Wardrobe malfunction

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Wardrobe malfunction is a euphemism used to describe the accidental exposure of an intimate part or parts of the body due to a defect in an article or articles of clothing. Most famously, it was used for the first time by Justin Timberlake to explain the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy, a 1 February 2004 incident in which the malfunction resulted in what was claimed to be the "unintentional" baring of most of Janet Jackson's right breast.

The Global Language Monitor named the phrase as "Hollywood's Top Word or Phrase for Impact on the English language", as a word which had the most influence on the language for the year. [1]

The term has remained popular in part because of the humor associated with its jargonistic and overly technical quality when used as an explanation for the Super Bowl incident, which many believe was actually an intentional publicity stunt. This suspicion is strengthened by the fact that Jackson was wearing a nipple shield, which emphasized her areola, and by the lyric Timberlake was singing immediately prior: "I'll have you naked by the end of this song". Jackson also took her time in covering up.

The term has subsequently been used to describe a piece of clothing that stayed on, as for example in 2005 when George W. Bush failed to remove his gloves before shaking hands with Slovak officials.

Slang Internet terms representing a wardrobe accident include oops (referring to the embarrassment caused by being caught in such a situation), nipple slip / breast slip, and upskirt.

Paparazzi relish these embarrassing situations and are eager to capture these occurrences. It is often argued that many of these "shots" are staged by celebrities, and although appearing accidental, seem more like impulsive publicity stunts.

1 Nip slips
2 Other notable occurrences
- 2.1 1940s
- 2.2 1950s
- 2.3 1970s
- 2.4 1980s
- 2.5 1990s
- 2.6 2000
- 2.7 2001
- 2.8 2003
- 2.9 2004
- 2.10 2005
- 2.11 2006
- 2.12 2007
3 Parodies
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Nip slips

A nip slip is the accidental exposure of a woman's nipple in public. Nip slips are very popular in the world of celebrity paparazzi, and on celebrity driven gossip blogs and websites. Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl wardrobe malfunction may be the most well known nip 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 nip slip can, in some cases, be avoided with the use of tit tape.

[edit] Other notable occurrences

[edit] 1940s

Sophia Loren visibly detecting Jayne Mansfield's wardrobe malfunction.

Carmen Miranda was photographed mid-twirl in a dance routine which exposed her pubic region.

[edit] 1950s

There is a famous photo of Jayne Mansfield leaning over a table at which Sophia Loren was sitting. The photo was famous not just because one of Jayne's nipples was exposed, but all the more because of the incredulous look on Loren's face as she caught sight of it.

[edit] 1970s

While performing in the "Floor Show" segment of the 1975 film The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Nell Campbell's breasts repeatedly popped out of her outfit (she subtly tries to push her sliding bustier back up). The film's producers caught this, but decided to leave it in, because the movie was almost ready for post-production. The MPAA however, did not notice. Patricia Quinn, Campbell's co-star in the film, makes allusions in the DVD commentary that Campbell intentionally flashed the camera; promotional photos by Mick Rock support this theory, as Campbell is clearly bursting out of the corset then as well. Viewing the scene in that context, it appears that Campbell does not push her bustier back up, but instead accentuates the fall-out.
A widely reported wardrobe malfunction happened on September 14, 1977. A contestant on The Price is Right named Yolanda Bowsley was called to "come on down". As she ran to contestant's row her tube top slipped down, exposing her breasts. Host Bob Barker was oblivious to the incident, as Yolanda was one of the first four contestants, and after he made his entrance, he remarked that the audience had "taken leave of their senses", then Johnny Olson quoted "Bob, they have given their all for you!". Then Bob Barker mentioned to Johnny Olson, "whatever brought this on...this is how I want it every day from now on!" Barker has been known to say regarding the incident, "She came on down and they came on out!" MadTV also parodied Yolanda's wardrobe malfunction in a Price is Right skit.
In a skit on The Carol Burnett Show, in a clip sometimes shown on retrospectives, Harvey Korman was "de-pantsed" and only then realized that he had absent-mindedly worn tight and skimpy jockey shorts, instead of the loose-fitting boxers that are normally used in such gags.

[edit] 1980s

Lady Diana Spencer the later Diana, Princess of Wales posed for press photographers following the announcement of her engagement to Prince Charles. Diana was wearing a light fabric long skirt but the photographers noticed that when she stood with the sun behind her the dress became translucent.

[edit] 1990s

1994 the french singer Malaury Nataf exposed a no-panty upskirt. [2]
May 6 1997 – Lucy Lawless inadvertently exposed her breasts when she raised her arms and her outfit gave way while singing "The Star-Spangled Banner" at an NHL hockey game in Anaheim, California.[3] The actress later said, "I was mortified (...) It was quite a bit more exposure than I want".

[edit] 2000

March 26 – At the 72nd Academy Awards pre-show, Minnie Driver's top fell in front of many photographers' cameras and became a topic of many late-night comedians after the event.
British TV presenter Judy Finnegan's dress failed during the National TV awards, revealing a white bra. This was treated as much as a fashion faux pas as a wardrobe malfunction.

[edit] 2001

January 20 – During an Inauguration Day dance with President George W. Bush, Jenna Bush's strapless gown slipped exposing one of her nipples.
Carolina Ardohain accidentally revealed her nipple when cheerleading in 2001. [4]

[edit] 2003

December 1 – Paris Hilton's crotch while she was exiting a car. This photograph became an instant Internet sensation, leading to a wide dissemination of paparazzi images of her genitalia. ^[1]
In 2003, Jackie Guerrido, (a Univision weather forecaster), while co-hosting "Despierta America", accidentally exposed her pubic area on camera while not wearing underwear when she uncrossed her legs just as she was about to stand up. The skirt slit over her left leg had opened more than she had anticipated.
During the Miss Venezuela competition, Marjorie Olivares as Miss Guárico suffered a 'wardrobe malfunction' during the swimsuit competition. When removing her sarong, she accidentally untied her bikini bottom, leaving her partially naked from the waist down. She quickly gathered the bikini and walked off stage, although not before video captures of the incident show that her pubic hair was exposed.^[2]

[edit] 2004

February 1 – Singer Janet Jackson experienced the eponymous wardrobe malfunction during her performance at the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show. ^[3]

June 26 – While jumping around on the children's TV show Ministry of Mayhem, Holly Willoughby exposed a breast. ^[4]

September 2 – Miss Universe 2004, Jennifer Hawkins, had her skirt fall down to her knees while modelling at a Sydney fashion show. The image was captured and widely broadcast throughout the Australian and international media ^[5].

November 4 – Tara Reid suffered a wardrobe malfunction while arriving for P. Diddy's birthday party in New York. The actress' dress fell down, exposing her left breast. ^[6]

[edit] 2005

At the Cannes Film Festival, Sophie Marceau accidentally had her left breast revealed when her dress slipped.
in 2005 Kelly Osbourne exposed left breast during an interview [5] [6]
At the Eurovision Song Contest pre-selection show Making Your Mind Up in the United Kingdom in February 2005, singer Javine Hylton's right nipple was exposed whilst performing her song Touch My Fire.
At a promotional show appearance in Germany, American superstar Mariah Carey's cleavage fell out of her dress.
On April 14 Janice Dickinson exposing a nipple at an award ceremony. [7]
in 2005 Lizzie Grubman accidentally revealed her genitalia after being lifted in front of the paparazzi.^[7]

[edit] 2006

At the Cannes Film Festival, Sophie Marceau accidentally had her panty revealed. Some wonder if it was genuine, as she was a recidivist (see 2005).

April 1 – While she was walking towards the stage to receive a Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award, Lindsay Lohan exposed her bare buttocks when her dress accidentally lifted ^[8].

July 29 – While she was doing a visit in Granada, Princess Letizia's skirt was lifted suddenly by a gust of wind, revealing her underwear ^[9].

August 27 – Mindy Kaling, writer and cast member of NBC's The Office, experienced a wardrobe malfunction during the NBC broadcast of the 58th Primetime Emmy Awards. While Greg Daniels was accepting the Best Comedy award on the behalf of the cast and crew of the show, Kaling's right breast was briefly exposed on national television. The incident was not edited for the later West Coast broadcast. The next day, video of the incident appeared on several websites, including Defamer, and VH1's Best Week Ever website.^[10]^[11]

The term has also become widespread in the Indian media after model Carol Gracias' Bennu Sehgall halter top accidentally slipped below her breasts during Bombay's Lakme Fashion Week, provoking a national moral panic and a flurry of circulation of voyeuristic MMS videos of the incident. In the same week, the open zipper in model Gauhar Khan's Lascelles Symmons skirt added fuel to the fire, and the Indian government began investigating as to whether these exposure incidents were intentional. The Indian media took up the story with gusto, popularizing the term "wardrobe malfunction" in the Anglophone media outlets, and often attacking the Indian morality police for their intervention in the matter. [8]

Lindsay Lohan was photographed emerging from a boat on September 6 at the Venice Film Festival, at the time she was not wearing any underwear and was thus photographed as such. [9]

November 27, 28 and 29 – On three consecutive occasions, Britney Spears exposed her genitalia to the papparazzi while exiting a car.^[12]The incident invited the usual media ridicule, but also a degree of sympathy for a woman whose personal life had been in turmoil for some months.

December 4, Sophie Monk accidentally exposes a nipple and was photographed by papparazzi [10].

December 9 – During a televised charity event in Hong Kong, singer Yumiko Cheng had her trousers pulled down around her ankles during a botched acrobatic routine, leaving her in a thong. Hong Kong broadcaster TVB has sent letters to media outlets, including YouTube, asking not to rebroadcast the incident ^[13].

[edit] 2007

February 27, Juliette Lewis exposed a nipple [11]

[edit] Parodies

In the episode entitled "The Pick" of Seinfeld, the character of Elaine is embarrassed after she sends everyone she knows a Christmas card that features a photograph of herself with one of her nipples accidentally revealed.

A parody of the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy was featured in the episode "PTV" of Family Guy, where the FCC decides to heavily censor television after a "trouser malfunction" at the Emmy Awards causes actor David Hyde Pierce to expose his testicles.

While hosting the 2004 Juno Awards, singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette parodied Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction. ^[14]

In the video for the D12 song "My Band", rappers Eminem and Bizarre spoof Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake with a mock wardrobe malfunction.

In an episode of Saturday Night Live, host Julia Louis Dreyfus makes fun of Britney Spears wardrobe malfunction, by getting out of a limmo and revealing her (censored) crotch