The biker is a short leather jacket, usually in black, with studs and those characteristic asymmetric zippers design was intended to allow motorcyclists to lean over their motorcycles and not hurt themselves by the latches.
The youthful style of the biker jacket made it become an icon of the young people who did not take long to complement it with tight jeans and t-shirts, but it managed to go beyond from just a fashion to become an element of identity of rebel post-war young generation. This country was now experiencing the emergence of a new battle. This time with fast cars and rock & roll.
The arrival of this jacket on the big screen with young Marlon Brando (The Wild Ones 1954) and figures like James Dean, gave the biker the definitive push as an identifying element of a movement against culture and claims of a boiling society. Soon, jackets were banned by the country's school systems as they represented a growing group of teenagers characterized by their rebelliousness and behavior. For being the bad guys.
The untimely death of Dean, the most badass of all, catapulted the popularity of the jacket in a way, that later would become an iconic element for Rock & Roll bands and stars such as Sex Pistols, The Ramones, Blondie, and others. Nowadays remains, as a key component of the musical identity also considered as a valuable acquisition due to its high durability and unfading look.
Although the biker remains as the renegade image of a jacket, it also comes across definitely as a smart garment and by far the ultimate wardrobe staple.
