Just want to buy a pair of Converse right now? Converse.
Unbelievable, Converse celebrated its centennial in 2008! With the iconic sneakers starring in numerous movies, seen on musicians on the stage and in music videos, on actors during their downtime and relaxing, and acting the stylish rebel since the 1950s, it is a shoe that has defined so many.
Musician Avril Lavigne in her classic black Chucks
Known since 1917 as Converse All-Stars, Chuck Taylors, Chuck All-Stars, Chucks, or just Cons, they’ve segued so smoothly from the basketball court where they were only available in black or white canvas, to the fashion field where they come in all colors, patterns, and fabrics that it’s impossible to tell when they stopped being athletic footwear and became fashion must-haves in their own right. It started when basketball player Chuck Taylor made himself the sneaker’s top salesman after proposing a few changes like its non-slip sole, the high-tops got his signature on the classic star patch and the All-Star name to go with it.
The 1950s saw popularity with the greasers and rockabillies; the biggest promoter at the time was certainly James Dean. When customers wanted more colors, especially to match their basketball team outfits, colored and patterned shoelaces were developed first, then more varied colors, low-tops and knee-high designs were introduced after 1966. Materials other than canvas were used, with leather, suede, denim, vinyl, and hemp found in the new shoes. There were also elasticized versions of the shoe, all co-designed by Chuck Taylor before his demise in 1969.
Actress Emma Watson in her floral-patterned high-cut Chucks on the red carpet.
Converse still stuck to its rebel vibe, with the punk group the Ramones and the Sex Pistols sporting the shoes on and off stage, to the band Nirvana showing off the shoes in the 90s and U2 still wearing the All-Stars up to today.
Normally, Michael DiTullo, design director at Converse (also known as Yo), oversees the designs at the company and even has a Core77 video featuring him putting down a design from scratch in less than five minutes. But many artists have tried their hand at designing the sneakers for limited editions. 2004 saw a collaboration between John Varvatos and Converse, reinterpreting the classic laceless Chuck Taylors and the Jack Purcell sneakers. The rubberized parts of the shoe lend itself well to personalization, with mostly teen girls writing or drawing on them over the past few decades. Wearing mismatched shoes (popularized by TV’s Punky Brewster in the 1980s) or mismatching the laces is equally as popular with the teen/rock scene. Converse realized the desire of the sneaker owners to be original so now you can personalize your shoes as you wish on the internet when you order them online.
Zachary Levi as Chuck Bartowski in his Chucks
The TV scene has many ‘spots’ popularizing Chucks with the most famous being “Lassie” in the 1950s. Most recently, Zachary Levi, or Chuck, as his TV character is better known, wears a whole collection of Converse All-Stars. The widely popular Dr. House, played by actor Hugh Laurie, has also worn Black Chucks on more than a few episodes. Science’s cool geek Jamie Hyneman of Discovery Channel’s Mythbusters normally sports a pair of red All Stars. The tween-set’s iCarly characters on Nickelodeon has them in many colors and patterns, too. And don’t forget, Ellen DeGeneres does all her dancing on her show and on the red carpet in Converse.
Seen in movies from The West Side Story where the gangs are identified by the color of their All-Stars, Rocky (where Rocky Balboa’s Cons are now set in bronze on the famous “Rocky Steps” at the Philadelphia Museum of Art where he did his run), John Travolta in
Daniel Radcliffe in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in low-cut Chucks
Grease, Will Smith in I Robot, Daniel Radcliffe in the fight scenes of Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix, Frankie Munz in Agent Cody Banks, and even Jacky Chan in some of his Hong Kong movies, Converse shows its appeal for all ages and genres.
On the web, there are several sites dedicated to the iconic sneaker that offer trivia, history, pictures of celebrities and ads that show Chucks, and also sell the shoe itself, with all the related paraphernalia like t-shirts, hats, hooded sweatshirts, shorts, socks, and flat, original (tubular), extra-long, and patterned shoelaces.
Converse supports charities like the Global Fund to fight AIDS, by partnering with PRODUCT(Red), a Foundation Fundraiser in 2009, where special products were designed and sold to provide funds for research to prevent AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria.
CLOT's (PRODUCT)Red Jack Purcells
2009 saw a collaboration with Kevin Poon of CLOT (Asia) releasing a red and black leather/nubuck high-cut sneakers sold as the Converse (PRODUCT)Red. An American designed Converse (PRODUCT)Red low-cut sneaker is affiliated with hip-hop artist Lupe Fiasco with a clean patent leather upper hit with bits of red. An early 2009 Converse (PRODUCT)Red shoe saw Vancouver based designer Jeff Hamada drawing up a cool hand design pattern on the low cut sneaker. Another redesign of the (PRODUCT)Red Converse Jack Purcells hit the market in 2009 by Ian Ginoza with a simple all-white upper embellished with a texturized and waterproof Epi leather upper and red highlights used throughout the sneaker.
With Michael Spillane now the CEO of Converse, and with the high- and low-cut shoes made available in all sizes from adult to infants, Converse looks like it’s going to keep its status of iconic American classic.
After going bankrupt in 2000 because of loss of market shares to Nike and other athletic shoe brands, the company changed its focus and marketed Chuck Taylors as “leisure shoes.” The company was purchased by the Footwear Acquisition Company in 2001, then became a subsidiary of Nike in 2003 and is now being made in China, Indonesia, and Vietnam.
Converse can be purchased at Target, Payless, and online at www.converse.com and www.ClassicSportsShoes.com.
Purchase your own pair of Converse right now!
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