fine and varied piece of entertainment at The Wunderbar.
glorious vintage coffee makers, teapots and other paraphenalia, and they have an intriguing rooftop vineyard for your relaxation and enjoyment.
Beat Street Caf From the moment you read the sign telling you to “push it, push it real good’ on the bright red front door, you know this place is special. Boasting a
The Cupcake Collection Tucked away in the corner at the new Beckenham shops on Colombo St is a little red and white gingham sweet piece of heaven! This is a divine oasis in which to play ladies and gents amongst the lace doilies, frilly aprons and fine china. The cupcakes are intricately and beautifully decorated and unbelievably delishimo.
fabulous array of yummo looking deli food and a damn fine coffee, Beat Street Café is furnished with an eclectic mix of retro fittings like the stacked brightly coloured melamine 60s picnic cups and saucers that have been repurposed as lamp stands. They are Christchurch’s home of the amazing curly fry and believe me, you just haven’t lived until you’ve tried these!
C1 Espresso It was a truly joyous day in Christchurch when C1 reopened their (new) doors after Feb 2011’s devastation. They picked themselves up, dusted themselves off, grabbed what they could and moved across the road to the old Post Office building in High St, a rare earthquake survivor, and turned it into a curiously outfitted café, the most wondrous of all features being the crazy sliding bookshelf doorway. Is it a bookshelf? Is it a doorway? You’ve got to see this for yourself. C1 also sells a range of 61
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The Very
Out
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H I FI DE LITY
Cry Baby Jo
Introducing the most hip shakin’, foot stompin’, toe tappin’ musicians ever to grace the Garden City. The high energy five-piece who dress, live and breathe the rockabilly lifestyle, have been electrifying South Island audiences since 2006. Lead guitarist Paul Fontana had just returned from a sojourn in Texas, fresh from performing alongside some of the USA’s top rockabilly artists and decided to put together his own roots based band. His mission was to merge the raw riotous sounds of authentic 50s rockabilly with alt country for a New Zealand audience. P. J. Sparkabilly (aka Paul Sparkes) was quick to jump aboard, and once Fontana caught wind of a demo track Paul had recorded with his partner Jo NixonSparkes on backing vocals, he said ‘get that girl in our band’, and the rest is Cry Baby Jo history. 64
The sharply-dressed lineup includes NixonSparkes on lead vocals, occasional guitar and snare drum, Paul Sparkes on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Gordon Goodinson on lead guitar, Neville Weavers on bass and Darren Sunborn on drums.
Glory Days caught up with Cry Baby Jo’s fetching front woman to get the lowdown on Christchurch’s best kept secret...
Does the band’s name have any special significance? Indeed it does. It was stolen from the Johnny Depp rockabilly movie Cry Baby with Jo tacked on the end because we thought it had a good fifties ring to it. Nothing to do with me breaking down in tears.
Had you played in many other Christchurch bands prior to Cry Baby Jo? Pauly had played in lots of other bands; most notably in Sparky’s Cosmic Journey (a sci-fi cosmic rock band), and I had been in choirs and shows.
What are your earliest music memories? The backing track to my childhood came from lounge singers like Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis, big bands like Glenn Miller, Ella Fitzgerald and other jazz mavens. Early Elvis and Wanda Jackson also spun round on mum and dad’s record player. I still adore (and still own) all of those albums.
How would you describe your sound, and how long have you guys been into this style of music? We try to emulate that early raw rockabilly sound - the sound of simple chords and a beat that you can’t help but tap your foot to. Vintage rockabilly was like the punk music of that generation. It was rebellious and fun, and older folks found it irreverent. It is full of energy and enthusiasm. We have always loved this style of music- how could you not?
I hear you guys played as a gig called the Rockabilly Shakedown in Lyttelton a few years ago? Yes - The Rockabilly Shakedown was awesome! We played alongside Phil Riza, a rockabilly artist from France. He was one smooth dude! His style was immaculate- so tidy, pressed and polished.
I remember seeing his wardrobe backstage and marvelling that he even had those wooden things you put in your shoes to keep their shape. Viva la France! Of course his stage craft was fantastic too. He sang in English without a trace of an accent and he was a wonderful muso. It was a pleasure to share the billing with him.
SO WOULD YOU SAY THERE’S MUCH OF A ROCKABILLY SCENE DOWN SOUTH? I would say that the rockabilly scene is totally gaining momentum. Our gigs are attracting more and more punters and people are more often coming along all dolled up in 50’s garb totally looking the part.
How has the band been affected by the Christchurch earthquakes? Unfortunately, the silly earthquakes had a huge effect on the music scene in Christchurch. So many wonderful character filled venues were lost - many forever. We were over in Lyttelton the other day, and were saddened to see the empty space where the very grand old Harbourlight Café, a 1916 Californian Art Nouveau styled movie theatre turned venue, once stood. We played a lot at The Loons in Lyttelton, and that is currently closed pending extensive repairs. You’ve got to hunt a lot harder for venues nowadays - especially places with vintage charm and soul. We have mainly been playing private gigs lately as a consequence. The upside of the destruction is that it has spawned some truly creative thinking and places like the very cool Pallet Pavillion have been born. It’s a venue made entirely from stacked recycled wooden pallets. It’s on the edge of the cordon in the city centre and has a stage and a bar and is a really unique space. Also there’s The Creative Quarter in New Brighton which is a fantastic outdoor venue on a demolished 65
building site. It has a sandy floor, lots of awesome art and part of the famous pinky/red running track from the destroyed QE2 stadium forming the dance floor.
What is the Christchurch/ Lyttelton music scene like these days? Any other local acts you recommend?
What do you guys enjoy most about playing live? Fun fun fun!!! We have such a ball when we play. We love to interact with the audience, and get a buzz when everyone is smiling away and up and bopping on the dance floor.
Despite the lack of venues, the music scene is chugging along and starting to regain momentum. Lyttelton’s well known Wunderbar is well and truly back up and running, and there are plenty of cool bands to catch at Cassels in Woolston. I’d totally recommend checking out Devilish Mary and the Holy Rollers for their sweet jazzy vintage tunes.
What are your favourite bands of all time and why? I have to say the B52’s for their entire quirky package, Bowie for his epic glam hits, Blondie for her effortlessly cool underground style, and lately, I’m nuts about the fantastically talented retro siblings Kitty, Daisy and Lewis.
Do you guys have a dream gig in mind, and who would be on the lineup? That would be playing at Viva Las Vegas with Levi Dexter and Ruby Ann.
You’ve worn some rockin’ outifts over the years, do you all dress up for each gig? Heck yes -it’s totally part of it. Paul and I are always in rockabilly gear in day to day life anyway and the other fellas always bust out their bowling shirts and creepers for gigs. If we didn’t, it would be like putting aluminium windows in a villa.
How would you describe your style both aesthetically and vocally? Do you ever get compared to anyone?
Do you guys perform many original songs? What is the balance between covers and original material? We mainly do covers of 50’s rockabilly (think Johnny Cash, Elvis, Wanda Jackson and Eddie Cochran) but do have a fair few originals too. They are mostly penned by Paul, aka PJ Sparkabilly. Gordon is a prolific songwriter and I’ve written a couple too. 66
I’ve always always been into vintage styles - especially 50s and deco. As a kid I used to look at old photos of my mum and beg her to dig out the outfits she was wearing. Thankfully she was a hoarder and still had many fantastic goodies for me to re-use. She made most of them herself as she was a dress maker and used to make a new outfit every Thursday to wear out on Friday nights. I spent my primary school years after school at her business, rummaging in amongst the fabrics and threads dreaming up creations. Vocally people often say I sound just like Josie Kreuzer. She is a contemporary rockabilly artist performing in the vintage style and is from California. I’m pretty happy with that comparison!
What do you guys get up to when you’re not playing music? We both work in TV- Paul is an editor for One News, Seven Sharp, Breakfast and other TVNZ shows and has his own production company making music videos, promos, short films and other such productions. I do wardrobe for tv shows, music videos and commercials and am often called into help out on Pauly’s projects. We both sing in The Christchurch Pops Choir, as does Darren our drummer. Darren also appears in music theatre shows. He’s just finished playing Fagan in a season of Oliver with the North Canterbury Drama Society. Gordon is also a TV editor and a fab musician with success as a solo artist and songwriter and Nev is an accountant and a total all round good fella.
Vamporium.co.nz Since 2007
NZ’s leading supplier of vintage style petticoats and Rock’n’Roll accessories
e g a t n i V Cupboard
The
Stockists of Retrospecd, Hell Bunny, Collectif and Bernie Dexter Have you got any records/eps/albums that our readers can get their hands on? Not just yet but we do have one in the pipeline - we have laid down some tracks. Check our facebook page (hyperlink https://www.facebook.com/pages/ CRY-BABY-JO/529116910458003?fref=ts )for news about this as well as upcoming gigs and other news.
and finally, What can we expect from a Cry Baby Jo gig? Happiness, energy, smiles, fun and dancing. You just can’t sit still. The thing about rockabilly is that even if you don’t know the songs, you’ll know the beat and you won’t be able to stop your foot from tapping.
416 Innes Road, Mairehau, Christchurch www.thevintagecupboard.co.nz www.facebook.com/VintageCupboard 67
cinemascope
REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE By Mark Roulston The quintessential teen drama, Rebel Without a Cause, has a simple premise: Jim Stark (James Dean) is the new kid at Dawson High (a situation he is apparently familiar with) who does his best to ingratiate himself with his peers. After unwittingly drawing the ire of a gang of bullies, he attracts troubled loner Plato (Sal Mineo), and piques the interest of Judy (Natalie Wood), girlfriend of the thuggish Buzz (Corey Allen). Following a tragic accident during a test of manhood, Jim’s world is thrown into chaos as the guidance he desperately needs from his father (Jim Backus) is stonewalled by his caustic-tongued mother (Ann Doran), leading to a showdown with police, parents, and the menacing bullies. Perhaps the secret to the enduring nature of Nicholas Ray’s film is its clever balance between the angstridden teens and confused adults. There’s a freshness to the ‘parents just don’t understand’ theme as Jim begs his father for help, only to have his problems brushed off as insignificant. The immediacy and drama of youth will be familiar to anyone who remembers their teenage years, and 68
cinematic touches – such as the juxtaposition of Jim’s squabbles with his classmates being played out amidst the vastness of the universe at the observatory, and Ray’s camera flourishes and occasional Escher-like framing – parallel Jim’s inner turmoil to wonderful effect. On the other side of the generation gap, Ray deftly mirrors Jim’s teenage confusion with a warped adult view of the teenagers. Jim, Plato and Judy become metaphors for troubled youth; a drunk with no respect for authority, a violent misfit with a penchant for shooting dogs, and a promiscuous girl who it’s implied is prostituting herself to gain the attention of her father (William Hooper) respectively.
It’s no wonder Judy has daddy issues, for the whole film is focused on fathers. The problems of the three central teens stem from strained paternal relationships, and while the absurd level of Mr Stark’s figurative castration at the hands of his wife comes across as a little sexist today, the effect is powerful. Jim needs a strong figure to see him through the trials of adolescence, not the wishy-washy punching bag who spends the most important conversation of Jim’s entire struggle clad in a lacy apron. The desire for strong parents plays a key part in the young trio’s escape to the abandoned mansion at the conclusion, as they unshackle themselves from their ineffectual parents and role-play their own ideas about adulthood. Rebel Without a Cause is a stunning example of classical Hollywood at its best, as every element of the film has deep meaning. Dean’s iconic status was cemented with his fabulous performance of Jim Stark, and the tragedy which was to come would only crystallize his place as the ultimate screen teen.
In 1956, New Zealand film censor Gordon Mirrams moved quickly to ban Rebel Without a Cause after slamming it as “one of the most undesirable films in the series on juvenile deliquency he had yet to deal with.” He proceeded to list 12 aspects of behaviour in the film that “no one would want to see copied in New Zealand such as ‘necking’ at high school, drinking, slashing car tires and general vandalism, insolence towards adults, use of chains to beat a boy, and the ‘heroes’ attempt to strangle his father. He was particularly concerned about the scenes featuring the knife fight and the ‘chicken run’. The film distributors appealed; saying that the teenagers lives depicted in the film were so far removed from the New Zealand way of life kiwi teens were far more likely to greet the film with healthy contempt for the actions listed and this was eagerly lapped up by the appeal board.. They concluded that the grounds for banning the film were slim so after minor cuts such as the sound and action of the flick knives, the scene where Jim tries to choke his dad and scenes of Natalie Wood and James Dean open mouthed kissing, the film was at last allowed to screen.
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Net Worth
By Melanie Freeman.
Blogger:Solanah Cornell http://www.vixen-vintage.com/ Image accreditation: Solanah Cornell Practically royalty as far as the vintage community is concerned, Solanah Cornell is now one of the top vintage bloggers in the world. Vixen Vintage, her phenomenally successful fashion blog, is awash with delectable vintage ensembles- ranging from prim 1940s suits to 1970s casual separates and everything in between. And of course, they’re always accessorised to perfection with head scarves, bakelite bangles and immaculate hair and makeup. 70
Based in Washington State, USA with her husband, Solanah has a penchant for cats, hats and period murder mysteries and an incredible eye for assembling inspiring daily outfits to share with her readers. Glory Days’ Melanie Freeman interviewed the gorgeous 24-year-old to discover more about her enviable clothing collection and what constitutes the “perfect dress”. What or who inspired your love of vintage? I grew up with it somewhat, as my aunt and sister-inlaw wore it when I was little. It was just normal for me, so it was a natural style to adopt.
accessorise with bright bakelite and head scarves. We all have our special vintage pieces, is there any item in your wardrobe that holds a special place in your heart? There’s a dress that’s been in my family for about 30 years, I think of it as “the perfect dress”. It’s a 1950s frock, in salmon and white, and the shape and fit are so perfect I wish I had ten of them in different colours. It was been in the wardrobes of my aunt, sister-in-law, mother, and myself, and I’m sure will be passed on again and again. How has your love for vintage created opportunities for you? It inspired me to start my blog, Vixen Vintage, about four years ago, and that opens so many doors for making friends and meeting people in vintage culture. It’s a small world, and it’s nice to have connections around the globe!
To visit Solanah’s blog, and get some great vintage style inspiration, visit www.vixen-vintage.com.
Can you describe your personal style and is there any particular period influencing your choices at the moment? I love the 1940s - the casual look is especially influential. I find images of female workers during WWII inspiring for style, as their clothing was practical and, I think, beautiful. What are your must haves for putting together your daily looks? I mostly wear wide legged slacks and cotton blouses as I’m home a lot, but colour is something I love playing with. The 1940s had such bold colours, it’s fun to 71
Here’s Looking at You, Kid. By Malayka Yoseph It took me until the end of my pregnancy to muster the courage to tip toe into the Baby Factory. I skulked around the side aisle, awkwardly knocking bright plastic toys off their hangers with my belly. Everything was synthetic, made in China and came with health warnings. What was I doing here? This wasn’t my world! I had let myself get sucked into the latest ‘must have’ baby device. I come from a family of hoarders and collectors. We trawl second hand shops for unique pieces, we reuse, recycle and reinvent what we already have rather than buy it new off the shelf. So I stumbled out of the store in a daze and drove straight to my mother’s house. Before long, we were balancing on chairs to reach those top cupboards, brushing aside cobwebs in the attic and rummaging through the old playroom drawers. We ended up with some delicious loot! I returned home laden with stacks of bright cotton maternity dresses once made by my grandmother, I had all my old wooden toys, my grandmother’s beloved doll from the 1920s, a quilt made from my mother’s childhood dresses and enough vintage fabric to whip up some sweet little blankets. It’s not just that the quality of these old treasures far surpasses anything you can buy now, it’s also the comfort and pride that comes with knowing you are the keeper of your family’s prized possessions. You could say we’re living our own kind of vintage lifestyle. I long gave up hope of becoming the 72
perfect 1950s housewife. My house is too chaotic, my baking skills disastrous and my poor partner is far more likely to have a grizzling baby thrust into his arms instead of a martini and slippers. Yet something has always drawn us to the days when life seemed just that little bit simpler. What began as an obsession with vintage clothing, gradually transformed into an entire lifestyle change. We’re not vintage purists by any means, but we’ve managed to incorporate our love for old things into most aspects of our lives. Our house is a big blend of furniture and knick knacks from different decades, we rarely buy our clothes from the mall and one of the old crooners is usually singing a tune from our stereo. However, we really stepped it up a notch after finding out we were going to be parents. It made us think about everything - from the food we were eating, to the household cleaners we used. I started researching the way in which people lived during the Second World War when rationing was still in progress, I browsed 1950s magazines for helpful housewife tips and we even dug out my mother’s ‘hippie living’ books from the 1970s. What we really wanted was to become a little self-sustainable. We now have four chickens and a vege garden, I try to use clever ingredients like vinegar and baking soda for cleaning, we continue to buy vintage clothing and we’re generally feeling pretty proud of our achievements! Three months on and we have a beautiful little daughter. She’s already learned how to charm the nice old ladies in the second hand stores and she has already a whole closet full of vintage dresses. Whether she chooses to follow in our footsteps is, of course, up to her, but just in case I’m already carefully packing away special pieces that she’ll inherit one day and maybe pass on to her own children.
PAPERSHAKER
sink, the way water does sometimes without warning over a ledge, into the deepest ,sweetest sleep...”. The author skillfully layers both characters, and his portrayal of Capa is particularly touching. Greenhalgh’s evocation of the front line of the war, and Capa’s ability to catch the horror on film, certainly helps explain his heavy drinking and self-destructive behaviour. But while it’s disconcerting to make assumptions about the feelings, hopes and dreams of real people, it is inevitable in the world of “faction”. Greenhalgh takes advantage of this, depicting Bergman as a previously sexually unfulfilled woman, unable to face leaving her husband due to her Hollywood reputation. Although he devotes plenty of space to the two characters’ love making, he fails to do justice to the amazing historical period in which the story is set, which is a shame seeing as the majority of the book is set in Paris – a city at the heart of the drama.
Seducing Ingrid Bergman by Chris Greenhalgh Penguin (RRP$26)
Overall it was a pleasant romp – but left unanswered questions. Questions which probably only Capa and Bergman themselves know the answer to.
Claire Gormly Ingrid Bergman was the epitome of Hollywood glamour. By the end of the Second World War, the Swedish actress , who had achieved wide acclaim for her starring role in Casablanca, was married to dentist Peter Lindstrom and had a small daughter. However, renowned photojournalist, Robert Capa, knew a different side to the Hollywood star. Robert met the actress in Paris at the end of the war and the pair embarked on a steamy affair. She was there on film commitments, he was floundering after an illustrious if traumatic, photographic assignment documenting the war from the front line. Chris Greenhalgh’s book is a fictional account of this affair. Switching between a first person and third person narrative, Greenhalgh tells the story of the deep unhappiness felt by both– Capa due to the trauma of the war, Bergman from marital dissatisfaction, and explores why a beautiful Hollywood star would risk all for a down-on-his-luck, average-looking artist. His unusual descriptive writing style veers between breathtakingly transporting and overblown. For example “Her smell - locked up and stored as though for a long time - is released like a perfume, and I just
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mend make do and
I have used a contrast wool here so it's easier to see. STEP 1:
By Sarah Lancaster fron Sew Love Tea Do
Gosh Darn it! A few little toes are poking through. The elbows peep out for a look. Heels feel the chill of the floor. Something that has been around since days gone by is the pesky hole that appears in our clothes. Back before TV time, perhaps even before Scrabble time, good wives would spend an evening darning their family’s socks. Today things are so cheap we opt to throw away rather than mend, which leaves us lacking quality household skills, and with a landfill nearly on our backyard! So what happens if a hole appears in a darling old sweater that your great gran handspun wool for, knitted and mended thrice, then passed down through gran, mum and now you? Now you can darn that hole, and the rest of your socks too!
Turn your item inside out and hold it snuggly over the lemon, with hole facing up towards you.
Darning is basically weaving a warp thread (up and down) and a weft thread (across) to fill up a hole.
Other than your holey, wooly item, you will need: • • • •
Matching or contrasting wool the same thickness as your item Needle – a large chunky one to fit your woollen thread through A darning mushroom (an orange or lemon will do) Scissors
Start by poking in your threaded needle a cm or two wider than your hole and weave it vertically away from you to a point past the hole. 74
STEP 2:
building the weft. Keep pushing the weft snuggly together and weave in as many rows as possible. Remember to extend past the edges of the hole.
STEP 4:
Turn around and head back towards you. This is building the warp. Use the tip of your needle to â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;dolphin diveâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; over and under the horizontal threads then pull the thread through. Tie off the thread, and the thread at the start too. Then turn back in the right way to marvel at your handiwork!
Continue this until you are well past the hole at the other side.
STEP 3:
Once you have worked your way across the hole, you now need to weave horizontally. This is 75
PERFECTING THE
By Rose Jackson from Decadia
Flick Using The Right Equipment You have three choices for lining your eye: Pencil – if you're using this STOP RIGHT NOW! It won't give you the sharpness and definition that a good flick requires. Gel – this is a great product if you are just starting to master flicks, as you don't have to be as exact when you apply compared to liquid.
Cat's eye. Winged liner. Feline flicks. Whichever animal metaphor you use to describe them, nothing says vintage in the beauty world more than a perfect flick of liner at the outer corner of the eye. Evoking the spirit of Priscilla, Brigitte, Marilyn and other iconic beauties, this line says flirty, fun and a little bit naughty all in one easy stroke. Why is the flick so alluring? It works to elongate the eye and create the illusion of thicker fuller lashes. Lining the eye from the inner corner graduating out to a thicker line before the flick also creates the illusion of, or enhances, an almond shape eye. It might seem like a cinch, but I've noticed from hosting beauty workshops that the one thing most ladies struggle with most is perfecting the flick. There are several factors that have a huge influence on what the finished line looks like – whether you have a hooded eyelid, what product you are using and the angle that your flick is drawn. It can all get a bit overwhelming, resulting in a few tears and liners flying across the vanity, but fear not - if you follow these few simple steps you will be flicking like that O.G goddess of glam, Cleopatra! While you can't change the composition of your eye (unless you are willing to go under the knife of course!), you can change the product and the angle you use to make it much easier for yourself. 76
Liquid – this is the business! Master this and you never look back. Also this is the best product to use if you have issues with liner ending up on your eyelid as it drys quickly and doesn't smudge.
Laying Down The Line Don't try and tackle it all in one move – here are three easy steps to get you flicking like a pro:
1. Line the Lid Concentrate on this area first - you want to draw a graduated line going from thin at the inner edge of the eye to thicker on the outer corner of the eye. Close the eye you are working on and keep the skin taut. Leave the other eye open so you can see where you are going! What you want to avoid is any gap between your lashes and the liner. To make it even easier, break this down into two parts – go from the inner
corner and stop half way. Then, go from the outer corner and match up the line. Start thin and build up – don’t start thick!
2. Dot
3. When Two
Become One
The final step is joining the line on the lid to the dot. Make sure your brush has most of the product removed and start from the dot. Move the brush smoothly from the dot to corner of eye. Remember – little and often! For a more dramatic flick, increase the thickness of the line on the eye then join the corner of the eye, the dot and the top of the line on the eye to create a triangle shape which you can fill in with product.
Marks the Spot
One of the biggest problems with drawing eye flicks is that your eye is a completely different shape when it is closed to when its open. So when you have your eye closed, you may think you are flicking fantastically but when you open, suddenly your flick is way off in a corner or not joined to the rest of the liner! Quite often this is due to skin sitting over the eye where the line would normally be.
Top Tips: - Put mascara on your outer lashes first and this will give you a guide as to where the most natural place to angle your flick will be. - Avoid drawing your flick in the crease of your eye; this is when flicks disappear or end up becoming disjointed with the rest of your line.
The best way to combat this is to dot where you want your flick to finish with your eyes open. Do this for each eye at the same time to ensure you have a relatively even placement. If you need a guide hold a pencil from the corner of your eye to the end of your eyebrow. Your dot should sit somewhere along this line.
- Experiment with different angles when you flick as this greatly alters the final look – from a flat long Cleopatra to a very curled 50s flick to a full-on extreme Amy Winehouse eye.
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’ n i k o o C s ’ t Wha ? ’ n i k o o L d o Go Entertaining, 1950’s Style By Debbie Hodder Historically, economically, technologically and culturally, the 50s were a world-wide phenomenon. The 1950s followed not one, but two world wars as well as a severe world-wide depression. The only real glimmer of frivolity and excess came with the ‘Roaring 20s’, but this was short-lived. As the world recovered from WWII, governments all over the world were pouring money into their economies to rebuild and rejuvenate them. The United States was the first country to recover, as they did not have the physical damage on a grand scale that England, Europe and Asia had suffered, and they had the resources and population to rebuild quickly. The USA also set a cultural benchmark in the 50s, which featured in pop culture hits such as American Graffiti and the TV show, Happy Days. I had a talk with my dad about the 50s. He was in his youth during that decade and he remembers them as ‘the golden years’. Dad said that those iconic movies and TV shows were actually pretty accurate and that’s how it really was to be a kid in middle-class America. If you are wondering what all this has to do with a food column…bear with me. The technology of the era had a great bearing on the culture. Two significant technological developments were electronics and food! Finally, we’re back to food.Both of these developments along with the general buoyant attitude as well as more disposable income and freedom to enjoy life resulted in a new era of entertaining. One “new” development was the portable record 78
player. Record players were already around of course but now they were portable and accessible to almost everyone. 45’s were plentiful and cheap to buy and people were crazy about them. Think about it… never before had the general public had CHOICE over what they listened to. They just had whatever the radio played. Now they could have friends over – entertain – and chose their own music. But what about the food? Food had always been very labour intensive before the 50s. Either it was scarce, rationed or expensive. It was primarily utilitarian and not festive. Suddenly people were living in a time where they could once again dress in pretty clothes, play their own music and have friends over just to have a good time, and the food was a lot more fun as well. Food technologists had been working hard on the new concept of convenience foods that were easy to prepare, or partially or completely prepared and available on the grocery shelves to take home. All you had to do was open a can or a box or a freezer packet. Hours spent in the kitchen turned into mere minutes. This was the era of frozen TV dinners and Spam. (Unfortunately that same culinary ideal has taken on a life of its own and is coming close to destroying the health of the modern world, but let’s not take the gloss off our glorious 50s vibe). So, in previous decades and more recent ones, entertaining menus would have been rife with fresh, top-quality meats, vine-ripened fruits and vegetables and hand-made pastries. In our funlovin 50s, a cocktail party menu would have looked something like what features on the folowing pages:
•
Party Mix (Combo of Chex Breakfast cereal, nuts and pretzels mixed with Worchester sauce and a pinch of cayenne, then baked. Not bad, actually)
•
Cheese Ball (Mixture of creamed and grated cheeses, rolled into a ball and chilled, then covered in chopped nuts and served with crackers)
•
•
Pigs in a Blanket (Roll out a dry scone dough quite thinly. For authenticity, try to find a premade mix rather than make it from scratch. Americans would use Bisquik. Cut 8-10cm/3-4 inch squares. Place a small processed cocktail sausage or part of a frankfurter in the centre and roll it up, brush with milk or egg and bake until dough is cooked.) Devilled Eggs – this will be our focus recipe.
There you have it – such as it is – more groovy than gourmet! And just before we tackle those eggs, there are three more key elements to a successful and authentic 50s party. One I highly recommend, one I strongly discourage and one, the options are numerous.
…a great beginning, highly recommended. Think what a treat it would be now for your guests to get an actual, hand-written invitation via snail mail? How retro would that be? They don’t have to be elaborate or wordy; they just have to be THERE. …very authentic, but strongly
This is the basic recipe for Devilled Eggs. I consider it a starting point, but many people may be “purists” and like the retro recipe. {BTW… T = Tablespoon, t = teaspoon.}
• • • • • •
•
Hard boil and peel the eggs (see Egg Boiling and Peeling Tips).
•
Slice eggs in half lengthwise with a sharp knife.
•
Gently scoop out the yolk into a small bowl and place whites on a serving tray.
•
Mash yolks with a fork and add all ingredients except for paprika then mix until creamy.
•
Spoon or pipe the mixture into the egg whites and sprinkle with paprika.
discouraged. Ever seen Mad Men? We really don’t want to go back there.
…now we’re talking! Wine and beer
6 medium to large eggs 3 T mayonnaise (I suggest American-style, whole-egg mayo) ¾ t fresh lemon juice ½ t Worchester sauce Pinch of salt Paprika for sprinkling over the top
were not the drinks of the day, it was all about mixed cocktails. Think Manhattans, Old Fashioneds, Daiquiris, Martinis, Bloody Marys. And if you can’t manage any of these, just mix up some Tang (or Raro or Kool-aid), dump in a good slug of bourbon and spray in some As above with a twist. Here are some “make um yer soda water. Remember, convenience was key. own” tips and ideas:
•
You want about 3 T of ‘creaminess’ per 6 eggs. Creaminess could be mayo, mustard (any type), wasabi (now we’re talkin), salad dressing (what about Ranch or Creamy Caesar?)
•
Add a small amount of dried spice such as curry, mustard powder or cumin (1/2 – 2 t per six eggs). 79
• •
•
Add a small amount (1-2 T) of finely minced fresh herbs, such as parsley or coriander and/or raw veggies such as mushrooms or onions. Don’t discount the garnish. I, personally, don’t rate paprika very high. The commercial stuff I get doesn’t have much flavour. I prefer a light dusting of smoked paprika as it does have flavour and depth, or cayenne as it has a nice bite. Do think about flavour and garnish combos. If you have a strongly flavoured egg mixture (using curry, horseradish, hot mustard, etc) don’t compete with a strong garnish such as the smoked paprika. In general, use a more flavoursome garnish with a ‘plainer’ egg mixture and vice versa.
•
Add mustard mixture and whisk until smooth.
•
Cook in a double boiler on a fairly low heat until mixture is thickened. This should take 10-15 mins. Stir frequently to ensure mustard does not “catch” on the bottom of the pan.
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Let the mixture cool and then store in clean glass jars in the refrigerator. Due to acid nature of the vinegar, which is a natural preservative, your mustard will last several weeks if stored in the fridge.
•
Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water.
Use the same recipe as the “old school”, but substitute ½ the mayo for 1&1/2 T Hot & Spicy Mustard (see recipe). Add 1 T very finely minced spring onion. Garnish with Smoked Paprika or Cayenne.
•
Place on stove on high and put a lid on the saucepan (this speeds up boiling time and conserves heat/energy).
•
Bring to the boil. Once water is boiling, reduce heat so it just boils gently and set time for 10 mins.
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After timer goes off, drain boiling water off eggs and fill with cold water. Eggs may crack, this is ok.
•
Drain and refill saucepan with cold water a few times until the water stays cold.
•
Let eggs sit in the water for about 10 mins, then they are reday to peel.
Your friends will be most impressed that you have made your own mustard and think you are a kitchen goddess – or god – because who actually makes mustard?! That is something you buy in a jar! Unless they are a good friend with whom you want to share the recipe, just take the credit and let them think you are fabulous.
•
• • • •
110 g (4 oz) dry mustard powder (available in spice section of grocery store or in bulk bin-type shop) 1 cup cider vinegar 2 eggs (preferably free-range) Pinch of salt 1 cup sugar (preferably organic)
•
Whisk together mustard powder and vinegar until well combined and it let sit overnight in a covered jar.
•
Whisk eggs, salt and sugar together.
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•
Firmly bash one end of the egg down on a board or paper towel on counter top, then turn egg and bash other end.
•
Lay egg on its side and roll firmly with your palm so the shell has shattered all around.
•
Peel off the shell. In theory, the membrane has separated from the egg with the heat and cold and the shell should all but slide off the egg. This helps with the finished presentation of your Devilled Eggs and the frustration level of the hostess/host if she/he is running late!
I am a big proponent of free-range eggs, and encourage their use for cooking and eating. Animals that live as nature intended, develop in a way that is morally right and also has the advantage of better nutrition. Many people would debate this statement to the end of the earth, but they would never convince me otherwise. As to the moral issue…even the debaters should have a hard time denying the cruelty of battery farming. The cage for one chicken has a footprint the size of an A4/Letter size piece of paper. Some chickens live in this cage 24/7 and never see sunlight. Their beaks are chopped so they can’t peck at themselves or others when they itch or go mad. They are pumped full of antibiotics so that they don’t die from diseases that are brought about from the very conditions they
are living in. Yes, free range eggs are a little more expensive than the alternative, but we are talking about a minimal percentage of your food budget. This equates to, maybe, $3.00 extra per dozen; so just skip one latte or energy drink or beer per week to make a difference. I’ll get off my soapbox now. Let’s talk about how fantastic happy eggs actually are. They are the perfect breakfast, snack, sandwich, light dinner, meat substitute, and party finger food. They are easy to make, store and transport and they are naturally packed full of nutrition. Each medium size egg has over 5-6 grams of protein, which is important in our (usually) over-laden carbohydrate diets and a vital, natural 4+ g of fat which contains Omega 3 oils that help many aspects of our health, especially brain function. These little gems are also packed with a variety of vitamins and minerals essential to our well-being. 81
via internet stores such as What Katie Did and Secrets In Lace. Most burlesque dancers have at least one, so I interviewed Miss La Vida and Rachel Rouge about theirs. Rachel Rouge - “I bought the bullet bra solely for the purpose of pin up modelling and burlesque performance. I was fascinated by the shape and the construction. It looked so different from our modern bras, you could say I found them strangely compelling. I don't actually like the shape of the bullet bra, but I like the weirdness of it, and how it changes my shape into something that feels like I'm out of a 1950s sci-fi movie. I found it uncomfortable and restricting to wear.” Miss La Vida: - “The reason I bought a bullet bra is because I was a huge Madonna fan when I was young, especially at the height of her career in the late 80s/ early 90s, when the Gaultier-designed bullet bra corset became a fashion icon. It wasn't just a costume but a representation of strength, eroticism, glamour and showmanship, which are basically the key ingredients of burlesque. So for me, the bullet bra has always been a costume, never a piece of underwear.”
Miss Busty La Belle performing at Carousel Cabaret - photo by Amy Jacobs Photography. Bra by Bettie Page Collection, girdle by Ragu, sold at Secrets In Lace.
In honour of this issue of Glory Days being 1950’s themed, I asked my Facebook friends what they were interested in reading about. The answer came back as ‘boobs’ (which, by the way, is usually the answer). Of course, one of the most notable bust shapes in history was made famous during the 1950’s, and many burlesque shows feature a lot of ‘bust’, so what better combination for this article?
Although the Bullet Bra was invented in the 1940s, it was popularised during the 1950s by Hollywood actresses such as Marilyn Monroe, Lana Turner and Jayne Mansfield and was usually worn under a jumper to enhance the bust – hence the term ‘sweater girl‘. It regained popularity in the 1990s when John Paul Gaultier included the design for Madonna’s global ‘Blonde Ambition’ tour. Bullet bras and garter belts are becoming commonplace within pin-up culture and the retro-loving burlesque set. Now they're also more readily available to New Zealanders
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Yes indeed, the shape is weird and pointy, it separates the ‘girls’, really makes your bust stick out and takes a little getting used to, but it is great for giving the complete vintage glamour look, particularly if you don the whole girdle/stocking ensemble. I also hear they can be great for filling out some vintage dresses designed for a bullet bra to be worn underneath, or to transform your bust silhouette entirely. Either for a look or for what it represents; it’s one of those things you won’t know if you like until you try it. From all our perspectives, it is great that with advances in modern apparel technology you can get just about any look or shape of bra. This is particularly useful for burlesque performers who may wish to offer the audience a different style or look from the other performers in the same show. Miss La Vida adds: “Burlesque costumes should really be individual. If you do go out and buy such a set, personalise the pieces with sequins/feathers/fringing or mix and match pieces. After all, you don't want to be wearing the same costume as other performers.” - Great advice! xx
Belle Miss La
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hot dates
WELLINGTON Warhol Immortal, Te Papa 1 June – 25 August Andy Warhol (1928–87) was a founder of pop art and one of the 20th century’s most defining artists. He changed the way we look at ourselves and each other. He blurred the boundaries between the artificial and the real, the commercial and the cultural, the noteworthy and the trite. Warhol: Immortal celebrates his enduring influence.
Underground Burlesque, Scotty and Mal's Cocktail and Lounge Bar, 176 Cuba St, July 6 Underground Burlesque is an intimate and exclusive 1 night only burlesque show hosted by Crystal Mischief http://facebook.com/CrystalMisschief
time and a way to dip their toes into the world of competitions. Mz Burlesque is a competition for those more mature ladies who want to have a go at being crowned the first MZ Burlesque. Brought to you by Miss Burlesque NZ Ltd. http://www.missburlesque.co.nz/
Home Sewn The New Dowse Art Gallery, 10th August24th November Curated by New Zealand fashion designer and patron Doris de Pont, Home Sewn is a retrospective of the home sewing revolution in New Zealand. At a time when off-the-peg fashion was scarce and expensive, home sewing provided many generations of women with a stylish wardrobe that reflected the current couture of the fashion capitals. Home Sewn is a touring exhibition from the New Zealand Fashion Museum.
Burlesque Masquerade Ball venue TBC, November 16
Cabaret L’amour, Bats Understudy Bar, Dixon Street July 20 and 16 August
For full details, visit: https://www.facebook.com/NZBurlesque
For full details, head to: https://www.facebook.com/cabaret.lamour.1
Dr Sketchy, Mighty Mighty, Cuba Street, August 10th, September,14 October 12
Caburlesque - Stage and Screen Bonanza The Fringe Bar, August 3
Putting the life back into life drawing... and by golly we have a hell of a lot of fun achieving our goals. On the second Saturday of every month, a talented performer from the exotic world of burlesque, circus or cabaret performs and poses for us to draw from 4pm – 7pm.
Featuring such great performers as Miss Burlesque 2011 Miss Bettsy Rose Lee, Volumptuous Twinkle and many more. Doors open 7:30pm show starts 8:30pm $20 pp or $25 VIP Ticket. http://www.caburlesque.co.nz/
Miss Burly Q/ Mz Burlesque, Venue TBC , August 24 Miss Burly Q 3rd annual burlesque competition for those who have only been performing for a short 84
NZ Burlesque Festival Wellington, October 4-6 New Zealand’s biggest Burlesque event – bringing to our shores amazing international performers including The Stage Door Johnnies, Jett Adore and Lola Von Ella. Competitions, stalls and much, much more - www.nzburlesquefestival.co.nz.
AUCKLAND CALIFORNIA DESIGN EXHIBITION, AUCKLAND ART GALLERY, JULY 6 - SEPTEMBER 29 Auckland Art Gallery will get a slice of sunny California style when it hosts the exhibition California Design, 1930–1965: Living in a Modern Way opening from 6 July. California Design gives visitors the chance to see some of the world’s most iconic objects and designs that are as fresh and relevant now as they were when first created. In addition to the exhibition, an exciting programme of talks, film screenings and popular Open Late events will help visitors forget the winter blues and experience the California way of life.
Dark Horse Cabaret Presents: Grimm, Westpoint Performing Arts Centre, Western Springs, August 22– 24 Va-Va-Voom Productions & Dark Horse Cabaret Presents: Grimm. A seductively dark, theatrical cabaret revolved around the fairy tales of The Brothers Grimm. Tickets: $35-$45 from www.iticket. co.nz or www.vavavoomproductions.com
Snowboarding/Skiing trip (if there is snow!) and two roomed late night venue. www.swingtownrebels.co.nz
Anissa Victoria’s Vintage Market, Pallet Pavillion, July 20,August 3, August 17, September 7, September 21, October 5, October 19 Vintage clothing, household wares, art, collectables entertainment and much more!
HAMILTON Petrolhead Breakfast, 4 August , September 1, October 6 For full information, visit: http://www. classicsmuseum.co.nz
Motorhome Association Rally, Classics Le Bal, Ellerslie Events Centre, 31 August Museum, August 23 – 25 The vibe of the inaugural Le Bal is of bygone era’s where no expense was spared in the name of fun and entertainment. It is a strictly masquerade, black tie event and there are even amounts of male and female tickets. Franko Heke, TNT Trinity and Venus Starr will perform. www.lebal.co.nz
CHRISTCHURCH Swingtown Rebels Pocket Change Exchange, Christchurch, October 2 This is one of our biggest yearly events. So much dancing, music, fun and wonderful people from all over the world. Heres a taster of what you can expect. Trust me, this is a weekend that you have to be part of! Includes six nights of dancing, six bands plus the Timaru PCX Jammers! There is also a
For full information, visit: http://www.classicsmuseum.co.nz
2013 Mustang Conference, Classics Museum, October 27 (Labour Day) For full information, visit: http://www.classicsmuseum.co.nz
Hamilton Fringe Festival - 26 Sept - 12 Oct Highlights include the Red Hot & Rockin Rockabilly Burlesque Tease and Bombshell Burlesque & The Rock n Roll Circus. Check www.hamiltonfringe.co.nz for show dates
The Atomic Market, October 19 Contact atomicmarketnz@hotmail.co.nz for more details. 85
Dial M for Murder
NATIONWIDE The New Zealand International Film Festival, Nationwide, July 18- August 11 Highlights include: North by Northwest
In the only Hitchcock movie ever shot in 3D, quintessential cool blonde Grace Kelly stars as a society woman for whom jealous husband Ray Milland arranges the perfect murder. But thanks to a well-placed pair of scissors, the tables are turned, and Milland’s carefully laid plans begin to disintegrate.
Want your event featured in the next issue of Glory Days? Drop us a line at editors@glorydaysmagazine.com
Alfred Hitchcock’s North By Northwest is a masterpiece of popular cinema and simply one of the most entertaining thrillers ever made. We think it most unlikely that you’ve ever seen it looking better than it does now, filling the giant screen in this fabulous new 4K restoration.
Blancanieves The year’s most acclaimed and fabulously stylish Spanish film transplants a classic fairy tale to 1920s Seville. “Lavishly upholstered in silvery black and white… a grotesquely beautiful new take on the Snow White fable.” – NPR. D 86
Glory Days telegram Dear Readers, Glory Days was founded by three passionate vintageloving girls who had a great idea, no time and even less money!
of a new internet future - a future where it is the readers who decide on the value of the media that they consume.
It’s been a wonderful adventure over the past twelve months, and we’ve been astounded by the way people have embraced our publication. We love the sense of community a magazine like this promotes- and for this reason we’ve decided to ask the community to help keep us going.
Pay What You Want is exactly that: you as the consumer decide on the monetary value that Glory Days has to you and pay accordingly, whether it is $2.00, $10.00 or nothing at all!
Glory Days is compiled entirely by voluntary contributors who donate their time and energy, amazing photographers who travel to the ends of the country for us, and pulled together by talented graphic designers who spend a lot of time toiling into the wee hours to make us look so visually spectacular. Online publishing is notoriously difficult to monetise and up until now we have deliberately made Glory Days freely available to anyone who wants to read it. But ultimately we would love to produce a real “hold it-in-your-hands” tangible printed version and would also dearly like to pay our contributors for their efforts. In order to help this happen, we have turned to the “Pay What You Want” model made famous by Radiohead and Amanda Palmer. It’s a unique type of crowd funding which has the old fashioned values of trust and giving at its heart. We believe we’re the first magazine in New Zealand to be funded via a PWYW model and we are excited to see what this type of funding can do to assist in the future of Glory Days. We aspire to become part
If you would like to support Glory Days in our quest, please look out for the Paypal button on our website. From there, you can use the dropdown menu to contribute whichever amount you like. We warmly thank you for your time and support, and we do hope that one day the PWYW project will result in hard copies of Glory Days being widely available and possibly even in a newsstand near you!
Much love and appreciation,
a h s a t a N , e r i a Cl e s o R and 87
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