Elvis's wardrobe for Baz Luhrmann and Miuccia Prada The stylistic evolution of an icon told in the film in theaters today
In America in the early 1950s, after the economic boom, a new generation of teenagers was born who were inspired by a rebellious philosophy of life, nourished by rhythm and blues and rock and roll, and established themselves as the absolute stars of the emerging consumer society. The advent of pop music led to the establishment of new fashions, customs and habits that invested the youth universe both socially and aesthetically. For sociologist Georg Simmel, this intermingling of music and fashion meant that "the imitation of a given model satisfied the need for diversity, the tendency toward differentiation, change, and standing out." And it is precisely this very authentic aspect that Baz Luhrmann focused on to tell the story of the artistic spiral of Elvis, the first musical icon who was able to show and tell his diverse sound realities through the evolution of his own aesthetic style. The myth of Elvis, the one who was supposed to be the chosen all American boy.
Shaken by the assassinations of Martin Luther King and the Kennedy brothers, Elvis no longer wanted to portray the "puppet" of Hollywood but to demonstrate how socially relevant his iconic figure still was. Until then, a decade after his heyday, he had been largely forgotten after a series of lackluster film roles. When Colonel Parker, met with NBC in May 1968, he asked them to produce a special on Presley devoted to Christmas songs. It was a novel idea, since most television specials featured multiple artists and this one would focus exclusively on Presley, but director Steve Binder and his producer Bones Howe took creative control of the show, convincing Presley of the opportunity to relaunch himself as a performer.
Binder and Howe decided that the special should tell Presley's life story through the evolution of his music. The most striking element of 68 Comeback Special, besides being Elvis's greatest performance of all time, was the perfect distribution of stage clothes curated by costume designer Bill Belew. As analyzed in journalist Zoey Goto's book, Elvis Style, Belew's artistic approach gave rise to three outfits that perfectly summed up Elvis's epic by focusing particularly on his origins. Starting from the burgundy gospel suit to the ethereal white suit for If I Can Dream, while his denim jumpsuit finished entirely in black leather remained iconic. «The outfit was a nod to Elvis' rebellious image of the 1950s, but this time a dirtier, more aggressive presence was evident. Black leather had long been strongly associated with motorcycle gangs, as illustrated by Marlon Brando in 1953's The Wild One». This outfit encapsulated the essence of Elvis's performance, the external pressure from which the performer wanted to free himself, declaring his return to the stage through an empowering garment.
In July 1969 he kicked off the third act of his career, residing for seven years at the International Hotel in Las Vegas. The following years would see the release of iconic pieces such as uspicious Minds and The Wonder of You, but despite his success his personal life got the better of Elvis, always pushing him into the gilded prison of Las Vegas. That Elvis was aware of his image was certain; what he was less aware of was the impact it would have on clothing in general. «Elvis was fluid before gender fluid style was conceived» Buz Lhurmann told The New York Times. «He was always incredibly masculine, but he was experimenting with makeup and hair color as early as high school and liked to mix short lace tops tied at the waist and pink bolero jackets with pleated pants and pink socks». «The exuberance of Elvis's stage clothes allowed men to wear more outrageous clothes than they had worn since the nineteenth century» says British tailor Edward Sexton, far anticipating the flamboyant suits of David Bowie or Prince. Forty-five years later, we are still enjoying the sartorial freedoms that Elvis inaugurated by paving the way for future artists in expressing themselves through style and empowered us all to be bolder.
