Trans World Airlines Hostess Uniform, Worn by Diane Beers Hill, 1965

Summary

Flight attendants assist with airline passengers' safety and comfort. Airlines once exclusively hired young unmarried women for these jobs, and uniforms tended to be form-fitting with impractical accessories like white gloves and high-heeled shoes. Diane Beers wore this uniform as a TWA flight attendant in 1965. U.S. courts and regulators abolished age, gender and marital-status requirements starting in 1968.

Flight attendants assist with airline passengers' safety and comfort. Airlines once exclusively hired young unmarried women for these jobs, and uniforms tended to be form-fitting with impractical accessories like white gloves and high-heeled shoes. Diane Beers wore this uniform as a TWA flight attendant in 1965. U.S. courts and regulators abolished age, gender and marital-status requirements starting in 1968.

Artifact

Uniform

Date Made

1965

Creators

Trans World Airlines 

Mae Hanauer, Inc. 

Lady Simpson (Firm) 

Balmain, Pierre, 1914-1982 

Blou-Slip Company, Inc. 

Place of Creation

United States, New York, New York 

France, Paris 

United States, California, San Francisco 

Korea 

Creator Notes

Uniform commissioned by Trans World Airlines. Hat made by Mae Hanauer, Inc., of New York, New York. Jacket designed by Pierre Balmain of Paris, France. Jacket and skirt made by Lady Simpson of New York, New York. Underdress made by Blou-Slip Company, Inc., of San Francisco, California.

Location

Not on exhibit to the public.

Object ID

2024.66.1

Credit

From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of Diane Beers Hill.

Material

Wool (Textile)
Cloth
Plastic
Metal

Color

Bluish green
Grayish pink
White (Color)
Red

Inscriptions

on tag inside hat: Mae Hanauer / INC. / 18 EAST 55TH ST., NEW YORK / 23 on pin attached to hat: TWA on tag inside jacket at neck: LONDON NEW YORK / Lady Simpson / Original / BEERS (handwritten) / TAILORED IN U.S.A. on tag inside jacket at side: PIERRE BALMAIN / FOR TWA

Diane Beers in her TWA Stewardess Uniform, 1965

Details

Diane Beers in her TWA Stewardess Uniform, 1965-19...

Details
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