Swimsuits

On a recent episode of Bravo's "Million Dollar Listing," one of the real estate agent cast members went shopping for a swimsuit to wear on a celebratory jaunt to the Hamptons. The price for the fancifully printed swim trunks at the exclusive Vilebrequin boutique in Manhattan (a Beverly Hills outpost is just off Rodeo Drive)? More than $400. Men's swimsuits have become the latest obsession for the well-dressed man, whether he leans toward storied items like Panerai watches, Hermès ties and John Lobb shoes or prefers cutting-edge Givenchy T-shirts, Thom Browne suits and Balenciaga high-tops.

Remember those full-body high-tech swimsuits worn at the 2009 World Swimming Championships in Rome--the event that saw an unprecedented 43 world records set? A study examining the event finds that the suits may have offered a distinct advantage. This isn't the first time the polyurethane suits have been implicated in allowing swimmers to break so many records; after it was alleged that the suits decreased drag through the water, compressed the muscles and increased buoyancy, they were banned from competition.

Visitor tips for Pearl Harbor --Because of security, no purses, backpacks, diaper bags, camera bags or other such items are allowed at the visitor center or on the memorials. Bag storage is available for $3. --Carry bottled water. --Dress comfortably and appropriately (no swimsuits). Be prepared to do some walking. --The center is open 7 a.m.-5 p.m. every day but Christmas, Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. --More info: (808) 422-3300, http://www.nps.gov/valr

At first glance there doesn't seem to be much to a swimsuit — a little bit of fabric that the wearer hopes will cover the necessary areas in the most flattering way and that will stay put in pool or surf. But swimwear style changes by the year, however subtly. Pay close attention and you notice that some modern designers are eschewing embellishments, hardware and potentially uncomfortable details in favor of streamlined, seamless and versatile suits. And quite a few women seem to be paying attention.

Surely you noticed this urgent news item over the weekend: The red swimsuit worn by Farrah Fawcett in her iconic 1976 poster has been donated to the Smithsonian's popular culture history collection. Along for the ride were some of Fawcett's "Charlie's Angels" scripts, a Fawcett doll, a hairstyling kit called Farrah's Glamour Center and, of course, the poster itself. Do such artifacts belong at the Smithsonian? That's the question, all right; but seeing the famous photograph has a way of making you forget, for a moment, to ask it. It's pure, perfect 1976.

Think men's synchronized swimming, and chances are you'll call back Harry Shearer and Martin Short as hopeless pool splashers in a classic "Saturday Night Live" bit. Director/co-writer Mans Herngren's Swedish import "The Swimsuit Issue," however, strives for "The Full Monty"-esque charm in its tale of a group of middle-aged, sad-sack weekend warriors who take up the female-dominant sport to compete for a world championship appearance in Berlin. While it may surprise moviegoers to discover — as jobless divorced dad Fredrik (Jonas Inde)

Icons Marilyn Monroe and Brigitte Bardot famously posed in fuller-cut swimwear and came off sexier than any bikini-clad Sports Illustrated cover girl could. If you want to channel that retro style at the beach, try posing this summer in something from Marysia Swim. Marysia is only three seasons old, but the line's classic looks are a fresh breeze in a sea of body-baring bikinis. Designer Maria Dobrzanska Reeves draws inspiration from swimsuits from the 1940s through 1970s and from her childhood ballerina training in Warsaw — hence the tutus and leotard shapes.

It's something almost every woman over the age of 14 knows: Putting on a bathing suit isn't as simple as just putting on a bathing suit. Even the perfectly sculpted among us know there is a lot of prep that must be done when you're going to expose that much skin. Otherwise, you'll be huddling under a beach towel or staying up to your neck in the pool, afraid to come out of the water. So here's our guide to what you can and can't expect to fix and how you can stop the bathing suit terrors from winning this summer.

Peter Gowland, whose exuberant, sun-drenched swimsuit photos and self-designed large-format cameras helped define glamour photography for six decades, has died. He was 93. Gowland died March 17 at his Pacific Palisades home of complications from surgery for a broken hip, said his wife of 68 years, Alice. The son of actors Gibson Gowland and Sylvia Andrew, Gowland was born in Hollywood on April 3, 1916, and grew up on motion picture sets. After attending Hollywood High School, he worked as a dress extra -- often in tuxedos and other formal wear -- in movies.

The athlete on the stage is talking about playing in pain. The babe on the website is standing on the side of a mountain in a white bikini and red snow boots. The athlete on the stage is talking about dealing with the pressure of a debilitating shin injury and suffocating Olympic hopes. The babe on the website is posing seductively in a white fur wrap too small for her chest and hot pants too tight for her bottom. Only in American women's sports would these two divergent creatures be the same person.