Navel in popular culture

The cultural views on the midriff navel vary significantly. In some cultures the navel is seen as sexually and culturally significant, and its exposure has been subject to a variety of cultural norms and taboos, based on concepts of modesty. The views, customs and fashions relating to the midriff and navel change from time to time, and such exposure has become more widely acceptable, as reflected in the designs of clothing.

Western culture

The public exposure of the male and female midriff and bare navel has been taboo at times in Western cultures, being considered immodest or indecent. It was banned in some jurisdictions. Eventually, only female navel exposure was banned and not male because, it was argued, the simulation or upward displacement from vagina to navel was commonplace and obvious in women.

Community perceptions have changed and exposure of female midriff and navel is more accepted today and in some societies or contexts it is both fashionable and common, though not without its critics. Although American teenage girls are more likely to wear shirts that reveal their midriffs, this kind of clothing is often banned in high schools and stores. It is also inappropriate to wear clothing that reveals the midriff in professional settings like places of work. The exposure of the male navel has not been as controversial nor as common, and is usually in the context of barechestedness. Exposure of the navel by females is commonly associated with the popularity of the bikini, the crop top, and low-rise clothing.

Film

In the United States, the Motion Picture Production Code, or Hays Code, enforced after 1934, banned the exposure of the female navel in Hollywood films. The National Legion of Decency, a Roman Catholic body guarding over American media content, also pressured Hollywood to keep clothing that exposed certain parts of the female body, such as bikinis and low-cut dresses, from being featured in Hollywood movies.

During the 1950s, Joan Collins was prohibited by the censors from exposing her navel in ''Land of the Pharaohs'' (1955). To get around the censors' guidelines, she wore a jewel, a ruby, in her navel. Kim Novak wore a ruby jewel in her navel for the film '' Jeanne Eagels'' (1957); saying in an interview, "they had to glue it in every time. I got a terrible infection from it." Marilyn Monroe, for a scene from '' Some Like It Hot'' (1959), wore a dress that revealed skin everywhere but had a small piece of fabric to hide her navel. (The film was condemned by the National Legion of Decency, but for other reasons.Films Condemned by the Legion of Decency
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By the 1960s, community standards had changed. Marilyn Monroe was allowed to expose her navel in ''Something's Got to Give'' (1962) and later commented, "I guess the censors are willing to recognize that everybody has a navel." Ursula Andress, appearing as Honey Ryder in the 1962 James Bond film, '' Dr. No'', wore her iconic white bikini, which exposed her midriff and navel. However, when Annette Funicello was cast in her first beach movie ''Beach Party'' (1963), Walt Disney, who held her contract, insisted that she only wear modest bathing suits and keep her navel covered, to preserve her wholesome persona, though she was the only one of the ample number of young women in the film not bikini-clad. In the 1967 film ''Follow That Camel'', actress Anita Harris wore a jewel on her navel for a belly-dancing sequence.

The Hays Code was abandoned soon after, with it the prohibition of female navel exposure and other restrictions. The influence of the National Legion of Decency had also waned by the 1960s. With the withdrawal of the Code and the change to a classification regime, the ban on the exposure of parts of the human body that had previously been regarded as immodest or indecent was withdrawn; and with it, there was an increasing level of body exposure over time. The exposure of the navel ceased to be controversial in the context of a general increase in nudity.

A notable Post-Hays live-action film example is Carrie Fisher's role as Princess Leia during the beginning of ''Return of the Jedi'' after being captured by Jabba the Hutt, where she wears a metal bikini, which exposes her bare midriff.

During the late 1980s, animated heroines began exposing more skin as well. In the 1989 musical-fantasy film ''The Little Mermaid'', the lead protagonist, Ariel, revealed her navel while wearing only fins and a seashell bra, a first in Disney's history.

Television

In 1951, the United States Code of Practices for Television Broadcasters came into force, which, besides other things, prohibited female navel exposure on American television. During the 1960s, Barbara Eden was not allowed to show her navel on the NBC TV show '' I Dream of Jeannie'' (1965–70). Her pants had to be worn above the navel, which became ineffective. After a few frames of her navel exposure went unnoticed, they decided to use fabric and skin-colored makeup to conceal her navel. Her costume became low-rise (without censorship) in 1985 and in 2013, 81-year-old Eden attended the Life Ball event in Vienna dressed in the same costume of ''I Dream of Jeannie'' but revealing her navel. In February 1964, Scandinavian Airlines placed an advertisement in newspapers and magazines throughout the United States. It featured a blonde-haired, bikini-clad model exposing her belly button posing on a rock above the caption "What to show your wife in Scandinavia". The image that appeared in most publications had the belly button removed.

The first exposure of a navel in a TV series occurred in 1961 on the ''Dr. Kildare'' series. Dawn Wells and Tina Louise were not allowed to expose their navels in '' Gilligan's Island'' (1964–67). Wells was required to wear high-waisted shorts that covered her navel.
Wells stated in an interview, "Oh my goodness, I designed the shorts. Because it was the first short shorts ever on television and it had to cover my navel. ''Gilligan's Island'' actually gave censors headaches back in the '60s. Ginger's cleavage, and Mary Ann's navel were only allowed 3 seconds an episode." The censors missed Nichelle Nichols, a black actress, who is showing her navel in the second-season '' Star Trek'' episode " Mirror, Mirror" (1967). It is believed that it was due to Bjo Trimble that it went unnoticed. Another episode of ''Star Trek'', called "A Private Little War" (1968), also managed to get past the censors when Nancy Kovack's belly button was clearly visible in some shots and not covered by jewelry as seen when the fringe from her top was not covering it. In 1969, Mariette Hartley was not allowed to reveal her belly button in " All Our Yesterdays" (1969), the penultimate episode of Gene Roddenberry's ''Star Trek''. Gene had Mariette expose not one but two belly buttons in the sci-fi film '' Genesis II'' (1973).

In ''The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour'' (1971–74), network censors feared Cher's navel exposure would become a cause célèbre at CBS. Cher once commented, "There were so many things that were censored—ideas and words. All I know is I got in trouble for showing my belly button, and every time I turned around after I went off the air, all you saw were Cheryl Ladd's boobs." ''People'' magazine dubbed Cher "Pioneer of the Belly Beautiful".

The U.S. code of practice was suspended in 1983.

Music and Entertainment

Pre-1990

Navel exposure became common in the culture of 20th-century music, with an establishing foothold during the mid-1970s, then becoming more prominent by the following decade, with many successful female popstars having appeared on and offstage and in music videos with their midriff exposed, usually wearing a crop top, including Madonna, during 1983, she caused controversy when she wore a mesh crop top in her video for the song " Lucky Star". ''People'' magazine wrote that Madonna made the bare navel her trademark.

Singer/actress Cher wore an Indian princess outfit with feathers and beads around her navel for the 58th Annual Academy Awards event in 1986. California-base
fashion
designer Christine Albers commented, "the look is good for anyone who has a great body but especially for women who do a lot of stomach exercises."

Paula Abdul's belly button was exposed in a fishnet see-through dress in the 1989 music video for "Cold Hearted" and she appeared with a tattooed navel in the music video for " My Love Is for Real" in 1995.

1990s and 2000s

During the early 1990s, Canadian country singer Shania Twain appeared in low-rise jeans baring her midriff and navel in her music videos and performances. It became both the most widely discussed body part in country music and her trademark. Shania once commented, "Someone said to me once, 'Well, if I had your belly-button I'd sell 8 million albums too.' But it takes a lot more than a belly-button to sell more than 8 million albums." Jennifer Lopez is believed to have started the trend of exposing the navel on stage and red carpets. It has been said Christina Aguilera has the most recognizable belly button in history. ''People'' magazine stated, "The 19-year-old hotshot chanteuse behind ' What a Girl Wants', once a Mouseketeer alongside Britney Spears, can't quite pull off pop star flash without belly-flopping."
In 2001, the editors of '' Britannica'' commissioned an article on Britney Spears that deconstructs her bare midriff. The article describes Miss Spears's navel as "a heated boundary between baby and babe". She had been a major inspiration for the navel piercing trend. '' Spin'' magazine chose Madonna's navel as its "most incredible" rock star body part for a September 2005 feature. Gregorio Luke, former director of the Museum of Latin American Art who conducted lectures about belly buttons, said, "The belly button has been a sign of beauty in goddesses as different as Astarte, Venus or Aphrodite. We ask which is more beautiful, the perfectly round belly button of Jane Fonda or Raquel Welch's grain of coffee navel? Every star from Madonna to Shakira proudly displays their belly button."

On the contrary, American columnist Kathleen Parker in an article about Katharine Hepburn once commented, "Young movie-going girls today don't have access to many in the mold of Katharine Hepburn. Instead by mall observations most are Britney wannabes—hip-hugged, tattooed, pierced and out there. The female navel has become the refrigerator man's continental divide. I hate to break it to you, oh future daughters-in-law, but everybody's got a belly button. Your inney- or outey-ness is not the stuff either of revelation or revolution."

Fashion

Exposed midriff is associated with the crop top, often in association with low-rise clothing. Another way that the navel may be exposed is via a deep plunging neckline dress or top that drops below the natural waist line.

Low-rise clothing started in the early 1990s, when the British magazine '' The Face'' featured Kate Moss in low-rise jeans on its March 1993 issue cover. Models such as Gisele Bündchen frequently flash their midriffs. In 1994, Art Cooper, editor-in-chief of '' GQ'' magazine said that his big seller in 1994 was the February issue with Geena Davis on the cover, on which she wore an Armani suit opened at the hips to reveal her navel, It sold about 400,000 copies. He stated, "Part of the success is the navel factor. I think the belly button is really an erogenous zone."

Navel piercing and navel tattoos has become more common among young women. The trend of piercing or tattooing the navel became popular in the 1990s. It is popular among middle-aged women. Actress Drew Barrymore has a butterfly tattoo beneath her navel. The growing popularity of belly dancing, where navel exposure is typical, has also added to the navel exposure trend.

Contrarily, advice columnist Ann Landers commented, "Navels are neither sexy nor obscene. I do not believe any female of good taste would wear an outfit where her navel shows. This does not include women in costumes or those on beaches in bikinis. The same goes for males. An adult male who wears hip-huggers so low rates zero minus 10 on the scale of taste—it's my opinion but it's one I feel strongly about." Fashion historian James Laver told that he hasn't quite caught up with the idea of exposing the navel, saying, "I have never regarded that as a particularly attractive part of the human anatomy". The navel fashion returned in the 1980s, when a New York City ban on exposing the navel in public was lifted.

From 2010, the crop top evolved by which women started wearing it with a high-rise skirts, jeans, or shorts that are high enough to cover the navel. The bandeau top also made an appearance in formal wear, usually associated with a high-rise skirt or pants that cover the navel. Actress Halle Berry wore a bandeau with matching pants at the MTV Video Music Awards, fueling the trend of wearing a bandeau top as an out-of-home dress. Miley Cyrus also wore a cropped bandeau top with high-waisted pants at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards and Jourdan Dunn wore a black bandeau top with matching maxiskirt.

Sportswear

Swimwear

Displays of the female navel commenced with the introduction of the bikini in 1946, designed by Louis Réard, though two-piece swimsuits that exposed the midriff but covered the navel appeared in the 1930s. Réard could not find a model who would dare wear his brief design, so he hired Micheline Bernardini, a 19-year-old nude dancer from the Casino de Paris, as his model. The uptake of the new-style swimsuit was very slow, and even then the bikini was not regarded as suitable clothing beyond the beach or pool. During the 1960s, Mary Quant's designs featured exposed navels and bare midriffs.
Exposure of the male navel was limited well into the 1960s. The swimwear covered the lower abdomen and usually the navel. Occasionally the swimwear would be worn immediately below the navel. The swimwear evolved to longer legs and lower waistline. Male swimwear could neither be worn above the navel nor below the knee in events of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

Sports bikinis

Bikinis have become a major component of marketing various women's sports,Laura Grae Kilborn,
The Marketing Of Female Athletes
, ''The Denver Post'', 11 August 1998 and most female athletes often wear a sports bikini that exposes the navel as the professional attire. Bulgarian athlete Ivet Lalova is known for her "tribal sun" tattoo around her navel. Croatian athlete Blanka Vlašić is famous for her navel piercing.

Cheerleading

The fashion later became increasingly popular through wearing styles, tops comprising modified sports bras without additional outergarments, sports bikinis, and cheerleading style fashions developing largely from the styles originating with the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders in the early 1970s.

Tennis

Female tennis players are known for exposing their navels or navel piercings on court. American tennis player Serena Williams was noted by the media for exposing her belly button piercing during her matches.
Similarly, retired Russian tennis player Anna Kournikova was known for frequent navel exposure during her matches. In 2009, for an interview to the German magazine
'' Der Spiegel'' when asked about her belly button showing during serves, she commented, "These are men's ravings.Why you should hide it, when it isn't necessary? Female beach volley ball players play in bikinis – does it bother anyone?"
American female golfer Laura Diaz commenting to the Ladies Professional Golf Association for ''Sports Illustrated'', "The LPGA needs to acknowledge that a lot of people watch women's sports more for the women than for the sports. Why else would Anna Kournikova, who has never won a singles title, be the most popular player in women's tennis? We have quite a few attractive women, and we should use our looks to our advantage. After all, what's so wrong with seeing an occasional belly button?"

American football

Males often wear no shirt with low-rise shorts during practice. This was somewhat upheld during practice of American football, which was carried over to wearing cropped jerseys during 1980s broadcasts. Cropped jerseys became dormant for 20 years until male athletes returned to midriff exposure for comfort purposes. However, the NCAA placed an official ban on navel exposure in 2015. The National Football League has long placed a ban on navel exposure, and has since required jerseys to be tucked in. It banned Ezekiel Elliott's crop top in September 2016.

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