Anyone else buy a pack of male undershirts and they’re labeled “wife beater” tops in the store or on Amazon? The term is so colloquially used now that most of us don’t even notice it anymore. It might be fresh in your mind if you watched The Sopranos or A Streetcar Named Desire recently, but other than that, it goes unnoticed. Unless you’re a true crime enthusiast, of course. Is the name a joke or based on something that happened? We’ll get into it here!
The “Wife Beater” Shirt
We can blame this entire “wife beater” shirt phenomenon on the company Jockey. In the 1930s, the bodysuit underwear of the 1800s was outdated. Leotards are complicated underwear, and Jockey wanted to simplify it by introducing the concept of the ‘brief,’ or male underwear that only covers the bottom half of the body.
But, Jockey, if the bottom half is covered, what about a man’s chest region? What does he wear there? Why the new ‘athletic shirt,’ of course! Typically used as an undershirt in the 1930s (and now), the A-Shirt was a mainstay along with briefs. Wrestling singlets were no more, ladies and gentlemen.
The cotton tank top is very basic. The wife beater is often associated with white tees, but some people’s definition is flexible enough to include other colors. The tank always has thick straps, a scooped neck, and is long enough to go to the man’s waist and overlap with his ‘briefs.’ For fashion with less offensive nicknames, look here.
Origin Story of the Shirt’s Name
In 1947, a man named James Hartford Jr. beat his wife to death brutally in Detroit, Michigan. The case was all over the headlines on a national level, with a picture of Hartford in his dirty wife beater as he was led away by the police. Very few cases would reach a national level like Hartford’s when the USA was barely past using horses and buggy to transport mail. Hartford’s crime (and undershirt) would remain in America’s consciousness.
Alternative Theories
Now that we know the origin of the shirt’s name, let’s talk about how the term grew in popularity, which is absolutely as offensive as the name itself. Back in the day, when movies were silent, men who were up to no good and who typically drank and laid hands on their ladies were typically dressed in a dirty tank top.
Brando personified this stereotype in ‘The Streetcar Named Desire’, where he depicted a drunk man who abused his wife (and more). Not only did Brando’s role fit the mold, but the shirt began to be associated with the sexualization of men. For example, in the movie, the actor would wear skin-tight jeans and a tight tank top that he would dump water on to make it see-through and add a little dirt to perfect his ‘bad boy’ persona.
Over the years, the tank top has been utilized for this basic purpose throughout the media. Tony Soprano, for example, was the epitome of a ‘bad boy’ but he was a sophisticated guy, so he wore clean wife beaters that personified his ‘gangster’ vibe. Although the shirt originated as a form of underwear to replace the leotard of the 1800s, it still carries the ‘bad boy’ connotation. Even if you’re just wearing it under a button-up to the office.
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