Okay, so maybe the title is a tad dramatic, but no one has ever truly nailed this fabric, and I think on this momentous year in the BTTF universe, it's about time we did something about that.
So first things first, some of you are probably saying "But I thought Marty's jacket had a paisley pattern...aren't we done?" NOPE. The paisley pattern only extended the length of the sleeves. Inside the body of the jacket, we have THIS masterpiece: (Straightened and the exposure corrected so the details are visible in the shadows)
Some call this the "Hollywood Lining" others say it's all images from Casablanca...well, I say we settle this once and for all and work on identifying EACH of the scenes definitively, down to the frame or movie poster they appear in. So here's a rough color coding of the distinct scenes and images you can see on the jacket lining:
Now let's dive a little deeper into each of these...
1. Red - Woman's face and perhaps chest. ("The Red Woman")
This image is usually hidden in the shadows, but once properly corrected for exposure, it appears to be a woman with a cleft chin possibly in a low-cut top/dress, though it's hard to tell if the bottom half of the image belongs to the same scene. I initially thought it may be Marilyn Monroe, but the artist definitely intended there to be a cleft-chin, which she lacks, so I don't know what other starlets this could be...especially since I don't remember anyone in Casablanca with that much cleavage. (Then again, that's why I think the bottom half may not belong with the face)
2. Yellow - Man's Face ("The Yellow Fellow")
Just a guy's face. The hairline looks like Humphrey Bogart's in Casablanca, but the nose, lips, jaw, and eyes don't seem to be the right shape to be him. Has a certain "Ricky Riccardo" feel to me, but from the lack of an additional scene, it's hard to tell much more.
3. Green - Screaming/Crying Girl ("The Green Scream Queen")
Here's the image rotated to be what I believe to be rightside-up. It appears to be a girl or young woman with a center part in her hair possibly running or kneeling on the ground screaming or crying. My first instinct is that it's Dorothy from Wizard of Oz holding Toto (The shaded part in front of her) but my eyes could just be playing tricks on me.
4. Orange - Back of a Woman's Head ("The Orange Bun")
Yep, that's it...however, this is one that I think I've identified. I think this one could definitely be from Casablanca. Specifically replicating this shot: (Reversed to match the lining's image orientation)
Without more detail in that area, it's a little hard to tell if it might be anything else. However, that hairstyle was popular in early Hollywood, so I will take any other suggestions if you know of a film where a female character has her hair like that.
5. Blue - Man and Woman ("The Blue Two")
This is the one that definitely set people looking for Casablanca-related images as it definitely appears to be based on a different frame from this scene: (Or another where her hair is like this)
Again, I'm open to other ideas, as there are a lot of options here, but THIS is the only drawing that's definitively from Casablanca in my mind.
Now, let's all pool our knowledge and resources to try to finally identify these scenes so we can FINALLY replicate this fabric. So share your thoughts, theories, and speculation (Like on why there's a seam running horizontally through the print, but the design seems uninterrupted, like it was designed to have a seam there) so that together we can all get a little closer to perfection.
So...what do you think, RPF?
-Nick
PS: If anyone has any other shots of the lining, please let me know. If you have a source to protect, we can work something out, I don't want to get anyone in trouble, but I DO want to nail what I consider to be the most un-replicated BTTF costume piece.
PPS: We can also work on pinning down the paisley print too, but the Hollywood Lining seems like a much bigger mountain to climb, so I chose to start there.
So first things first, some of you are probably saying "But I thought Marty's jacket had a paisley pattern...aren't we done?" NOPE. The paisley pattern only extended the length of the sleeves. Inside the body of the jacket, we have THIS masterpiece: (Straightened and the exposure corrected so the details are visible in the shadows)
Some call this the "Hollywood Lining" others say it's all images from Casablanca...well, I say we settle this once and for all and work on identifying EACH of the scenes definitively, down to the frame or movie poster they appear in. So here's a rough color coding of the distinct scenes and images you can see on the jacket lining:
Now let's dive a little deeper into each of these...
1. Red - Woman's face and perhaps chest. ("The Red Woman")
This image is usually hidden in the shadows, but once properly corrected for exposure, it appears to be a woman with a cleft chin possibly in a low-cut top/dress, though it's hard to tell if the bottom half of the image belongs to the same scene. I initially thought it may be Marilyn Monroe, but the artist definitely intended there to be a cleft-chin, which she lacks, so I don't know what other starlets this could be...especially since I don't remember anyone in Casablanca with that much cleavage. (Then again, that's why I think the bottom half may not belong with the face)
2. Yellow - Man's Face ("The Yellow Fellow")
Just a guy's face. The hairline looks like Humphrey Bogart's in Casablanca, but the nose, lips, jaw, and eyes don't seem to be the right shape to be him. Has a certain "Ricky Riccardo" feel to me, but from the lack of an additional scene, it's hard to tell much more.
3. Green - Screaming/Crying Girl ("The Green Scream Queen")
Here's the image rotated to be what I believe to be rightside-up. It appears to be a girl or young woman with a center part in her hair possibly running or kneeling on the ground screaming or crying. My first instinct is that it's Dorothy from Wizard of Oz holding Toto (The shaded part in front of her) but my eyes could just be playing tricks on me.
4. Orange - Back of a Woman's Head ("The Orange Bun")
Yep, that's it...however, this is one that I think I've identified. I think this one could definitely be from Casablanca. Specifically replicating this shot: (Reversed to match the lining's image orientation)
Without more detail in that area, it's a little hard to tell if it might be anything else. However, that hairstyle was popular in early Hollywood, so I will take any other suggestions if you know of a film where a female character has her hair like that.
5. Blue - Man and Woman ("The Blue Two")
This is the one that definitely set people looking for Casablanca-related images as it definitely appears to be based on a different frame from this scene: (Or another where her hair is like this)
Again, I'm open to other ideas, as there are a lot of options here, but THIS is the only drawing that's definitively from Casablanca in my mind.
Now, let's all pool our knowledge and resources to try to finally identify these scenes so we can FINALLY replicate this fabric. So share your thoughts, theories, and speculation (Like on why there's a seam running horizontally through the print, but the design seems uninterrupted, like it was designed to have a seam there) so that together we can all get a little closer to perfection.
So...what do you think, RPF?
-Nick
PS: If anyone has any other shots of the lining, please let me know. If you have a source to protect, we can work something out, I don't want to get anyone in trouble, but I DO want to nail what I consider to be the most un-replicated BTTF costume piece.
PPS: We can also work on pinning down the paisley print too, but the Hollywood Lining seems like a much bigger mountain to climb, so I chose to start there.
lol The wizard of Oz is strange as there's only one scene where Dorothy really cries out, and that's when she sees her aunt in the witches crystal ball....but there's no toto...
