The History Of Indy Gear Part 1

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Michael French's  history of "IndyGear", a website and organization that's partly responsible for bringing fedora's and the Spirit of Adventure back into the Mainstream of Popular Culture, inspired by the Indiana Jones movies. Part I, "The Dark Ages"...

“Between the time when the oceans drank Atlantis, and the rise of Club Obi-Wan, there was an age undreamed of. And unto this, came Indiana Jones, destined to wear the rumpled fedora of Herbert Johnson upon a troubled brow. It is I, his Chronicler, who alone can tell thee of his saga. Let me tell you of the days of high adventure!”

OK, so actually that’s a paraphrase to the opening of Conan the Barbarian.  Nonetheless, I have discovered there are many amongst us now who have not heard the tales of IndyGear, who have not been present as its legacy unfolded.  I too was not there in the earliest beginning, but I have been here for much longer than most, and so I shall put pen to paper and tell you of eras past, events unseen, and new discoveries now old.

    All fires begin with single sparks.  In 1981, this fire began in a few chosen individuals.  Many of us, like myself, were still suckers of the thumb, or not yet born to this world.  Nevertheless, there were some who sought what we still seek, and they began our common quest during darker days.

    Like the errant knights of old, brave men roamed the earth in the age before the Internet seeking the clothes of Indiana Jones.  There was no IndyGear, no DVDs, and videotapes were luxuries of the rich.  Into this hell, such heroes as Dakota Ellison, Lee Keppler, and Michaelson strode bravely.  They faced an overgrown jungle that was hopelessly unexplored.  With machetes, they started cutting rough paths through the foliage.  These were the days before e-mail, before cell phones.  This was the age of the Montgomery Ward mailing list, payphones, and Betamax.

    The years passed, and Indiana Jones came to the silver screen twice more.  Raiders begat Temple of Doom.  Temple of Doom begat Last Crusade.  All three begat merchandising.  Merchandising begat licensed Stetsons, the Stunt Spectacular, and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye.  The 1990s were upon us, and in the midst of that decade, computer nerds created the Internet and Microsoft said, “It is good.”

    Then came Indyfan dot com and X Marks the Spot.  These tiny bastions of cyberspace afforded gear seekers the first solaces to share information and discover others who sought the truth.  Within the forum of Indyfan came I, and there were others.  Patterson, MK, Indiana Jun, Indiana Dan, Austin Powers, Williamson, West, and a woman who then called herself “Indiana Texas-Girl” among many, many others.

    Around that time, Indygear dot com took shape as an informational companion to the discussions on the often chaotic Indyfan forum, most of which were gear related.  We were living in an early middle age.  The Dark Ages were beginning to brighten, but our education had only taken us so far.  Then, the Dorfman-Pacific and the Herbert Johnson were the dominant offerings, though Stetson offered three Indy fedoras then.

    Wested was with us, but the jackets were still decidedly “Last Crusade.”  Many of us purchased these wonders, not knowing the difference at the time.  Noel Howard and David Morgan were atop the heap, without any real competition, though Joe Strain was beginning to draw our attention.  US Wings remained in the background, a last resort for many of us.

    Then came three revelations in the final days of Indyfan dot com’s era in IndyGear.  The Akubra Federation appeared, the Peter Bros. custom fedora manifested alongside, and Flightsuits took up the cause of a better jacket.  It was then that the first signs of conflict appeared.  Wested and Flightsuits started a heated battle and gear enthusiasts took sides.  Around this time, true IndyGear darkness ensued.  I, your chronicler, found myself in a strained battle with the worst Peter Bros. fedora in history.  But worse still, the entire IndyGear world was in peril.  So soon after coming together on the Internet, we were quickly finding ourselves embroiled in a civil war of epic proportions.

    It was not a war over jackets, whips, or fedoras.  It was a battle over an idea, a battle with an aftermath that shaped the destiny of IndyGear in ways no one living through it could then imagine.  Many IndyGear members shed their blood in this great schism, as brother turned on brother to decide the fate of….the “non-important message.”

NEXT – The History of IndyGear: Part II – The Rise of the NIM