Greasers – 1950’s

Background Greasers were a working class youth subculture that originated in the 1950s among teenagers in north-eastern and southern United States. Rock and roll music was a major part of the culture, and styles were influenced by singers like Eddie Cochran, Gene Vincent, Johnny Burnette, Vince Taylor and Ritchie Valens, but the two main figures of the look were Marlon Brando and James Dean. In the 1950s, 1960s, these youths were also known as "hoods". This may be due to the fact that the style was more popular in poor neighbourhoods that had higher crime rates than upper-class neighbourhoods.

The name "greaser" came from their greased-back hairstyle, which involved combing back hair using hair wax, hair gel, creams.

Fashion – Men Clothing usually worn by greasers included fitted T-shirts in white or black (often with the sleeves rolled up), ringer T-shirts, Italian knit shirts, Baseball shirts, bowling shirts, "Daddy-O"-style shirts, denim jackets, leather jackets, black or blue jeans (with rolled-up cuffs anywhere from one to four inches), baggy cotton twill work trousers, black leather pants or vests, bomber jackets, letterman jackets, tank tops, khaki pants and suits. Common accessories included bandannas, black leather gloves, fedoras, motorcycle helmets, vintage leather caps, stingy-brim hats, flat caps and chain wallets.

The leather jacket, as popularized by pilots during World War II, became an icon of greaser culture.

Fashion – Women Women’s style was the same but also different when compared to the men. Although the participant of women in this sub-culture wasn’t as big as the men it still made a huge contribution to the culture altogether.

Women tended to wear the famous black leather jacket, bandana in the neck, red lipstick, past the knee tight pencil skirts, high heels.

Hairstyle varied with different styles but all consisted of hair being curled.

Representation in the media The birth of the motorcycle outlaw emerged from the 1947 Hollister Riot. In July 1947, 4,000 motorcyclists gathered in Hollister, California to watch motorcycle races for the weekend. The partying became unruly and several motorcyclists were arrested. Exaggerated media reports of those riots gave birth to the motorcycle outlaw image. These were the first public depictions of a connection between motorcyclists and criminal behaviour.

Greasers were usually portrayed as urban working class, often Italian American or Hispanic American.

1950’s British rebels were known as the teddy boys and girls. Some Teds formed gangs and often gained notoriety following violent clashes with rival gangs which were often exaggerated by the popular press.

The Greasers enjoyed each other's company and always kept together in their gangs and loved to go to watch movies at the drive in’s.

When people saw them they automatically thought of them as troublemakers because the sub-culture represented a sort or rebellion which presented through their sense of style.