Wardrobe malfunction
A wardrobe malfunction is a euphemism for accidental exposure of intimate parts. It is different from flashing, as the latter implies a deliberate exposure. There has been a long history of such incidents, though the term itself was coined in the mid 2000s and has become one of the most common fashion faux pas.
Linguistic phenomenon
The American Dialect Society defines it as "an unanticipated exposure of bodily parts".[1] Global Language Monitor, which tracks usage of words on the internet and in newspapers worldwide, identified the term as the top Hollywood contribution to English (HollyWordie) in 2004, surpassing words like girlie men, Yo! and frass.[2][3] The term was also one of the new entrants into the Chambers Dictionary in 2008, along with words like electrosmog, carbon footprint, credit crunch and social networking.[4] The dictionary defines it as "the temporary failure of an item of clothing to do its job in covering a part of the body that it would be advisable to keep covered".[5] One source defines it as, accidental and indecent exposure of body parts by a fault in someone's clothing (especially that of a performer) or by an error made while changing this costume.[6]
The term is credited as having been coined by singers Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson, on February 1, 2004, to explain the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy; the controversy is in reference to Jackson's right breast having been bared.[6] The print version of the Urban Dictionary describes it as "an accidental or supposedly accidental failure of clothing to cover parts of the body intended to be covered, made famous by Justin Timberlake during a Super Bowl halftime when he tore off Janet Jackson's clothes".[7] After the Super Bowl incident, the term "wardrobe malfunction" appeared in 5,028 stories in major US consumer and business publications, newspapers, and major TV and radio broadcasts.[8] Journalist Eric Alterman described the incident as "the most famous 'wardrobe malfunction' since Lady Godiva".[9]
The American Dialect Society had a number of related terms for Word of the year nominations in 2004, including Janet moment (unplanned bodily exposure at a public function), boobgate (scandal over Janet Jackson's exposed breast), nipplegate (Like boobgate, but used earlier in squawk over Jackson's possible nipple ring) and wardrobe malfunction (overexposure in a mammary way).[10] The term has been translated into other languages to describe similar incidents, including garderobedefect (Dutch), incident de garde-robe or défaut de fonctionnement de garde-robe (French), Garderobenstörung (German), disfunzione del guardaroba or incidente del guardaroba (Italian), and mal funcionamiento del guardarropa (Spanish).[6]
Social phenomenon
In DJing for Dummies, John Steventon describes a range of wardrobe malfunctions from a revelation of butt cleavage to visible panty lines.[11] In some US cities, low hanging pants and whale tail flashing (thong exposed over the top of pants or skirts) are considered as wardrobe malfunctions, and are considered as a school dress code issue.[12] Bikinis also present a celebrity wardrobe malfunction opportunities to the paparazzi in the form of wedgies or bikini-top malfunctions.[13] Celebrity upskirts and nip slips, like that of Lindsay Lohan, Britney Spears and Paris Hilton have been described as deliberate wardrobe malfunctions to draw public attention.[14] In Wedding Planning and Management: Consultancy for Diverse Clients, Maggie Daniels warns, "With so many people involved in the wedding party, a wardrobe malfunction is guaranteed to happen."[15] In Cheer!: Inside the Secret World of College Cheerleaders, Kate Torgovnick warns of wardrobe malfunctions while cheerleading.[16] The first reported instance of wardrobe malfunction occurred on The Price Is Right in 1977 involving contestant Yolanda Bowersley, though such incidents were not called by that name at the time.[6]
Nipple slip
Nipple slip (often referred to as "Nipslip"), an associated term, is the accidental exposure of a woman's nipple in public. Nipple slip is one of the most common forms of wardrobe malfunction and occurrences are popular among the paparazzi, and on celebrity gossip blogs and websites. Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl wardrobe malfunction may be the most well known nipple slip of all time, but Paris Hilton, Tara Reid, Lindsay Lohan, and many other celebrities have endured or in some cases apparently courted the publicity. A nipple slip can, in some cases, be avoided with the use of lingerie tape.
Parodies
- Janet Jackson spoofed her own infamous Super Bowl incident while hosting Saturday Night Live (season 29, episode 17). In character as Condoleezza Rice, she exposed her breast before the 9/11 Commission to avoid answering an awkward question. A prosthetic was used and censored for comical purposes.
- A parody of the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy was featured in the Family Guy episode "PTV", where the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) decides to heavily censor television after a "trouser malfunction" at the Emmy Awards caused actor David Hyde Pierce to expose his testicles.
- In 2005, during Super Bowl XXXIX, Go Daddy made fun of the Super Bowl incident the year before with a controversial risqué television commercial involving a large busted woman named Nikki Cappelli played by Candice Michelle who, testifying before a congressional committee, experiences a wardrobe malfunction.
- While hosting the 2004 Juno Awards, singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette parodied Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction from the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show.[17]
- In the video for the D12 song "My Band", rappers Eminem and Bizarre spoof Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake from the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show, with a mock wardrobe malfunction.
- Eminem again parodied Janet Jackson's Super Bowl XXXVIII incident in the music video for "Ass Like That", in which a puppet version of Jackson is seen with her breast exposed, accompanying the lyrics "Janet, is that a breast? I think I just saw a tit".
See also
References
- ^ Word of the Year, American Dialect Society, 2005
- ^ Top HollyWORDIEs of 2007, The Global Language Monitor
- ^ Toby Macdonald, "Parley Hollywood: Keira invents new languages", Sunday Mail
- ^ "Electrosmog enters the dictionary", BBC
- ^ "Dictionary suffers a wardrobe malfunction", The Mercury, 2008-08-15
- ^ a b c d Wardrobe malfunction, AllWords.com
- ^ Aaron Peckham, Urban Dictionary, page 328, Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2005, ISBN 0740751433
- ^ Rich Eisen, Total Access, page 36, Macmillan, 2007, ISBN 0312369786
- ^ Eric Alterman, Why We're Liberals: A Political Handbook for Post-Bush America, page 186, Penguin USA, 2008, ISBN 0670018600
- ^ Wayne Glowka, 2004 Words of the Year Nominations, American Dialect Society
- ^ John Steventon, DJing for Dummies, page 352, For Dummies, 2007, ISBN 0470032758
- ^ Nirvi Shah , Broward School Board debates dress-code revamp, Miami Herald, 2007-10-31
- ^ Lorna Edwards, You've still got it, babe, The Age, 2006-06-03
- ^ Adrian Mack, "Lindsay Lohan, Britney Spears, and Paris Hilton flash for success and distract the masses", The Georgia Straight, 2007-03-08
- ^ Maggie Daniels, Margaret J. Daniels and Carrie Loveless, Wedding Planning and Management: Consultancy for Diverse Clients, Butterworth-Heinemann, 2007, ISBN 0750682337
- ^ Kate Torgovnick, Cheer!: Inside the Secret World of College Cheerleaders, page page 41, Simon & Schuster, 2008, ISBN 1416535969
- ^ Scott Pattison (edited by Michael Bennett) (2004-06-04). "Alanis Morissette Bares Soul, Not Breasts". Reuters. Retrieved 2006-12-30.
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