Figure 1.--Here are the four boys that played the main characters in "Stand by Me". It is one of the outstanding films of the 1980s. Few films capture Ameican boyhood in the 1950s as well as this one. |
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The costuming seems true to the 1950s. The bys wear stripped "T"-shirts, Keds and jeans. The costuming was fairly accurate for that period of time and the location depicted in the film. River Phoenix' attire was probably the most common clothing worn by boy teenagers. Generally younger boys wore stripped "T" shorts and teen agers more commonly wore the white ones. Blue Jeans were enormously popular, preferably Levi 501’s, with rolled up cuffs. A plain white tee shirt, and like River did, you would roll your cigarettes up in the sleeve. A teenagers dressed like this would have veen seen by some as a budding juvenile delinquent. Which is the way some saw River's character because of his family background. The black and white tennis shoes would probably have been either U.S. Keds or P.F. Flyers. Both were equally popular. It was kind of interesting that canvas shoes didn’t become popular until World War II at which time leather shoes were rationed in the U.S. Boys became accustomed to wearing tennis shoes and the popularity carried on. Wil Wheaton’s clothing was just about as accurate. Striped tee shirts were commonly worn by younger boys. The faded and patched blue jeans would have commonly been worn for everyday play clothes. The all white tennis shoes would probably have been P.F. Flyers, as almost all of the U.S. Keds were black and white. Jerry O’Connel’s khaki trousers would have been a little less common than blue jeans. His striped polo shirt would also have been less popular than a plain white tee shirt. Printed tee shirts didn’t really become popular until a few years later. The white canvas deck shoes, while not unheard of, were not very popular with youngsters. Corey Feldman’s costume would have been completely unconventional for that place and time. Part of his character was that he emulated his father, who he made out to be a war hero, hence the olive drab tee shirt, black denim trousers and military combat boots. He even wore army dog tags.
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