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July 8, 1939. "Golden Gate International Exposition, San Francisco -- General Motors Day badge held by Miss Fisher Body." Whose parts all seem to fit unusually well. 8x10 negative originally from the Wyland Stanley collection. View full size.
This young lady is Zoe Dell Lantis Nutter, an official hostess/booster for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island. Here's a snipper about Zoe from Wikipedia:
"After one 1939 show, aviation executives approached her about promoting commercial aviation at the Golden Gate International Exposition on nearby Treasure Island, to promote air travel in general, and overseas flights to East Asia in particular, via the new China Clipper flying boats based at Treasure Island. Dressed in a pirate costume, she served as the official hostess for the exposition. Soon she had flown 100,000 passenger miles to meet mayors and governors across the U.S., demonstrating the safety and comforts of air travel."
According to my dad, she was "hot stuff" for the late 1930s.
Here's another photo of her in full regalia:
I got the impression of a "Pirate Girl", but how that relates to GM or the Fair, I have no idea!
[The overall theme of the Exposition was the "Pageant of the Pacific": the nations of the Pacific, their products, new transportation methods to them (from San Francisco, naturally) and also commemoration of the historical voyages of exploration. So, pirates also being nautical ... You probably had to be there. -tterrace]
GM would opt for a Disneyesque pirate costume straight out of Peter Pan.
My grandfather worked at an auto body plant in Moline, Illinois, in the 1920s making bodies for Model A Fords. They surely didn't look like this "body by Fisher."
"Body by Fisher, legs by Steinway, necks by the hour".
And what did they ask for?
"How about a Daisy Mae Yokum skirt with a kind of toreador vest, some pilot's wings, and maybe some high-heeled Pilgrim-type shoes. Oh, and a shiny hat. Everybody likes a shiny hat."
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