The Kid's Clothes in Purple Rain???

Okay, so in Purple Rain The Kid is supposed to be this hungry, struggling musician but somehow he has this KILLER warbrobe of couture, tailor-made clothing?

And don't get me started on his purple motorcycle!

In the mid-80s, a rotational band at a decent-sized venue like First Ave., even if they were playing 5 nights a week, would only be netting around $300 a show TOPS. At the high end that would be around $1500 a week, or $6000 a month. Alright, The Kid is the bandleader so he probably gets 50% with the rest of The Revolution splitting the rest. So wer'e looking at $3000 a month in net revenue 1984 dollars.

So he's got of pay some taxes (even assuming that Billy pays the band 'under the table')...let's say The Kid's real taxable bracket allows him to bring home ~$2500 a month. We never see The Kid doing any additional/side gigs like working retail, babysitting, doing construction so let's assume that Billy's wads of greasy bills are his sole source of income...

Side Note: I bet Wendy, though, is an elementary school teacher on the side and Lisa teaches music lessons... Dr. Fink is an actual doctor - a dentist and Brown Mark is a part-time EMT driver. David Z sponsors Dungeons & Dragon tournaments in the Greater Minneapolis/St. Paul Area.

Now The Kid lives at home so that definately saves some $. But he still needs to pay the note on his bike, buy food and stuff like Doritos, his mascara budget, buy gas, etc.

What else do we know? Well, we know he doesn't have a lot of scratch cause he wants to buy the White Cloud Guitar he covets on the store window with Appolonia nia but doesn't have the money. The Kid is poor in money buy rich in personality, right?

Let's say - conservatively - that The Kid has around $1000 a month of disposable income.

How does he get his clothes???

His outfits are WORKS OF SARTORIAL ART, people. He's not buying them at Chess King!

The French lace and ruffles alone...

How is a young black man in the middle of Minnesota Circa 1984-85 going to find affordbale tailers and designers to make him his Spaceman Edwardian Outfits?

And how does he ask for clothes. "Make me look like a Perfumed Courtesian Dandy," he'd mutter in a soft, deep voice to his haberdashers. "That's The Look that's going to take get me out of Billy's Iron Grip..."???

This just strecthes credulity to the breaking point, folks.

I'm just not buying it...

[Edited 7/27/18 12:07pm]

I have a deja vu man! It's not only this title it's everything. I feel like that the whole thread existed before exactly the way it is here now.

[Edited 7/27/18 12:20pm]

With a son who dresses like The Kid, I can see why his father was so hostile.

"BOY, PUT SOME DRAWERS UNDER THEM TIGHT ASS PANTS!!!! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR SH*T ABOUT PANTY LINES!!!!"

blacknote said:

With a son who dresses like The Kid, I can see why his father was so hostile.

"BOY, PUT SOME DRAWERS UNDER THEM TIGHT ASS PANTS!!!! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR SH*T ABOUT PANTY LINES!!!!"

I think the clothes in Purple Rain were the coolest he ever had! I like that black Jacket the most.

IT IS CALLED CINEMATIC FANTASY AND SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF> Just roll with it.

Yeah, I wondered about that back in the 80s... Maybe he could afford them because he lived in his parents' basement.

It's the Boheme lifestyle - you're a starving artist but you use the means you have to always dress dandy.

(just a theory)

ThatWhiteDude said:

blacknote said:

With a son who dresses like The Kid, I can see why his father was so hostile.

"BOY, PUT SOME DRAWERS UNDER THEM TIGHT ASS PANTS!!!! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR SH*T ABOUT PANTY LINES!!!!"

I think the clothes in Purple Rain were the coolest he ever had! I like that black Jacket the most.

The one in the When Doves Cry sequence? Absolutely bangin' jacket.

blacknote said:

ThatWhiteDude said:

I think the clothes in Purple Rain were the coolest he ever had! I like that black Jacket the most.

The one in the When Doves Cry sequence? Absolutely bangin' jacket.

Yes, that jacket

Look, the whole movie is just that. If anything, the music scenes were of such a fantastic set up that they obviously were not in some small ass club. And yeah, all the bands were dressed in some real high end type clothing. Myabe in the flick thats what they spent their money on who kows. It sure wasn't drugs because they didnt get down with that, they spent their time rehearisng like good kids. And even if he made no money, for him to be living with his parents?..hahaha thats ridiculous. But the whole vibe of the story was that they were supposed to be kids, just out of their teens instead of these grown ass adults they actually were. AND PROPS TO CHESS KING!! That was my store, along with Merry Go Round and Harris' lol

Before Prince was having his clothes tailored, he was shopping at the local thrift shops. To be honest, it wasn't that difficult or expensive to be dressing the manner in which he dressed during the 80s because, again, a lot of what he was wearing during the early tours, 80 - 81, were thrift and Salvation Army type stores. I don't know when he had the first trenchcoat designed, but most what he was wearing before the 1999 Tour could be found in almost any city at almost any second-hand type store. Hell, I had a couple of those tuxedo shirts myself with the vest, and I was purchasing that stuff with my lawn cutting money. Of course, I was spending my school lunch money on books and records. When my grandmother realized that I was doing this and not getting home until 6:00 or 7:00 p.m. because I was an athlete, she complained to my mother, "How you gon' let that baby be at school all day hungry and then go play some sport still hungry." My mother responded, "Well, he better go see what Purple Rain tastes like because that's what he spent his lunch money on."

maybe, i never had a problem with it. it's obvious though, stuff that is that well fitting doesn't come off a rack. also, in watching a MJ feature, the actor playing him had some oddly fitting close that just screamed low budget.

soladeo1 said:

The Kid's Clothes in Purple Rain???

Okay, so in Purple Rain The Kid is supposed to be this hungry, struggling musician but somehow he has this KILLER warbrobe of couture, tailor-made clothing?

And don't get me started on his purple motorcycle!

In the mid-80s, a rotational band at a decent-sized venue like First Ave., even if they were playing 5 nights a week, would only be netting around $300 a show TOPS. At the high end that would be around $1500 a week, or $6000 a month. Alright, The Kid is the bandleader so he probably gets 50% with the rest of The Revolution splitting the rest. So wer'e looking at $3000 a month in net revenue 1984 dollars.

So he's got of pay some taxes (even assuming that Billy pays the band 'under the table')...let's say The Kid's real taxable bracket allows him to bring home ~$2500 a month. We never see The Kid doing any additional/side gigs like working retail, babysitting, doing construction so let's assume that Billy's wads of greasy bills are his sole source of income...

Side Note: I bet Wendy, though, is an elementary school teacher on the side and Lisa teaches music lessons... Dr. Fink is an actual doctor - a dentist and Brown Mark is a part-time EMT driver. David Z sponsors Dungeons & Dragon tournaments in the Greater Minneapolis/St. Paul Area.

Now The Kid lives at home so that definately saves some $. But he still needs to pay the note on his bike, buy food and stuff like Doritos, his mascara budget, buy gas, etc.

What else do we know? Well, we know he doesn't have a lot of scratch cause he wants to buy the White Cloud Guitar he covets on the store window with Appolonia nia but doesn't have the money. The Kid is poor in money buy rich in personality, right?

Let's say - conservatively - that The Kid has around $1000 a month of disposable income.

How does he get his clothes???

His outfits are WORKS OF SARTORIAL ART, people. He's not buying them at Chess King!

The French lace and ruffles alone...

How is a young black man in the middle of Minnesota Circa 1984-85 going to find affordbale tailers and designers to make him his Spaceman Edwardian Outfits?

And how does he ask for clothes. "Make me look like a Perfumed Courtesian Dandy," he'd mutter in a soft, deep voice to his haberdashers. "That's The Look that's going to take get me out of Billy's Iron Grip..."???

This just strecthes credulity to the breaking point, folks.

I'm just not buying it...

Back in the day, especially in the 70’s and 80’s, there were plenty of young men, often gay, and women in the black community trying to make money sewing, many of them for the black entertainers, pimps, and others who were wearing fancy suits, gowns, other tailored clothing, and fancy look-alike shoes. The Kid could have easily found someone to make his clothes fairly cheap (often in staggered payments) and supplemented his wardrobe with hats, feathers, and other items from the thrift shops, etc. Look at some of the rhythm and blues groups of that time (Motown, Stax/Volt, etc.,) and you’ll see many examples. He probably would have gotten some things made free, because he was out and about being seen in a designer's creations.

soladeo1 said:

In the mid-80s, a rotational band at a decent-sized venue like First Ave., even if they were playing 5 nights a week, would only be netting around $300 a show TOPS. At the high end that would be around $1500 a week, or $6000 a month. Alright, The Kid is the bandleader so he probably gets 50% with the rest of The Revolution splitting the rest. So wer'e looking at $3000 a month in net revenue 1984 dollars.

So he's got of pay some taxes (even assuming that Billy pays the band 'under the table')...let's say The Kid's real taxable bracket allows him to bring home ~$2500 a month. We never see The Kid doing any additional/side gigs like working retail, babysitting, doing construction so let's assume that Billy's wads of greasy bills are his sole source of income...

Adjusting for inflation, $2,500 in 1984 dollars translates to over $6,000 in 2018 dollars....

This thread is everything.

littlemissG said:

He had to have a Taylor or seamstress friend. All that stuff had to be custom or redesigned thrift finds. Plus how many size zero or two outfits are in the thrift bin? Probably find a suit and make two out of it.

Yeah! In the 70's, my mom could take a bolt of material and make you a fitted suit jacket and skirt that looked like it came from the runways of New York! Fit you like a glove. Back in the day there were some people that still knew the craft of sewing. I miss that.

ISaidLifeIsJustAGame said:

This thread is everything.

There's no way he was finding his size in thrift stores.

Maybe his ex-girlfriend was a tailoress.

[Edited 7/30/18 6:23am]

But how many clothes did he actually have? He had on the same pair of pants all the way through. The same pair of boots. He had one ruffled shirt. An undershirt. The sort of poncho thing he had on when he showed up late to rehearsal and Wendy and Lisa weren't there. The black miliary jacket. The purple raincoat.

All of these things could have been made (or made over) by a girlfriend for next to nothing. He could have thrift shopped the poncho.

The clothes are the least of the improbable things in that movie.

dandan said:

There's no way he was finding his size in thrift stores.

*

For years, my step-daughter was a size 4 and my wife was a size 7/8, and they always found things in thrift stores. In my best shape, my waist was a size 32, and, iirc, in the Oprah interview, Prince said that his waist was a 27. Since he would/could wear male and female clothing, it couldn't have been that difficult for him to find clothing at a thrift store. And, now that my step-daughter and wife both have their after thirty bodies, they still can find some nice stuff at thrift stores. I'm just too lazy to shop there. When I shop, I'm not looking to engage in a treasure or safari hunt, but, for those who are, thrift stores can yield some amazing finds. And, as someone else stated, he didn't wear that many different things in the film. Of course, the film presents a "grander" style than reality, but the general style that he was sporting could be easily accessible and not that expensive.

ThatWhiteDude said:

soladeo1 said:

The Kid's Clothes in Purple Rain???

Okay, so in Purple Rain The Kid is supposed to be this hungry, struggling musician but somehow he has this KILLER warbrobe of couture, tailor-made clothing?

And don't get me started on his purple motorcycle!

In the mid-80s, a rotational band at a decent-sized venue like First Ave., even if they were playing 5 nights a week, would only be netting around $300 a show TOPS. At the high end that would be around $1500 a week, or $6000 a month. Alright, The Kid is the bandleader so he probably gets 50% with the rest of The Revolution splitting the rest. So wer'e looking at $3000 a month in net revenue 1984 dollars.

So he's got of pay some taxes (even assuming that Billy pays the band 'under the table')...let's say The Kid's real taxable bracket allows him to bring home ~$2500 a month. We never see The Kid doing any additional/side gigs like working retail, babysitting, doing construction so let's assume that Billy's wads of greasy bills are his sole source of income...

Side Note: I bet Wendy, though, is an elementary school teacher on the side and Lisa teaches music lessons... Dr. Fink is an actual doctor - a dentist and Brown Mark is a part-time EMT driver. David Z sponsors Dungeons & Dragon tournaments in the Greater Minneapolis/St. Paul Area.

Now The Kid lives at home so that definately saves some $. But he still needs to pay the note on his bike, buy food and stuff like Doritos, his mascara budget, buy gas, etc.

What else do we know? Well, we know he doesn't have a lot of scratch cause he wants to buy the White Cloud Guitar he covets on the store window with Appolonia nia but doesn't have the money. The Kid is poor in money buy rich in personality, right?

Let's say - conservatively - that The Kid has around $1000 a month of disposable income.

How does he get his clothes???

His outfits are WORKS OF SARTORIAL ART, people. He's not buying them at Chess King!

The French lace and ruffles alone...

How is a young black man in the middle of Minnesota Circa 1984-85 going to find affordbale tailers and designers to make him his Spaceman Edwardian Outfits?

And how does he ask for clothes. "Make me look like a Perfumed Courtesian Dandy," he'd mutter in a soft, deep voice to his haberdashers. "That's The Look that's going to take get me out of Billy's Iron Grip..."???

This just strecthes credulity to the breaking point, folks.

I'm just not buying it...

>

Well, I think you have him bringing home too much $$. $2500 a month works out to $30K, and in 1984, he'd be doing pretty well at that number.

>

I'd say he would have more likely been making about half that.

>

But even at $15K/year, he'd have been able to dress that way and afford his bike. That bike, even brand new, probably cost about $1500. And I think I am being generous. It was probably less. Today, you could get a brand new 2018 Honda Rebel 500 (the successor to the CM400 that Prince rode) for about $6100.

[Edited 7/30/18 11:01am]

ThatWhiteDude said:

I have a deja vu man! It's not only this title it's everything. I feel like that the whole thread existed before exactly the way it is here now.

[Edited 7/27/18 12:20pm]

You and me both! This has been posted before. I had to look at the date as soon as I saw this because I remember this thread (the whole thing-- all of it) months ago. Had to have been copy and pasted and re-posted, if not, then there's some Mandela something going on....

Francis77 said:

ThatWhiteDude said:

I have a deja vu man! It's not only this title it's everything. I feel like that the whole thread existed before exactly the way it is here now.

[Edited 7/27/18 12:20pm]

You and me both! This has been posted before. I had to look at the date as soon as I saw this because I remember this thread (the whole thing-- all of it) months ago. Had to have been copy and pasted and re-posted, if not, then there's some Mandela something going on....

So that makes 2 then and I thought I was going crazy.

Genesia said:

But how many clothes did he actually have? He had on the same pair of pants all the way through. The same pair of boots. He had one ruffled shirt. An undershirt. The sort of poncho thing he had on when he showed up late to rehearsal and Wendy and Lisa weren't there. The black miliary jacket. The purple raincoat.

All of these things could have been made (or made over) by a girlfriend for next to nothing. He could have thrift shopped the poncho.

The clothes are the least of the improbable things in that movie.

admittedly, i know nothing about fashion but those clothes just looked to nice and form fitting to be done by an amateur. as someone has said, in the previous few years, his similar clothes all looked like they were bought at goodwill. the look became clearer, the hair became better coiffed, it looked professional and it was.