de bene esse: Sexy secretaries from the Thirties to the Swinging Sixties

de bene esse: literally, of well-being, morally acceptable but subject to future validation or exception

A series of photographs captured secretaries at work in the Thirties through the Swinging Sixties demonstrate the daring styles that were in vogue decades ago.
From miniskirts to kitten heels, the young corporate helpmates model a range of liberating office wear while heavy eye-make up and rouged lips completed the sexually empowered style as demonstrated by characters such as Joan Holloway in the hit AMC series Mad Men.

Not only dress codes have changed over the years, a range of practices frowned upon in the workplace today, included smoking, drinking and outright flirting.

The changing shape of women: With conical bra and cinched in waist, this Sixties secretary shows just how much women's silhouettes - and fashions - have changed over the decades

Perks of the job: It's not hard to see where Mad Men costume designer Janie Bryant looked to source inspiration for Joan Holloway's costumes on the show

Appropriate attire? A teenage girl gets to grips with the office equipment in a tiny skirt and white go-go boots

Woman Receptionist Secretary Sitting At Desk

Can I help? Telephones became increasingly commonplace during the Twenties and Thirties - in 1929 President Herbert Hoover had a phone installed at his desk in the White House

Health hazard: For decades smoking at work was commonplace, however in 1998 a number of countries enforced a ban preventing the practice

While the men photographed appear to be in their mid-to late thirties all of the women are considerably younger, as it was traditional for women to quit their jobs once married and with children.
Washington correspondent Eleanor Clift who worked as a Newsweek secretary during the Sixties told The Daily Beast: 'Women weren’t supposed to be openly ambitious in the ’60s.'
'When I started at Newsweek As a secretary, I was thrilled to be where what I typed was interesting. I was the daughter of immigrants, my father had a deli, and my mother made the potato salad and rice pudding.'