The Price of Beauty

[kajel]

Margaret’s delicate nails were glowing an interesting green color in the dark. Gloria turned the lamp on the vanity back on.

“See Gloria, isn’t that amazing?” Margaret said and she finished touching up her lipstick.

“That certainly is the bee’s knees.”

“The girls and I are going dancing tonight. You should come with us.”

“Thank you Margaret, no. It was a long day at the factory. The boys overseas need those parachutes. “

“I don’t know why you slave away so hard in that factory. I hear the war will be over soon. What happens then Gloria?”

“If the war finally ends, Richard will be back. We plan to marry.”

“I think you should come work with me. Painting the dials on watches to glow is so much easier. You won’t be so tired all the time.”

“I don’t know Margaret. Are you sure the paint is safe. It is so unusual, I still can’t believe it glows. You said you have to use your lips and tongue to keep the point on your brush. You’re ingesting it. We’ve been learning about harmful ingredients in my nursing classes.”

“The big shots at the company have assured us it is perfectly safe!”

“I am happy at the factory. Switching jobs now doesn’t make sense to me.”

“Horsefeathers Gloria, don’t be all wet. You’re just going to lead your boring life waiting for your beloved Richard to get back from Europe and never do anything exciting.”

“I like my boring life Margaret. I shall live vicariously through your exciting one.”

“Fine!” Margaret huffed in exasperation. “I’ll see you in the morning.”


******

“Darling!”

“Yes Richard?” Gloria stepped out of the kitchen and into the sitting room where her husband was reading the paper.

“Did you hear about the Radium Corporation? They discovered the radioactive paint they were using is killing the workers. They’ve been sued.”

“The Radium Corporation? That’s where Margaret worked when you were overseas. She’s was really ill the last year before she passed on.”

“They are calling the workers the Radium Girls and they’ve got something called radiation poisoning.”

“She used to come home with her nails and sometimes her lips or face painted.”

“A terrible price to pay for beauty if you ask me.”

Comments

[halfshellvenus.livejournal.com]

Gads, what a terrible fate-- and all through ignorance, because who could know at the time?

Nice period voices in this one. :)

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Exactly! Although, apparently the big shots were actually protecting themselves with lead while encouraging the women to use their mouths and lips to keep the points on their paint brushes.

[millysdaughter.livejournal.com]

**shudders**
Scary!

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Yes it was. Thanks!

[karmasoup.livejournal.com]

Memories of ties like these make me sometimes wonder what people of our future will look back on and be appalled we were so ignorant about, but, then I take a good look at us, and don't have to imagine very hard.

[kajel.livejournal.com]

So true. Thanks!

[bleodswean.livejournal.com]

Such a tragic story. Nice re-telling.

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

[tsuki-no-bara.livejournal.com]

i remember reading about that happening and being completely horrified. i like you take on it, showing us the attitude of one of the radium girls herself. the slang is good too. (and i know it killed them, but i bet glow-in-the-dark lips looked pretty cool.)

[kajel.livejournal.com]

I bet they did also. Thanks.

[favoritebean.livejournal.com]

I have a radium clock that once belonged to my grandmother. I remember being told to be very careful with it because of the radiation. It's also the same reason we never bought Fiesta Ware at the antique stores.

[kajel.livejournal.com]

I read that the amount of radioactivity on the items they painted were so small as to not worry. Sadly, they were daily surrounded by it, ingesting it and painting themselves with it.

[shimmerdream.livejournal.com]

I really liked the voices of the girls - great story.

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[dmousey.livejournal.com]

Such a sad fate...

[kajel.livejournal.com]

It was. Thanks.

[(Anonymous)]

I hope this wasn't based on fact. What a horrible way to die.
But what an interesting tale, and Gloria got her happy ending too.

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, it was. The Company wised up about the radium being used eventually, but, of course, they didn't tell the workers. Thank you.

[tatdatcm.livejournal.com]

How sad. A bit scary too that these materials were used without being aware of the awful side effects.

[kajel.livejournal.com]

The woman who discovered radium used to walk around with vials of it in her pockets. Thanks.

[eternal-ot.livejournal.com]

Oh..this was terrible..you presented it well...Good Job!

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[i-17bingo.livejournal.com]

“The big shots at the company have assured us it is perfectly safe!”

Big shots never change, do they?

[kajel.livejournal.com]

No, no they don't.

[kathrynrose.livejournal.com]

Love the "bee's knees" and the "don't be all wet." :)

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I enjoyed looking up slang from the 20's.

[whipchick.livejournal.com]

I remember reading about this! Neat to see you put a human face on the event.

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[n3m3sis43.livejournal.com]

Oh, ouch. Is this based on real-life events? This was a cool take on the topic.

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Sadly, it was. Thanks!

[rayaso.livejournal.com]

This was good! I had never read about this incident before. You did a great job dramatizing it.

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Thanks you!

[binaryorchid.livejournal.com]

How sad :-( I like the characters and I could picture this story as a movie "Radium Girls".

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[labelleizzy.livejournal.com]

mmmm delicious history.

(today, amusingly, I'm wearing my Marie Curie tee shirt!)

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Ha, that is awesome.

[tonithegreat.livejournal.com]

Aw, poor Margaret. I loved the period details you injected, like the language.

[kajel.livejournal.com]

Thanks!