Posted on 01/05/2009 1:35:32 PM PST by Daffynition
You'd be forgiven for never hearing of designer Alfred Shaheen.
Yet he inspired one of the most colourful, amusing and unforgettable styles of fashion ever known - the Hawaiian shirt.
Sadly the pioneering textile manufacturer has died at age 86, his family have confirmed.
As tourists from the US to Hawaii after World War II, many began to bring home colorful but cheesy looking shirts and sundresses that would be cause for much amusement among friends.
Shaheen began to change that in 1948 when he opened Shaheen's of Honolulu and began designing, printing and producing "aloha" shirts, dresses and other ready-to-wear clothing of better quality.
Among those seen in Shaheen-designed shirts of that era was Elvis Presley, who wore one for the cover of his 1961 soundtrack album "Blue Hawaii."
Such Shaheen originals now sell for more than £500
"Before Shaheen came along, there was no Hawaii garment industry. There were mom and pop stores but no real modern industry," Linda Arthur, a professor of textiles and clothing at Washington State University said.
By 1959, the year Hawaii became a state, he had more than 400 employees working for him and was grossing more than $4 million a year as the major player in the islands' garment industry.
Aw, that sucks.
Hawaiian shirts were my “midlife” crisis. After my divorce in 2000, I was busy paying bills, working my a$$ off, and raising my then seven year old daughter. I didn’t have money for a harley or a 22 year old girlfriend (heck, didn’t have any offers for a 22 year old girlfriend either), but I could afford to buy a hawaiian shirt every once in a while. So I did. Built a collection of about 20 of them - nothing fancy, nothing real expensive, usually at a local thrift store or something. But I liked them...and they were easier to deal with than a Harley or a 22 year old girlfriend (although the girlfriend would probably have been more fun).
Guayabera Shirt
I hope wherever he is, it is balmy enough to wear Hawaiian shirts.
(And the wahine are friendly)
I wear guayaberas and Aloha shirts too, for the past 40 years I believe. Mrs. is always on the lookout for some cool print fabric to make me another (takes more now than it did in the past).
HAHAHA! Sagamore Iams III ..............HAHAHA!
I can’t believe what I am seeing ...is that Truman? GREAT image!
I think there are a lot of photos of Truman in Hawaiian shirts.
I don’t know if Obama (who IS Hawaiian) could pull it off.
A staple of The Regular Guy look, the brainchild of Monty Capuletti.
I do know that the expression of the guy standing behind him is priceless and sums up my feelings for the next four years perfectly!
That’s so cute!
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