Levi's "Action Suit" any info?

[CINDERWOLF]

After stumbling onto this website by accident for the 3rd time over the course of a couple years i have managed to register and now finally, my first post.

I found a really nice looking suit jacket with the wonderful label of "ACTION SUIT" for 25$ at a vintage clothing store. It is in excellent condition and fits like a glove, I did not purchase it because i did not have any actual cash on me at the time. Also my girlfriend thought it looked "too 70's". I have been trying to find some info on these "ACTION SUITS" by Levi's but have turned up almost nothing. the label read that it was originally part of a 3 piece suit, but the owners could not remember selling the vest and pants but also could not find them in the store. they were asking 60$ for all three peices if they do turn up. Chances are I am going to head back there this coming week and pick it up just because i like it, but I am really interested in knowing a bit more about it, i am mostly interested in knowing the actual vintage (new to this stuff), the owners of the store told me that the jacket was very difficult to date because of fairly generic lapels and cut. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank You.

 

[Jay]

I haven't seen one of them in a while, but I'm pretty sure they're from the 70s. If I can recall, I think they were supposed to be washable, too. Perhaps someone else has more info?

Welcome to the Lounge, by the way.

 

[Mike in Seattle]

How about contacting customer service at Levi Strauss and asking what years they produced the Action Suit? I'm sure they can give you all that information and more.

Here's a link to a 1980 commercial

 

[reetpleat]

After stumbling onto this website by accident for the 3rd time over the course of a couple years i have managed to register and now finally, my first post.

I found a really nice looking suit jacket with the wonderful label of "ACTION SUIT" for 25$ at a vintage clothing store. It is in excellent condition and fits like a glove, I did not purchase it because i did not have any actual cash on me at the time. Also my girlfriend thought it looked "too 70's". I have been trying to find some info on these "ACTION SUITS" by Levi's but have turned up almost nothing. the label read that it was originally part of a 3 piece suit, but the owners could not remember selling the vest and pants but also could not find them in the store. they were asking 60$ for all three peices if they do turn up. Chances are I am going to head back there this coming week and pick it up just because i like it, but I am really interested in knowing a bit more about it, i am mostly interested in knowing the actual vintage (new to this stuff), the owners of the store told me that the jacket was very difficult to date because of fairly generic lapels and cut. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank You.

With a name like that, it is most decidely seventies. LIkely polyester or blend made for an active man who can't be bothered to care for his clothes was the subtext.

If you like it go for it, but three piece seventies suits are not ahrd to find in any size for the same price as the jacket.

But if it is very unusual and/or you like it just so, then go for it. $25 bucks isn't much to pay for anything.

 

[BegintheBeguine]

The name 'Action Suit' was a play on 'leisure suit'. Levi's still make Action slacks.

 

[CINDERWOLF]

Thank You for the info. I didnt end up getting the jacket but i will be keeping my eye out for another down the road.

 

[Marty M.]

Welcome Wagon.

Welcome to the Lounge Cinderwolf.
Marty Mathis

 

[The Kid]

Action suits turn up on ebay pretty often. IMO- They're never worth 60 dollars. There's too many leisure suits and 70s suits in general out there for cheap.

 

[LindyTap]

I've got a vest with an Action Suit label, it's not anything to write home about, but it's a pretty good tan vest. It feels like cotton, but it's definitely not polyester. I've also seen action suit pants labeled as polyester though, so who knows? Maybe they originally made them as a type of leisure suit, but revised them into something less atrocious later on?

 

[The Kid]

I'm pretty sure I've seen NOS Leisure suits and the same in old ads labeled as "action suits." I think it was just their thing for a suit that you can crumple up in a ball or wear all day and not worry about wrinkles and all that. And some of them may have been machine washable and such. Some I saw were all sta-prest and others all polyester. I put it in on ebay and you can get the suits for 10 dollars. There's lots of pants floating around. There aren't any Levi experts around here? Some people go crazy for anything with the Big "E" label and of course all the old selvage jeans and all that. BTW- If you see anything with the big E it's probably worth buying.