the late 1920s. She had worked hard, remained true to her humble beginnings, treated everyone fairly, and achieved money, recognition, and love. Along the way, however, Cooper supplied a number of fabrications regarding Oakley. By drawing liberally and literally on her unfinished autobiography, he repeated inaccurate dates and anecdotes, some of which are still taken as truth.
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Soon after Cooper wrote, Hollywood made its first contribution to Annie's legend. Unfortunately, the decade of the 1930s was a less-than-propitious time to make a film about a strong, successful woman like Oakley. Thanks to such stars as vamp Theda Bara, girl-next-door Lillian Gish, sexually free Gloria Swanson, "It Girl" Clara Bow, and "America's Sweetheart" Mary Pickford, women in films appeared youthful, innocent, feminine, and kittenish rather than secure and successful.
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Nor did Oakley's stance as a demure lady fit well with Hollywood images. A 1929 study indicated that Joan Crawford was the leading model for young American women. The chorus girls and flappers she portrayed established a standard of behavior, dress, and makeup for an entire generation of female movie-goers. As one sixteen-year-old girl commented, "These modern pictures give me a feeling to imitate their ways."
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Oakley's demeanor as an athlete also appeared stodgy during the 1930s, an era when women sports figures contributed to the nation's growing fascination with female freedom and sexuality. Among such stars were Alice Marble and Helen Wills, who excelled at tennis, Eleanor Holm and Helen Madison, who established swimming records, and Mildred "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias, who mastered women's basketball, track, and golf. At the same time, women's softball and basketball teams also flourished. Along with women's sports came light tennis dresses, tennis shorts, and satin shorts for basketball players; women's bare legs soon became a common sight.
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Even Annie's persona as a western woman had questionable appeal during the 1930s. Because the Dust Bowl, the wind-eroded area that produced migrants referred to as Okies, came to symbolize the West in many people's minds, the American West increasingly appeared bankrupt. The combination of overcultiva-
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