Day Tripping: June 3

Suits, Stunts, and Standoffs

Clothing Wars

Baggy pants and jackets, loose dangling chains, and funny hats are not new phenomena of the ‘hip hop’ era. In 1943, violence spilled into the streets of Los Angeles when 60 men from the local Armory of the Naval Reserve started seeking out anyone they thought to be Hispanic and proceeded to beat them up. The Zoot Suit Riots were called such because of the preferred fashion of African American and Mexican American men of the time.

The polarization of the Zoot Suit stemmed from the dance halls of America’s cities where men felt freer to move in the loose-fitting clothing. With World War II patriotism reaching its ebb, and a growing belief that these men were somehow degenerate because of their clothes, a group of all-white servicemen took to the streets brandishing clubs and other weapons. The racially charged fighting continued for nearly a week, culminating in the city of LA putting a ban on Zoot Suits.

The Artist And The Shootist

Valerie Solanas was a radical activist in the 1960s who penned the SCUM Manifesto, an ultra-feminist treatise that implored women to do away with men. SCUM, which stands for Society for Cutting Up Men, was one of many questionable writings by Solanas, including a play she wrote for artist Andy Warhol called Up Your Ass.

After Warhol declined to produce the play and eventually misplaced the manuscript, Valerie became paranoid that he would steal her work. In 1968 on this day, Solanas entered Warhol’s office at Union Square in New York and shot him three times. Andy survived his wounds and Valerie was sentenced to three years for reckless assault, having been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.

Word Change

British rock band The Kinks were forced to interrupt their US tour in 1970 so that lead singer Ray Davies can fly from New York to London and back again. The reason for the sudden quick flight is that the BBC refuses to play the band’s new single, Lola, and not because of the song’s story which refers to a transsexual. The BBC, which is a virtual broadcasting monopoly in the UK, won’t play the line that references Coca-Cola, citing their policy against the use of brand names.

So, Ray hops on a jet to London only to record himself singing “Where you drink champagne and it tastes just like cherry-cola.” But, two weeks later because he’s not happy with the dub, Davies does it again, flying across the Atlantic to re-record the lyric. Lola eventually became a hit on British radio, but the subject of being someone who “walks like a woman and talks like a man”, still gets the song banned in Australia and parts of the United States.

Musical Milestones

While campaigning for the Presidency in 1992, Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton plays Elvis Presley’s Heartbreak Hotel on the saxophone to a live audience on television.

Narratives

After abdicating the throne of England to his younger brother, King George VI, Edward VIII, now the Duke of Windsor married American actress Wallace Simpson in 1937.

Remembrance

Perhaps the most recognizable name of the twentieth century is that of The Greatest, Muhammad Ali. Much more than a World Champion boxer, Ali was a champion for civil rights, the underprivileged, the anti-war movement, and in the end, he fought valiantly through his greatest battle, Parkinson’s disease. Muhammad Ali passed away in 2016 at age 74.

Notable Births

1925 — One of the most popular actors of the mid-20th century, Tony Curtis played Harry Houdini and a woman in Some Like It Hot

1939 — Lead singer and guitar player for Mott the Hoople, Ian Hunter

1967 — Journalist and television host Anderson Cooper

K. Barrett Katie Wallace Maria Rattray Maryam Merchant Dr Mehmet Yildiz Tree Langdon Myriam Ben Salem Phil Truman Chelsea Mandler MAT Terry Mansfield Hollie Petit, PhD. Terry Trueman Dr Preeti Singh John Gruber Bill Abbate James G Brennan ScienceDuuude Marcus Liam Ireland Claire Kelly Noorain Hassan, BMS Amy Pierovich David Acaster Nora Thewriteyard David Perlmutter Joe Luca

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