Elvis Presley's most iconic outfits
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Elvis was a style icon. He was effortlessly cool in his early days when he reportedly wore anything fancy and flashy that he could afford on stage, but would also dress down in blousons, pleated trousers, and two-tone shoes in his everyday attire.
Basically, Elvis was most comfortable in rockabilly leisure wear. That aesthetic has since become timeless, and everyone from Morrissey, the Clash, and even k.d. lang have dipped their toes in this wardrobe aesthetic to make it their own. They all owe a debt to Elvis for being the first dapper, handsome, and wildly stylish rock & roll star to dabble in fashion risks. Elvis went so far as to make pink his signature color in his early days thanks to Lansky Bros. in Memphis. Later, he would work with designer Nudie Cohn and eventually Bill Belew, but we'll explore all these relationships below.
Not all the looks on this list pay off in a way that stands the test of time, but they're all swings for the fences by a guy who knew that looking good was more about dressing down without looking like a bum. He knew what looked good and how to gauge what was worth his time. In honor of our style icon and his timeless looks, here is a taste of Elvis' best outfits.
Jailhouse Rock
You know the look: black denim and vertical stripes. As mentioned above, this is the only instance on this list where Elvis wore denim, but he wore it so well it's one of his signature styles.
The movie, Jailhouse Rock, called for the prisoners to be in denim workwear and money talks, so Elvis put up little resistance to his no-denim rule. There are other great looks in this movie that stand out — Elvis' cable knit sweater and pleated slacks were the precursor to everything Abercrombie & Fitch have since tried to achieve in preppy cool.
However, this monochromatic outfit with two-tone stitching and a striped shirt became an effortlessly iconic aesthetic that could be reproduced on a budget. Legend has it that Elvis debuted the first pair of black Levi's jeans for this film, but it's not true, as black was an option for Levi's all the way back in the 1800s. But he did lend his name to Levi's to promote the look and film.
Gold Lamé Nudie Suit
Nudie Cohn's bedazzled suits made him a household name, with intricate designs that were and are one-of-a-kind masterpieces (and he will make another appearance on this list). But before he designed rodeo fits for Johnny Cash, there was Elvis' gold lame suit. You might recognize it from the cover of the 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong record, one of the few times he ever wore it.
Elvis was a big fan of mixing and matching items, and reportedly, this $10,000 matching tuxedo was not his style. He was much more apt to match the suit jacket with a pair of black slacks and dress down the agressive gold It makes a few appearances in Elvis pictures of the time, but there are only three known photos of the complete Nudie tuxedo in the raw. However, because of the cover of the aforementioned record, it will always be an iconic look that screams "the King!"
American Eagle Jumpsuit
Elvis had several different jumpsuits made by Bill Belew, who by 1973 was making much of Elvis' clothes. One would be correct in wondering how the style icon would pivot from easy-cool, conservative attire to full on costume day wear, but by this point, everyday was Halloween for the King. Whether or not this is a current day favorite, Bill Belew noted that after this jumpsuit made its first appearance, everyone from the Jacksons to the Osmonds were chasing him for design services.
It's an ostentatious affair complete with a cape and a humongous belt with eagle-hanging conchos, but it was prominently featured in the Aloha! From Hawaii via Satellite special and on the soundtrack cover. Thus, it instantaneously became a classic look for the King.
Black Leather Suit ('68 comeback special)
Marlon Brando was a trendsetter with his getup in 1953'sThe Wild One, which undoubtedly remains standard rebel garb, being black leather with a sneer. Elvis took that idea to a tailored high-point with his full black leather suit designed (once again) by Bill Belew.
There are several Belew outfits on this list, as the costume designer told the Los Angeles Times in 2007, "Bob Mackie had a perfect muse and a perfect canvas in Cher. I got to have that in Elvis." Given that everyone was into denim at the time, Belew wanted to recreate that look using this edgier material. Just like that, a legend was born.
Belew mentioned in the same article that the public may often associate Elvis with wearing leather, but apart from an occasional leather jacket, he rarely wore the material until this suit. It's so indelible that it instantly created false memories of people thinking of a biker Elvis who never existed.
Military Uniform
The cut of this jib is all Uncle Sam, but no one wore it like Elvis. Perhaps his two years in the Army were a point of pride for a rock star who wanted to serve his country, though Elvis clearly could have found a 4F way around enlisting. Still, he smiled big and didn't seek ways out of his fate, using the opportunity to make the uniform his own stylish accoutrement.
It's easy for us in retrospect to think he could have modified the suit in any number of subtle ways, but he just put the uniform on, and it became cooler. No doubt recruitment shot up after that photoshoot, doing the heavy lifting for Armed Forces recruiters everywhere.
Pink Checkered Suit Jacket
Lansky Bros., aka the "Clothier to the King," was originally located in the Beale Street Entertainment District in Memphis. It's where Elvis bought his first suit as well as his last, given Lansky Bros. designed the suit he was buried in. In the beginning, Bernard and Guy Lansky helped Elvis pick out a wardrobe full of what became the singer's signature color: pink. Elvis would later wear the famous pink-checkered jacket with black slacks and his two-tone shoes.
The mismatched jacket and slacks look was big for Elvis in his early days while he was still enjoying his rockabilly leisure wear, and before the trappings of extravagance took hold. This is one of his classic looks that wasn't fully appreciated at the time, seeing as televisions were still only black and white (as seen in our image).
Red Nudie Suit
Before the gold lamé Nudie suit, Elvis rocked a red Nudie suit for the 1957 movie Loving You. It's an amazing-looking outfit topped with a neckerchief and an acoustic guitar. It appears on the film's "Teddy Bear" single from that year as well.
In the promo shots, the cowboy shirt looks to be made of pink and red silk and the red pants have white cowboy stitching and embellishments. The movie Loving You is mostly forgettable fare, but the outfit itself is a beautiful concoction making the whole celluloid situation worth it in the end.
White High-Collar Suit ('68 comeback)
Another Bill Belew special, this suit has a high-collared shirt under a double-breasted pea coat with high-water pants that Elvis wore with white Florsheim-styled zip boots. To top it all off, the King added a red scarf as a day cravat, instantly elevating his style into the realm of mod face aesthetic. It was new, now, and fabulous to say the least. To further see the blending of styles, Elvis' iconic pompadour hairstyle also rocked the fashion of the day, making for an interesting addition to this groovy getup.
Classic Speedway Jacket
Elvis and Nancy Sinatra starred in the 1968 film Speedway, and as he plays a race car driver in the '60s, of course he has to wear the vertical stripe Harington-like jacket. It's a nice throwback to easy style as it can be worn with a white t-shirt and khakis for a complete look. This style point of reference might be perfectly matched on Steve McQueen or even Paul Newman. The Speedway jacket is basically old-school Americana that feels comfortable in just about any decade, much like Mr. Elvis Presley.
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