Foreword
The following is based on a true story.
Not just one story, but billions of stories. Captured on camera. Traded between new friends. Discovered in the depths of abandoned mines. In barrels heading across the Atlantic. Even in the obituaries section. And some are so unbelievable even we can’t believe ‘em all. But we’ve got the receipts for a few. So sit down, settle in and explore the true story of 150 years of the Levi’s® 501® jean. The greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 142
No Way, Nurse
This is the story of broken bones. Of a man in Oregon who snapped his tibia like a toothpick but refused to let the nurse cut off his 501® jeans. They don’t teach it in medical school, but that’s definitely some intensive care in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 97
Precious Cargo
This is the true story of some very precious cargo. Of fishermen importing 501® jeans to the docks of Kingston in the ‘70s, and Jamaicans exporting their style back to the world by the metric ton. And that’s one influential island in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 81
Extra-Curricular Chemistry
This is the true story of a blue jean ban. Of school principals in the 1950s who outlawed 501® jeans. And the students who bought a bucket load of bleach, turned their jeans white and wore them to school anyway. And that’s one extracurricular chemistry lesson in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 109
Fair Exchange
This is the story of a beloved family bell cow in Tbilisi, Georgia in 1982. This is also the story of a son who swapped the beast for a pair of 501® jeans. His family called him foolish. The locals dubbed him a legend. And that’s what we call one fair exchange in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 117
A Crisp Crease
This is the true story of the crease that never wrinkled. Of crisp 501® jeans, pressed and carefully ironed down the center. And the Chicano style that started it all. A uniform everyone has tried to copy. A culture only one can claim. And that’s not a trend but a heavily starched truth in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 149
Legends Never Die
This is the true story of hundreds of dearly departed who’ve requested to be buried in their 501® jeans. And the one unliving legend that requested all attendees wear them, too. Most funeral directors don’t get it, but we definitely do. Because that’s just going out in style in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 86
East Bay Dragons
This is the true story of Oakland’s oldest all-Black motorcycle club still in existence today. Beginning in a time when a Black man riding a motorcycle was a revolutionary act in and of itself. When Papa Joe and the East Bay Dragons rode in wearing Levi’s 501® jeans, the rest was history. And that’s some serious mileage in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 107
Blue Fever
This is the story of desperation and denim. Of committed Canadians plastering wanted ads for vintage Levi’s 501® jeans on street poles, billboards, car bumpers, and yes, even the back doors of dive-bar bathrooms. Because real heroes search high and low in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 123
S.K.A.T.E
This is the true story of an East Coast carpenter from central Maine. A beast from the east in his 501® jeans rolling out of rural New England and into skate history. You’ll find him in magazine spreads and video parts, but also on walls by your local double set. And that’s just one of many local legends in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 102
Black Tie, Blue Denim
This is the true story of blue jeans at a black tie affair. Of a White House state dinner and a pop-art icon, who broke the dress code with his beloved 501® jeans underneath. A true mixed-media masterpiece created for comfort. And that’s artistic integrity in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 137
Love Affair
This is the true story of a husband and the love of his life. The one he wakes up with each and every day, and so desperately desires — especially on his birthday. A 35-year strong relationship with none other than his favorite 501® jeans. And that’s just one long-standing love affair in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 131
Happily Ever After
This is the true story of a couple who said, “I do” in their 501® jeans. But this is also the story of countless couples who have done the same. Of ditching the dress code, and exchanging vows to who you love, while wearing what you please. And that’s what happily ever after looks like in the greatest story ever worn.
Chapter 74
Lady Levi’s®
This is the true story of Parisian runway takeover in 1947. A time when couture gowns dominated the fashion floor, the Emery twins stepped onto the runway in denim and brought the world to its knees. Back then, they were dubbed the 701® jean. Today, they’re known as the 501® jean. And that’s the 411 on Lady Levi’s grand entrance in the greatest story ever worn.