"We take great pride in making bewildering and outlandish garments that we think are ugly for people who can afford it." Think that would have worked on a billboard?
Great find, Marc. Which leads to the question, where did you locate it?
At a vintage clothing store you're probably familiar with: RAGG MOPP, on E. Sunset Blvd next to Silverlake Junction. It was being sold as a run-of-the-mill vintage suit, and priced as such.
By chance, was the suit in the rear of the store, on the left, on a mannequin?
For every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction.
No, it's too small to fit on that mannequin. It was hanging with the other suits. This was about four months ago.
If you'll pardon my curiosity, what prompted you to put the suit up for auction Marc? Seems like such a rare example of sartorial ephemera would make a great conversation piece.
If you'll pardon my curiosity, what prompted you to put the suit up for auction Marc? Seems like such a rare example of sartorial ephemera would make a great conversation piece.
Honestly, I'm not a fan of zoot suits myself, but as it's such a rare survival I'm sure it'll do well on ebay. I know a lovely lady, not even slightly racist, who collects gollywogs quite passionately; which just goes to show...
Not to be a pedant or anything, but a suit could hardly be called ephemera. Ephemera are items that are intended to be discarded or disposed of - usually written or printed.
What people forget about zoot suits is that it was a teenage style; most of those suits were not made to last, and where often worn to death, or refashioned into other garments.