1970’S: HIGH HEELED PLATFORMS In 1977, John Travolta stole the spotlight in a pair of chunky, heeled platforms and bell-bottom pants on the set of “Saturday Night Fever.” The 3-inch tall shoes help him win the disco dance competition and the attention of swooning girls. 1700’S: MULES An early hybrid between a pump and a slipper, these open-back, 2-inch heels symbolize playful promiscuity in Jean-Honoré Fragonard’s 1766 painting “The Swing.” Famed shoe designer Manolo Blahnik credits “The Swing” for inspiring his mule conception in the 1980s.
1930’S: WEDGES
1950’S:
HEAD OVER HEELS From platforms to flatforms, fashion’s most flattering shoe still stands tall. BY CHRISTINA TIBERIO Illustrated by Lung Ung
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STILETTOS AND KITTEN HEELS
Italian shoe designer Salvatore Ferragamo gets creative with wartime rations and makes the first cork wedges. The most successful of Ferragamo’s cork designs was the rainbow wedge, a 4.5-inch chunky, multicolored heel.
In “The Seven Year Itch,” sex symbol Marilyn Monroe stands over a grate and pushes her flowing white wrap dress down as a train speeds by underneath and reveals her 3-inch strappy stilettos. With the same basic aesthetic as a stiletto, kitten heels are 1.5 to 2 inches and originally designed for preteen girls who are not ready for the steeper heel.