For many women, it's been said that suits feel constricting and stuffy. But historically, they offered freedom and power—and controversy. However, with Hillary Clinton and her beloved pantsuits taking center stage in 2016, it's been hard to ignore the new case for power dressing. But before we move forward (with perhaps a Madam President in tow), a look back at the history of women wearing suits.
666: The year King Charles II of England copied French king Louis XIV in demanding that men in court wear waistcoats, trousers, and ties. In England, this attire evolved into the modern suit for men.
1870s: The decade actress Sarah Bernhardt scandalized Paris by wearing a custom-made trouser suit, which she called her "boy's clothes." She continued to blur gender roles when she played Hamlet in 1899.
19th: The century European women wore tailored jackets with long skirts, called costumes, for activities such as riding, archery, and walking. Trendsetters adopted them for everyday wear, and by 1905, they were common suits for women.
1914: The year Coco Chanel designed her first suit—a fur-trimmed jacket with a matching ankle-length skirt.
2: The number of 1930s films (Morocco and Blonde Venus) in which Marlene Dietrich wore a tuxedo and top hat while performing on stage.
1940s: The decade pachucas, female members of a Mexican-American subculture, began wearing zoot suits to project a tough, rebellious image. Pachucas were associated not only with male zoot-suited gangs but also with feminism because they rejected the idea that women could be just wives and mothers.
11: The page in Picturegoer magazine in July 1949 on which Katharine Hepburn's style was lauded as a shrewd publicity move: "That slack suit paid for itself several times over—for Katharine Hepburn got special mention in hundreds of different publications. If she'd worn a dress, her name would merely have been listed among the 55 other top stars."
2: The number of characters played by Kim Novak in Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo. To indicate their different personalities, costumer Edith Head gave Madeleine a somber, sophisticated suit and Judy a tacky bombshell look. Novak initially balked at how confining the suit was but later credited it with helping her performance, saying, "They made that suit very stiff. You constantly had to hold your shoulders back and stand erect. But, oh, that was so perfect."
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6: The number of green suits—in varying stages of damage—that Head designed for Tippi Hedren for Hitchcock's The Birds.
1963: The year President John F. Kennedy suggested that his wife wear a pink Chanel suit to an event in Dallas. When he was assassinated in the presidential limousine, the suit became splattered with blood, but Jacqueline Kennedy still wore it to the swearing-in of his successor, Lyndon B. Johnson.
100: The number of years the First Lady's suit is to remain in a climate-controlled vault at the National Archives before being displayed at any museum, per a Kennedy family request. For historic preservation, it has never been cleaned.
1964: Year André Courrèges introduced slim, minimalist pantsuits for women for day and evening. Until then, women had worn pants only for informal occasions.
1910: The year the American Ladies' Tailors' Association created what was soon nicknamed the "suffragette suit." Along with a blouse and jacket, it had an ankle-length divided skirt that allowed the wearer to take long strides.
__1966:__The year Yves Saint Laurent designed a woman's formal tuxedo that he named Le Smoking. In a 1981 interview, he called it his most important design, and an updated version has been included in every new collection from the brand.
2: The years later that one of Saint Laurent's favorite American clients, socialite Nan Kempner, was denied entry to Manhattan's La Côte Basque restaurant because she was wearing a YSL pantsuit. She took off the pants and walked in wearing the top half of the suit as a minidress.
1980s: The decade the power suit—complete with shoulder pads, decorative buttons, and bright, feminine colors—was popular among corporate women. Soon the trend spread beyond the office, thanks to TV shows like Dynasty, which launched a line of power suits.
$35,000: Weekly budget for Dynasty costumer Nolan Miller, who customized suits for the cast. Miller believed these styles demonstrated the imposing strength of an American woman: "When she walks down the hall, you may not know who she is, but you know she's rich, and you know you better get out of the way."
9: The number of songs on Grace Jones's 1981 album, Nightclubbing. The cover featured an image of the androgynous singer in an Armani suit with especially broad shoulder pads.
28: The rank of Madonna's "Vogue" on Rolling Stone's list of the top 100 music videos of all time. In the video, directed by David Fincher, the singer alternates among several looks, including a black suit worn over exposed lingerie.
1987: The year Margaret King became Margaret Thatcher's stylist, later saying that the prime minister wore primarily suits because "she was in a man's world, and she had to look the part."
7: The number of Thatcher's suits from the 1970s that sold for £73,125—ten times their minimum estimated price—at a 2012 auction at Christie's South Kensington.
1992: The year the "Long Island Lolita," Amy Fisher, wore a dark suit and dark lipstick to her trial for the attempted murder of her lover's wife, prompting disapproval from defense experts who believed the 17-year-old would have gotten more sympathy if she had dressed like a schoolgirl.
7: The season of The Simpsons in which Marge, wearing a Chanel suit she found at a discount outlet store, is invited to a country club. To keep up the charade of being a wealthy socialite, she alters the suit into a new outfit each day.
2012: Year first lady of France Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, who had recently given birth, wore an ill-fitting pantsuit on her last day at Élysée Palace. Asked if her look was a sign that she was tired of being first lady, she responded, "Not at all. Those were the only pants I could get into!"
6: The months before releasing her clothing line that Ellen DeGeneres previewed it at the People's Choice Awards in 2015. Wearing a cream pantsuit with a bomber-style jacket, she later told reporters, "I've never found women's clothes that I felt completely comfortable in" and lamented having to tailor menswear to fit her.
__6:__The number of times singer Janelle Monáe, who exclusively wears tuxedos when performing, has been nominated for a Grammy Award. In a 2010 interview, she said of her work uniform, "I feel like I have a responsibility to my community and other young girls to help redefine what it looks like to be a woman."
4,828: The number of favorites on Twitter that Monáe earned when she replied to a male fan who wrote that she was sexy but he was "tired of those dumbass suits" by writing, "Sit down. I'm not for male consumption." His response: "Yes mam."
2000: The year Hillary Clinton made her Senate-election victory speech, saying, "Sixty-two counties, 16 months, three debates, two opponents, and six black pantsuits later, because of you, here we are."
50,000: The estimated number of attendees at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, where Clinton thanked her supporters, her "sisterhood of the traveling pantsuits," after conceding the nomination to Barack Obama.
$30 The cost of the Everyday Pantsuit Tee, with a trompe l'oeil red jacket and campaign pin, on Clinton's 2016 presidential-campaign website. The product description reads: "Pantsuit bottoms not included."
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