Who Really Invented The Bra? Happy Birthday To The Bra Today!

Today is the anniversary of the invention of the bra. Few pieces of clothing-over or under- have had such misalignment, such revere, and such wild eyed fantasy casyt upon it like the bra. From training to cars to young boys obsession, nothing except the bikini fuels thought and desire like a woman's bra.

We are a visual society. And the bra helps shape and lift that, err, visual more than just anything. But who really invented the bra. The myth is that an Otto Titzling did, but that not really true. Here's the "story" from the "Urban Legends" section at about.com.

"As the story goes, Otto Titzling, a German immigrant living in New York City circa 1912, was employed at a factory making women's undergarments when he met an aspiring opera singer named Swanhilda Olafsen. Miss Olafsen, a buxom woman by all accounts, complained to Titzling that the standard corsets in use at the time were not only uncomfortable to wear but failed to provide adequate support where it counted most.

Titzling rose to the challenge. With the help of his trusty assistant, Hans Delving, he set about inventing a new kind of undergarment specifically engineered to meet the needs of the modern woman. The "chest halter" he designed proved to be a brilliant innovation and a commercial success, but our hero neglected to take out a patent, an oversight that would haunt him for the rest of his days."

Wikipedia even tells how the game "Trivial Pursuit" fell for the gag.
"The name, a pun on "a two-tit sling," was invented by humorist Wallace Reyburn in the 1970s. Since then, the name has appeared in the game Trivial Pursuit (the makers of the game fell for the hoax, and listed "Otto Titzling" as the "correct answer" to the question of who invented the brassiere)"

Either way, it is still a topic that has held up over time. Sorry, couldnt resist. Cant wait to have some of THAT birthday cake!