Taller Women and Shorter Men

     Things are looking up for taller women. They are less self-conscious and more breezily athletic, self-assured and grateful in the way they handle their height. They are getting far better attention from fashion sources. Tall women stand tall and walk tall and the slouch and stoop of the past is noticeably less, particularly in the younger generation of women Tails also are getting more interesting press. The social columns are full of photographs of shorter men with beautiful taller women on their arms. As one tall girl points out, "This whole Diane Keaton-Woody Allen syndrome makes the small man-tall woman romantic combination suddenly seems far more in the mode."

The list of tall women-short men couples is ever growing. Think of Henry and Nancy Kissinger...The Captain and Tennille...Sylvester Stallone and Susan Anton...and how about Sonny and Cher? How tall is tall? Statistics show that 90 percent of all women are between 4 feet 11 inches tall and 5 feet 7 inches tall. About 10 percent of the female population in the United States is over 5 feet 7 inches. Some people think all females are getting taller, but the average height for women from 18 to 24 still is about 5 feet 4 inches, according to the National Bureau of Standards. About 36 percent of women are taller than the average, and at least 5 percent grow into the 5-foot 9-inch to over-6-foot category. California has more tall women than any other state and has sprouted several "extra tall women's clubs." At one New York fashion model agency, Ford Models Inc., leading models now range from 5 feet 7 inches tall and up, with 5 feet 8 inches as the average. There are no very thin "Twiggy" types among them. The emaciated look is out. The softly rounded, more womanly look is in.

One statuesque, 6-foot 1-inch nurse loves being tall, except when she is at stand-up parties and has to stoop to catch the conversation. She never has minded dating shorter men because "they know how tall I am, and if they ask me out I figure it's because I am their preference." Like many of her tall friends, and those who are less tall than they are practical and thrifty, she goes to men's and boys' departments in stores and shops to find turtlenecks, slacks, jackets and T-shirts, which are better quality and less in price than In Other sports-minded tails indicate they sometimes shop army and navy stores for down jackets, jeans, boots and camping gear at discounted prices. A magazine writer, 5 feet 9 inches, the same height as her husband, says she wears low heels when they are out together, despite her visions of Woody Allen, et al. But she wears high heels when she is alone. She says she hated having to play boys' parts in plays at children's camp and always being asked to stand on the back row of group photographs. But now she enjoys her tall stature and being able to reach things on the top shelf of her étagère.

For women who are looking for tall fashions at moderate prices, the picture looks better every season. Lane Bryant, with Its 193 stores around the country, now emphasizes its "tall and terrific" departments for the woman who is 5 feet 9 inches or over and gives far more attention to current styles and properly proportioned hemlines, sleeves and waist length. This chain also features tall fashions by such well known designers as Gloria Vanderbilt, Diane Von Furstenberg, and Lev! Strauss (jeans), Izod, Sasson and Brittania. Suits for tall women here sell for $110 to $180, dresses from $50 to $70 and pants in the $26-to-$40 range. Noreen Llttman, buyer for the 65 Shelly's Tall Girl shops located in 15 states and headquartered in Los Angeles, says tall women never have been more insistent on up-to-the-minute styles, which this season has meant high heels, the suit look, tailored jackets, classic blazers, pleated skirts, pretty dresses and well-cut jeans.

 Mrs. Littman agrees with Tall Specialties Inc., a New York buying office which specializes in tall fashions alone, that the tall market is opening up and gaining new recognition, and that more and more manufacturers and designers — along with shorter men — are eyeing the range with new interest.

    By MARILYN HOFFMAN
   Christian Science Monitor Service
   Daily Intelligencer
   May 8th, 1980

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