Many say the fishnets began in the early 1900s with the showgirls of the famous Moulin Rouge but most images of women from the time highlighted adorned black stockings, not fishnets.
Fishnets became popular with flappers and showgirls in the 1920s as hemlines rose (to just barely below the knee). They were popular due to the fact that from a distance, fishnetted legs may look as though they're adorned in black tights, but under the bright lights of a dance stage, dots of flesh would show through.
Fishnets continued to be associated with a 'loose' type of woman especially as they gained popularity in pin-up girls of the 1950s.
In the 60s with the rise of the miniskirt, some women took to playing with the amount of leg they showed by wearing a tight weave fishnet in various colors.
A photo set of glamorous photos that shows classic beauties wearing these fishnet stockings in the 1950s and 1960s.
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| Abbe Lane |
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| April Kent |
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| Audrey Hepburn |
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| Ava Gardner |
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| Barbara Eden |
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| Barbara Nichols |
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| Bettie Page |
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| Betty Brosmer |
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| Brigitte Bardot |
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| Chelo Alonso |
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| Debbie Reynolds |
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| Doris Day |
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| Elaine Stewart |
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| Elizabeth Taylor |
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| Evelyn West |
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| France Anglade |
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| France Nuyen |
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| Gloria DeHaven |
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| Glynis Johns |
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| Ingrid Pitt |
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| Jane Fonda |
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| Janet Leigh |
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| Jayne Mansfield |
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| Jill Haworth |
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| Jill St. John |
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| Joan Collins |
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| Joy Harmon |
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| Julie Newmar |
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| Kathryn Grant |
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| Kim Novak |
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| Lana Turner |
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| Lee Remick |
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| Leslie Caron |
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| Lisa Gaye |
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| Lori Nelson |
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| Mara Corday |
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| Marie Devereux |
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| Marlo Thomas |
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| Martha Hyer |
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| Mary Murphy |
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| Mitzi Gaynor |
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| Mona Freeman |
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| Monica Vitti |
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| Neile Adams |
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| Stella Stevens |
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| Susan Oliver |
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| Suzan Farmer |
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| Tina Louise |
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| Vera Day |
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| Virginia Mayo |