If you let the dimensions of any part of your figure vary more than one-half inch from the following, weight 115 pounds, neck 12-1/2 inches, bust 34 inches, upper arm 11, lower arm 7-1/2, waist 26, hips 34, thigh 18, calf 12, ankle 8-1/2, then and in the event we shall have the right to cancel this contract upon giving you one week’s notice. (Source: www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allyn_King)
This was Ziegfeld Girl Allyn King’s contract. Her story is the saddest that I’ve read. She tried to maintain her weight until she almost died from her eating disorder plus diet pills.
She was checked into a sanatorium for two years. Soon after her release, she committed suicide by jumping out a fifth floor window. She died in 1927 – and this crazy expectation is STILL being imposed on women.
