GERING, Neb. (AP) - Fur coats were once all the rage. Women around the world wanted one. They were a status symbol. The rarer the animal, the more it seemed its fur was in demand. That began to change in the 1970s when people became aware of the damage they were doing to the animal population.
From the 1930s through the 1960s, department stores around the country would put out posters of the latest fashions. Glenda Larsen, of Gering, used to have a large collection of fur coats. She began collecting them when Americans still saw the coats as harmless.
She knew she had some coats, such as a Somali leopard and Colobus monkey that cannot be sold because they are illegal to do so today. She wanted to find a way to take these dead animals and turn it into a way of helping live animals. She began Fur-a-Cause to do just that.
Fur-a-Cause came about after Larsen read about a dog, Riki, who needed $3,000 for surgery. She soon turned her idea into a reality.
She has furs available for purchase at Julie’s Antiques in Gering. The catch is, if you purchase a fur, you write a check to an animal organization, such as the Panhandle Humane Society or the police department’s K-9 unit, the Scotts Bluff Star-Herald reported.
“It isn’t a ton of money,” she said. “But it’s like free money out of the air.”
In order to teach others about fur coats, she has given talks at the Family History and Research Center in Scottsbluff. This month, she will be giving a talk about fur through the decades and how the psychology of wearing fur has changed over time.
Curator Olivia Garl said the museum agreed to host the furs and Larsen’s talk because there isn’t a lot of clothing on display and, historically, the coats show a functionality and changes to fashion over time.
“Something I strive for is to do new things out here, regardless of the topic,” Garl said.
Larsen bought a fur coat when she was 30 years old. It took a year for her to pay it off on lay-away. Her cat ended up sleeping on it, which led to it being torn. So, she tossed it away.
“I started to realize this is horrible,” she said.
She stopped buying fur coats and began wearing fake ones. She realized there was a detrimental effect to having a fur coat.
“When Jackie Kennedy wore a leopard coat, it was probably the demise of 20,000 leopards because everyone wanted one,” she said.
There were also different levels of status with fur coats. From the most expensive, exotic animals, to something salesmen could sell you in your home, fur coats were popular through the 1960s with men and women purchasing the best fur coat they could afford.
Fur coats also had practical uses. Larsen knows one local woman who had to walk through a blizzard. The woman swears the warmth from the coat saved her life.
Larsen believes the real backlash against furs began when activists began throwing red paint on people walking down the street. However, there are still thousands of designers incorporating fur into their designs.
With movie stars like Hedy Lamar and Rita Hayworth, fur coats were promoted by Hollywood. It was common to see both actresses in fur coats whenever their photographs were taken.
Actresses Myrna Loy and Marilyn Monroe spoke often of how much they wanted monkey coats, spurring a craze. Today, Colobus monkey coats are illegal, but Larsen said she still sees them for sale on eBay.
“They shouldn’t be on there, but they are,” she said.
Larsen will be speaking at the Legacy of the Plains Museum on March 10 and 17 at 2 p.m. She is also looking for anyone who would like to model a coat during her talk. Those interested can call the museum at 308-436-1989.
Larsen is also open to hearing from the public who want to share their stories as well. Anyone interested in Larsen’s fur coats may visit Julie’s Antiques at a later time for purchase.
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Information from: Star-Herald, http://www.starherald.com
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