Elvis and Fashion
Elvis was different in every way. His originality and innovation in every aspect of his life were his hallmark, and of course, so was his way of dressing. The King challenged all fashion norms during the 1950s. And for the rest of his life.
He loved original, novel, daring, striking, extravagant clothes…
Before becoming famous, Elvis had no money, only the scraps he earned from his jobs. Whenever he walked past the Lansky Brothers clothing store, he would stare longingly in the window, dreaming of one day being able to wear those clothes.
The Lansky Brothers window displays were always a sight to behold. And Elvis never passed by the window without dreaming of one day being able to wear those bold designs and colors he loved so much.
The men’s clothing store, Lansky Brothers, was established in 1946 when Samuel Lewis Lansky, a Russian immigrant, purchased the store at 126 Beale Street for $125 for his sons, Bernard and Guy.
In Memphis, no one had ever seen such bold colors and patterns. As Bernard said, the store sold clothes in vibrant colors, like red, orange, yellow, green, purple—the kind of bright, distinctive colors Elvis liked. The Lansky brothers’ window displays were a sight to behold, filled with eye-catching and innovative designs.
Bernard and young Elvis began a good relationship and something special grew between them.
The day Elvis collected his first paycheck, as he was working as an usher at Loew’s Theater at the time, he immediately ran out to buy his first piece of clothing, a $3.95 shirt. Later, while still attending LC Humes High School, he asked Bernard to create him a set of black pants, a pink coat, and a pink and black sash for his prom… From that moment on, he would remain loyal to his store until the end of his days.
It’s a very nice anecdote of the day Elvis walked in excited and said to Bernard: “I’m going on television with Ed Sullivan, Mr. Lansky!!!” Then Bernard excitedly dressed him and told him how much the clothes cost. Elvis said: “I have a problem. I don’t have enough money…” Lansky replied: “Yes, that is a problem… But I’ll tell you what, it doesn’t matter, you’ll pay me…”
As Elvis’s career took off, Lansky provided his clothing for appearances on the Louisiana Hayride, the Dorsey Brothers shows, the Ed Sullivan Show…
There’s a famous photo of Elvis and Muhammad Ali, where Elvis is wearing a luxurious navy blue jacket he bought at Lansky’s. The plaid jacket he wore on The Ed Sullivan Show, which Elvis would wear frequently, bought at Lansky’s, became legendary, as did the red jacket he wore in the promotional photos for “Jailhouse Rock” and those used in “Spedway.”
Another curious anecdote, very typical of Elvis’s personality, is that Elvis owned an exclusive and beautiful three-wheeled Messerschmitt automobile. A very original and exclusive vehicle. One day, in mid-August 1957, Elvis went to show Bernard Lansky his new car. Bernard loved it and told him that if he ever didn’t want it anymore, he would very much like to have it. Elvis then came up with the idea: if he let him choose all the clothes he wanted from the store, he would trade them for the car! Bernard gladly accepted the deal. Apparently, Elvis stayed there for two and a half hours and took everything he liked from the store!
And Bernard was delighted with his new car.
“He always called me Mr. Lansky,” Bernard said in interviews. “I’d say, ‘Call me Bernard! ’” But Elvis would always say, “Thank you, Mr. Lansky.” Elvis was always a gentleman, with exquisite manners. Someone very special in every way.
To this day, you can still walk through the lobby of the grand Peabody Hotel in Memphis to the ornate glass doors of Lansky Bros. They continue to display and sell the world’s finest fashions, along with guitars signed by artists such as Jimmy Dean, Johnny Cash, and Elvis himself. But Bernard Lansky is no longer behind the counter. The tailor died on November 15, 2012, at his home in Memphis, a victim of Alzheimer’s at the age of 85.
Lansky continued working after his retirement. “Why would I retire? What am I going to do?” he said in 2004. “I get here every morning at 6 o’clock, seven days a week.”
Lansky would dress Elvis for his entire life. Elvis’s clothing tastes changed over the years, but his loyalty to Lansky remained. He never forgot the support, affection, and role Lansky played in his success. When he stopped by the store, he would shop for himself and often pay other shoppers’ bills as well. Elvis was so popular that the store allowed him to go after hours, and they would send his shopping orders to Graceland.
When Elvis left us in 1977, it was Lansky who dressed him for his final rest. “It was very difficult, but I had a job to do. I laid him in his bed after he was gone forever. He wore a white suit, white shirt, and blue tie. I wanted him to look beautiful… like always.”
“I put Elvis in his first suit and I put him in his last suit,” Lansky recalls.
Article written and provided by Rosa García Mora. https://www.facebook.com/rosa.garciamora.12
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