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Platform in the 1900’s

Research Article Paper

Camry Hicks

Art 3410

March 14, 2018

Professor Lung

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Shoes are very important to our everyday lives because they protect our feet. Not only do they protect our feet but they add style to our individual creative fashion looks in our daily fashion looks. Christian Louboutin says, “Shoes transform your body language and attitude.

They fit you physically and emotionally.” You can never go wrong with any kind of you wear because they are designed not only to comfort you but to give you style in you life. In the the 1990’s there were many different shoes that were worn and one shoe in particular that I will be focusing on throughout my paper is the Platform shoes. My research journal article will consist of the history of platform shoes in the 1900’s such as who wore this kind of shoe back then and what styles and materials were used during that time period. I have researched the history of the shoe so far as how and when the platform shoes came about during the 1900’s. I have learned that these particular shoes were invented many, many years ago but they didn’t start coming out with different styles, materials and things like that until the 1900’s. The has evolved so much from when it was invented until this current day. But I won’t be focusing on these shoes long ago or currently throughout this paper, I will be specifically focusing on the platform shoes in the time period of the 1900’s when fashion was at its finest.

I wanted to research this topic because these specific shoes are seen today more than ever and these platform shoes are seen in so many different styles and versions like actual shoes, heels, and . A lot of models are also seen wearing different looks of a platform heel, specifically when they are walking down a runway or just simply modeling off the shoes through pictures. The specific looks of the platform shoes that they and many other people were wearing, including men, range from a dramatic type of platform shoe to a more simple type of platform shoe, rather if it was a sneaker, heel, , or . So far as the regular platform tennis shoes,

3 Hicks heels, and sandals, these are seen in many different looks today also as they were back in the

1900’s.

Platform shoes enjoyed some popularity in the United States, Europe and the United

Kingdom from the 1930s to the 1950s but not nearly as close to how popular they were in the

1960s to the 1980s. In the 1930s a designer named Moshe Kimel designed the first modern version of the platform shoes for the actress Marlene Dietrich. The shoe that Moshe Kimel designed for Marlene was called the Rainbow Platform. But then the Rainbow Platform became popular in Beverly Hills and was redesigned by the famous shoe designer Salvatore Ferragamo.

In a article called, “History of Women's Shoes”, it stated that, “Salvatore Ferragamo is the father of the modern platform- despite material shortages in Italy under Musolini’s regime, the designer accepted the challenge and began exploring alternatives. , he realized was readily available, durable, and lightweight. Ferragamo was able to stack layers of cork beneath a shoe’s sole to give it a significant amount of height without weighing it down. This resulted in what we now call the “.” Carmen Miranda was a fan, and had a hand in popularizing the style.” The

Rainbow shoe was created and designed for Judy Garland who was a American singer, actress, and vaudevillian. This shoe was a tribute to Judy Garland's signature song “Over The Rainbow” which was a song performed in Wizard of Oz in 1938. So if you were to see that movie you would find the great “Rainbow Platform Shoes” in that particular movie, colorful and tall. The shoe was created using very unique shaped slabs of cork that were covered in suede to build up the wedge and gold kidskin was used for the straps. Salvatore Ferragamo creation of the platform shoe came from the experimentations with new materials because of wartime rationing during

World War 2. But traditionally heels were built up with leather but because of the rationing of

4 Hicks leather, Salvatore Ferragamo experimented with wood and cork. So far as the colors and design of the Rainbow Platform shoe resembles the modern shoe standards today. As time went on in the 1940s the platform shoes were designed with a high arch. In a article that I read it said, “The platform brings a heavy looking foundation to the wearer that is in direct polarity to the . With its reconfiguration of the arch and structure of attenuated insubstantiality, the high heel suggests the ant gravitational effect of the dancer en pointe. On the contrary, the platform displays weightiness more like the flat steps of modern dance.” Later on in the late 1960s and

1970s the increase of interest in platform shoes as fashion began around 1967 and continued all the way up until 1979 in Britain and Europe. This fashion of the platform shoes lasted further in the United States until the 1980’s. At the beginning of this time when platform shoes were popular, they were worn mostly by young women in their teenage years and also their twenties.

And then ever now and then they were worn by older women and young men. Although platform shoes had added height without uncomfortable sharp heels these shoes were mostly worn for attracting attention. A wide range of styles were very popular during this time like , , sandals, oxfords, and , the soles were made of wood, cork, or synthetic materials. The most popular style of the late 1960’s and early 1970’s was the simple quarter strap sandal with a tan water hide strap on a beige suede wrapped cork wedge heel platform sole according to historical information I found on platforms and materials. These platforms were originally brought out under the brand name called Kork-Ease. In the 1980’s as the fashion of platform shoes proceeded they carried onto manufactures. In an article called, Platform Shoes in the 1900’s, it stated that, “manufacturers like Candie's stretched the envelope of what was considered too outrageous to wear, while others, like Famolare and Cherokee of California, ​ ​ ​ ​

5 Hicks introduced "comfort" platforms, designed to combine the added height of platforms with the support and comfort of sneakers, or even orthopedic shoes, and by the time the fad finally fizzled in the late 1980s, girls and women of all ages were wearing them. It may also be a by-product of this fad that Scandinavian , which were considered rather outrageous in the late 1960s and ​ ​ ​ early , had become classic by the 1980s.” So during the times of the 1960’s to the 1980’s platform shoes were being made in uncomfortable and comfortable forms. Uncomfortable being high dramatic arched platform heels by possibly being put in positions where your on your tippy toes with your ankles hurting, to a more comfortable platform where the sole was thick all the way through to give you extra cushion and support. In the early 1990’s platform shoes began to carry on, Vivienne Westwood an United Kingdom fashion designer re-introduced the high heel platform into the high fashion in early 1990’s. In the, Platform Shoes article that I it stated that during this time of the early 1990’s, “while wearing a pair of Super Elevated Gillie with five-inch platforms and nine-inch heels that the supermodel, Naomi Campbell, fell on the ​ ​ catwalk at a fashion show. However they did not catch on quickly and platform shoes only began to resurface in mainstream fashion in the late 1990s, thanks in part to the UK band the Spice ​ Girls, whose members performed in large shoes.” Platform shoes continued to increase in ​ popularity with high then ever platform heels, sneakers, and sandals and also more crazier detailed designs as the years went on.

In an article that I read called, “Why We Love (and Hate) Platform Shoes” by Kari

Molvar, she says, “THE RIGHT PAIR of platform shoes can literally elevate your look, giving you up to an extra 2 inches of height over single-sole heels—and soaring confidence to match.

The stacked sole delivers height with less stress on the ball of the foot as well. It’s not quite a

6 Hicks sneaker, but as heels go, it’s relatively comfortable.” Platform shoes were first discovered in

Europe and the United States in the 1930s but didn’t reach their full potential of popularity until the 1970s. These shoes were worn by both male and female and one male group in particular that wore these shoes were a group called “Kiss” that became a performing band in the 1970s. Many of us know this group by there upbeat rock music and crazy but interesting fashion looks. And throughout there unique fashion looks they would wear the most dramatic looking platform shoes that were mostly made using things like spikes, metallic, and leather. “Kiss” always wore platform boots every time they would perform and one of the boots they wore were called the,

“The Destroyer Boots” that were worn by Gene Simmons from the group “Kiss”. These boots pull on over the knees and were decorated with metallic studs. These platform boots were designed like stilts on two metal supports all the way through to the bottom of the heels. A zipper runs down the inner side of the boots which opens up all the way from the top to the inside sole of the boot, this makes it easy to put on and take off these dramatic platform boots. The scales of the boot were constructed with heavy metal. Each row of scales were hand sewn into the boot and the inside of the boot was directly lined with a nylon material which was a structure you would find in high quality boots. The boot shells were made of thick rubber rather than using plastic. It was better to use a thick rubber for the shells because the plastic shells were more fragile and needed continuous repair to the rough surface just from when the shoes were normally wore. The dragon eyes were created out of red and silver plastic rhinestones. These particular shoes overall were made of thick high quality materials which is why Gene Simmons loved these shoes. Another member from “Kiss” was Paul Stanley, he wore the “Starchild” platform shoes. Paul Stanley wore these platform boots on the Alive tour in 1975. These boots

7 Hicks were almost eight inches high and had a silver vinyl cuff with a silver strip going down the back of the leg to a silver heel piece. The sides of the boots had a black vinyl covering with star cutouts that revealed the silver vinyl. The stars were revealed from the leather on top of the boot being carved into stars. The boots also had a black lace that went up the boot and attached on silver hooks. The tongue, toe, heel, and platform of the shoes were also silver. And the actual heel part of the shoes were covered in vinyl and the sole of the shoe were also a silver texture too. Another member in the group, Ace Frehley wore the Ace “Spaceman” platform boots in the

1976 Destroyer tour. The material on the platform shoe was stitched together, made of all metallic silver material. The platform boots themselves were knee-high and they zipped up on the inside of the leg. The platform and leg part of the boots had foam filled horizontal ridges that were half an inch wide. The front of the boots had a vertical strip that was two inches wide with three and a half inch vertical foam filled ridges. The zipper and stitching on the boots were also silver. The last member from the “Kiss” group was Peter Criss he wore these shoes on the 1975

Alive tour also. The material on this shoe was a snake skin pattern of leather that was visible all over the platform shoes. The soles of the shoes were made out of a very thick rubber. But the platform shoes overall had thick, high-quality leather that was durable enough to last for many of there crazy concerts that they had. All of the members platform boots held up really well because of the high quality materials that were used like thick leather, rubber, heavy metal, and things like that. And if you were to buy any of there shoes today of course they would be replicas but they would be super expensive because of how they are originally made.

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These platform shoes from the “Kiss” band were pretty awesome and all of their platform shoes ranged from four to eight inches of height in there huge boots, which were pretty high in my opinion.

There was also a band called “Motley Crue” that was very similar to the group “Kiss”, and they also wore platform shoes when they would perform. “Mötley Crüe” was an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California, on January 17, 1981. The group was founded by bassist Nikki Sixx and then he later on found his other band members Tommy Lee,

Greg Leon, Mick Mars, and Vince Neil. These four members of the group wore the most simple kind of platform boot which were plain black leather combat boots with a wooden platform that was about four to eight inches in height. Compared to the group “Kiss” the Mötley Crüe were a little less fashionable when it came to the platform shoes that they wore.

In the 1970s, the beginning of the era, men and women wore platform shoes and sandals that were very similar to each other. During disco time almost everyone on the dance floor wore the platform shoes. Some were plain but many were very interesting, detailed, and dramatic, but not only in height but also in the world of fashion. It was very common to see

9 Hicks platform shoes with flashing lights or even a small aquarium in them that was made of clear plastic or glass. One of the disco shoes that I found to be very interesting was the disco fish tank platform shoes. It was said in a article that I read called, “The Truth Behind the Infamous Fish ​ Tank Platform Shoes” that, “The fish tank as decorative art has, at different times, enjoyed wide popularity, with aquariums as wall murals and even toilets. But fish tank as shoes? Back in the

'70s disco era, fish were briefly subjected to physical injury and death (as well as humiliation, along with really bad music) when someone came up with the idea for the disco fish platform shoe. One could plop a live goldfish into the platform sole or heel, which was composed of clear acrylic or Lucite. While many are convinced this was an urban myth, I had a friend who owned a pair of these. (Which largely explains why she soon became my ex-friend.) The legend comes from the fact that no seems able to produce an actual pair of these shoes or even a picture of them from their brief heyday in the 1970s. The lack of evidence could be because the shoes were not mass-manufactured. Disco fans sought them out at small, boutique specialty stores. The shoes were not, as some of the myths purport, sent from the factory with the fish already sealed in the heel. Obviously, if that were the case, the fish would be pretty much guaranteed to die within the day for lack of oxygen. Instead, the clear platform heels or soles were either removable or had some kind of flap at the back that lifted so that the wearer could fill with whatever he or she wanted. People report filling the heels with teddy bears, gumballs, marbles or crinkled colored tissue paper.” Even though these shoes were thought to be very dangerous because of the platform part being contained with a live fish, they were still very creative and cool to even be invented. Lots of people were coming up with all kinds of weird disco platform ​ shoes, but these platform shoes for men with aquariums in the heels were said to be the most

10 Hicks horrible platform shoes of them all. But I think otherwise because these particular disco platform shoes were not something you would see everyday and they just had a totally different look and feel to them. The style itself looks like it came straight from the 1970’s with the wide heels and solid laces. And while they look cool, only a handful of guys would actually wear these shoes and manage not to look like a fool because of the animal print designs or flashy colors

.

Another famous band that wore platform shoes were the “”, In an article that I read called “Spice Girls” by Liza Minnelli she says, “The British all-female pop group the Spice

Girls dominated the music charts in the 1990s with their catchy lyrics and fierce attitudes. The group began with five, young aspiring performers, and blew up into a '90s frenzy of platform shoes, choreographed dance numbers, and of course, "Girl Power." Under the personas of

"Sporty," "Baby," "Scary," "Ginger" and "Posh".” The spice girls shoes were very popular because they were so dramatic in height but simply designed as regular boots or sneakers, just tall. In another article that I read by Arielle Dachille called, “9 Spice Girls' Shoes That Were

Definitely Dangerous, From Vertigo-Inducing Platforms to Extremely Insensible Boots” she says

11 Hicks that basically if you were a child of the late 1990s, it was most likely that you spent the better part of third grade wanting a pair of 7-inch-high platforms. She says, “Without question, you can thank the Spice Girls and their dangerous shoes for fostering this preternatural lust for death ​ ​ traps of cobbler work. The Spices made frolicking about in a pair of cinder block sneakers look so damn easy. Hence, you needed a pair. You pined for them. You sought out the slightly more real-world friendly-versions in a pair of rocket dog platform flip flops or Skechers 5-inch-thick foam-sole sneakers. Why? Because fashion took a premium over physics in your 8-year old brain. Little did you understand that the Spice Girls were basically wearing loaded guns on their feet. Yes, I do realize that people have literally worn AK-47 shoes in the history of pop but bear with me here. Plenty of signature shoes donned by the band members were TREACHEROUS with a capital T. The thigh-high platform boots were like asking for a broken ankle. The double club-foot trainers were high enough to give you serious vertigo. Wearing most of the shoes that

Ginger, Baby, and Scary rocked from Wannabe to Spice World were be enough to alter a gal's ​ ​ ​ ​ depth perception for life.” The platform shoes that the Spice Girls wore were mostly sneakers and boots, the sneakers were the more simple looking platform while the boots were a little more

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.

Other famous stars that wore platform shoes in the 1900’s were, David Bowie, Elton

John, Marvin Gaye, Keith Moon, The New York Dolls and other famous men. Specifically in the

1970’s Marvin Gaye, who was an American musician who gained worldwide fame for his work with Motown Records. He had signature silver platform boots made by his wife were very attracting. They were about five inches height and made with a thick and shiny metallic material all over the shoes. The platform boots of Marvin Gaye’s also had red rhinestones going around the shoes midway where his actual foot stopped, and then the platform continued. His shiny silver platform boots were topped with flashy red shoe strings that matched the flashy red

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rhinestones on his boots . David Bowie who was one of the most influential writers and performers of popular music. He was also an accomplished actor, a mime and an intellectual, as well as an art lover whose appreciation and knowledge of it had led to him amassing one of the biggest collections of 20th century art according to his bibliography history. David Bowie also had a interesting sense of fashion, he enjoyed wearing all kinds of platform shoes. One of his famous platform shoes that he wore was his red platform boots that were about four inches in height. David Bowie wore these platform boots to the Aladdin Sane tour in 1972-1973 . The red platform boots were mostly made with a flashy red leather for the entire leg and foot part and then ending with a thick black rubber bottom which was the platform

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part of the boot . Another famous star that wore platform boots was, who was a British singer, pianist and composer who was one of the most popular musicians of the 20th century. He also had a sense of fashion by including platform shoes in his wardrobe. The most interesting platform shoes that he wore was the

Ferradini (Italy) platform shoes he wore in the mid 1970’s. They were vintage looking shoes that were upgraded into high heel platform shoes. These platform shoes were about six to seven inches in height and they were made of a metallic material for the shoe part. The platform part of the shoes were covered in chevron black and gold rhinestones with a half inch wooden bottom

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piece that finished the platform .

Another platform boot that he wore were also metallic and had hints of red leather on them that was used for the large E on the side of the shoe and also two thick lined pieces on the platform part of the shoe. The rest of the shoe was a metallic material, the heel part of the platform shoe was wooden and finished with a half inch black rubber at the very bottom of the shoe

. I have to say out of both of John Elton’s platform shoes the Ferradini platform was my favorite because of all the diamonds on them that were placed in a

16 Hicks chevron pattern. Overall they were amazing! Keith Moon was another star that wore platform shoes. He was famous for being a legend at rock drumming and when he used to perform he would wear these famous platform shoes. The most interesting platform shoes that Keith Moon wore were a short style platform boot that was about three to four inches in height. They had a animal print on them which was like a snake skin material. I am not sure if the snake skin was real or not but I'm hoping it wasn't. Even through this shoe could possibly be made with real snake skin, the platform boots themselves were still really nice and had a wooden finished heel.

Leigh Bowery who was an Australian performance artist, club promoter, and fashion designer.

Based in London for much of his adult life, he was a significant model that wore the craziest platform shoes. Leigh Bowery was a party animal that would dress up in the craziest outfits ever and owned when he appeared in many clubs. There was one platform shoe that really caught my eye in a class discussion we had about leigh bowery, it was the tallest platform shoe that I have ever seen worn by Leigh Bowery himself and his members from Raw Sewage. The platform shoes were black and white ankle boots dramatically extended with a white wooden/ leather platforms. The platform of the shoe was made out of wood then wrapped with white leather and then at the very bottom of the platform it was finish with an half inch rubber material.

I thought these shoes were so cool

17 Hicks because they weren’t dramatically designed with detail but they were at a very dramatic height which was around ten to twelve inches high. The last and final group that I wanted to touch on was the New York Dolls and there platform shoes. In an article that I read called, “My

Obsession: Punk pioneers New York Dolls” by Jim Lenahan, he says that, “ The New York

Dolls. Now, these were pioneers. Released in 1973, this band's self-titled debut was punk rock before the term existed. The snide quintet played aggressive, challenging music that failed to find much of an audience at a time when polished acts like Pink Floyd and Steely Dan were in fashion. And speaking of fashion, the New York Dolls favored an androgynous look — big hair, makeup, platform shoes. This was a band that refused to blend in and certainly wasn't caught up in the notion of selling merch. "Metrosexuals" and glam fashions for men were years from becoming a viable market.” The New York dolls wanted to be as different from anyone else as much as they could and of course wearing different styles of platform shoes was the way to go.

The platform shoes that the New York Dolls wore were mostly high heel boot platforms made of shiny black, red, or white leather that had a wooden finished heel.

The purpose of my research on platform shoes is the simple fact of me being fascinated with these kinds of shoes. I also believe that it is just interesting and mind blowing to know the history behind something that you connect to personally. I got to see how many famous stars wore platform shoes back in the 1900’s and how the platform shoes evolved so much from famous designers re-creating and creating different styles of platform shoes all the way to famous artist wearing the dramatic platform shoes. I learned that even though the more simple looking platform shoe was less detailed than a lot of other platform shoes, the platform itself gave that simple looking platform shoe a dramatic look and touch. All platforms shoes that you

18 Hicks see today and back then are eye catching even its a simple looking sneaker, boot, sandal, or heel.

My research on platform shoes are very relevant to the modern world because these shoes that were invented many years ago became even more popular in the 1900’s and are still very popular today. And I believe for them to be still trending today they must have a very significant meaning behind them.

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Works Cited

Sylvester, Connie Wang Zoila, et al. “An Illustrated History Of The Platform Shoe.” The ​ History Of The Platform Shoe- 70s, 90s, And Today, ​ www.refinery29.com/platform-shoe-history. ​ Queens Of Vintage, ​ 1 July 2012, www.queensofvintage.com/a-brief-history-platform-shoe/. ​ “Sky-High boots and platform shoes worn by David Bowie, Marvin Gaye, AC/DC, Keith

Moon & more.” DangerousMinds, 10 Mar. 2016, ​ ​ dangerousminds.net/comments/sky-high_boots_and_platform_shoes_worn_by_david_bowie_ma rvin_gaye_ac_dc_kei.

Whitehouse, Michael. “Platform Shoe Syndrome.” The British Medical Journal, vol. 2, ​ ​ no. 5912, 1974, pp. 225–225. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/20468852. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ “Hazards Of Platform Shoes.” The British Medical Journal, vol. 1, no. 5844, 1973, pp. ​ ​ 53–53. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/20263936. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ “Taboo or Not Taboo, the fashions of Leigh Bowery.” National Gallery of Victoria, ​ ​ www.ngv.vic.gov.au/essay/taboo-or-not-taboo-the-fashions-of-leigh-bowery/.

“Kiss.” Contemporary Musicians, Encyclopedia.com, ​ ​ www.encyclopedia.com/people/literature-and-arts/music-popular-and-jazz-biographies/kiss. ​ “It's time to spice up your shoe game with this 90s platform.” Evening Standard, 30 Nov. ​ ​ 2017,

20 Hicks www.standard.co.uk/fashion/news/the-spice-girls-favourite-shoe-is-making-a-comeback-a37023

81.html. ​ Adu-Wusu, K. “Tank 26F-2F Evaporator Study.”

2012, doi:10.2172/1059829.

Perkins, Mildred. “Happy Feet.” Pinterest, 14 May 2013, ​ ​ www.pinterest.com/pin/427912402064799570/.

“Pair Of Mens Brown Leather Platform Shoes Photography.” 70s Platform Shoes Stock ​ Photos and Pictures | Getty, ​ www.gettyimages.com/photos/70s-platform-shoes?sort=mostpopular&mediatype=photography

&phrase=70s platform shoes.