ABSTRACT
Chapter 3 explores the Cherry Ames (1943–1968) and Vicki Barr (1947–1964) series, which follow the antics of a nurse and flight attendant, respectively, and wrangle with changing ideas about girls, women, and paid labor. Cherry and Vicki choose careers as fulfilling life work, yet the series repeatedly hints at the ideal girls’ eventual settling down. The ideal girl remains white, stereotypically attractive, and appropriately feminine; in fact, her ability to perform femininity is vital to her career success. Other girls – those of marginalized racial or ethnic identity – are saved by the ideal girl, who appears modern and liberated.
