The Most Normal Girl in Cleveland with Heather Radke
Aug 21, 2023
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Heather Radke discusses the cultural history of women's butts, controversial statues depicting fetal development, the racial politics of a dataset, and the journey of two statues from the American Museum of Natural History to the Cleveland Health Museum. The podcast also explores the significance of butt shape and size in historical context and the value of unearthing the beauty of mundane topics.
The contest for the most normal girl in Cleveland reflects the desire for stability and normalcy in a troubled era, highlighting the complex social and political landscape of the time.
The statues, Norma and Norm-Man, represented the average American man and woman according to eugenicist ideals, but had odd and unrealistic features and were linked to individuals connected to the Nazi party.
The dataset collected by Ruth O'Brien provided valuable insights for creating clothing sizes for women, despite its flaws and racial biases.
Deep dives
The Contest for the Most Normal Girl in Cleveland
During September 1945, the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper held a contest to find the most normal girl in Cleveland. The contest was part of a promotion for the newly acquired statues, Norma and Norm-Man, which were depicted as the epitome of the most normal American man and woman. The museum director, Bruno Gebhard, who had a Nazi past, saw the contest as an opportunity to promote his ideas about bodies, women, and hierarchies. Over 3,800 women submitted their measurements, and the 40 closest contestants were selected to undergo further measures and be judged by a panel. This contest reflects the time's interest in promoting a concept of normalcy after experiencing the hardships of the Great Depression, World Wars, and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The Statues and their Unsettling Depictions
The statues, Norma and Norm-Man, were created by Belsky and Dickinson, who were both eugenicists. The sculptures aimed to represent the average American man and woman, as determined by their measurements and statistical data. However, the statues themselves had odd and unrealistic features, such as improperly placed breasts on Norma and visible ribs. The statues were initially displayed at the American Museum of Natural History before being transferred to the Cleveland Health Museum, where they became a focus of promotion and controversy under museum director Bruno Gebhard, who had connections to the Nazis.
The Context and Significance of the Contest
The contest for the most normal girl in Cleveland occurred in a tumultuous time in history, where the aftermath of World War II and the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki overlapped with the promotion of these statues. The contest's popularity, with thousands of women participating, reflects the desire for stability and normalcy in a troubled era. The contest's underlying eugenic agenda and the involvement of individuals linked to the Nazi party highlight the complex social and political landscape of the time. The competition represents a snapshot of how notions of normalcy, beauty, and conformity intersected with larger historical events and ideologies.
The Ruth O'Brien dataset: Solving the problem of ill-fitting clothing sizes for women
In the 1930s, home economist Ruth O'Brien conducted a groundbreaking study as part of the WPA to address the issue of ill-fitting clothing sizes for women. She hired measuring squads to collect data from women all over the country, taking 58 measurements and surveys of 15,000 women. However, O'Brien discarded 5,000 surveys of non-white women, revealing the racial politics of the time. Despite this flaw, the dataset offered valuable insights for creating clothing sizes for women.
Creating Norma: The pursuit of the 'normal' white American woman
Using the dataset collected by Ruth O'Brien, data scientists Norma Dickinson and Elaine Belsky aimed to create a standard for the 'normal' white American woman's body. They sought to represent the most average and desirable female form for procreation. The result was the creation of Norma, a sculpture that embodied the eugenicist ideal of femininity. Despite their expectations, when they launched a contest to find the closest match to Norma, they were unable to find a woman who fit the exact specifications. Martha Skidmore, a 23-year-old white woman, won the contest and became the face of the 'normal' girl in Cleveland.
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