overt sexuality part of advertising. he found like the sex in things, you know, which is such a touchy subject for americans, right? and he like hit that button every damn time. calvin klein s advertising was rather scandalous. people were saying, you re sexualizing this underage minor, what are you doing? but it woke people up. there were many times there would be an ad for calvin klein where there weren t many clothes involved. but it made you want to buy them. his underwear ads stopped traffic in times square. that was just revolutionary. this image of masculine sexuality. that was just absolutely galvanizing. suddenly men s underwear became a cigna fire for the first time that wasn t just a boring commodity like buying white bread or milk at the grocery store.that wasn t just commodity like buying white bread or milk at the grocery store. he made every man, whether they looked like that or not, feel, if i pie that underwear,
cultural experts are giving us a front row seat to the runway of american history. here s a preview of american style. e 40s and 50s were definitey americans finding itself. americans felt second rate when comparing itself to europe. sportswear became the defining style of the united states. the bikini was the biggest thing since the atom bomb. our style and fashion represents freedom. you look at hippie culture, it s oppositional to the vietnam war. it was very important in terms of people being free to express themselves. in the 80s it was a lot of excess in every way. we had our calvin kleins and ralph laurens and donna karans. his underwear ads stopped traffic in times square. by the 90s and 2000s, things have become less formal. supermodels really brought fashion into every household. now what s embraced as being
excess in every way. we had our calvin kleins and ralph laurens and donna car rans. it was rather scandalous. the underwear ads stopped traffic in times square. in the 2000s, things have become less formal. super models brought fashion into every household. now what s embraced is being yourself. style gives you a voice. it s freedom. i spoke earlier to celebrity stylist josi about how american style came into its own. take a look. seems that american style is constantly evolving, so how do you define it? what makes it unique? well, i mean, i think when you really break down american style, it really isn t about fashion. you know, fashion isn t really just about clothes. but it s really about an expression, a way of life. and i think as you ve seen it in all of these decades, and i think that s the beauty of this particular series, that you ve seen how fashion can really articulate a period of time.
definitely america finding themselves. sportswear became the defining style of the united states. the bikini was the biggest thing since the atom bomb. our style and fashion represents freedom. you look at hippie culture, it s oppositional to the vietnam war. disco was important in terms of people being free to express themselves. in the 80s it was a lot of excess in every way. the advertising was scandalous. underwear ads stopped traffic in times square. since the 90s and 2000s, things have become less formal. supermodels brought fashion into every household. style gives you a voice, it s freedom. american style premieres tomorrow at 9:00 on cnn.
thing since the atom bomb. it represents freedom. you look at hippy culture. it s oppositional to the vietnam war. this was important in terms of people being free to express themselves. in the 80s it was a lot of excess in every way. we had calvin klein, roll of lauren, donna karan. calvin klein s ads were scandalous. his underwear ads stopped traffic. by the 90s and 2000s things are less formal. supermodel brought fashion to every household. style gives you a voice. it s freedom. joining us now is stylist carson kressley. great to have you here. i m thrilled to be here. this is a fun special. yeah. i love fashion obviously. this is a great series to explain to people the amazing fashion we have in the united