An Ode to Funny T-Shirts

If you ever saw me walking around the Flagler College campus, there’s a very good chance I was wearing a funny t-shirt. After seven years of going to a uniformed school, college (and the real world) felt like my time to finally come into my own and dress the way I wanted. So what’s a better form of self-expression than a funny t-shirt?

Dating back to the late 1930s, the first graphic tees were found on the set of The Wizard of Oz (1939), with the Munchkins wearing bright green shirts with “OZ” written on them. Graphic t-shirts would then be found in 1948 for presidential candidate Thomas Dewey, in the 1960s as wearable art pieces for Andy Warhol, and as promotions for different rock and roll bands throughout the 1970s. But at what point did they evolve from political pieces to integral staples of current popular fashions?

With celebrity culture on the rise in the late 1990s and early aughts, fashion trends began to shift towards streetwear and a more casual way of dress, and with that came about the infamous funny t-shirts we know today. Celebrities such as Paris Hilton, Lindsey Lohan, Naomi Campbell, Drew Barrymore, and Brittney Spears began wearing these shirts as symbols of their sexual liberation and independence from the tyranny of the 2000s anti-female tabloid media. Paparazzi photos would often include the girls on red carpets or leaving nightclubs, clad in shirts reading things such as, “My Boyfriend Is Out Of Town” or “Don’t Be Jealous.”

As we know, fashion has a trickle-down effect. Like the cerulean blue monologue from The Devil Wears Prada (2006) says, if something is worn by runway models and celebrities, it will eventually make its way down to stores for the mass public to buy at cheaper rates. Graphic t-shirts were now EVERYWHERE. Department stores. Clothing catalogs. City memorabilia shops. The Jersey Shore boardwalk store. If there was clothing to sell, graphic tees were there.

Years have passed since then, yet these funny t-shirts are still found everywhere. Most of the advertisements I get on Instagram are for websites selling baby tees in the vein of those that came before. Girls with Cricuts make and sell them on Etsy shops. Places in the mall (remember those?) like Spencer’s and Rue 21 sell them in bulk. It’s almost impossible not to find these silly little t-shirts nowadays.

Shoutout to my mom, Erin, for dressing me in graphic tees when I was a little girl because they’ve now infected my wardrobe (real example, seen below). I think they’re so cute and funny, and they work so well when you need a statement piece. They can convey emotions you struggle to put into words. They can remind the public that you are exactly who you think you are.

Long live funny t-shirts. You will ALWAYS be famous to me.

Strike Out,

Kaya O’Rourke

Editor: Amia King

Saint Augustine
Kaya O’Rourke is a writer for Strike Magazine, Saint Augustine. She’s a big fan of film and art houses, curating the perfect Spotify playlist for every occasion, and spending time with her BFFS (her mom, younger brother Cole, and their two cats). When she’s not updating her Letterboxd or working on her screenplay, you can reach her on Instagram at @kayaorourke.

The Trend Cyclone