The origin of G-string

Dear Matt: My boyfriend asked me a question the other day I simply did not know the answer to. Where did the word G-string come from? He thinks it’s because when you see a chick in one, you say, “Gee!” I say maybe it stands for, “Get this string outta my crack.” Do ya know? — Denise, Point Loma

Something stuck in your butt used to be a wedgie; now it’s a hot poolside fashion statement Add pointy-toed, three-inch heels and an underwire bra and I’d guess you’ll be in for the most uncomfortable afternoon of your life. But you’ll get plenty of “Gee!”s, which seems to be the goal. Logical guesses, Denise, but I’m pleased to tell you they’re also wrong. The Matthew Alice fashion-science brain trust tells me the original “geestring” was the thin leather waistband used by some American Indians to hold up a loincloth. “Geestring” appeared in some written descriptions of Midwestern Native American life in the 1800s, said to be an adaptation of the Indian word for the garment. However — speaking of butt-covering — the experts conveniently add that the original Indian word is “now lost.” (Again I say, those word-origin folks are weasels. Strippers didn’t add the G-string to their arsenal until the mid-1930s. And please note that the first G-strings were men’s duds, obvious precursors of ripped boxers, with plenty of room for unhampered beer-drinking while watching football or maybe those ring-card girls in G-string spike heels, and wired-up bras. Guys are no fashion fools.