The exact date is not known, but sometime in the ear 1913, the United States Navy adopted a crew-necked, short-sleeved, white garment undershirt. US troops were noticing their European allies were not sweating as much under their wool uniforms due to wearing these cotton under shirts.
In the 1930s Hanes, Sears and Fruit of the Loom began marketing the T-shirts as something you could wear as an undergarment, or as a shirt. They were considerably lighter in weight than today's T-shirts.
In the late 1940s we saw the first printed T-shirts. The Smithsonian Institute's oldest T-shirt reads "Dew-it with Dewey", in relation to New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey's 1948 presidential campaign.
In the 1950s the T-shirt gained popularity when Marlon Brando wore a form fitting version in the movie "A Streetcar Named Desire." Others, like James Dean used tight fitting T-shirts to show off their physique. In 1959, a new ink called plastisol was created. This with it durability and stretching features it changed T-shirt printing.
From the 1960s to today, T-shirts have seen an ever-increasing growth in sales and a form of expression. The 1980s saw a boom in graphic arts being displayed on T-shirts. In today's world, T-shirts range from walking billboards to gifts to lightning rods of controversy.
Happy birthday, T-shirts.
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