Beemer memory 21: Pillow (She-Beast) & The Hungry i

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Today, April 17, is the birthday of Pillow (aka She-Beast). Commemorating her birthday brings back all the marvelous memories I have from when I danced and performed with her in the "Love Act" at The hungry i nightclub during my early biker years. 

The Hungry i

photographer unknown

I had several partners with whom I danced over the course of my nightclub career but it was Pillow who was THE one that, as a team, we propelled the act into high gear.       

with Dana

photo by Pillow

Pillow with Fawn 1977

photographer unknown

Pillow (right) in Alaska - 1980's 

photographer unknown

The Pillow "Space act" - 1980's

photographer unknown

The Pillow Star Trek years - 1980's

 photographer unknown

Pillow as She-Beast

photographer unknown

After we ended our night club act due to my back injury, Pillow went on to become a bodybuilding champion (link below).       

She was among the first muscular female bodybuilders and won the 1983 Gold's Classic as a heavyweight, beating lightweight winner Lori Okami, middleweight Alison Brundage and other weight class entrants, Reggie Bennett and Sue Ann McKean. She is sometimes confused with a later and less notable female bodybuilder who used the same name.      

Pillow - 1983

Gold's Classic competition 

photographer unknown

A long time ago, the world famous body builder, Arnold Schwarzenegger once said, “The worst thing I can be is the same as everybody else.”  
                        
Although she is not credited, she had a small role in the 1986 film, Echo Park, directed by Robert Dornhelm starring  Susan Dey and Tom Hulce, star of the film version of the Peter Shaffer play, Amadeus, directed by Miloš Forman.       

Pillow is still a performance artist; she is very much in demand as a popular drag king. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, several drag kings became British music hall stars, and British pantomime has preserved the tradition of women performing in male roles. Starting in the mid-1990s, drag kings started to gain some of the fame and attention that drag queens have known.

Pillow as drag king, Hughes - 2017 

photographer unknown

While the term drag king was first cited in print in 1972, there is a longer history of female performers dressing in male attire. In theatre and opera there was a tradition of breeches roles and en travesti.      

Viewfinder link:       

      

Pillow (She-Beast) articles/mentions   

       

Net links:       

      

Revolvy ~ Pillow (bodybuilder) bio           
Star Advertiser ~ Lori Okami: What Happened to Women’s Bodybuilding? 
   

YouTube links:       

      

Pillow ~ The She-Beast       
            ~ Return to the Stage     
            ~ Tribute         
            ~ Original Bump & Grindstone Promo  
            ~ Pillow Breaks  
            ~ Kay Baxter versus Pillow  
            ~ Just a Job   
            ~ Women’s bodybuilding: The best of the 80’s   
            

        

Happy birthday, Pillow!

         
       
       
               

Styrous® ~ Tuesday, April 17, 2018       

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Beemer Memories
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Beemer Memory 19: A-2 leather flight jacket "Made in the USA"

black A-2 bomber jacket front

photo by Styrous®

       

One of my favorite bike-riding jackets was this BLACK leather A-2 flight bomber jacket. The jacket is unusual as bomber jackets were always brown; I do have a brown one.    

      

    

        

black A-2 bomber jacket back

photo by Styrous®

The Type A-2 leather flight jacket is an American military flight jacket originally invented and developed for and closely associated with World War II U.S. Army Air Forces pilots, navigators and bombardiers, who often decorated their jackets with squadron patches and elaborate artwork painted on the back. Sometimes casually referred to as a bomber jacket, its original designation was "Jacket, Pilot's (summer)", and its wartime usage was limited neither to pilots nor to bomber crews.    

A-2 leather flight jacket ad  

The Type A-2 flying jacket was standardized by the U.S. Army Air Corps as the successor to the Type A-1 flying jacket adopted in 1927. The Type Designation Sheet lists the dates for Service Test as September 20, 1930, and Standardized (adopted as standard issue) on May 9, 1931. The military specification number for Type A-2 is 94-3040. The Drawing Number was given as 30-1415 in the original spec 94-3040 and is shown on A-2 jackets, but some documentation erroneously lists it as 31-1415.        

B-17 Flying Fortress Crew from 457th BG - 1943

wearing leather A-2 jackets

 

black A-2 bomber jacket back

photo by Styrous®

The U.S. Army Air Forces Class 13 Catalog listed the garment as "Jacket, Flying, Type A-2," with Spec. No. 94-3040. It describes the jacket's construction as "seal brown horsehide leather, knitted wristlets and waistband (skirt)."        

black A-2 bomber jacket front

photo by Styrous®

Although the actual design would vary slightly depending on the manufacturer, and even among contracts within a single manufacturer, all A-2 jackets had several distinguishing characteristics: a snap-flap patch pocket on either side that does not have hand warmer compartments (hands in pockets were considered unfit for a military bearing), a shirt-style snap-down collar, shoulder straps (or Epaulets), knit cuffs and waistband, a back constructed from a single piece of leather to limit stress on the garment, and a lightweight silk or cotton inner lining with a leather hang strap (not a loop) and military spec tag attached just below the back collar. A-2's were lined with cotton per the original specification. A common misconception is that they were lined with silk.           

black A-2 bomber jacket interior lining

photo by Styrous®

A-2s were to be constructed of horsehide, which was either vegetable- or chrome-tanned. Some original A-2's were made from goatskin (as was the Navy G-1 jacket) and others from cowhide (which can be very difficult to tell from horse if tanned identically). All Spiewak and Doniger jackets are of goat, as are many Cable, Dubow, Bronco, Perry, and Rough Wear examples.        

black A-2 bomber jacket cuff detail

detail photo by Styrous®

Wartime-issued A-2 jackets appear in a wide range of color tones and hues, although all are based on two distinct colors: Seal (dark brown to almost black) and Russet (pale red-brown to medium brown). Most seal jackets were russets re-dyed during the war to cover scuffing and discoloration, although some contracts, like the Aero Leather 21996, were dyed seal right from the start. Original knit cuffing typically matched the leather or came close, but exceptions exist, such as Aero Leather's eye-catching rust-red cuffing on seal brown hide.        

black A-2 bomber jacket front detail

detail photo by Styrous®

The A-2 was one of the early articles of clothing designed expressly to use a zipper. Zippers were made of steel or brass, and some were nickel plated. Known zipper suppliers were Talon, Crown, Conmar, and Kwik, with Talon providing the majority of zippers used in wartime A-2 construction. Until about 1940, Talon zippers with riveted or grommeted metal bottoms were used.         

black A-2 bomber jacket front detail

detail photo by Styrous®

Unlike modern, loose-fitting jackets, the original A-2 looks to us today a rather trim-fitting jacket. Period photos and films reveal a jacket which could be worn fitted and sharp looking or a bit baggy and loose in the body. It was designed to fit the thinner male of the time.                 

black A-2 bomber jacket cuff detail

detail photo by Styrous®

Original wartime issued A-2 jackets are rare but not unavailable. Tens of thousands were issued from 1931 through 1944 (the vast majority in 1942-43), and some old stock jackets may have been issued even into the late 1940s long after Type A-2 was discontinued as standard AAF equipment. The value of such originals range widely depending on condition, known history, patches and artwork, and even size. Most originals used a sizing system considerably smaller than today's comparable sizes, with only 2-4 inches (100 mm) of "slack" over the tagged chest size. In other words, an original size 42 might be closer to a modern 40 or even a 38, depending on the manufacturer. Original World War II era jackets sell at auction for between $800 and $5,000, with wearable examples generally running $1,000 and up.              

Bud Tordoff & ground crew 

in front of his P-51, Upupa epops - 1944 - 45

   

The A-2 bomber jacket in the movies & on TV 

A-2 jackets can be seen in many movies, as they came to represent the American fighting man. Seeing legendary actors such as Gregory Peck and John Wayne on the big screen wearing A-2's only reinforced their popularity.

Gregory Peck Twelve O'Clock High - 1949 

By the 1950s the A-2 was moving into the role of the motorcycle jacket, which would soon evolve into its own distinct style. The jacket worn by Henry Winkler in the role of "Fonzie" in the TV show Happy Days was a variation of the A-2 jacket.  

Henry Winkler as "Fonzie"

In the 1960s and 1970s the A-2 reappeared in a new crop of big budget World War II films such as The Great Escape and Patton, as well as being the wardrobe of choice for Bob Crane's character of Colonel Hogan in the popular TV series Hogan's Heroes. This same jacket, manufactured by the studio's costume department, would later be worn by Frank Sinatra in the film Von Ryan's Express. Dwight Schultz' character H. M. Murdock on 1980s TV show The A-Team wore an A-2 Jacket with a tiger printed on the back along with the words 'DA NANG 1970'. His character wore the jacket throughout the show's 5 seasons. Also, in the anime Hetalia: Axis Powers, the character America is most always seen wearing an A-2 jacket with the number '50' on the back in white. Arnold Schwarzenegger also appeared wearing the A-2 with a police badge in his new 2013 movie The Last Stand.

Arnold Schwarzenegger  ~ The Last Stand - 2013

I don't know the brand of the jacket I have but the label inside clearly states it was, "Made in USA" 

"Made in USA" 

photo by Styrous®

      
      
     

The A-2 bomber jacket is warm, cozy and for sale on eBay.  

       
       
Viewfinder links:      
      
Beemer Memories          
Gregory Peck articles/mentions      
John Wayne article/mentions      
       
      
      
New links:      
      
       
      
      
       
      
      
      
      
     

Flying is learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss!
                           ~ Douglas Adams

       
      
            
Styrous® ~ Saturday, January 6, 2018