Carol Doda: Topless at the Condor

The Women Of Ill Repute

What IS the deal with boobs? Our preoccupation with women’s breasts isn’t just sexual, it’s social, historical, political and economic. No one knew that better than Carol Doda, a dancer and cocktail waitress, who, 60 years ago, dared to bare her nipples atop a baby grand piano as it descended from the ceiling of the Condor, a San Francisco nightclub. Somehow, it changed everything. Far from being exploited sex workers, Carol and her colleagues saw themselves as the harbingers of a revolution. Maybe so, but they paid dearly for it, submitting themselves not only to the male gaze, but the liquid silicone injections that assured it.

Carol Doda Topless at the Condor is a documentary set against the backdrop of the 1964 Republican National Convention, where the clash of values and emergence of a new sexual freedom were felt around the world. Filmmakers Marlo McKenzie and Jonathan Park join us to talk about the excitement and yes, the innocence of a time where a woman could have such an impact just by taking off her top.

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