I wanted to draw your attention to two more secondhand books we have for sale this week which are rather amazing books!
Fashions in Makeup : From Ancient to Modern Times by Richard Corson (start price $40)
Fashions in Makeup is a unique book in its field: a comprehensive history of cosmetics. In this highly praised volume, Richard Corson chronicles the pursuit of beauty from Ancient Egypt to the present day.
Concentrating mainly on makeup traditions of the Western world, with examples from other countries included for comparison, Corson describes the cosmetics with which men and women have decorated their faces, how they have applied them, and what they looked like as a result.
This is a huge book! And it’s really amazing, full of photos and pictures and totally comprehensive. In fact I don’t really know how much more comprehensive you could get on makeup. Historically intriguing, very learned… and kind of fun. Great stuff. And if you want to buy this from overseas, new or used it’s pantsically expensive.
And this leads me to…
Pretty Things : The Last Generation of American Burlesque Queens by Liz Goldwyn (start price $30)
Liz Goldwyn’s lifelong fascination with the inimitable glamour of classic burlesque inspired her to spend the past eight years corresponding with, visiting, interviewing, receiving striptease lessons from, and forming close relationships with the last generation of the great American burlesque queeens. Goldwyn invites us to step back into an era when the hourglass figure was in vogue and striptease was a true art form.
Meet Betty “Ball of Fire” Rowland, who was known for her flaming red hair and bump-and-grind routines. (It turns out she once sued the author’s grandfather, Samuel Goldwyn Jr., for using her stage name and costume in his Hollywood picture, Ball of Fire.)
Meet Sherry Britton, who, with her long black hair and curvy, trim physique, was among the most stunning of the burlesque stars before Mayor LaGuardia outlawed burlesque in New York.
Meet Zorita, whose sexually explicit “Consummation of the Wedding of the Snake” dance (performed with a live snake) and other daring performances earned her legendary status.
Goldwyn draws back the curtain to reveal the personal journeys of yesteryear’s icons of female sexuality and power, restoring their legacy to an age that has all but forgotten them-despite today’s resurgence of burlesque.
I originally imported this as a new book but it arrived with a cover that had a faded edge on it, so I’m selling it as a secondhand. Still, don’t let that put you off. The insides are immaculate and dripping with photos, drawings, memorabilia – this is an awesome record of burlesque and burlesque queens. And their costumes were outstanding. Plus, despite the fading, I still love the cover. Pink and gold and peek-a-boo. *sigh* Just so lovely.
