Suspenders for Ain't Misbehavin' costume worn by André De Shields: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

Suspenders from Ain't Misbehavin' costume ensemble for Act I worn by André De Shields in the original 1978 Broadway production. The suspenders have a pattern of red and pink alternating color triangles and light blue, dark blue, and clear rhinestone circles. The pattern has the three layer large traingles facing alternate directions with four circles in between. Each arm of the suspenders has a double button enclosure. There is a peice of white masking tape sewn onto the leather connector between the front and back sections of the suspenders. Handwritten on the masking tape in black ink is [De SHEILDS / I / PERSONAL].

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1978
• Created by: Unidentified
• Worn by: André De Shields, American, born 1946
• Type: suspenders (garment supports)
• Medium: cloth, leather, metal, thread and rhinestone
• Dimensions: H x W: 34 1/2 × 9 in. (87.6 × 22.9 cm)
• Place used: New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Actors
• Topic: Broadway Theatre
• Topic: Clothing and dress
• Topic: Costume
• Topic: Entertainers
• Topic: Musical Theatre
• Object number: 2018.1.1.6
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of André De Shields
• 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.