Rockabeau Now

Here we are.

Since my first post in February, I was excited to discover the deeper culture and effect of Greaser subculture. I was attracted to this way of life through the elements of aesthetic and style. I was fairly impressed to see how other cultures interpreted our style such as the Yanki, Rockers, and Raggare subcultures. 

Through exploration of different elements such as icons, style equivalents, and history of the culture, I became more in tune with what I wanted in myself. Yes, it’s fun to dress the part, but the last thing I want to be is a poser. This subculture has a surprising foundation of solidarity for those who felt like an outsider (The Greaser Act). 

This time around I’ve found other interests in pursing personal growth than just assigning myself to a group that attributed to feeling lost. Greaser subculture became a safety net to attribute myself. I’m not saying I don’t have the capacity to belong, but out of respect, I’m more of an ally.  Rocakbeau is still your friendly neighborhood source for anything Greaser. I want to thank all my viewers for your attention. For now I’ll give off the grid to focus on finishing up my semester, but I’m certain to return soon.

To those of you who are interested in an identity story attributed to our sister culture, Rockabilly, the 

YouTube channel NOWNESS just covered Rockabilly in Tokyo. Go meet Johnny Jeana!

And here we are, Rockabeau ;)

Greaser Memes 2

“Surprise b*tch, I bet you thought you’d seen the last of me”. Welcome back to our second and final installment of greaser memes. In this section of Rockabeau, I’ll tickle your funny bone as I connect these social media phenomena (memes) to depictions of greasers in film.

I have a short selection, but comment below if you understood the meme prior to reading my explanation of the reference.

Fake History: This image macro series features photo or screenshots of mundane or media related figures with captions used to resemble actual events in history. In this screencap, we have a still of a character from Cry-Baby.

O RLY?: This phrase is used at internet slang that is short for the term “oh, really” that is announced in a sarcastic way.

What if I Told You: An image macro series that refers to the line of dialogue from “The Matrix”. Morpheus utters the line “what if I told you…” and leaves the user to emulate a revelation or an innovative idea to the receiver. In this use, we have a screencap of James Dean, with his iconic line “you’re tearing me apart” used in Rebel Without a Cause.

(By the way, can anyone guess where the opening line comes from?)

And away we go, Rockabeau ;)

International Greaser Equivalents: Bodgies and Widgies

And now we have reached our final destination (dun dun dun) of the week. Rockabeau has found himself in Australia (figuratively)! Down under, we have the Bodgies and Widgies. Bodgies and widgies are the quintessential rebels for Australian and some New Zealand natives.

The subculture materialized after World War II during the 1950’s. They were seamen who impersonated Americans and worked on the black market. The term “bodgie” came from those of which who bought cheap fabric and tried to pass it off and American-made. “Widgie” was just an alternative title for bodgies.

Bodgies were working class individuals who emulated high class Americans. Within their groups, they enjoyed fighting, causing trouble, alcohol, cars, and music. They enjoyed hard rock and metal music. A few of the cars they drove were Chevrolets, Fords, and Pontiacs.

When it came to clothes, gender came into question. Widgies followed suit to how their male counterparts would dress. This included cutting their hair and wearing more masculine clothing, which shocked the public. Bodgies and widgies were influenced by the look of James Dean, and had the usual t-shirt, jeans and black leather jacket combo. Elvis inspired their type of hairstyle, which are quiffs.

And away we go, Rockabeau ;)

Sources

Bodgies and Widgies. Wikipedia. 11 April 2017. Accessed 20 April 20, 201. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodgies_and_Widgies

International Greaser Equivalents: Yanki

Let's excuse my vacation last week with another vacation! We are traveling to the far east to visit the most eclectic greaser equivalent subculture equivalent yet. Here we have the Yanki, a Japanese subculture that gets its name from the American term, “yankee”. The word yankee is just a referent to citizens of the United States. But, in Japanese terms, it holds more of a negative connotation.

Yankis term has been referenced as “a symbol of how far the country has fallen from its glory years”. (1) I’d assume with attaching an American term to their subculture meant either the corruption of western influence on the country or just an emulation of a popular American icon of style. Since after all, greasers did represent working class “hoodlums”.

Yankis are the delinquent groups of the young people that emerged in the 50’s. Yankis are also influence by Japan’s past military tactics, evident in World War II. The group is also influenced by Japan’s famous Yakuza gang. Yanki’s are also working class kids, with an affinity for cars and motorcycles. But rather than customizing older models and hot rods, yankis prefer luxury cars to parody a Yakuza image.

They are by far the most aesthetically different looking than your average American greaser. In some cases, yankis have blonde/orange hair instead of black hair and are typically tanner. The Yanki’s took aspects of fellow Japanese cultures and blended those with their take of a Japanese greaser. Most yanki’s turned out to be construction workers.

It’s refreshing to see a subculture emulate another one that is similar, but with more noticeably different characteristics. I think yanki’s are a refreshing parody of Greasers, whether good or bad. There is an entertaining difference, coupled with an influence upon their respective culture, just like greasers were on Americans.

What do you find most provoative about the yanki? Tune in this Friday (April, 21) as we carry on to our last destination.

And away we go, Rocakbeau ;)

Sources

Shakespeare, Geoff. “6 Japanese Subcultures That Are Insane (Even for Japan)”. Cracked. June 07, 2010. Accessed April 18, 2017. http://www.cracked.com/article_18567_6-japanese-subcultures-that-are-insane-even-japan.html

Spacey, John. “Yanki: Young and Angry in Japan”. Japan Talk. July 15, 2012. Accessed 18 April, 2017. http://www.japan-talk.com/jt/new/yanki

The Greaser Act

           

           As previously referenced in my second article post (A Short History of Greaser Subculture), I briefly discussed the formation of the term “greaser.” The term did not relate to the greaser styled hair, surprisingly. “Greaser” was originally used as a derogatory remark against Mexicans. It was used in the southwest region of the US to reference jobs that involved greasing wagon axles or animal hides.

Today, I’m going to dig deeper into the formation, and implication of the Greaser Act. The creation of the Greaser Act was influenced by the Mexican-American War in 1848. Euro-Americans wanted to purify their culture, especially after the acquisition of newly minted US states. The Gold Rush only worsened the discrimination, which caused the public to enact numerous discrimination laws.

The Greaser Act was amended in 1855. Its formal title is “The Vagrancy Act.” Its purpose was “to protect honest people from the excesses of vagabonds… and generally all people of Spanish or Indian blood.” (3) In this context, vagabond referred to those who were labeled a “greaser.” That means, Native Americas could be targeted too (as if they already were not).

Voltaire Network explicitly described the injustices the law protected.

“That law allowed the police to arrest, using force if is necessary, and to deport or send to forced labor any person suspected of being a vagabond…The law authorized local militias to impose terror against the Mexican community, to confiscate their property and to lynch any recalcitrant individuals with impunity.” (3)

Even though the law was eventually repealed, it caused lasting effects on these minority groups.

It is groundbreaking to me to see a childhood relic of mine have such depth. To me, ‘greaser” just meant gelled up hair and the aesthetic of a rebel. Greasers from the titular subculture took something derogatory and gave support to those who felt like outsiders.

And away we go, Rockabeau ;)

Follow my twitter at https://twitter.com/rockabeau 

Sources

“Greaser Act”. Wikipedia. Date Accessed 6 April, 2017 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greaser_Act

“Greaser (derogatory)”. Wikipedia. Date Accessed 6 April, 2017. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greaser_(derogatory)

Creative Commons. Early US Race Laws Designed to Protect White Employment. Voltaire Network. 13 May, 2005. Date Accessed 6 April, 2017. http://www.voltairenet.org/article30264.html

Vehicles Driven by Greasers

A notable feature of greaser subculture is their transportation.

The models Greasers choose to ride were not too different from what the public would drive, they would just have to settle for older models. Since greasers are of a lower class, they did not have much access to newer car models. Thus, greasers turned to older models, which they customized themselves. They were customized with decals and the engines were altered to accelerate faster.

Per our neighborhood friendly Tom Cat, greasers usually drove Ford Mercury’s, and Chevy’s. Tom Cat suggests a Dodge D-500, an Impala or a Chevrolet Bel Air to fit the classic mold.

A greaser’s choice of transportation was influenced by hot rods, and muscle cars. Hot rods are American cars that have larger engines than usual cars. These are used to enhance acceleration. Muscle cars are two door sports cars; they are made for high performance activity.

I turned to the media to see what other renditions of vehicles that greasers had. The movie/musical, Grease, had a solid answer. The classic Greased Lighting, the T-Birds car of choice was a 1948 Ford De Luxe.

Is there a dream car you would like to drive? Tell me in the comments

And away we go, Rocakbeau ;)

Sources

"Greaser (subculture)". Wikipedia. 4 April, 2017. Date Acessed 4 April, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLt6nFRTULw

International Greaser Equivalents: Rocker

Since we went overseas (figuratively) to visit raggare culture in Sweden, we should extend our European trip for this week! Our next stop is Great Britain. The crown jewel of the United Kingdom houses a similar subculture to greasers, which is called rockers. Rockers are similar to Greasers from societal perceptions, to origins, and characteristics.

Rocker subculture originated in the 1950s. They have assumed numerous nicknames, such as Ton-Up boys and Café Racers. After World War II, young people of the working class received more financial stability. More roads were built in 1950’s UK that resembled “race track-like arterial roads around British cities”. (1) Motorcycles were cast away in favor of motorcars. Rockers attached themselves to motorcycles because of the convenience. Stigma of motorcycles worsened after they were used by rockers because of frequent speeding. The media exaggerated the common rocker and demonized them. This caused a moral panic among citizens.

The rockers were usually found at transport cafes, which are the British equivalent to an American truck stop. Rockers used their bike for sport and image. Their bikes were used to intimidate others; paired with the heavily decorated leather jackets that flashed studs, rivets and skull and cross bones symbols. Rockers didn’t wear helmets, which furthered their death defying image. Rockers also wore t-shirts, jeans, motorcycle boots, and pompadour hairstyles. The style was still like greasers on account of practicality.

Rockers had somewhat of a real-life rivalry that resonates with a story like The Outsiders. Rockers developed conflict with a 60’s subculture, mod. Mods were also located in the UK at the time. Mods were known for their fashion and taste of what was popular at the time. Mod is short for modern. A mod was mostly interested in their tailor-made suits, soulful music, and a drug filled night life. Their vehicles of choice were their customized scooters. This conflict with rockers also worsened the moral panic by English residents.

In terms of influence, rocker subculture has gone on to inspire the Beatles and the rockabilly music genre. There was a short revival of rockers in the 1980s and reunions that occurred in the 90s.

What fascinates me the most about rockers is their rivalry with mods. A little drama is entertaining but to have it emulate a work of American greaser fiction is surprising. It makes me think of the question; “Could the conflict between rockers and mods could have had an influence on the Outsiders?” Let me know what you believe in the comments. Is it coincidence, or influence?

And away we go, Rockabeau ;)

Sources

"Rocker (subculture)", Wikipedia, 17 March, 2017. 30 March, 2017. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocker_(subculture)