Ridiculous Miami Beach Laws Tried Banning Tanning Oil, Shorts, and Bikinis Once

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Could you imagine walking down Ocean Drive and seeing not a bikini in site, nor a glimmer of suntan oil? Today, Miami New Times revealed a string of ridiculous fashion laws proposed in the past that would have very much changed the landscape of the South Beach we know and love/loathe today.

For example, in 1939, the Miami Beach City Council passed an ordinance that required you to be covered from your shoulders and knees because the council found the appearance of suntanned, oil-slicked legs "unsatisfactory, unsightly, distasteful, and annoying." Then in 1944 they tried to pass an ordinance that would ban shorts (New Times states no reason was given) and then in 1950, another ordinance to ban midriff-bearing bikinis and mini shorts and skirts was presented again, with an almost unanimous approval from local stores and makers of "sunsuits" and "playsuits."