Word: furred
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...long ago, the furrier was one of U.S. retailing's most endangered species. Badgered by conservationists, women began passing up their cherished minks, muskrats and marmots, settling instead for fake furs-or none at all. Then came the recession, and buyers began to balk at purchasing coats-no matter what they were made of-that had three-and four-figure price tags. Fur sales in specialty shops and department stores across the U.S. plunged, and many firms went out of business altogether. In just two years, nearly half of the 2,000 fur wholesalers and suppliers clustered in Manhattan...
...furs, and their dealers, are coming back. Industry-wide sales for 1975 are expected to reach their highest level (about $525 million) since the postwar boom 25 years ago. Fur sales have grown more dramatically this year than sales of any other kind of outerwear, and still astonished dealers are barely able to meet demand. Says Beverly Hills Furrier Mac Dicker: "It's unreal. I've been in the business for 30 years and never seen anything like...
Greater Sin. Why is the fur industry coming back? For one thing, foreign demand for American furs has increased, largely because the long decline of the U.S. dollar has made them cheaper and thus more attractive abroad. At home the fur revival partly reflects new developments on the price and environmental fronts. The rise in petroleum prices has increased the cost of fake furs, many of which are based on petrochemicals; the retail price of a full-length fake "mink," now about $300, has risen about 20% since 1972 (but of course still costs much less than the real ranch...
...main factor in the fur boom is the new vitality and versatility of the fur industry itself. Says Jess Chernak, executive vice president of the American Fur Industry, the furriers' Manhattan-based promotional organization: "We changed what had been a conservative custom trade into a high-volume industry geared to young people and fresh styling...
...platypus has adapted to its environment through a minor evolution of specializations. Its powerful claws allow it to dig its burrow; its thick fur allows it to maintain an aquatic existence; its musculature allows it to scramble over land, paddle through water, and close its eyes while underwater; and its extremely sensitive bill allows it to find food below the surface. Temple-Smith says, "When we were rowing about at night, the sound of the paddles would attract the animals...