The summer of 1936 saw a heat wave so dangerous at least five thousand people died. It also saw the popularization of a cooler fashion alternative – shorts – which, in some jurisdictions, were illegal.
<iframe src="https://statesidedaily.com/embed/cluster/ba27422a9e751b13591f401b4378688932c3ab12" width="100%" height="320" style="border:0;max-width:680px" loading="lazy" title="Short pants: The long and the short of it"></iframe>
The summer of 1936 saw a heat wave so dangerous at least five thousand people died. It also saw the popularization of a cooler fashion alternative: shorts. Correspondent Mo Rocca looks at the long history of short pants; how at one time, in Yonkers, N.Y., the wearing of shorts was illegal; and how hot pants and Daisy Dukes became high fashion.
