If you’re not lucky enough to have lived through this mind-boggling shoe era, there’s no doubt that you’ve heard the stories, seen the pictures and videos of Elton John’s fanatical platform shoes and Gene Simmons’ death-defying, demon boots.  But this was so much more than the current youth trying to outdo their parent’s infatuation with Elvis, it was an historic turn of events in the fashion world, as shoes were becoming a focal point of the wearer’s ensemble.

I vividly remember the first time I saw Gene Simmons’ platform boots.  It was on Paul Lynde’s Halloween Special in the mid-seventies- a time when KISS was becoming a household name (usually not a good one), and their fiery antics, blood spitting, loud music and of course, their makeup was instilling fear into the hearts of every mom on the planet.  I remember Mr. Lynde asking Gene Simmons how long it took the band to put on their makeup.  Their response? “We don’t wear makeup!” Yup, every kid who had ever heard of KISS was completely convinced that these bad boys were born with black, white and silver (with a dash of green and red for good measure) paint on their faces- and every mom thought KISS was, in fact, the devil.

But what about their footwear?  Gene Simmons’ boots were, and still are, an absolute gravity-defying work of art.  Metallic silver scales adorn the entire leg and foot of the boot.  The toes were quite interesting, with two large, red glistening eyes to create a life-like effect.  But what demon would be complete without ferocious teeth?  Long, spiked dagger-like teeth were painted onto the actual 6-inch full, black platform to create the illusion of “walking on fangs”. Joints were added to the knee area for Gene to commence with the necessity of walking on stage, breathing fire and spitting blood.

My next personal favorite footwear of the day goes to none other than Sir Elton John. In addition to some of the most colorful and eccentric stage-wear of the day, Sir Elton had the shoes, and wore them most eloquently. Rhinestones adhered to a 5-inch platform in the shapes and colors of the rainbow.  “Who Wears These Shoes”-?  You do, Elton, you do.

 For my honorable mention of the day, David Bowie as Ziggy Stardust takes the cake and everything else.  In addition to boas and slinky-knit tops traditionally worn only the female gender, the boots and shoes that were seen on Ziggy left a generation relatively stunned and confused.  Bright-red patent leather from knee-to-toe atop a 4-inch black platform certainly made a statement.  What the statement was, I’m not exactly sure, but I think it had something to do with “Anything Goes”.

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Posted in boots, celebrity, entertainment, fashion, platform by Lisa | 2 Comments