t-shirts with logos of fictional companies from tv shows or movies on them

like dunder mifflin or whatever. i see these all the time but i don't get these. they aren't funny or clever or unique or anything. what do they say about you as a person when you wear them? why do you wear them?

otoh i have trouble justifying wearing almost any t-shirt that has words or images on it so maybe it's just me

They say about the same as wearing a t-shirt with the name of the film/programme on, but usually have better logos.

whats the diff between this and wearing a band t

it says, "i like show? do you like show?"

whats the diff between this and wearing a band t

― Mr. Que, Thursday, July 26, 2012 1:12 PM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

well obv everyone makes choices about what they feel ok providing free advertising to but there's a big difference between a small independent band and a tv show on a major network

it's a pretty small diff

well they basically say that the wearer is not funny or clever. but we're all unique aren't we

band t's (usually) aren't clever, are they ok to wear in your universe?

it's a pretty small diff

― Mr. Que, Thursday, July 26, 2012 1:15 PM (44 seconds ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

one has maybe a few hundred/thousand dollars to spend on marketing and the other has like millions but ok?

if you buy a band t at a show, the band gets all the money; if you buy a tv show t shirt the money's probably mostly going to the network with very little of it going to the creative people behind the actual show ... i don't know seems like a big difference to me

both are advertising tho

a better comparison would be wearing a tshirt with the geico gecko on it than wearing a band tshirt

I just got over my aversion to wearing shirts with words or images on them this summer. On principle, I hadn't worn anything like that in about 10 years. Now I've got a couple, one of which is this logo:

http://www.theporkchopexpress.com/storage/post-images/ThePorkChopExpress.jpg?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1296929157314

Close enough to what you're thinking? People wear all kinds of goddamn t-shirts. I guess it would kinda suck to have a Dunder Mifflin one (is that show still on?).

well obv everyone makes choices about what they feel ok providing free advertising to but there's a big difference between a small independent band and a tv show on a major network

― congratulations (n/a), Thursday, July 26, 2012 1:15 PM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i don't even look at people's t shirts anymore, i usually ignore them.

Yeah, I couldn't tell you what most people wear? Probably some garbagey tshirt from a fun run or blood drive?

yeah so what's your point? people walk around with advertising for stuff on the front of their bodies. welcome to the 21st century.

xpost to n/a

would wear a tyrell corp tee

a Dunder Mifflin tee is more fun/funny than a Geico Gecko tee b/c it's meta obv

i don't have a big point other than i think they are dumb and i don't understand the mentality of the people who wear them? not saying anything big about advertising, that was your deal, i think we are all behind the basic undergrad concept of "EVERYTHING IS ADVERTISING" this is an ilx thread, not a thesis

http://s1.liquidblue.com/products/_Medium/MTN_103089f.jpg

thinking about getting this one for wintertime tee wearing purposes (not from a tv show, obvs.)

Band/tv show - creative endeavor that doesn't sell you anything directly.
Geico Gecko - not so much

band t is a better comparison

dude at work has a schrute farms mousepad and an aperture science tshirt

this phenomenon reached its horrific apotheosis with "Bubba Gump Shrimp Co"

^^ otm

http://www.feistees.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/cntpk2.jpg

the mentality of the people who wear them is

"i dig jim and pam, that dwight is funny! now i will spend 25 bucks on this t-shirt."

vs.

"i dig vampire weekend's sweet sexy jams, I will now spend 25 bucks on this t-shirt."

if you buy a band t at a show, the band gets all the money; if you buy a tv show t shirt the money's probably mostly going to the network with very little of it going to the creative people behind the actual show ... i don't know seems like a big difference to me

I always assumed those t-shirts with fictional companies from TV shows profited only the t-shirt vendor, since the companies were nonexistant and probably not trademarked. Like I don't think NBC thought to trademark Vandelay Industries, etc.

It would still be their "intellectual property" though, wouldn't it?

assuming NBC didn't bother to trademark something is a game you don't want to play

yes

they don't have to trademark it i don't think

BTW, my guess is that copyright would extend to those things as well

yah, shit is automatic

Bubba Gump Shrimp Co

that's a real restaurant and not a fictional company, sadly

Copyright = automatic (although can be registered)
Trademark = not automatic, but can happen through usage in commerce even without registration

i meant copyright not trademark

I wd only do this for something real old, like The Albacore Club

Tshirts can be more subcultural identifier than anything. Check out all the teefury/woot sites that make an entire industry out of such shirts. It works akin to having a pin/button for a band on your jacket. Cleverness doesn't necessarily enter into it.

For example, would I wear a Weyland-Yutani shirt? Yes. Would I think such a shirt is clever? No.

my "Packard Sawmill 2x4s and 4x8s" shirt is awesome fuiud

people also just have dumb ideas in general for a t shirt

Copyright extends to a creative work and prohibits unlicensed "derivative works." Usually this includes stuff made based on characters from a fictional work, so I could see it also extending to fictional companies.

Fictional corporate personhood?

http://www.80stees.com/products/Star-Wars-Cantina-Band-Shirt.asp?utm_source=goog-merch&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=SWARS298

They should make one of these for the convenience store in the Wire with some kind of joke about burners

David Simon would be PISSED

Bubba Gump Shrimp Co

that's a real restaurant and not a fictional company, sadly

― dmr, Thursday, July 26, 2012 2:30 PM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I couldn't believe it when I found this out. There's one in Times Square, right? So weird.

But I mean didn't it come after the movie?

my pal - I promised I'd reacha huge audience for him

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ryanklemek-art/poison-dart-frog-t-shirt

Note: This is a collage made from multiple doodle pages.

For example, would I wear a Weyland-Yutani shirt? Yes. Would I think such a shirt is clever? No.

then why wear it??

no one should wear t-shirts with logos or writing on them, ever

because it's a dope-ass logo and people would know you liked Aliens.

xp

it's an artifact from inside the fictional universe, no? it's a kind of cosplay, maybe. like inside of the friends universe there's an actual central perk where you could buy one of their t-shirts and go around wearing it but there's no actual friends tv show so wearing that positions you outside of it.

update tv show for relevance if you wish.

But I mean didn't it come after the movie?

yeah I guess you're right they took it to the next level, creating a shitty restaurant to go along w/ the t-shirts and hats

Served a customer who had this tee the other day

http://i1.cpcache.com/product/371768231/white_tshirt.jpg?color=White&height=460&width=460

I miss Prop Joe.

what's wrong with the classic "anus"?

i don't have any band t-shirts, but i would gladly own a crucifictorious shirt
http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/5351/picture3af4.png

(i wouldn't gladly pay for one, though)

YES!

Served a customer who had this tee the other day

http://i1.cpcache.com/product/371768231/white_tshirt.jpg?color=White&height=460&width=460
I miss Prop Joe.

― pandemic, Thursday, July 26, 2012 3:06 PM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

damnit!

I would consider a Blues Hammer t-shirt

http://www.cafepress.com/geeklife/5544312

Hey, Latebloomer. Are Pollos Hermanos shirts picking up steam in South Carolina?

Re Bubba Gump, there's one in the French Quarter and it's seemingly always packed and it's generally just a damn shame. But whatever. That's fewer fools ahead of me at the oyster bar over at Felix's.

I don't have any of these but I did almost buy an Aperture Science t-shirt and I would never wear a t-shirt which actually said Portal or probably any other computer game title/logo.

Why? I confess it probably is partly because I am the kind of desperate corny motherfucker who wants to emblazon across their chest "I know an injoke! Plz be my friend if you get my injoke! ^___^ ". Like plain advertising a product would be distasteful but putting a little signifier out for anyone who already digs the product would be a little secret handshake and self-amusingly meta.

But mainly it is because I like the design better. Most of the fun I had in Portal 2 was looking at the company posters from the different eras rather than actually playing the game like a normal person.

i guess part of what's weird to me is the scale of fandom involved - it's like oh you like the office? so do 2 million other people - you don't really get any "cool points" from anyone for having a dunder mifflin t-shirt, which i think is the self-perception when you wear a band t-shirt

anyone who thinks they get cool points for wearing a band t-shirt is most likely 18 years old or younger

how many cool points do you score with a "serenity now" t-shirt with michael richards on the front and summer glau on the back?

I would wear a Dharma Initiative logo t-shirt

mr. que do you ... own a dunder mifflin t-shirt?

xp Ok, but people wear Beatles or Rolling Stones shirts too

i guess part of what's weird to me is the scale of fandom involved - it's like oh you like the office? so do 2 million other people - you don't really get any "cool points" from anyone for having a dunder mifflin t-shirt, which i think is the self-perception when you wear a band t-shirt

I think a better analogy might be sports team t-shirt -- I don't think people wear them to get "cool points", it's just a way of showing their fandom.

it's not about 'ccol points' it's about constructing your social identity using cultural references

or it's just a t-shirt?

mr. que do you ... own a dunder mifflin t-shirt?

no but so what if i did? who cares?

cool points? really?

those damn hipsters and their cool points

i guess i don't really get what your point is other than contrarianism?

I did like seeing a baseball shirt at a game recently w/ CHICO'S BAIL BONDS on the back.

(for those who know)

haha, that's awesome.

well.... faux promotional t-shirts have been around for well over a decade now, almost two. you know, products designed to reference a business / product / event that doesn't actually exist. e.g. "mary's crab shack" or "aloha mike's tiki bar" or whatever. and yes, part of this was marketing 'cool' on a larger scale, selling a sort of thrift-store authenticity without having to deal with licensing or legal issues.

this sort of product is so commonplace, really, it's not 'cool' anymore. i don't think it's at all surprising that t-shirt sellers fill in references from fictional businesses. the aesthetic is the same, now it just has the added bonus of signalling the shows / movies you watch.

and a t-shirt is "only" a t-shirt when it's underwear, imho

http://rlv.zcache.com/wolf_bret_sweatshirt_fotc_flight_of_the_conchords-p235320978787163161zvd80_400.jpg

yes. some people strongly identify with wolves. wolves are a "power animal" and are very popular on tshirts.

i don't want to adjust my glasses and "well, actually" at you all but i know a thing or two abt tshirts you guys

so are yetis xp

I keep seeing this fat dude by the library wearing a shirt that says "DIFFERENT DAY, SAME SHIRT". I can't figure out if I only recognize him when he's wearing the shirt or if he's really taking its message to heart.

Anyway, that's the only guy who's allowed to wear a cute shirt with a message on it. Everyone else should stick to solid colors.

I wish I had a Rue Mclanahan shirt

your ban will really kill the market for my "romney loves chachi" t-shirt.

i guess i don't really get what your point is other than contrarianism?

guess i don't see why this is a whole thread and not just a single post on the IA thread

actually I wish I had a shirt that just said "I Miss the Holy Vag of Rue MAclanahan"

it's not about 'ccol points' it's about constructing your social identity using cultural references

Ding ding ding!

We're on a message board where a significant portion of the users have band tshirts on right now. Me wearing a Dinosaur Jr shirt works the same for me as wearing a Black Mesa or New California Republic shirt.

Or even this :

http://rlv.zcache.com/hojo_clan_mon_blue_tshirt-p235625217682413192en7po_210.jpg

which works for fans of either Zelda or Sengoku-era clans

I've seen some cool Firefly/Serenity shirts that work as designs and not just nerd signifiers.

Woot or Teefury had an Indiana Jones shirt I almost ordered - all the chalices and the one sad cup from the Holy Grail scene of the Last Crusade

I order way too many teefury shirts. And I do their get a random shirt deals.

who has the best shirts for the price would you guys say?

I like seeing people wearing these shirts! Like I saw someone wearing a 'Mr Manager' shirt and it made me smile. What was the first show to do this? I remember seeing the Sunnydale High ones a million years ago and thinking that was sweet. It's less annoying than this kind of thing:

http://www.shotdeadinthehead.com/product_view.aspx?pid=4526

I bought my brother a Nostromo tshirt or something from Alien. Looked kind of cool. He likes the film. It's a great film.

It's not really advertising though; you'd have to know the "meta product" pretty well already to recognise it. It's a total geek thing.

I'm wearing an in-jokey t-shirt right now. It's not this one, but I'd wear this one:

http://rlv.zcache.com/miskatonic_university_t_shirt_tshirt-p235954220874632309b7hwh_400.jpg

Why? Because I like the idea of someone seeing the shirt and thinking, "That is a thing I like, too!" and I like kinder, I like seeing other people wearing these shirts. So it's connecting with people with similar interests even if we don't actually talk to each other? Also I guess it's a slightly more subtle way of expressing what I like than walking around saying "I LIKE HP LOVECRAFT" or putting that on a button.

This is the shirt I'm wearing today, on casual Friday. I stand strong before your judgment:

http://stacieponder.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/casualT.jpg

and I like kinder

That should say "and like kinder," although I do like kinder.

Oh also I think that t-shirts that reference things in movies/tv tend to be more attractive than t-shirts that just have the name of the movie or show on them. Like, I'd rather wear this shirt that references Quark's Bar located on Deep Space 9:

http://i2.cpcache.com/product/473383949/star_trek_deep_space_9_quarks_bar_tshirt.jpg

Thank this one:

http://store.startrek.com/images/products/4/62951-20.jpg

somebody should make tshirts that just say "I LIKE HP LOVECRAFT" or "I like Star Trek", without any logos or images, just black text on a white shirt.

or maybe just "I like ___________" and anybody can just write whatever they want directly on the shirt

I have a more-than-healthy number of Star Wars t-shirts, but I try to look for original-looking stuff. Like this is one of my favorite shirts:

http://fashionablygeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/feeding-the-chicken-walkers.jpg?cb5e28

I am pretty sure I'd wear a shirt that says I LIKE STAR TREK.

I'd wear this shirt:

http://www.entertainmentearth.com/images/AUTOIMAGES/TRCBS154lg.jpg

haha i kind of love the 'straight' deep space 9 shirt

and also just to refer to something n/a said upthread, i would assume the % of ppl who wear a given t-shirt because of where the proceeds from its purchase are likely to go is extremely low, regardless of whether it's a 'corporate' shirt or an indie rock one

haha i kind of love the 'straight' deep space 9 shirt

Me too! I was just thinking "I would wear that"....

I'd only wear the DS9 shirt if it had Jadzia on it.

I have a similar fondness of that style of horror t-shirts.

Haha - http://www.tshirtbordello.com/Stephen-King-Rules-T-Shirt

somebody should make tshirts that just say "I LIKE HP LOVECRAFT" or "I like Star Trek", without any logos or images, just black text on a white shirt.

― aspiring barkitect (silverfish), Friday, July 27, 2012 1:50 PM (26 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

you used to see those LISTEN TO BLACK SABBATH shirts in the 90s quite a bit, they fitted this description

I think the logo/inside joke shirts show off a deeper or more knowing kind of fandom. Like if you're wearing a Greendale Human Beings shirt then you're broadcasting your fandom to a smaller set of people than if you just wore a Community shirt. It's a bit like when I wear my shirt that says UYD: Seatbelts I know most people are not going to know what it means, but if someone says, "Seatbelts!" then there's an immediate connection.

I dunno, I had my fair share of band t shirts when I was younger, but I guess at a certain point the very idea of "constructing your social identity through cultural references" began to seem fraught and no longer as desirable.

I have two - for lack of a less-horrifying terms - 'mash up' kind of shirts, where I construct my social identity using multiple cultural references at once:

http://24.media.tumblr.com/Y2NA1ciNolgoj0yeUm9oOQ3Vo1_500.jpg

http://nerdapproved.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/beach-boys-black-flag-t-shirt.jpg

I suppose, for people who cringe at this kind of thing, the two-for-one shirts must be extra brutal.

Now I want a shirt with both of those on the same shirt.

no one should wear t-shirts with logos or writing on them, ever

this

i saw someone the other day wearing an otherwise plain white t shirt with this image of tifa lockhart on it:

http://media.giantbomb.com/uploads/1/10381/527788-tifa_large.jpg

somehow he was making it work, tho, it was odd

hc nerd shirts are cool:

http://www.1999.co.jp/itbig10/10105983.jpg

but kindof in a different bracket imm

http://images.stylinonline.com/t-shirt-dungeons-and-dragons-fantasy-game-shr.jpg

no one should wear t-shirts with logos or writing on them, ever

nice idea on a message board, but it just doesn't work in reality.

i own a shirt i could legit be hated for i think

http://rlv.zcache.co.uk/isapi/designall.dll?rlvnet=1&realview=113980594307291406&design=9088c8a7-8b2f-4c0a-befd-d76cc8a72121&style=basic_tshirt_light&size=&color=brown&pending=false&pdt=zazzle_shirt&max_dim=512

do people ask you if you play tennis a lot?

Is that how you walk?

only when i wear that shirt

do people ask you if you play tennis a lot?

i actually live in fear of this happening and having to explain 'er no, actually it's from the novel by the deceased american writer david foster wallace', it is one of the reasons i do not wear this shirt much

Dude is in the middle of doing the Rerun dance.

http://gifsoup.com/webroot/animatedgifs/35476_o.gifhttp://gifsoup.com/webroot/animatedgifs/35476_o.gif

http://www.founditemclothing.com/t-shirts/gfx/repo-man-beer-shirt/repo-man-beer-shirt-lg.jpg

why is that printed on a heather grey shirt, even

with a stripe

man this fan-generated product design is BULLSHIT

heather grey tees are always a dud imo no matter what the design may be

I had a "WHATSAMATTA U" shirt in high school.

http://origin.kaboodle.com/hi/img/b/0/0/14e/5/AAAAC4ftpPsAAAAAAU5VHw.png?v=1303426525000

i actually live in fear of this happening and having to explain 'er no, actually it's from the novel by the deceased american writer david foster wallace', it is one of the reasons i do not wear this shirt much

I received this shirt as a gift because the gifter knew I was a fan of that book; it was an awkward moment. I wore it a couple times around the house. I get more IA re the kind of person who would MAKE AND SELL a shirt like this than the kind of person who would wear it, though.

I received this shirt as a gift because the gifter knew I was a fan of that book; it was an awkward moment

ayup

I reckon about 90% of these are bought as gifts tbh

lol Walter I have this one
http://images.vendder.com/store/cinefilevideo/11132/jodorowsky.jpg

http://store.startrek.com/images/products/4/62951-20.jpg

I have this shirt! The screenprinting on it is super cracked now tho

In Little Otik, the father wears this plain white tshirt that says "U.S. BURGER" in red and blue. I don't know if that's a real/fake Czech burger chain or not, but I would totally wear it.

i want a cool battlestar t-shirt. i don't see any good ones online. gotta go to a mall or something.

http://img29.imageshack.us/img29/669/sterlingcooper434.gif

I'd wear this:

http://www.yoyodyne.com/yoyodyne.jpg

And, on a related note, this:

http://image.spreadshirt.com/image-server/v1/products/19167921/views/1,width=378,height=378,appearanceId=17/LEGO-Space.png

Are those from the big bang theory or something?

1.) buckaroo bonzai
2.) legos from the 1980s

these are cool:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Outland-Movie-Patches-Set-6-Divisions-2-S-H-/390234444036?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5adbc91104

i have an outland security badge that i got when i went to the grand opening of forbidden planet in nyc. i put my picture in it!

yoyodine is originally a Thomas Pynchon invention, I believe

that same person on ebay has swanky starship troopers stuff. like this handsome beret:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Starship-Troopers-Mobile-Infantry-Beret-/360456410647?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item53ece05617

kingfish - I'd wear both those.

Yeah, Yoyodyne is Pynchon.

If we're expanding to patches, this:

http://starland.com/catalog/images/ptal06.jpg

http://www.scifistore.com/items/p/lspalogo.jpg

patches are secret kinda. geek morse code. thus cooler.

guess i don't see why this is a whole thread and not just a single post on the IA thread

― Mr. Que, Thursday, July 26, 2012 3:34 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

in hindsight this is probably where i should have gone with this

yoyodyne is orignially pynchon, but the yoyodyne image above is from buckaroo banzai

I want a Hudson University shirt.

Always wanted Robocop, Alien franchise or Infinite Jest ones.

i would wear a 6000 sux t-shirt

or the family heart center

Dude just walked past me wearing an Isotopes baseball team logo.

As for sports jerseys, I would wear this one:

http://i00.i.aliimg.com/wsphoto/v0/533723546/-17-HANSON-brothers-SLAP-SHOT-movie-Charlestown-CHIEFS-jersey-Blue-any-size-Mix-order.jpg

Or

http://www.dorholtcustomsports.com/images/fletch_back.jpg

The latter one I actually have seen worn at a Blazers game

http://www.tshirtbordello.com/images/tyrell-shirt-l2.jpg

http://www.bayimprint.com/inc/layout/faber_college.jpg

http://www.ubertorso.com/product_images/uploaded_images/brtriplepack.png

Absolutely nothing wrong with these kind of shirts.

Except for Star Wars-related ones. Those should be confiscated by the gov't and burned IMO.

in my office