Pat Dollard | Young Americans

Wired:

Infoporn: Today’s Playmates Are More Like Anime Figures Than Real Humans

By Katharine Gammon

Oh, Playboy, why do you want your “readers” to lust after androids? That’s the only explanation we can think of for the proportions of your lovely ladybots. We culled the stats for every centerfold from December 1953 (Marilyn Monroe) to January 2009 (Dasha Astafieva), then calculated each woman’s body-mass index.

A clear trend emerged: While real American women have steadily eaten their way up the BMI slope — just like American men — Playmates have gone from a sylphlike 19.4 to an anime-ideal 17.6.

Interactive play-thingy to go along with the article here.

Facts and Figures
Playboy’s Playmate data sheets (you know, where they claim to enjoy cupcakes and The Deer Hunter) provide height and weight, among other stats. Our analysis shows that models are shedding pounds and gaining altitude at an alarming rate. To be fair, Playmates provide their own measurements, so they could be exaggerating. Plus, we wouldn’t put it past the editors to stretch the truth (i.e., Miss March 2008 may not actually want to write “comedic short stories” — or have a 21-inch waist). But who cares? What’s interesting isn’t the veracity of the numbers, it’s what the magazine thinks its readers will find ideal.

Are Those Real?
On the touchy subject of implants, Playboy’s policy seems to be don’t ask, don’t tell. We plotted each model’s bust size (chest circumference at the fullest points) and cup size (breast volume) for all years that data were available (early ’90s to now). While busts have shrunk faster than your 401(k), cup size has remained a buxom C or D. We don’t think evolution can explain this phenomenon.

Implants: A History of Augmentation
1962 Timmie Jean Lindsey becomes the first woman to receive silicone breast implants.
1992 Cosmetic silicone augmentations are prohibited for fear of adverse health effects.
1998 Barbie’s top-heavy figure (BMI of 16.2 — too skinny to work as a model in some European countries) gets a minimal reality check, resulting in a wider waist and narrower hips.
2006 The FDA reapproves silicone implants for cosmetic purposes.
2007 More than 347,000 cosmetic breast augmentations are performed in the US.

Sources: National Health Examination and National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Playboy; The University of Chicago Library.
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