Peggy Moffitt

Margaret Moffitt (October 2, 1937 – August 10, 2024) was an American model and actress. During the 1960s, she worked very closely with fashion designer Rudi Gernreich, and developed a signature style that featured heavy makeup and an asymmetrical haircut. As an actress, she had a number of bit parts in various films, including as a fashion model in Antonioni's 1966 film Blowup.

Early life and education Margaret Moffitt was born in Los Angeles on October 2, 1937, the daughter of screenwriter Jack and Mary (née Came) Moffitt.

She grew up in the city's Hancock Park neighborhood and attended the Marlborough School. with Jerry Lewis.

During the 1960s, she developed a signature style, including false eyelashes and heavy eye makeup. Her hairstyle, an asymmetrical bowl cut, created by Vidal Sassoon, became known as the "five point". Her unique look became an icon of the 1960s fashion scene. "Without Rudi I would have been a gifted and innovative model," explained Moffitt in The Rudi Gernreich Book. "Without me he would have been an avant-garde designer of genius. We made each other better. We were each other's catalyst.... It was fun, it was invigorating, it was a true collaboration, and yes, it was love." Moffitt was later described as his muse.

Monokini

Gernreich first conceived of a topless swimsuit in December 1962, but didn't intend to produce the design commercially. It had more meaning to Gernreich as an idea than as a reality. Gernreich had Moffitt model the suit in person for Diana Vreeland of Vogue, who asked him why he conceived of the design. Gernreich told her he felt it was time for "freedom-in fashion as well as every other facet of life," but that the swimsuit was just a statement. "[Women] drop their bikini tops already," he said, "so it seemed like the natural next step." She told him, "If there's a picture of it, it's an actuality. You must make it." Gernreich decided to call his design a monokini. When a photo shoot was arranged on Montego Bay in Jamaica, all five models hired for the session refused to wear the design. The photographer finally persuaded an adventurous local to model it.

To avoid sensationalizing the design, Moffitt, her husband and photographer, William Claxton, and Gernreich decided to publish their own pictures for the fashion press and news media. Moffitt was initially resistant to the idea of posing topless, and afraid the photograph and ensuing coverage could get out of control. She said,

Look was the first to publish, after LIFE refused, a rear view of Moffitt modeling the swimsuit on June 2, 1964, and the following day columnist Carol Bjorkman of Women's Wear Daily published a frontal view picture of Moffitt wearing the suit. The photograph became a world-wide news event. It became a celebrated image of the extremism of 1960s designs. Moffitt later said, "It was a political statement. It wasn't meant to be worn in public."

Moffitt tired of the single-minded attention to the images of her modeling the Monokini. In 2012, she said of the image, "The shot seen around the world. Think of something in your life that took 1/60th of a second to do. Now, imagine having to spend the rest of your life talking about it. I think it's a beautiful photograph, but oh, am I tired of talking about it."

Later work In 1985, the Los Angeles Fashion Group staged a Gernreich retrospective, "Looking Back at a Futurist." They wanted a woman to model the monokini, but Moffitt loudly objected because she felt it would exploit Gernreich's intentions.

Moffitt died from complications of dementia at her home in Beverly Hills, California, on August 10, 2024, at the age of 86. She was interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills).

In popular culture Boyd Rice and Giddle Partridge released a limited edition vinyl recording called Going Steady with Peggy Moffitt in 2008.

Filmography Year Title Role Notes 1955 You're Never Too Young Agnes A Martin & Lewis comedy; uncredited 1956 Meet Me in Las Vegas Showgirl Uncredited 1956 The Birds and the Bees Penny Uncredited 1958 Senior Prom Girl With Holder 1959 The Young Captives Teenager Uncredited 1959 Up Periscope Jukebox girl Uncredited 1959 Battle Flame Nurse Fisher 1959 Girls Town Flo Alternative title: The Innocent and the Damned 1960 Alcoa Theatre Dodie Charles Episode: "Capital Gains" 1960 Goodyear Theatre Dodie Charles Episode: "Capital Gains" 1964 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Robin Rath Episode: "Beast in View" 1966 Who Are You, Polly Maggoo? Mannequin/Model French title: Qui êtes vous, Polly Maggoo? 1966 Blowup Model Uncredited 1967 Basic Black Model