It started in 1986.  I was an 80’s revival mod living in the Washington, D.C. suburbs.  I was enthralled with 60’s mod fashions, music and lifestyle. The phone rang and one of the men I had met through the scene was on the phone.  This guy kept people up-to-date on bands that were playing, movies that were on tv, parties that were happening, etc.  Remember that this was way before the internet existed, so people basically relied on word of mouth, the City Paper, or fliers posted in clubs to keep tabs on shows and other events.  Anyway, this guy, who styled himself the “Psychedelic Secretary,” told me that I really had to watch this movie that was on Channel 20 (this was also before Montgomery County had cable).  He said the movie was called “Privilege” and starred Paul Jones and Jean Shrimpton.  When I asked him who Jean Shrimpton was, he told me that she was a model from the 60’s.  Having nothing else to do, I turned the tv on and was instantly fascinated.  I don’t know what it was about her - style, beauty, shyness, awkwardness, etc. but something about her resonated with me.  

Later that week I went off to the library to research her using the “Readers Guide to Periodical Literature.” I found an article in Time magazine that talked about “London: The Swinging City,” and also a Newsweek cover article about her.  From these I gleaned the basics of who she was and began looking for whatever I could find about her.  Back then it was very difficult.  It mostly involved going to the library and looking through old bound copies of magazines page by page to find out which ones she was in (because if it wasn’t an article specifically about her, it wasn’t going to be listed anywhere).  I discovered that she had written a book called My Own Story - The Truth About Modeling,  and I found a company that would search for the book and mail it to you.  That was one of my birthday present requests that year.  

When I asked my father for this present, he remarked that my mother had been interested in Jean Shrimpton as well and had owned a copy of the book - he even remembered the color of the book!  Poking around the eaves in the attic later that week, I uncovered a box of Vogues from the 1960s (which my father had told me might be there), and stack of old Esquire magazines (that had belonged to my Dad and contained an informative article called “The Imposing Proportions of Jean Shrimpton”), and some files that my mother had kept.  Imagine my surprise when I discovered that my mother had a whole file of clippings of Jean Shrimpton from Glamour magazine.  My mother had passed away when I was younger and I suppose this was a way for me to connect with her.  

Fast forward 12 years and I was still collecting Jean Shrimpton magazines.  I had amassed a respectable collection by visiting Gallaghers in New York, used bookstores, flea markets, more libraries, etc.  Around this time I began hearing about an internet website called ebay… I have to say that ebay and the internet have led to a huge expansion of my collection.  Magazines that I knew existed but wasn’t ever sure that I would encounter were suddenly available as long as I had the money to buy them (and was the lucky bidder).  Also, magazines from other countries that I had no idea existed appeared on ebay.  Internet access led to new places to search and new ways to uncover information.  

One day while doing research I came across a website called “Swingin’ Chicks of the 60s,” and it said that soon the site would include a Jean Shrimpton page.  I immediately sent an email and asked if the author would like help putting together the Jean Shrimpton, Julie Christie and other 60’s figures’ pages (in addition to Jean Shrimpton there were a few other women whose style I admired and I had a good amount of information on them as well).  When Chris responded that he would be happy to have help, I wrote something up and sent it to him.  This led to it being included on the Jean Shrimpton page of his website, and when Chris eventually wrote his book Swingin’ Chicks of the 60’s, he gave me credit for it.  A short while later, I received a message on my answering machine (this was before cell phones for the most part) asking if I would contribute to a show that A&E was doing called “Top Ten,” focusing on the top ten supermodels.  The show sent a crew to film the magazines in my collection and ask me questions about Jean Shrimpton.  Of course the quote that made it onto the show was the most inane thing that I said during the entire interview, but I was excited that the magazines were getting a showcase.

 I continued collecting, and when my future husband and I went to Europe for a vacation, he was dragged to La Galcante in Paris and the Vintage Magazine Shop’s warehouse in London.  I returned to the U.S. with probably 25 pounds of magazines in my suitcase!  I continued my collecting and gradually amassed more and more material.  When we moved from San Francisco (where I’d been living for some time) back to the East Coast in 2006, my book (I’m an inveterate reader) and magazine collection weighed in at 10,000 pounds.  My husband and the movers were not happy.  

Since then I’ve continued collecting and researching when I have time.  I am a school teacher, so this is definitely a part-time hobby, although I think my husband, son, friends, and family might argue with that!  I’ve collected magazines (over 330 covers and 740 magazines total), posters, patterns, press photos, scrapbooks, store displays, and all kinds of information.  

I’ve often wondered why no one set up a website dedicated to Jean Shrimpton (there have been a few here and there on Instagram, Tumbler and Facebook, but no independent sites).  I wrote the text for this website during the COVID lockdown and have spent the subsequent five years photographing the collection and putting this website together. My husband has been kind enough to make everything I photographed look as professional as possible. Janice Dickinson aside, Ms. Shrimpton was one of the first supermodels and has been a muse for many people.  This website is intended as an homage to her career.  She is a very private individual, so if you’d like more information about her life, you may choose to read My Own Story, The Truth About Modeling, which was apparently heavily ghost-written, or you may choose to read her autobiography which was published in 1990.  I have not ever met Ms. Shrimpton, nor do I wish to - I think it would be exceedingly awkward and uncomfortable.  She was always extremely modest about her beauty and importance.  “If you take off the makeup, I’m ugly.” she said.  She also remarked, “There’s no talent in looking well.” She has said repeatedly that she didn’t enjoy fame and is happy to live her life out of the spotlight.  

I’ve come to the point in my life where I’d like to share the materials that I’ve collected to highlight her remarkable career.  Since this is a part-time project, there may be long gaps in between when things are posted and emails are answered.  Unfortunately, due to copyright reasons, press photos and articles from newspapers and magazines are a no-go - you’ll have to find those on your own, although I am happy to pass on the knowledge that I have and tell you where to look if you email me.

This website would not have been possible without the help and support of my husband and son, who are incredibly patient; my mother (who somehow knew to save those magazines and clippings); my father (who always supported his daughter with her odd clothing and hair over the years); Michelle Collett Masterson, whose website, Elegantly Papered, has been an amazing resource; Chris Strodder, who wrote both The Swingin’ Chicks of the 60s and the Sixties Encycoolpedia; Jake Starr (of the fabulous band Jake Starr and the Delicious Fullness), who has a similar obsession with 60’s culture and can always be counted on to encourage me (even when my husband would prefer he didn’t); the staff at various places that I’ve haunted over the years: FIT, the late great Gallaghers in New York and the Vintage Magazine Archive in London, La Galcante in Paris, which gave me access to their “catacombs” to do my research; various ebay sellers who have been kind enough to tell me how and when they acquired the items that I purchased; and all the friends and family who have been recruited to bring items back from their travels. Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t thank the “Psychedelic Secretary” for phoning me on that afternoon long ago.

Contact:

shrimptonstyleATgmail.com

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