Page 1 of 1

Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York

Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 1:09 am
by FroBackVintage
Hey there -

Got my hands on this tee that's totally stumping me here, and any help would be greatly appreciated!

It appears to be John Lennon on the shirt.

The design, printing and label are hand made.

Strange part is that It's printed on a night shirt?? 23" x 36.5"

Attached are some pics...

The brand name is "Modern Girls New York" with the tag sewn in Seditionaries personal collection style.

I'm guessing It's late 70s - early 80s?

The pop art style and screen printing have a fifth column/mosquito head kinda vibe, but haven't been able to find any info online about Modern Girls New York.

The tee came out of a big lot of random shirts that belonged to a deceased stage manager of a prominent rock club that no longer exists.

Thanks!
Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York
Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York
Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York

Re: Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York

Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 9:30 am
by jimmyj
Neat. Not sure what it is. But doubt 70s. Is the modern girl label sewn along the top? can you look under it to see if there was another tag? and what is cutoff on the right hand side of the photo beside the care instructions?

Maybe sleep wear maybe dress shirt worn with a belt?

Ill post it on instagram later and see what people think.

Re: Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York

Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 12:54 pm
by FroBackVintage
Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York
Hey Jimmy,

I would really appreciate that!

Here is a pic of what you're asking.

The Modern Girls tag is only sewn on the sides. It looks like the original shirt tag was removed but a little bit of white and red threads remain.

The little tag on the side just says "Hand Washable Drip Dry" nothing on back.

The tag and printing style have a similar vibe to other hand screened/tag sewn in shirts I've seen that came out of East Village shops in the late 70s - early 80s like the original Manic Panic store or Trash and Vaudeville, but that could be a total stretch!

Please keep me posted, thanks!

Re: Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York

Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:41 pm
by jimmyj
Hmmm I was thinking it might be a hijacked Screen Stars XXXL blank but just checked one here and has a bigger chest, but only 32" in length. But it's a highjacked blank of some sort, which can mean something more local/indie/DIY and likely not mass produced.

Maybe but that logo/font seems very 80s, new wave, future/computer/digital era to me. There's also a movie called Modern Girls from 1986..although that doesn't prove much, ha.

I'll post on Insta later this eve.

Re: Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York

Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 8:24 pm
by FroBackVintage
You rule man!

The shirt is shockingly long in person, especially in comparison to the small sleeves and modest pit to pit ratio, so I think it's safe to say a sleep/night shirt was used. Also, a girl rocking it with a belt as you mentioned would be a pretty 80s look.

Hopefully someone out there can shed some light.

Would you agree on John Lennon?

Thanks again!

Re: Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York

Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 8:40 pm
by jimmyj
I think so. But I am historically bad at IDing unconventional images of artists. I just posted on Insta..

Re: Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York

Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2016 9:54 pm
by TimeForMemories
I did a little searching and it is Lennon. Based off this 1961 photo...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/9957016@N05/787276517/

Re: Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York

Posted: Thu Mar 10, 2016 7:54 am
by jimmyj
boom

Re: Help! - Rare Beatles/Lennon? tee - Modern Girls New York

Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2016 10:31 pm
by FroBackVintage
TimeForMemories - Nice detective work, thanks!