Fractured Apparel Trivia Quiz

Answer: Denim overalls

I used to wear these when I was a college student during the 1970s. During the first week of my freshman year I kept my brand-new, laminated plastic student ID card (which I needed to get into the dining halls) in my overalls' bib pocket. Well, one day I leaned over to flush the toilet, having not yet rehooked my overall straps. Just as I flushed, out slid my ID card, never to be seen again. (This was one of those super-powered toilets that flushes with a mighty roar like forty foot waves breaking against rocky shores.) It was mortifying to explain how I came to lose my ID card so early in the semester.

Answer: knee socks

When I was in junior high school, the fashion was to wear matching pastel-colored tops and knee socks with matching darker-colored pleated skirts and Mary Jane shoes. For example, a pink top and knee socks with a maroon-colored skirt and maroon leather Mary Janes.

Answer: sexy lingerie

Sexy lingerie items include thong panties, merry widows, bustiers, and see-through nighties.

Answer: turtleneck sweater

My favorite outfit when I was 21 consisted of a pair of pale gray corduroy bell bottoms and a "dusty rose" cotton turtleneck. My favorite turtleneck today is a stretched-out old black one. Have you ever looked closely at a little turtle? Turtles really DO have turtlenecks!

Answer: blue jeans

Levi Strauss still makes the best ones. I like the good old straight legged ones that list the waist and length sizes on the back label. They have six rivets to hold the front pockets in place (even the little extra pocket inside the bigger one has rivets).

Answer: Easter bonnet

"In your Easter bonnet with all the frills upon it,
You'll be the grandest lady in the Easter Parade...
...Oh, I could write a sonnet about your Easter bonnet
And of the girl I'm taking to the Easter Parade."

--lyrics from the chorus of an Irving Berlin song that Fred Astaire and Judy Garland sang in the 1948 film "Easter Parade"

Answer: leotard and tights

The standard ballet class uniform used to be a long-sleeved black leotard worn over pale pink tights. But the aerobic dance class craze changed all that. I just re-watched the 1977 movie "The Turning Point" with Shirley MacLaine, Anne Bancroft (may she rest in peace), and Mikhal Baryshnikov.

The film also features performances by several New York City Ballet dancers, including Leslie Browne, Peter Martins, and Suzanne Farrell.

Answer: muumuu

A muumuu is a baggy cotton dress (like a sleeveless nightgown, basically) that I guess was invented to help women (those not wearing bikinis) cope with the hot muggy weather in Hawaii.

Answer: pedal pushers

Popular in the 1950s (I had a plaid pair when I was a small child), these were tight pants that reached just below the knee. They weren't very flattering to most women who wore them. I suppose the name derives from the fact that people bicycled in them (but they were so tight--and they weren't made of stretchy material--that I'm not sure how comfortable that would have been).

Answer: fishnet stockings

These were popular in the 1960s, even among women who weren't sluts. They came in every color of the rainbow. I had a mustard yellow pair to match my mustard yellow ribbed "poor boy" top and my purple and mustard yellow paisley velour miniskirt with a wide purple fake leather belt. I kid you not.

Answer: waitress uniform

I worked as a waitress for many years and had many different uniforms. The nicest one was my Magic Pan (creperie) uniform, which was a genuine Swiss dirndl. The jumper part was apple green with tiny red flowers and there was a lacy white blouse to wear underneath.

The uniform I enjoyed least was for a fancy restaurant called "The Broker" in Denver, Colorado. That ghastly dress was made of thick, gray-blue polyester that smelled of grease and cigarette smoke even after it was washed. It was floor length with a slit up the side to mid thigh.

It had a lowcut bodice which necessitated a special lowcut bra. It did not breathe well. I hated it.

Answer: long flannel nightgown

I have many. My sisters and I give them to each other for birthday and holiday gifts. Lanz of Salzburg makes good sturdy ones (I wear them backwards with the buttons in front).

Answer: jockey shorts

Boxer shorts are the baggy ones. Jockey shorts are actually briefs, from what I can discover. There is a theory that men who wear boxers have an easier time fathering children than those who wear briefs.

Answer: Argyle socks

These are diamond-patterned (usually men's) socks that were traditionally worn with golfing knickers. I believe that men wear them with kilts, too, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

Answer: tuxedo

As the story goes, New Yorker Pierre Lorillard IV invented the tuxedo. Lorillard came from a rich family of tobacco dealers whose country home was located in Tuxedo Park, outside of New York City. In 1886 the Tuxedo Club held a formal ball. Lorillard attended in a new style of tail-less black jacket. Apparently he was a trend setter, because other men followed suit (as it were). The tuxedo became the new norm in men's formal wear.

My fluffy, portly pet Jack is a tuxedo cat. He has lovely white paws, a white breast and throat, and a white mustache. The rest of him is black.