The Puma Principle

My Puma collection -- heavily skewed in the "Mav Hockey" color scheme. 

When you want to show your "retro" street cred, put on a pair of Pumas.

I own three pairs. They look good with jeans and seem "period appropriate" for my sizable "Star Wars" t-shirt collection (more on that collection later...)

I remember back in late 1970s when my older brother desperately wanted a pair of blue-suede Pumas, and my dad came home one day wearing the exact model and said, "How do you like my new Pumas?"

The venerable shoe brand has been featured in a variety of entertainment properties over the years (Example: Paul Walker dons them in the "Fast and Furious" franchise), and the shoes recently showed up in two new Netflix series: "Stranger Things" and "The Get Down."

If you haven't seen the recently added shows (and the featured shoes), check them out.

I've watched "Stranger Things" all the way through. It is a compelling homage to 1980s horror and science fiction films set in 1983 Indiana -- with references to Stephen King, John Carpenter and Steven Spielberg throughout (plus the clever integration of a "Star Wars" Yoda action figure, a Millennium Falcon toy, and Lando Calrissian as a metaphor for traitorous behavior).

And our main protagonist -- the super-smart geek Mike Wheeler -- wears a pair of Pumas.

While the Puma references in "Stranger Things" tend to be more subtle, red-suede Pumas are something of a plot point in "The Get Down."

The show starts off in the Bronx at the end of the school year in 1977. It is produced by Baz Luhrmann ("Moulin Rouge") and is a bright, vivid, nearly mythic show about the end of disco and the rise of hip-hop music.

(Anyone familiar with Luhrmann knows there is a "fantastical" quality to his productions, making them cinematic stage plays).

Several characters mention plans to see the movie "Star Wars" (which was released on May 25, 1977).

I've only watched the 90-plus-minute debut episode thus far, but the music, fashion and vibe go straight for the jugular in terms of vivid period style.

One of the characters in the show is named Shaolin Fantastic. He is perceived in near-mythic terms at the beginning of the story, and wears a crisp pair of red-suede Pumas.

Jaden Smith's character Marcus "Dizzee" Kipling says of Shaolin Fantastic, "His Pumas are always pristine."

I've read that the folks over at Netflix spend a considerable amount of time basing programming decisions on viewing habits and "big data"...

Both of these recent entries into their "originals" lineup skew to a particular age group, and nods to a time in history that appeals to a particular demographic.

I don't know if including Pumas in these productions is merely a method to evoke time and place, or a clever use of "product placement" by the shoes' parent company.

Regardless, the folks at Puma must be pleased as punch.


Read yesterday's blog post: What Is Jon Crunch?