the show's costuming always has me on the edge of my seat.
but nothing prepared me for the drop in hemlines during the summer of 1970.
when the show premiered in 1966 skirt lengths were squarely at the knee and over the next few years progressively got shorter until we hit the panty-skimming highs of early 1970.that's how i was used to seeing the characters.
but i noticed something was amiss during the early episodes of dvd set 22(which i'm watching now)when liz shows up in a pink suit with a skirt worn
below the knee.a length not worn on the show in years.but still liz was a mature women so it wasn't totally out of line.the full on visual assault occured a few episodes later when quentin,david,maggie and carolyn go on a picnic and carolyn appears in a full-fledged,calf-length granny skirt!the shift in proportion was jarring.i felt like some alien element had seeped into the show.around this same time maggie gets a zig-zag knit top and full length maxi and in general the make-up and hairstyles are looser and more natural.
i'm not old enough to remember the whole "mini" "midi" "maxi" debate of the early 70's but i can see here how all the fuss was started.it takes some time for the eye to adjust!
style-wise things had been slouching toward bohemia for some time but here the shift was abrupt but decisive.a visual cue that we're drifting towards gas lines,watergate and the symbionese liberation army.