Members Only

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Members Only
Industry Retail
Founded 1975
Headquarters New York City, U.S.
Key people Jaggi Singh
Products Clothing
Parent JR Apparel World
Website membersonlyoriginal.com
Man in leather Members Only jacket

Members Only is a brand of clothing that became popular in the 1980s with the Members Only jacket.[1] The brand was created in 1975[2] and introduced to American markets in 1980 by Europe Craft Imports.[1]

Members Only jackets were manufactured in a wide variety of colors. The jackets have epaulettes. Their advertising tagline was "when you put it on, something happens".[3][4]

Revival

The brand was licensed in 2003 by Maureen Regan of Kirtie Regan,[1] who resurrected it and developed a new line of apparel after the bankruptcy of Aris Industries. At first, the brand was strictly for males with their tighter fitting bomber jackets.[2] Maureen Regan relaunched the brand in 2004 introducing a women's line and added both men's and women's sportswear. The brand is currently owned by JR Apparel World, whose CEO is Jaggi Singh.

Today, Members Only apparel is worn by celebrities such as Anne Hathaway, David Hasselhoff, Fergie, Mariah Carey, Rihanna, Miley Cyrus, Vanessa Hudgens, Zac Efron, Ellen Page, Paula Abdul and Anderson Cooper.[5]

In popular culture

  • 1983-1989: Celebrities sported the "Members Only" jackets on Friday episodes on these game shows, Just Men!, Hollywood Squares (John Davidson) and Win, Lose or Draw (synd. version).
  • 1998: Sheryl Crow, in the song "Members Only" from The Globe Sessions, sings, "He seems to be stuck in the 80's / He wears his members only jacket."[6]
  • 1998-2006: On the sitcom Will & Grace, Rosario Salazar is typically seen wearing a Members Only jacket on top of her maid's uniform.
  • 2001: The movie Shallow Hal, Hal's best friend Mauricio (Jason Alexander) is teased by Hal's new girlfriend Rosemary (Gwyneth Paltrow) for wearing a Members Only jacket, asking if he was "the last member".[1]
  • 2001: In the movie Zoolander, the character played by Owen Wilson challenges Ben Stiller's character to a "walk off" at "the old Members Only warehouse."
  • 2003: The O.C.'s Seth Cohen wears a Members Only Jacket.[1]
  • 2006: In an episode of Friday Night Lights, coach Eric Taylor scolds Matt Saracen, "Why don't you take your Members Only jacket off and hang it on the coat rack?"[7]
  • 2006-2007: A 2006 episode of The Sopranos (also titled "Members Only") has mobster Eugene Pontecorvo wearing a Members Only jacket. He is actually made fun of for wearing it by fellow gangster Vito Spatafore. Also, in the 2007 series finale of the show, "Made in America," in its final famous scene, an unnamed man identified in credits only as a "Man in Members Only Jacket" is prominently featured and his role has attracted much discussion.
  • 2008: Justin Timberlake is seen wearing a Members Only jacket in the film The Love Guru.[5]
  • 2010: In season 1, episode 7 of Top Gear America, the team sold a Lexus LS400 to an audience member for a grey Members Only jacket and US$1.
  • 2013: To commemorate the election of a new Iranian president, The Daily Show satirically retired a tan Members Only jacket similar to one frequently worn by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.[8]
  • 2014: in the Detroit day 2 auditions for American Idol hopeful Eric Gordon wore a Members Only jacket, which judge Harry Connick Jr. made several comments about. In fact Jennifer Lopez pointed out that the only note he wrote during the audition was "Members Only jacket."

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Vargas, Daniel J (18 June 2004). "'80s jackets go from dud to stud in a snap". The Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 31 December 2012. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Sheff, Harry (9 February 2012). "Members Only acquired by JR Apparel World". MRketplace. Retrieved 31 December 2012. 
  3. ↑ "Members Only Clothing, Jackets - Zappos.com". Retrieved 31 December 2012. 
  4. ↑ "Members Only. What's it all about?". Members Only Blog. Retrieved 31 December 2012. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Famous Members". Members Only. Retrieved 2013-02-07. 
  6. ↑ "Members Only (cited lyrics audible in preview sample)". Retrieved 31 December 2012. 
  7. ↑ Graham, Bryan Armen (15 July 2011). "All of the Lights: Our 10 favorite Friday Night Lights moments". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 31 December 2012. 
  8. ↑ Kalamar, Luke (June 26, 2013). "The Daily Show…with John Oliver?". Pop-Break. Retrieved 19 December 2013. 

External links

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