Tagged: Rockabilly

True Romance: Clarence’s Rockabilly Road Trip Style

Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette in True Romance (1993)

Vitals

Christian Slater as Clarence Worley, newlywed rockabilly enthusiast and former comic store clerk

Mojave Desert, Spring 1992

Film: True Romance
Release Date: September 10, 1993
Director: Tony Scott
Costume Designer: Susan Becker

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

The Friday before Memorial Day has been designated National Road Trip Day, celebrating the open road and the start of the summer travel season. As this year is also the 30th anniversary of the Quentin Tarantino-penned, Tony Scott-directed genre-blender True Romance, let’s follow the felonious newlyweds Clarence Worley (Christian Slater) and Alabama Whitman (Patricia Arquette) as they make their way west from Detroit in the Elvis-obsessed Clarence’s pink Cadillac convertible. Continue reading

Walk the Line: Johnny Cash in Black for an On-Stage Engagement

Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon in Walk the Line (2005). Photo credit: Suzanne Tenner.

Vitals

Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash, country rock star

London, Ontario, February 1968

Film: Walk the Line
Release Date: November 18, 2005
Director: James Mangold
Costume Designer: Arianne Phillips
Tailor: Pam Lisenby

Background

Fifty-five years ago on February 22, 1968, Johnny Cash surprised both the audience and perhaps also his frequent performing partner, June Carter, by proposing to her in the middle of a performance in London, Ontario. The pair had been friends—and eventually lovers—for nearly a decade, as depicted in the 2005 biopic Walk the Line, which culminated with Cash’s on-stage proposal following their performance of “Ring of Fire”, the song June had composed with Merle Kilgore four years earlier to meditate on her own emotions about their relationship. Continue reading

Austin Butler as Elvis: Pink-and-Black Rockabilly Suit

Austin Butler as Elvis Presley in Elvis (2022)

Vitals

Austin Butler as Elvis Presley, country rock guitarist and singer

Shreveport, Louisiana, January 1955

Film: Elvis
Release Date: June 23, 2022
Director: Baz Luhrmann
Costume Designer: Catherine Martin
Tailor: Gloria Bava

Background

Elvis Presley was born 88 years ago today on January 8, 1935. Little introduction is needed for the King of Rock and Roll, who remains one of the most significant cultural figures of the last century even nearly 50 years after this death. Several movies have been made about Presley’s life and musical career, the most recent being the highly publicized Elvis, released last year with an astounding and immersive lead performance by Austin Butler that has been touted as a likely contender for an Academy Award. Continue reading

True Romance: Clarence’s Rockabilly Wedding Style

Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette in True Romance

Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette in True Romance (1993)

Vitals

Christian Slater as Clarence Worley, comic store clerk and rockabilly enthusiast

Detroit, Winter 1992

Film: True Romance
Release Date: September 10, 1993
Director: Tony Scott
Costume Designer: Susan Becker

Background

Happy Valentine’s Day! In the spirit of today’s love-centered holiday, it felt like the right time to start exploring the style of True Romance, specifically the slapdash quasi-rockabilly wardrobe worn by its leading character, the energetic comic enthusiast-turned-killer Clarence Worley (Christian Slater).

True Romance begins with Clarence striking out at a bar before celebrating his birthday in solitude at a local cineplex with a Sonny Chiba triple feature… instantly signaling writer Quentin Tarantino’s involvement to the informed viewer. Among the scattered audience, Clarence makes the acquaintance of the bleach-haired amateur call girl Alabama Whitman (Patricia Arquette). Despite Alabama’s post-coital admission that Clarence’s boss hired her to assuage Clarence’s birthday loneliness, the two almost immediately fall in love and impulsively marry, appropriately scored by Billy Idol’s “White Wedding”. Continue reading

Walk the Line: Johnny Cash in Rockabilly White and Black

Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash in Walk the Line (2005)

Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash in Walk the Line (2005)

Vitals

Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash, rising country rock star

Texarkana, Texas, Summer 1955

Film: Walk the Line
Release Date: November 18, 2005
Director: James Mangold
Costume Designer: Arianne Phillips
Tailor: Pam Lisenby

Background

Eighty-nine years ago on February 26, 1932, J.R. Cash was born in Arkansas. His childhood was dominated by music, as there was little else to encourage the family enduring the hard years of the Depression made worse by a dangerous flood and the violent death of Jack, one of the seven Cash children. It was when he joined the military that the 18-year-old Cash expanded his first name as the Air Force wouldn’t allow just initials, though it wasn’t until cutting his first recording at Sun Records that he established the name that would become legendary: Johnny Cash. Continue reading