Beatle boot

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not to be confused with The Beatles bootleg recordings.

A pair of Beatle boot replicas

A Beatle boot is a style of boot that has been worn since the 1960s—made popular by the English rock group the Beatles, for whom they were originally made. The boots are a variant of the Chelsea boot: they are tight-fitting, Cuban-heeled, ankle-high boots with a sharp pointed toe. The style can feature either elastic or zipped sides.[1]

Beatle boots saw the reintroduction of high-heeled footwear for men.[2]

History[]

The Beatles, seen here in 1963

Beatle boots are a direct descendant of the Chelsea boot, but have an even more pointed toe and a centre seam stitch running from ankle to toe, and the flamenco boot, from which its Cuban heel was derived.[3] Beatle boots originated in October 1961, when English musicians John Lennon, George Harrison and Paul McCartney saw Chelsea boots whilst in Hamburg, being worn by a London band, and then went to the London footwear company Anello & Davide to commission four pairs (with the addition of Cuban heels) for the Beatles, to complement their new suit image upon their return from Hamburg.[4]

Beatle boots were very popular with rock bands and artists during the middle 1960s but started to decline during the 1970s. The boots saw a surge of popularity during the punk movement in the late 1970s and early 1980s but again started to decline throughout the 1990s.[citation needed] During the late 2000s and early 2010s the boots have seen a steady surge in popularity.[5]

Notable wearers[]

Non-fictional[]

  • The Beatles[3]
  • Carl Barât[6]
  • Michael Jackson
  • The Dave Clark Five
  • The Monkees
  • Elvis Presley
  • James Brown
  • Roy Orbison
  • Jimi Hendrix
  • Alice Cooper
  • Claude François
  • Neil Tennant
  • The Doors
  • MC5
  • The Kinks
  • The Zombies
  • The Sonics
  • The Yardbirds
  • The Byrds
  • The Beach Boys
  • Steve Lukather
  • Ryan Ross
  • Daedalus Howell
  • Iggy Pop
  • The Kills
  • Russell Brand
  • Bob Dylan[7]
  • The Gruesomes[8]
  • The Rolling Stones[9]
  • Alex Turner[10]
  • Richey Edwards
  • Andy Warhol[11]
  • Kanye West[12]

Fictional[]

  • Riff Raff from The Rocky Horror Picture Show[13]
  • Austin Powers, from the Austin Powers series[14]
  • Ned Flanders, from The Simpsons[15]
  • Sid from Hey Arnold![16]
  • Starfleet officers in Star Trek: The Original Series[17]
  • Eddie Dean from Stephen King's The Dark Tower series

References[]

  1. ^ Bassett McCleary, John (2004). Hippie Dictionary: A Cultural Encyclopedia of the 1960s and 1970s. Ten Speed Press. p. 44. ISBN 1-58008-547-4.
  2. ^ Kippen, Cameron. "Beatle Boots". The History of Boots. Department of Podiatry. Archived from the original on 10 October 2007. Retrieved 2007-10-11. The Beatle Boot saw the reintroduction of heels for men.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b "The Beatle Boot". Bespoke Shoes. Anello & Davide. Archived from the original on 23 October 2007. Retrieved 2007-10-11. The traditional Chelsea Boot was adapted for the Beatles by Anello & Davide in the early 1960s with the addition of a higher Cuban heel from the Flamenco Boot.
  4. ^ Bramwell, Tony (2004). Magical Mystery Tours: My Life with the Beatles. Robson. p. 34. ISBN 0-312-33043-X.
  5. ^ "The Retro Look: Beatle Boots and Cuban Heels". Blog Guido Maggi. 2015-11-06. Retrieved 2021-02-09.
  6. ^ Lawrence, Helen (2005-04-18). "Carl Barât". Popstar Feets. Archived from the original on 2008-09-07. Retrieved 2007-10-11.
  7. ^ "Bob dylan". The Independent. 2007-04-17. p. 2. Retrieved 2008-02-03.[dead link]
  8. ^ Lejtenyi, Patrick (June 2000). "Back from the Grave". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on 2012-10-17. Retrieved 2007-12-29. ...and the Beatle boots...
  9. ^ Bone, Martyn (2002). "The Rolling Stones". St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
  10. ^ Turner, Adam (2019-01-28). "11 Best Chelsea boots for men 2019". Standard Evening. Retrieved 2021-02-10.
  11. ^ "Warhol's foot fetish". Brisbane Times. The Daily Telegraph. 2007-11-19. p. 2. Retrieved 2007-12-29.
  12. ^ Watamanuk, Tyler. "The Future of the Chelsea Boot Has Arrived". GQ. Retrieved 2021-02-10.
  13. ^ "Riff Raff: Costume List".
  14. ^ Myers, Mike (1996-07-17). "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery script". We start on a pair of BEATLE BOOTS...
  15. ^ ""Treehouse of Horror X"". I've resisted these for thirty-five years. Why did I wear them today?
  16. ^ Alexander, Philip (November 8, 2017). "20 Dark Secrets About Hey Arnold You Really Don't Want To Know". The Gamer. #11 - 'Down And Out', One night Sid is ambushed by the same assailants, who end up stealing his beloved beatle boots.
  17. ^ "Costuming TOS Boots". The Trek BBS. February 17, 2014.

External links[]

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