The t-shirt began its journey in the world of fashion, in 1901, as a humble underwear and, aided by the helping hand of the US Navy and the icons of the tinsel world, is now ruling the roost of haut couture in every nook and corner of the world. There is no field which has not found the t-shirt as a medium of expression. Over the years, of more that half a century, the t-shirt has placed its hands, benevolently and malevolently, on practically everybody and everything in every imaginable way. Benevolently when it made people laugh in good healthy humor and when it supported some just cause. Malevolently when it ridiculed for the sake of ridiculing and when it was downright rude and offensive. It has made people stop and think, made them forget their worries by making them laugh and turn away in disgust. In the fifty years since it became a popular item of wear, the t-shirt has been used in umpteen number of ways, leaving its mark on just about any subject under the sun. It is a media of expression of practically everything that you can think of and some more. Touching every possible human emotion, it has endeared it self in such a way that it is a national phenomenon. From infants to seniors every one sports them. It has evoked good healthy laughter, raised serious issues, made people smirk, ridiculed just about any topic and has also been blatantly nasty. T-Shirts were and are extensively used during elections. In support of a candidate or to spread a political ideology. It has also been used to ridicule another candidate and/or his policies. Once that particular election is over, those messages usually pass into oblivion. An example would be the "Dew-IT with Dewey" t-shirt used in NY's then Governor, Thomas E. Dewey 1948 Presidential campaign. Others would have carried a joke that was relevant to that particular era or a message or a quote. Some would have pictured an actor, a musician or some such personality. This is more so with political t-shirts. A t-shirt used in support of Dwight D. Eisenhower, in 1952, with the slogan "I Like Ike" splashed across it front is of use, only as a collector's item. Pictures of those heroes - in whatever walk of life - in their heydays suffer the same fate. These t-shirts imitate those designs that were once popular. There might just be a saying or message or joke or some picture that might find relevance to the present. For a person with a penchant for oldies songs, a t-shirt with just the lyrics of some long lost favorite printed on it could bring out the "Agony and the Ecstasy" of that era. This is more so for the elderly, for whom a retro t-shirt could make a wonderful gift, a souvenir. Reprints of music groups and films of a bygone era can make one nostalgic. Every t-shirt that you have probably has a story behind it. It could have been a gift from some loved one, perhaps purchased during a vacation or some such notable event. Related events such as festivals, games etc. increases the demand for these t-shirts. In as much as retro t-shirts are staging a strong comeback, they can be purchased off the shelf or if a person happens to find a picture, joke or catchphrase from those days of yore that one thinks is relevant to the present times or could make a unique statement, then al one has to do is get on the Internet and get a customized retro t-shirt made and delivered. Could make a happy time travel too.
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