The truth about Otto Titzling — if you can handle it — is that he never existed in the first place. Nor did Hans Delving, nor Philippe de Brassiere. They are all fictitious characters invented by Canadian author Wallace Reyburn for his wholly satirical "history" of the brassiere published in 1972, Bust-Up: The Uplifting Tale of Otto Titzling and the Development of the Bra. Reyburn based the names on crude, if memorable, puns — Otto Titzling ("tit-sling"), Hans Delving ("hands delving"), Philippe de Brassiere ("fill up the brassiere").
According to etymologists, the noun brassiere derives not from anyone's surname, but from the Old French braciere, meaning, literally, "arm-guard." The first recorded use of brassiere in its modern sense occurred in 1907, at least 20 years before M. Philip de Brassiere allegedly lent his name to the undergarment in question.
The true origin of the brassiere
Through much of recorded history, women have worn special garments to cover, support, or enhance their breasts — most notably the corset, which was popular from the Renaissance onward but began to lose favor around the turn of the last century as women came to find it overly restrictive. It was then that alternatives began to emerge such as Marie Tucek's "breast supporter," patented in 1893, which consisted of a separate pocket for each breast held in place by flexible shoulder straps.
The first product actually patented under the name brassiere was invented in 1913 by Mary Phelps Jacob, a New York socialite. She hit upon the idea after trying on a brand-new sheer gown over her old whalebone corset, the result of which she found appalling. Using two silk handkerchiefs and pink ribbon, she improvised the forerunner of what would eventually be marketed as the "Backless Brassiere."
After a few years, Jacob (a.k.a. "Caresse Crosby") sold the patent to the Warner Brothers Corset Company, which, under a variety of brand names known collectively as the Warnaco Group, is still a leading manufacturer of brassieres (and many other kinds of garment) to this day.
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