Hennepin County Library

“Anti-Blackout” Flying Suit, Munsingwear, 1945

Caption attached to photo from the Minneapolis Tribune:

THE ANTI-BLACKOUT FLYING SUIT is modeled here by Kenneth R. Larson (center), 5153 Thirtieth avenue S., Munsingwear industrial engineer, and Charles W. Pauly, 165 Peninsula road, Munsingwear mechanical engineer. At right, Frances Balck, 3028 Fremont avenue S., helps zip up the suit for Larson while Pauly “blows up” the gear.

Towards the end of World War II warplanes were getting fast enough to put significant g-forces on the pilots.  G-suits like the one above would allow pilots to stay alert and conscious as the gravity forces would try to force the blood away from the pilot’s head during high-g maneuvers. The g-suit would put pressure on the legs and abdomen, restricting blood flow away from the brain and eliminating the possibility of the pilot “blacking out” during flight.

Munsingwear, Minneapolis September 1964

Information from Susan Marks’ In the Mood for Munsingwear: Known for its undergarments and Penguin bowling and golf shirts, Munsingwear cranked out new designs, new offerings and new innovations throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Sales continued to be healthy in these decades, but earnings were slipping.  Some possible factors for the loss in earnings: “revolving door management,” lack of solid marketing strategies, changes in demand and a more fragmented garment industry. While its competitors moved factories offshore, the Munsingwear factor stayed open until 1981.  Four hundred employees lost their jobs when it closed.  The building is now International Market Square.

Munsingwear from the Special Collections Trade Catalog Collection

We have a great trade catalog collection at Hennepin County Library.  The collection covers a wide variety of Minneapolis-based manufacturers from Minneapolis-Moline to Munsingwear.  The Munsingwear factory building still exists, it is now International Market Square and the Penguin brand is still being used as well. 

Susan Marks, who wrote an excellent book on Betty Crocker, has an new book, In the Mood for Munsingwear coming out in April from Minnesota Historical Society Press.  There will also be a MHS exhibit coinciding with the book’s release that will be up from May-September 2011.