Brown and orange jacket and pants worn on Soul Train by dancer Tim Harrell: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

This suit, consisting of a Nehru jacket (.1) and pants (.2) was worn by dancer Tim Harrell on the television show Soul Train between 1985 and 1988. Both are made from the same iridescent black and orange fabric that has supplemental warp and weft threads creating broken streaks with the black streaks vertical and the orange streaks horizontal.

The Nehru jacket (.1), as typical of the style, has a standing collar and a single-breasted center front closure. It fastens with five (5) self-fabric covered butthons, though the fourth from the top is missing. The topmost button is held on with a safety pin. There is one (1) welt pocket at the proper left breast and two (2) flap pockets, one at each front side waist. The sleeves are full-length and straight cut without cuffs. Three (3) self-fabric buttons are sewn at each cuff for decoration. The jacket is fully lined in black synthetic fabric. Tehre is one (1) welt pocket at the interior proper left breast. A white fabric label with blue embroidered text reading "HACIENDA" is sewn below the pocket with a small size tag sewn on the proper left side of it. An additional tag with fiber content and care information printed in Japanese is sewn at the interior proper left side seam at the waist. A black self-fabric hanger loop is sewn at the interior center back neck.

The pants (.2) are pleated at the front waist and end at the ankles with tapered legs. They close at the center front waist with a metal zipper and one (1) round black plastic button. There are two (2) buttonholes for an adjustable fit. An inset pocket is sewn at each front side waist, with one (1) flap pocket sewn at the back proper right waist. The flap fastens with one (1) round black plastic button. There are five (5) self-fabric belt loops sewn around the waist band. The pants are not lined except for the pockets, which are made from plain muslin. A white fabric label with blue embroidered text reading "HACIENDA" is sewn at the interior proper right front with a small size tag sewn on the proper left side of it. An additional tag with fiber content and care information printed in Japanese is sewn at the interior proper left side seam near the pocket.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1985-1988
• Manufactured by: Hacienda
• Worn by: Tim Harrell, American
• Subject of: Soul Train, American, 1971 - 2006
• Type: Nehru jackets
• Type: trousers
• Medium: .1: synthetic fiber;
• Medium: .2: synthetic fiber with plastic and metal fasteners
• Dimensions: H x W x D (.1 on form): 30 1/4 × 20 1/4 × 9 in. (76.8 × 51.4 × 22.9 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W x D (.2 on form): 42 × 11 1/2 × 9 1/4 in. (106.7 × 29.2 × 23.5 cm)
• Place used: Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Clothing and dress
• Topic: Costume
• Topic: Dance
• Topic: Fashion
• Topic: Music
• Topic: Popular music
• Topic: Television
• Object number: 2015.16.1.1-.2
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Tim Harrell
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: No Known Copyright Restrictions Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.