Z is for...

?????

Well we've reached the final post on the Blogging A to Z Challenge, April 2012! Woo! I can't believe it's the last day of April, though... where did the month go? Anyways, in celebration of the final day of the challenge, the topic is... Zoot Suit! 

What is a Zoot Suit, you may be asking?  According to the free online dictionary, a zoot suit is "A man's suit popular during the early 1940s, characterized by full-legged, tight-cuffed trousers and a long coat with wide lapels and heavily padded, wide shoulders"

Cab Calloway

The style originated in the Jazz Age of the 40s in Harlem and spread through ethnic communities across the country, primarily worn by Mexican- and African- Americans.

Now the reason I like Zoot Suits so much is the Cherry Poppin' Daddies.  Who else?  I grew up listening to their album Zoo Suit Riot, which had a lovely silhouette on the cover.

Classic.  Now I had never given much thought to the name of the CD, or the hit song with the same name.  But while looking for some information on zoot suits I discovered that both were named after the actual Zoot Suit Riots in LA in 1943.  The riots erupted between sailors and marines stationed in the city and the young Latinos that lived there.  I'm not going to go too into the incidents because there were a lot of roots and plenty of consequences.  However, if you're interested you can check out the Wikipedia article, or find something more reliable if you're so inclined.

And I simply can't end this post without a nod to the actual song that made me think of this post...