Green Onions…This is a story about my one dance suit. Not just any suit. A custom-tailored, gold-colored, sharkskin, Nehru-style that changed colors under light! Fashionable, 1964 Okinawa, I was an 18 year old Marine Pfc, making a lousy $120.00 a month.
Paid on the 1st day of the month, my usual custom was to shower, get in my summer khakis. Anyone under Sgt. E-5 wore a uniform on Cinderella Liberty. Back inside the fence by midnight this was mandatory. I would first stop at the E-M Club and get a buzz on, at 10 cents a glass of beer this usually didn't take long. Then I would hit the Ville and the $2.00 “SKIVY HOUSE” and hope I wouldn't cop a “case” (CLAP) from the 'shortime' Naisanh
(Okinawan girl). I would stop for a drink at one of the hundreds of bars to watch the strip show- these were expensive drinks, a buck and up. Head back to the E-M Club for more 10 cent beers.
On payday, a suit salesman would be waiting in your cube. Marines shower daily at 1600- 4 pm for you civilians-either to go on liberty, or just to clean up, stinky Marines are not tolerated. With four people living, sleeping on bunk beds in a 12 x 14 cubicle, in such a small space a staggered system was worked out. Two of the four cube occupants showered while the other two went to the mess hall, or whatever.
Anyhoo, these suit salesmen would somehow get in and be waiting in your cube. You buy custom made Hong Kong Suit made just for you. We do tailoring, any color, any price. A marine just back from the shower in flip flops and wrapped in a towel is gonna feel vulnerable unless he has figured out Asian men will not look at another man who is naked. So the fastest way to get rid of “Hong Kong Suit Seller” is to unwrap your towel, and dry your nuts. IF ASIAN Suit Seller is still standing there, take towel and dry your ass. Guaranteed he will be gone.
Anyhoo, before I learned this trick, I had purchased myself a Hong Kong Gold-colored Beatles-style
custom-tailored Sharkskin Suit for $65. At the time it was the latest fashion, buttoned up Nehru style. It changed colors at night. My black cube mate loved it! I heard a lot of “Hey man, that suit is gonna get you a lot of
Kitty-Kitty!”
I mean what da fuk do Marines know about fashion? Other than green or camoflage decorated in blood!
With no place to wear my Gold Colored Sharkskin tailored Suit, carefully I wrapped and sent it home to the farm in Watertown, Minnesota. Them cows will be impressed if I don't scare them to death!
1969. Discharged from the Marines and the VA Hospital, I sat around my parents farm in Watertown, usually drank a lot of beer. My best friend that I grew up with had also just come home from Vietnam, so what we did was sit around after parking our toys out in the yard.
Gazing at my new Harley Sportster, he would polish his Ford convertible,and we drank a lot of beer. Well one day my Ma thought she would find something for us to do, so she asked my twin sister Cordy and her boyfriend to take us to this spring dance. Cordy asked if I had any “nice clothes” other than boots, jeans and tee shirt to wear to this “dress up” spring dance. Do I ever, I said, see you tonight.
In the old closet there it hung, that beautiful gold-colored Nehru-styled tailored Sharkskin Suit. It still turned colors in the dark. Anyhoo them 30 x 32 trousers seemed a little tight, but I could still “Cut a Rug” (that's dance dummy!). Along with the new chrome tipped black cowboy boots, I found my old tube of “a little dab will do ya” Brylcreem, greased my D A just right, two curls in the front, Looking Good! That Gold Suit fit me like a
“pickpocket”.
Not being ready when my twin and her boyfriend showed up in that 69 GTX, I hollered downstairs, I'll meet you there. Dressed and ready to go, I walked through the kitchen where my Dad and Ma sat smoking. My Madre took one look at me and uttered “My God you look like Liberace!!” Laughing till tears ran from her eyes, I said you like it? She waved her hand and began that killer smokers cough that would eventually kill her.
See ya later, I said. I can see you're impressed beyond words, I knew you would like it.
Getting to the dance, I parked my red convertible Mustang and entered the dance hall. All eyes were on me.
My twin Cordy came up to me and said “Raymond, where did you get that suit? It went out of style 4 or 5 years ago. You haven't been around, styles change, the Nehru-style jacket is gone, why don't you take the jacket off?People are beginning to laugh.”
“Fuck em,” I said, “Just fuck all of them!!!”
This was the bunch that now dressed like I always did! Boots, jeans, tee-shirt, leather jacket. Fuck em all! If you ever saw a well dressed homeless guy in a gold suit that changed colors under the lights, I gave the suit to the Salvation Army in 1975. My son Joe's 68 Caprice was the same color as my Custom tailored Gold Sharkskin suit!FFO!!! Rat, a Fashion Icon!...
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