Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-08-19
O WAX LADIES AND
WINDOW DISPLAYS
Daily Letter by Frederic j. Haskin

WASHINGTON, Aug. 19.-nuvt
you noticed the wax LADIES in the
shop windows lately? That is really
a trick question. because the wax
laCies take a long vacation every
year. Being wax they Simply can
no! stand the hot summer sun for
any length of time. But when y"u
do see the patricians Of the SHOW
.uaows on t.spiay agan take .
hard look at them. Ten to n they
are entirely different from your
mental picture of a typical wax
model.
The fact is that the typical wax
model with it's saccharine smile, its
baby doll expression. and its eve
lashes thick as tooth brushes. Is now
declasse. In it's place has come a
wax figure that is still sweetly beau
tiful. but much more human look
ing. Each one has the pink checks
and ruby lips that come out Of a
bottle for wax as well as human
faces. But each figure is modelled
from life. as a statue Is and the fea.
lures of the model are faithfully
reproduced. One figure offered to
the display men this year Ia a wax
bathing beauty modelled from a
champion swimmer with Mary Pick
ford curls.
In the property oom Of a big
department store a score or more OF
these highest types Of waxen pull
chritude may be seen. In one small
case a window trimmer pointed out
about $4,000 worth OF wax.
There was one head of Spanish
type of beauty. This wax lady would
rank high in any beauty contest.
and dressed in an expensive frock
she would undoubtedly be a
triumph. Yet she had rather strong
features. and a nose that was q tri1e
irregular when viewed at close
range.
Her neighbor in the case wore
gray hair to represent q woman OF
about fifty years. This matron was
even more unusual for a wax figure
than the black haired debutante.
She had the perfeAt complexion and
the elaborate couture OF a carefully
also had two distinct chins, and there
were ridges on the sides OF the nose
where eye glasses had pressed
against the bridge. This model
usually glasses when she ap-
pears in public to show how a ma
ture woman should look at q briogs
party or on a motor trip.
Other types that rubbed armiess
shoulders in the case were a short
haired high school girl, a curly hair
ed little girl and a young man with
features that any movie hero might
envy. All the figures, however were
lifelike. Some had even been given
expressions suggesting intelligence.
Cold Also Bothers Them
Between appearances and in very
hot weather the heads of the de-
partment store wax works spend
their time in the glass case. which
IS kept at an even temperature. The
wax models are eXacting in their
| choice of climate. Extreme cold is
as fatal to their delicate constitu-
tons as extreme heat. They can
not be put in cold storage lest the
wax crack.
liz spite of their constituencies to
climate the models are almost al
ways dressed unseasonably. II you
are an habitual window shopper YOU
know that the poor things blossom
and bathing suits after Christmas,
regardless of the snow that may be
pied around the window.
In blustery March the models
hurry into summer clothes and when
the weather Is just DOL enough to
be safe for a wax complexion they
have to put on winter overcoats
anc furs.
Being a wax beauty is a hard life
with no rewards. With all Of mel
charms. a wax lady IS merely .
clothes rack. She must be beautiful
merely because if she were homely
the passer-by would notice her de.
fects and ridicule her instead Of
studying the clothes she wears. Hel
we'll groomed beauty makes her ar
uncbtrusive part of the picture and
the shoppers. who know thai the
dress is the thing to look at, SEE
the a Of the fine feathers only
vaguely.
The property room, where the waa
models stay when they are off duty,
is an interesting part of a depart
ment store rarely seen by shoppers
This room. on the top floor or In
some out of the way part OF the
establishment, is like a glimpse be-
hind the scenes in a theatre. As a
matter Of fact. the display windows
really are miniature stages, set with
scenery, furniture. draperies. and
other properties similar to those
used in the theatre.
One main difference is that in
show windows the touches thai
make one inhabited room unlike an