#ThrowbackThursday

#ThrowbackThursday: Liu Wen Walks the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, 2009

Liu Wen walks the 2009 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show (Zimbio)

I’ll be honest: Sometimes my posts are born from a random thought. This post comes from my Googling to find out who the first Asian supermodel was. This led me to Liu Wen, whom The New York Times called the “first Asian supermodel” in 2012.

Three years before The Grey Lady bestowed that moniker, Liu walked in the annual Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. She was the first Asian model to do so. That’s hardly the only first Liu has racked up throughout her career: She’s also the first East Asian model to be a face for Estee Lauder, cover American Vogue in 2017 and make Forbes‘ annual list of highest-paid models. (Liu ranked #5 on Forbes’ list in 2013 with $4.3M.)

#ThrowbackThursday: Sexual Assault Statistics, 2016

Sexual Assault graphic (The Daily Orange)

Syracuse University’s student newspaper The Daily Orange published this graphic two years ago to mark Sexual Assault Awareness Month. (That’s April, FYI.) The graphic brings awareness to data centered on sexual assaults on public and private college campuses.

A couple of these stats are especially chilling: 90% of victims do not report the sexual assault. And the victim knows the perpetrator in 80% of sexual assault cases.

So. Many. Problems. Here.

#ThrowbackThursday: Hitachi Magic Wand, 1968

Magic Wand packaging, pre- and post-rebranding (Engadget)

This post was originally published on February 5, 2015.

On April 25, 1968, Japanese company Hitachi listed its Magic Wand for business in the U.S with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Originally advertised as a massager in the 1970s, it quickly gained a new (and arguably larger) reputation as a powerful vibrator.

Sex educator Betty Dodson was the first person to recommend it, using the device in her classes on female masturbation. For women uneasy about going to a sex shop to purchase a toy, the Magic Wand filled a previously-unknown niche: Dodson got hers in the small appliance section at Macy’s.

It looks almost orthopedic, with a “tennis-ball-size” head sitting at the end of the white plastic shaft. (And it’s almost as long as the model’s forearm on the old packaging.) The Magic Wand has two speeds: low (5K vibrations per minute) and high (6K vibrations per minute). It weighs 1+ pound, and measures 12 inches. But nationally-known sex shop Good Vibrations reports that the Magic Wand has been one of their best-sellers since 1977.

In 2013, Hitachi rebranded the massager, as they were uneasy as being unofficially branded a covert sex toy. (I guess it took them 46 years to catch on?) Hitachi’s name doesn’t feature on the new packaging, but it doesn’t obscure what everyone knows: The Cadillac of vibrators is inside.

#ThrowbackThursday: Gender Pay Gap by State, 2016

Gender Pay Gap by State (Business Insider)

This post was originally published on July 13, 2017. It has been updated from the original.

You know the old saying that women make 75 cents for every dollar a man makes? (That saying makes me want to punch something.) Well, it’s not strictly true. Yes, women on the whole make less than men, but it’s not always exactly 75 cents.

The above graphic comes from “Business Insider,” which broke down the gender pay gap by state. Notice from the key at the bottom of the map that no percentage range rises about 90%. So no state pays women 90 cents for every man’s dollar. The closest states are New York with 87% and Nevada with 85%.

This is just depressing, There’s so much more progress to be made.

#ThrowbackThursday: International Women’s Day Poster from Macedonia (Date Unknown)

Macedonian International Women’s Day Poster (Flamingo Group)

Happy International Women’s Day! The poster above is from Macedonia, and I couldn’t find out the original date behind it. The text on the poster reads (italics from the source):

8 March is not the day of the fairer sex, 8 March is the international reminder of the struggle for economic, political and societal equality of women. The fight against contemporary patriarchy is not over: the World Economic Forum predicts that the gender gap will not close until 2133!

The history behind International Women’s Day is fascinating! The history of the day stems from Socialist roots: The first observance was in New York in 1909, and was put on by the Socialist Party of America. Russia officially began marking the day in 1917, and became a non-working day in 1965. The United Nations adopted the day in 1975.

Even if you’re not wearing red or purple today, be sure to take a moment and reflect on the women in your life and the world over.

Women in Entertainment: Lina Wertmuller Directing “Seven Beauties,” 1975 #ThrowbackThursday

Lina Wertmuller directing ‘Seven Beauties’ (Pinimg)

The first woman nominated for the Best Director Oscar was Lina Wertmuller in 1975 for her film “Seven Beauties.” The film follows an Italian man throughout his life, and the title comes from his seven sisters. “Seven Beauties” was her tenth film.

The next woman nominated for the Best Director Oscar was Jane Campion for her 1993 film “The Piano.”

#ThrowbackThursday: “The Fate of the Furious,” 2017

‘The Fate of the Furious,’ 2017 (Junkee)

“Black Panther” smashed many records within its first week of opening. One of the records it broke was the biggest opening for an African-American director. Ryan Coogler now holds that crown.

The previous record holder was F. Gary Gray, who directed “The Fate of the Furious.” The movie made $98M last year. Gray has also directed the films “Set It Off” (1996), “A Man Apart” (2003) and “Straight Outta Compton” (2015) and music videos for TLC (“Waterfalls” in 1995) and OutKast (“Ms. Jackson” in 2000).

#ThrowbackThursday: Alice Dunnigan, Date Unknown

Alice Dunnigan (Columbia Journalism Review Archive)

Alice Dunnigan should be more well-known. This is not editorializing, this is just a fact. As a journalist WOC, Dunnigan pioneered many firsts. She was the first African-American woman to have press access to the White House, first African-American female member of the Senate and House of Representatives press galleries. Dunnigan was also the first African-American woman to travel with a presidential candidate, when she traveled with Harry S. Truman during the 1948 presidential campaign.

Dunnigan paved the way for other African-American female journalists, among them Gwen Ifill, Nikole Hannah-Jones, and Oprah Winfrey.

#ThrowbackThursday: John Singleton and “Boyz N The Hood,” 1991

Boyz N The Hood, made by John Singleton in 1991, was the story of three friends — played by(from left) Morris Chestnut, Cuba Gooding, Jr. and Ice Cube – growing up in South Central Los Angeles.

The first African-American nominee for Best Director was John Singleton. Like Peele, Singleton was nominated for his debut film. Singleton’s film “Boys n the Hood” featured Ice Cube (in his acting debut), Cuba Gooding Jr. and Angela Bassett. Singleton’s nomination also made history because he was the youngest-ever nominee for Best Director, nominated at age 24.

This year, Jordan Peele hit the trifecta of Oscar nominations with “Get Out,” receiving nominations for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay. Peele is only the fifth African-American director to be nominated for a Best Director Oscar.

#ThrowbackThursday: Kathryn Bigelow Wins Best Director for “The Hurt Locker,” 2010

Kathryn Bigelow at the 2010 Oscars (Zimbio)

Prior to directing the 2009 film “The Hurt Locker,” Kathryn Bigelow was known for science fiction “Strange Days” and action film “Point Break.” “The Hurt Locker” raised her profile, and pushed her into the spotlight when she won the Best Director Oscar for the film.

Bigelow is the only woman to win the Best Director Oscar. She was the fourth woman to be nominated for the award.

Sex & Stats: Where Numbers Come to Bang

Statistics. Economics. Sex.