Cactus Bikini

In 1941, in Tucson, Roy Drachman photographed two young women in cactus decorated swimsuits. The swimsuits were draped with cactus, and the photographs look like the women are dressed in cactus.

The photographs were a publicity stunt done by the Tucson Sunshine Climate Club. They appeared in Life magazine, April 7, 1941. "Strange are the uses of the desert blooms, opens a new window." (page 57)

The two models wearing the cactus are Merri Ciochetti and Mary Thorbeke (Ericson).

Sources:

"Strange are the uses of the desert blooms." Life. April 7, 1941. Page 57.

Powell, A. Michael. Cacti of the Trans-Pecos & Adjacent Areas. Lubbock, Tex: Texas Tech University Press, c2004:  Page 53-54.

Drachman, Roy. This is not a Book: Just Memories, Chapter 2 Early Tucson | Through Our Parents' Eyes: The History and Culture of Tucson | University of Arizona


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