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  • [In a Moment of Vision...]

  • It's the 1920s.

  • Flapper fashion prevails.

  • Women conceal their figures in straight-sided gowns and restrictive bandeaus.

  • A dressmaker named Ida Rosenthal is frustrated by the way falsely flat chests look beneath her structured dresses.

  • So she, her husband William, and business partner Enid Bisset develop a line of intimate apparel that accentuates the curves.

  • The design consists of two cups, shoulder straps, and a chest band that clasps in back.

  • At first, the bras are included with the sale of a dress, but the popularity of the undergarment soon outstrips that of the garment itself.

  • The three establish a business selling exclusively bras and call it "Maidenform".

  • William, in a moment of vision, invents a graduated, standardized cup-sizing system that accommodates women of all ages and all shapes.

  • During the female liberation bra-burning era of the 1960s, Ida Rosenthal is asked to comment on the downfall of the brassiere industry.

  • She answers simply, "After age 35, a woman hasn't got the figure to wear no support. Time is on my side."

[In a Moment of Vision...]

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