Was Marilyn Monroe Really A Size 16?

Times Online:

There has been much debate about Marilyn Monroe's vital statistics. She possessed one of the most celebrated bodies in the world and the ludicrous rumours, hyperbole and aura of enigma that surrounded her image were all part of the Marilyn machine. They certainly contributed to the extraordinary level of fame she had acquired by the time she was found naked and dead in bed on August 5, 1962, at just 36 years old.

After all these years, mystery and conspiracy theories still surround her death, but when it comes to her physical attributes, I can put a few facts straight. Contrary to received wisdom, she was not a voluptuous size 16 -- quite the opposite. While she was undeniably voluptuous -- in possession of an ample bosom and a bottom that would look at home gyrating in a J-Lo video -- for most of the early part of her career, she was a size 8 and even in her plumper stages, was no more than a 10. I can tell you this from experience because a few weeks ago, I tried to try on her clothes.

Read the whole story: Times Online

Comments

[ena]

The industry revamped sizes at least three times since the 40's. The biggest modernization in standards came late 60's early 70's. Currently, size standards seem to have been lowered or thrown out the window completely unless you are dealing with the high fashion houses.

[blimie]

If you've ever tried on clothing from the 50's, their size 12 is about today's size 6.

[ena]

That is correct. I have a beautiful suit that my mother wore on her honeymoon in 1949. She was a tall woman and in today's sizing probably would have been a size 8 but the suit says 14. It is beautifully cut and tailored. The fabric is a beautiful tan twill and still holds up to scrutiny.

[truthartbeauty]

she had an "it" factor that was beyond any dress size

[Yamunation]

Women's clothing sizes mean absolutely nothing. There is no standard. A size 2 simply means it's the 2nd-smallest size, but it doesn't refer to a measurement.

A size 4 in Banana is huge, and they cut their clothes large enough so women can feel good about themselves. But a size 4 at H&M is like toddler size. I wear a size 10 in that store. That's a 6-size difference from one store to another. And, the cut of clothing changes over time, to be in line with trends and women's self-image.

[ena]

When we had a fashion industry in NYC before outsourcing and the closing of our manufacturing there were standard sizing. You found a difference only in cheaply made garments that skimped on cut and seaming.

[Eek909]

If I go to the store, I usually wear a size 4 or 6. But I wear a lot of 1950's vintage clothes that I buy at Goodwill. In the vintage dresses that I buy, they are usually size 14.

It drives me insane when overweight women try to make themselves feel better by saying Marilyn Monroe was a size 14! Anyone looking at her can see she didn't have any spare fat on her...she had a healthy, toned, strong body...just extremely curvy. It's too bad that even she had severe issues about her weight.

[PoliticalRockChick]

So true.

[ena]

She had a real woman's figure and in those days a size 12 & 14 were standard sizes, probably comparable to 8 & 10.

I forget who said this after Sophia Loren appeared at the Oscar's this year, but it was great: "Sophia Loren can still fill out her prom dress."

Women used to dress for their womanhood, today nothing is left to the imagination or alluring with the women constantly in the news. Need I say Lohan, Spears, Richie et al. These gals are not fashion icons.

[Bluejay00234]

And to think in today's time people find a size 0 to be sexy.

[PoliticalRockChick]

Disgusting. Last year I found out there's a size double 0. Nasty.

[hellie]

One of my pet peeves is hearing women justify excess weight by comparing their current sizes to Marilyn's. The real standard is pattern sizes, which have not changed at all over the decades. A size 12 pattern in 1950 is exactly the same as a size 12 pattern today (34-26-36). The same cannot be said for off-the-rack sizing. As a teenager in the 70s, I wore a size 8-10 pant. I weigh five pounds more now, and size four is often a good fit.

[RoadCrossingChicken]

I got married in 1973. My wedding dress was a size 10.
Modern dresses today that are the same measurements as that garment are now said to be a size 7.

Monroe was gorgeous, whatever her size.

[ena]

You are absolutely correct. The need for the industry to fool the public into thinking they are something that they are not is ridiculous.

[HC4BO]

I think she was a size "just perfect" ...

[Treehuggindirtworshiper]

My wedding dress was a size 18! I was 5'9" and 140 pounds. I was also very athletic (swam 10k a week).

[Pema]

hi tree...diff manufactors have different dress sizes. i can wear a 9 in one and a 12 in another..its kinda crazy.

[Oxonian2001]

Vanity sizing accounts for a lot, which may explain why she may have worn a 16 back then.

I was more or less her height and weight at 36--5'5" and fluctuating somewhere between 112 and 120: by no means the skinniest, but certainly not fat either. I could wear a 2 very comfortably. Some years later and quite a bit more, I now need to wear a size 4 or even a 6 (quel horreur, LOL) . It is ridiculous when you consider that when I was 17 and weighing less than a 100 pounds, I wore a size 6. In other words, today's size 4-6 is like the 10 of the 1980s--and probably the 14-6 of the 1950s.

Btw, it's also worth noting that American and British sizes are quite different: they can be as many as 3 sizes apart with the American 2 being the equivalent of a British 8--or at least, back in the 1990s. (We Americans seem to like size inflation as much as grade inflation!)

The obsession with size is more than ridiculous when we get right down to it. In the end, I could personally care less about size as long as the garment fits me perfectly.

[GrandmaJ]

When I got married in 1955 I was a size 12. I was 5' 9" and weighed 120 pounds. Today, I weigh considerably more and still wear a size 12. Manufacturers have changed the sizes over the years to make us think we are slimmer than we are. My grandaughter who is a size 8 could not get into my wedding dress.

[liminal67]

What a beautiful woman.. and a great comedian... one if the greatest... some like it hot....

http://pitchbendpost.blogspot.com/

[Patricia84]

Nowadays, size do not mean much. With vanity sizing I wear size zero and even double zero! And I am far from a waif. I even have some extra fat I definitely need to work on.

[Leiber1223]

i can't stand it when women talk about how fat they are... and you wear a size zero??????? please lady, go to a counselor... you have problems...

[Alicia Edwards]

Sizes do depend on the designer. Marilyn's size fluctuated like most of us.

Alicia
http://fashionasmusings.blogspot.com/2009/04/fashiona-interviews-archives-from.html