Mark Elliott 12/05/2024 Mark Elliott 12/05/2024

Back to the Future - Fashion

Time Travel and the fashion of the era follow hand in hand, especially for Marty McFly, (maybe not so much for Doc Brown !) …..

So we look into the fashion in 1985, 2015, 1955, and 1885 !

The clothing and accessories that people wear are a distinctive part of the popular culture. Clothing styles change not only with the time period, but also communicate one's social class and occupation. Those who don't dress appropriately are often viewed as outcasts or rebels, or at the very least, odd and out-of-place, so Marty McFly's clothing proved to be an endless source of embarrassment for him during his adventures, in spite of Dr. Emmett Brown's attempts to be prepared.

They generally had three options when they traveled from one time period to another:

They purchased and changed clothes after arriving in a new time period
They tried to find appropriate clothes for their destination before traveling
They neglected to change clothes and just endured the awkwardness of attracting attention.

Note: Outfits are described here under the time periods the clothing came from, which were not necessarily when they were worn.

Back to the Future Fashion

Outfit 1: Marty McFLY

This Marty McFly outfit is probably the most iconic of them all.

Everything from the vintage wash denim jacket and faded dad jeans, to the orange puffer vest, looks as good now as it did back in ’85.

Trainers

They’re the overwhelmingly popular Nike Killshot 2 which was originally released in the ’80s and saw a surge in interest when it re-released in 2009, and subsequently in 2014 in collaboration with J.Crew.

Denim Jacket:
Quilted Vest:
Tennis Sneakers: Nike Killshot 2 (They’re the overwhelmingly popular Nike Killshot 2 which was originally released in the ’80s and saw a surge in interest when it re-released in 2009, and subsequently in 2014 in collaboration with J.Crew)
Aviator Sunglasses: RayBan
Retro Calculator Watch: Casio

Marty

"Life preserver" First day of school in 1955

Marty wore a red and gray jacket (that he took off in the school cafeteria), white shirt with light blue rectangles, brown pants, brown loafers (slip- on shoes), and had hair tonic in his hair.

"Darth Vader"

The day of the skateboard chase – Marty wore the same red and gray jacket, this time with a black shirt with red chain link pattern, brown pants and Converse Chuck Taylor All-Star shoes.

"That zoot suit"

Marty wore a gray wool suit, a white shirt and narrow red tie, that afterwards he called a “zoot suit”. "Get yourself some 50’s clothes ... something inconspicuous!"

—Doc to Marty

Marty in his "inconspicuous" disguise.

"Something inconspicuous"– Marty chose an “inconspicuous” outfit to cover his basic outfit; he added a black felt fedora hat, black leather jacket and dark sunglasses. When Biff confronted Marty, he referred to the outfit as "that stupid disguise".
After getting to Biff's car, Marty took off his sunglasses. At the Enchantment Under the Sea dance, Biff's gang member Match wondered how he changed his clothes so fast. After being knocked down by a door as his other self ran through it, and when Biff stole back the almanac, Marty was forced to abandon the fedora, which had fallen off his head. When taking Doc back to his mansion, Marty put the jacket and Nikes by the fireplace, along with the letter, so they could dry off.

At the Delgado Mine – Marty wore the same clothes as the day of the skateboard chase, and added a tan overcoat.

Marty's 1955 western outfit

"Clint Eastwood never wore anything like this" – Doc prepared Marty to travel to 1885 with a pink and blue shirt with long, yellow fringe running along the chest, back and sleeves, under five embroidered atomic model designs on the front and back of his shoulders, a red bandana around his neck, red corduroy pants, an ornately tooled belt with golden sunburst buckle, white Nike sneakers, and carried along a white cowboy hat and boots that were too tight.

Outfit 2: Biff Tannen

Oh Biff — the mild mannered, charismatic antagonist of the Back To The Future trilogy.

Contrasting shirt tie combo, for the pants I tailored wool (herringbone) trousers. And for the shoes, black leather with white soles to complement the shade of the knit tie.

· Bomber Jacket: (alt) Grey

· Charcoal Wool Trousers

· Black Oxford Shirt

· Grey Knit Tie

· Black Minimalist Sneakers

Outfit 3: George McFly

The timid George McFly

· Harrington Jacket: ASOS

· Olive Corduroy Pants: Everlane

· Grey Oxford Shirt: Everlane

· Black Frame Eyeglasses: Warby Parker

· Navy Suede Chukka Boots: Thursday Boot Co.

Outfit 4: Emmett Lathrop ‘Doc’ Brown

Doc Brown, the effervescent inventor of the first time machine, built out of a DeLorean sports car.

Often in a state of shock and awe, Doc had some questionable outfits throughout the series.

· Khaki Trucker Jacket: Flint and Tinder (alt)

· Slim Fit Alpha Khaki: Dockers

· Stripe Polo Shirt: Amazon Essentials

· Suede Sneakers: Koio

“…your future hasn’t been written yet. No one’s has! Your future is whatever you make it. So make it a good one!”

https://www.gentlemanwithin.com/back-to-the-future-fashion/

Clothing in 1985

"C'mon, I had to change! You think I’m going back in that-- that zoot suit?"

—Marty

Basic outfit –

During most of his adventures, except when he changed clothes in 1955 and 1885, Marty wore Guess blue jeans with black 3/4" suspenders, a red t-shirt, lavender ("purple") Calvin Klein underpants, and white Nike Bruin shoes with red swoosh and backtab

(no word Nike on them until he visited 1885) with gray socks (changed to white socks when he visited 2015).

School outfit –

From Friday before school through his first day in 1955, Marty added a Guess Marciano two-tone blue denim jacket with an "Art in Revolution" button, a Fender P-Bass pin and a white checked Shah Safara shirt to his basic outfit.
He accessorized this with a Casio CA50W digital watch on his left wrist, a silver Aiwa model HS-P02 Walkman, and mirrored Zeiss aviator sunglasses with a sweatguard in the morning.
"Life preserver" – From the evening at Twin Pines Mall through his first day in 1955, Marty added a dark orange Class-5 bubble down vest to his school outfit.
Tales From Space – Doc gave Marty a yellow full-length radiation suit for protection when loading the plutonium. Due to the similarity of his outfit to that of a space alien on a comic book cover, his outfit scared the Peabody family and an elderly couple driving past Lyon Estates in 1955.
"Darth Vader" – Marty wore the yellow full-body radiation suit, a hair dryer from Doc Brown's suitcase tucked into a belt, and held his Aiwa portable stereo cassette player.

Doc Brown

"Devo outfit" – Doc wore a white full-length radiation suit, over a green print shirt, white undershirt, black pants and orange Nike Vandal high-top shoes. He also had a watch on his left arm, and digital stopwatch on a lanyard around his neck.
Train shirt – While in 2015, Doc changed back to 1985-style clothing, a yellow Hawaiian shirt with a cartoon train pattern and brown cargo pants, expecting to return Marty, Jennifer and Einstein back home right away.

Jennifer "Hey Mom, nice pants" -

Jennifer wears a blue vest over a white shirt and has pink flower pants.

Other distinctive clothing of 1985

§ Dave wore a uniform for his job as a Burger King restaurant server.

§ George owned a suede jacket.

§ Biff wore a green warm-up outfit on Saturday; a purple warm-up outfit on Sunday.

Clothing in 1955

Biff

"Biff" - On Saturday, Biff wore a red short-sleeve pullover shirt.

School - At school, Biff wore blue jeans and a shirt with a checked red and white pattern.

For the rest of the week, Biff wore a grey jacket, a white T- shirt and black pants. He added a black shirt and a white tie for the Enchantment Under the Sea dance.

Lorraine

"You’re so ... thin" –

On Saturday, November 5, Lorraine wore a pink and purple plaid dress which had a rounded collar, a matching belt around the waist, and a pink bow at the neck. She also wore white socks.

School –

At school, Lorraine wore a blue blouse with a silver brooch and a purple pencil skirt. She also wore her hair in a bun.

"I think you'd look better wearing nothing at all"

On Saturday, November 12 at Ruth's Frock Shop, Lorraine wore a pink knitted sweater, saddle shoes and a novelty black cotton giraffe-print circle skirt which Biff lifted up to expose her panties once outside the shop.

"Well, lookee what we have here"

At the Enchantment Under the Sea dance, Lorraine wore a pink strapless dress, bought with Babs at Ruth’s Frock Shop, which she covered with a white sweater. When she leaned over in the car, Biff was able to see down the front of her dress.

Doc

On Saturday evening, Doc wore a silver robe with black lapels, white shirt, and white knit tie, and dark pants. During the rest of the week, he wore a long white laboratory coat, and put on a pair of green safety goggles when demonstrating the clock tower model. The following Saturday, as he tried to connect the electrical cable, Doc was wearing shoes with Velcro closures that had not yet been invented,[5] although he might have found them in his future counterpart's suitcase.

Other distinctive clothing of 1955

§ Milton Baines wore a coonskin cap, popularized by Disney’s Davy Crockett films.

Clothing in 2015

"First, you have to get out and change clothes."

—Doc to Marty upon arrival in 2015

Doc in his 2015 yellow coat.

Doc Brown

* Marty in his future son's outfit.

"Marty, you’ve got to come back with me"

Doc appeared in Marty’s driveway wearing a long yellow coat, a red shirt with Japanese symbols (no undershirt), silver wraparound glasses with internal video display, and a plastic transparent necktie.

Train shirt – (See: 1985 Doc Brown)

Marty

"You're the spitting image of your future son" –

* Marty Jr.’s outfit and Marty’s disguise consisted of an auto-adjusting and auto-drying jacket (though Marty Jr.'s jacket was broken on the left sleeve), blue jeans worn inside-out (Marty only turned his pockets out), white socks, white Nike MAG power-lacing shoes and a color-shifting lenticular baseball cap.

Marty Jr. wore a white t-shirt with a logo featuring a plus and minus sign. 47-year-old Marty wore a brown business suit over a light brown shirt and brown and yellow multiple ties with rising sun motifs.

Biff

Biff's outfit consisted of a red quarter zip sweatshirt and black, white and green plaid pants.

Griff

Griff's outfit consisted of a helmet with sharp metal spikes, a black-ribbed light green jacket over a black chainmail shirt, black pants and black boots adorned with a sharp metallic rhinoceros-like horn.

Marlene

Other distinctive clothing of 2015

§ Multiple ties worn by Terry, Goldie Wilson III and Marty Sr.

Clothing in 1985A

Lorraine

Lorraine Baines McFly, aged 47, in 1985A clothing and breast implants.

"You’re so ... big" – Lorraine Baines McFly wore a black, belted pant suit with patterns of multicolored dots, and high heeled shoes. The blouse had a low neckline revealing her breast implants.

Biff

Although Biff was fabulously wealthy as a result of his cheating with the almanac in 1985A, his sense of dress was still tacky as the Biff of the original timeline. His outfits were gaudy and ugly, with gold chains and bright blue blazers, giving him the appearance of a lounge lizard. After coming out of the hot tub, Biff wore a blue bathing robe over black swim shorts.

Other distinctive clothing of 1985A

§ Biff's bodyguard Match wore a white cowboy hat.

§ Biff's goon 3-D no longer wore his nominal 3-D glasses as the 3-D movies fad had long since faded by 1985. However, unable to part with the nickname, he wore aviator sunglasses which he had custom made, the left lens to be red and the right lens to be blue.

Clothing in 1885

"You can’t wear those futuristic things in 1885. You shouldn’t even be wearing them in 1955."

—Doc Brown at the Pohatchee Drive-in

Marty

"Clint Eastwood never wore anything like this" – (See: 1955 Marty)

Marty's 1955 western outfit plus hat.

"You sure look like Seamus McFly" – Same as "Clint Eastwood never wore anything like this" (see: 1955 Marty), with a straw derby hat[6]

"Some respectable clothes and a fine hat" – Most of the week, Marty wore a long, blue workshirt, brown jeans, and a brown sarape over long underwear, with a brown flat-topped hat, and boots.[7] The outfit was very similar to the one Marty saw Clint Eastwood wearing in A Fistful of Dollars.

"Go ahead, make my day" – One morning, Marty woke up wearing his long underwear with a half-fastened drop seat, and put on his hat and gun belt to practice in front of the mirror.

Behind the scenes

1955

Bob Gale said that costume designer Deborah Scott found nearly all the clothing for the film in the studio’s wardrobe department; they didn’t have the budget for her to make many original items.[8]

Lea Thompson found the pink dress uncomfortable to wear and even more uncomfortable to dance in, and would walk around the set in the 1950s corset bra and crinoline underskirt to avoid wearing the dress, and once even shocked her mother when she visited her on the set. But despite that, she still hung on to one exemplar of the dress that was given to her, and helped out with the filming of the second movie when the original dress had been lost, and she provided it herself.[9]

The black fedora Marty wore as apart of his 'something inconspicuous' disguise was made by the Stetson hat company, especially for Michael J. Fox.[10]

2015

Costume designer Joanna Johnston said she was terrified at the prospect of designing the clothing of the future, making costumes for the cast and 150 extras from scratch, since Bob’s concept did not have a basis in anyone else’s work. For a future society in which men and women are truly equal, the clothing styles would exaggerate the difference between the sexes. She decided to use a very wide variety of fabrics in bright "but not fluorescent" colors.[11]

1885

Costume designer Joanna Johnston was already familiar with the clothing for the period, having worked on the movie Tess, but found that most of costumes that were made for the Westerns of the '40s, '50s and '60s lacked the authenticity she was looking for. After further research, she created clothing for the main characters and as many as 500 extras based on the original clothing patterns she found.[12]

Back to the Future is being cited as a key fashion inspiration, it will come as no surprise to any fans of the film or, indeed, of fashion.

So much so, in fact, that Eastpak is reissuing the original rucksack Marty travelled through time with this season, sold exclusively at Selfridges (although if you have a DeLorean, you are advised to time-travel and buy one of the 80s originals, as Eastpak is certainly not selling them now at 80s prices).

Marty rocking double denim and high-tops

Marty himself has been something of a hipster template for a while now: the double denim, the checked shirt, the high-tops. If only Marty had arrived in east London 2014 as opposed to Hill Valley 1955 (and, later, 2015 and 1885), he would have fit right in and instantly sparked a sleeveless parka revival.

As for the other characters,

Lorraine Baines (later McFly, then Tannen) has, waist up, a proper Alexa Chung look going on, with her Peter Pan collars and demure little jumpers.

Biff Tannen's sports jackets are definitely in style, for men and women, while George McFly's thick-rimmed glasses have been a fashion staple since the dawn of time (maybe alittle exaggeration there)

As for what Back to the Future fashion pieces the biggest vote has to be for Lorraine's wacky 1955 hairstyle, in which her hair zigzags across her forehead

And honestly? Yeah. The clothing is superb. It doesn’t feel costume-y or try hard like The Great Gatsby or Gangster Squad; in BTTF, the period looks are natural yet interesting, feeling cool but dated.

As this film was made in the 80s, that the period they were parodying (1950s) wasn’t that historical. It was like (literally) looking at pictures your parents wore and checking local thrift stores for clothing ideas.

This all probably contributes to why Hill Valley in 1955 feels real and not filled with some wise-cracking gangster with a down-on-his-luck shoeshine kid.

Clearly, there is a huge difference between menswear in 1955 and 1985, but there are just things that make the 1950’s stand out when compared to other eras, but the 1950’s was a remarkably different than the 1940s.

In this post war time, you had the first inklings of true casual style. Instead of sportcoats as sportswear, you had dedicated garments like Hollywood jackets.

Shortjackets with point collars and bomber styles were extremely popular to wear when you were off work or just a youth.

Jeans and converse were the new go-to for casual pant/shoes, though a few still wore pleated

Hollywood waist gab slacks and derbies. And let’s not forget the explosion of prints (tiki and atomic) and tone-on-tone variations that made sportshirts truly “sporty”.

People today call it the Bold Look for tailoring (due to the heavy shoulder pads and dropped button stance) and Rockabilly for casual style. Either way, it’s pretty cool.

Good examples of the fun casual shirts in the 1950s.

Short jackets of all kinds were common, this time done with fun details.

Great shirts and an epic trouser to boot.

Ties in the 1950’s were more about abstract vertical designs. Some were slim, others were wide.

Leisuire jackets were all the rage.

BTTF gets all of this right, presumably by the use of true vintage (since the patterns and designs are really specific) as according to the wiki, they only used whatever was in Universal’s costume warehouse.

However, warehouses could definitely still make good reproductions! We’ll never know what is true vintage or not, but I’m leaning on the use of true vintage pieces since would only be 30 years old and wouldn’t be hard to source and get in decent condition.

Marty McFly

We all know Marty McFly’s epic 1985 look. Denim jacket on slim high waisted jeans, with a solid colored crewneck under a button up shirt; we also can’t forget the life preserver and white/red Nike Bruin sneakers. It’s a classic outfit that isn’t actually out of place today, since you could wear it at a Halloween costume or as a generic dude in LA (maybe lose one of the layers though).

That period paved the way for “non-traditional” garment mixing that ushered in the current way we approach casual style. Since this is only 15 years from the period of overalls with oxfords or puffers and military chinos, it’s no surprise that wanna-be rocker Marty McFly would also wear something as weird.

However, as we saw in the movie, he stuck out like a sore thumb when he was accidentally sent back in time to 1955. Luckily with a rich heir like Doc Brown as a friend, Marty is able to get some period accurate clothes and fit into this iteration of Hill Valley.

Marty’s first look for a new day in 1955 is a damn good one: every piece is so great. Firstly we can see the two-tone leather-gab jacket with a point collar. Two-tone jackets were popular as youth novelty wear. I’m pretty sure the one in the film is a reproduction, but if you found that as vintage it would be worth a lot.

Underneath the jacket, Marty has a block motif sportshirt that he’s rolled up his sleeves a la James Dean. Patterns like this are what make this era’s shirts so much fun.

He has white socks and penny loafers!

With the shirt, he finishes this perfect 1950’s casual-youth outfit with (presumably) pleated hollywood waist slacks that seem to be made of some silk or rayon blend. providing crunchy/shiny texture that fits in with the era’s obsession with patterns and atomic themes.

Overall, it’s a great uniform to do: sportshirt + high rise trousers + casual jacket. Marty wears the look well, with everything fitting perfectly. In fact, this vibe not only informs some of the looks you can see at Inspiration LA It may not be atomic or tiki, but alohas are certainly in full force in today’s spring/summer. Even the thin belts are coming back.

They need to make prints like this again!

When Marty gets into the epic skateboard chase, he retains the two-tone jacket but brings in a new shirt and pant combo. The shirt, now a red/blue piece with a wild diagonal stripe mixed with oversized squares is an EPIC one. Its a bold pattern, which again makes the 1950’s unique in it’s choice of casual patterns. It just has that retro appeal that I think would look great under a sportcoat, if there were just makers that had it (since a true vintage one would no doubt be expensive).

Note here that he’s now wearing some straight cut blue jeans. It’s different than his slightly acid-washed ones from the 80s, mainly in how it drapes. They’re not overly wide, but moderate, ending with a cuff. They look how I want my jeans to fit with proper drape. Again, Marty kills it.

At some point, Marty swapped his Corteze with black converse. Looks very 50’s when worn with cuffed blue jeans.

Another fun gab sportshirt that is worn untucked with a white undershirt base layer.

Note the two-tone coloring. Very 50’s.

His last major 50’s look is a sportcoat-trouser combo, worn to the Enchantment Under the Sea Dance. We don’t really get a good look at the full cut or details, so we’re left wondering if this is a true 50’s jacket (or designed like it) or something from the 1980s that they tried to pass off.

The choice of odd trouser, a charcoal grey fleck Again, this was a time of exploring fabrics and cuts in the realm of tailoring, and while illustrations may keep everything clean, photographs from the era showed that the youth always had a mishmash of things. It’s probably because they didn’t have dozens of trousers to begin with.

The wide cut may be inspired by the zoot suit (Marty does reference it in the film, but zoot suits were more of a 40s thing IIRC), but he rocks it all the same.

Since you get to see it in full force (along with white socks and black two-tone derbies) while he’s playing the guitar, perhaps it’s his way of exuding that rebellious rocker chic in 1955. He certainly stood out amongst the crowd!

Doc Brown

We don’t really get to see much of Doc Brown’s attire until Marty goes to visit him in 1955; Doc is just in a white jumpsuit in the Lone Pine Mall.

When Marty visits him, Doc seems to wearing a variation on what we’d expect a well-to-do heir would wear at home. A pink shirt (the 1950’s loved color, if you couldn’t already tell) and a white single stripe tie are fun nods to the fact that he’s an adult, but you get the affluent charm with an epic silver dressing gown.

With a scale-esque texture and it’s moderate black satin peak lapels (echoed by the pocket piping), it definitely has that post-war fun vibe.

When Doc goes with Marty to Hill Valley High to check out Marty’s parents, Doc has on a very typical “casual man” outfit. The tiki shirt is a no brainer at this point, but note the cool gab jacket he has on.

It’s definitely some form of leisure jacket with modest lapels, patch pockets, and a fun little monogram on the patch. Jackets like this were casual but they clearly took after the classic sportcoat design; it looks smarter than simply wearing a leather jacket or gab short jacket.

Also take note of his straw fedora (I don’t think it’s technically a panama hat). Instead of the traditional black band, he instead has an abstract design as a ribbon, which was a common trend in the 1940s-1960s for straw hats. It also just makes the hat much more casual, which is one of the reasons why it’s hard to wear fedora-type hats often.

Flecked trousers. The 1950s loved fleck.

A checked asymmetrical sportshirt with a yolked pocket flap.

Look at Doc’s weird shirt! Super cool and novelty style that was popular in the late 40s-50s. Finding one today would be rare and expensive.

Doc Brown’s last outfit in 1955 is hard to make out, as he wears an balmaccan style rain coat for the climax, but his polo-style shirt deserves some recognition. Like so many other pieces we’ve seen, the shirt features a fun print, consisting of red and black squiggles.

The shirt has a contrast collar/placket and cuffs, which again fits in with many of the stylistic choices of the era. I’m not sure if I would wear it today, but more brands should definitely take a page out of the era and make something “new”!

Marty’s dad, at least this version of him, dresses like a dweeb because he is a dweeb. It’s supposed to be 1985, where RL and other mall clothes are in full swing, and yet he dresses like a caricature of a 1960’s accountant.

Short sleeve shirt, repp tie, pen pockets, and browline glasses, all contribute to it. I mean I’ve worn socks and shorts together, but I don’t think it looked this bad.

I mean, it makes sense since the film is portraying George as someone who is unlucky, who gets bullied, and gathers no respect.

A flecked short jacket.

In 1955, George McFly actually dresses pretty decently! He’s not exactly sticking out like a nerdy sore-thumb. Like Marty, he wears a few different sportshirts and short jackets, though in comparison, they’re much more plain. George could also benefit with a better fit, but it’s not terrible. At least in most cases.

What George does make a habit of doing is wearing his sportshirts fastened all the way to the top. Now this was done back in the day, but based on photos and illustrations, sport collars were definitely best worn open.

It’s a nerd thing to do that came back in the mid 2010s as the “air tie” and always results in the wearer looking “closed up”. And since George is a nervous guy with no friends or confidence, it works perfectly.

I like the checked cloth and red buttons.

In one scene, George actually wears a two-tone Hollywood Jacket! Like with Doc’s ivory jacket, these are meant to be a casual-yet-tailored approach to casual wear. You’ll see that the cut and design are similar to a chore coat’s, just with shoulder pads and “formal” cloth.

George’s brown gab short jacket has shoulder pads and is a size or two too big for him. Also see how he’s got his shirt buttoned all the way up.

An interesting cotton short jacket with a wider collar and hand warmer pockets. Very cool.

George goes all out for the dance, mainly because it’s his big moment to “save” Lorraine. A white dinner jacket and black tie is hard not to separate from James Bond (or Casablanca), and its actually the first time George wears something that fits him well. It’s still in the 1950’s aesthetic, so he has padded square shoulders, a low button stance, and closed quarters.

When we return to good ol’ modified 1985, accounting-nerd George has been replaced by a true chad version. There are no short sleeve shirts and browline shades here. Instead, he has a very 80s biz-caz outfit consisting of a moleskin blazer, vibrant red polo, and pleated slacks. It’s not bold, but since this is a “normal” outfit, it contrasts against George’s first appearance.I also love the aviators for max 80s cool.

Biff Tannen

Biff. When we first see him, his commandingly bold 70’s outfit just screams like a guy who peaked in high school and still bullies others. Which is definitely true.

It’s such a weird look that actually has some prep vibes to it, mainly with the use of a navy brass button blazer and plaid odd trousers; I think I may even see a white braided belt.

1985 Biff actually dresses rather “normal” for the era, though he stands out for his boisterous character and sheer Kingpin-like aura.

It’s all just sportshirts, white crewneck tees, and jeans, nothing to write home about. but with it just being done with jeans and sneakers, it feels boring, mainly because its an easy way to do a 1950s look. It’s easy to replicate, but don’t forget that a sportcollar makes a world of difference; a regular standing collar wouldn’t achieve the same effect.

I guess the point is that Biff is just a regular old bully, contrasting against George’s plain looks that utilize jackets and Marty’s much more interesting take on the era.

Biff’s jacket of choice is a bomber style one that has black contrasting collar and cuffs. Can’t you see how popular two-tone clothing was in those days? Like Marty’s leather jacket, this one also ends around the waist, but instead of it just being a plain bomber design, Biff’s jacket has decorative front pleating. Don’t ask why, it’s just for show.

Like with the shirt patterns, I wish we also had more vintage-inspired jackets like this!

A black shirt and bold tie? I guess stereotypical prom style was a thing even in 1955.

Others

Strickland has a bowtie and suit, but if you look closely, the suit is very 80s with wide shoulders, open notch and low buttoning point.

In 1955, he has a suit that clearly has more weight and features a fun shadow stripe, a common thing for vintage suits.

Ivy style isn’t really in the film other than the committee deciding on the band. 80s ivy is just like 70s ivy tbh: just a more exaggerated and bold version of 60s ivy.

Goldie Wilson also wears a bar motif sportshirt, though with the wide collar, it might be from the 40’s. That makes sense, since he might not have access to current fashions.

Lorraine’s dad wears a car coat (an overcoat with a shorter length). He has a fedora, which gives him an “adult” look. Not sure if the trouser fit is right though.

As can be expected, Lorraine’s dad has a gab sportshirt. The shorter collar points and higher buttoning point is period accurate to the 1950s.

So much great stuff here, from the faded, cuffed denim and saddle shoes to the absolutely epic novelty knitwear. I’m very glad that the youth have a variety of style!

Striped shirts are what kids wore back then, not flat caps, plus-fours, and suspenders.

Biff’s gang all have variations on casual style. Is that a knit tee I see? Wish we could see the ribbing!

More variety in style here and it all looks period. Love the kid’s pastel blue pleated pants, the red sweater, and what I think is a Cub Scout uniform. Check out that tiny brimmed hat!

Marvin Berry and the Starlighters all wear 50’s silk dinner jackets with their quintessential square shoulders and low button stance. Instead of bowties, they have matching continental bow ties.

Great short jacket.

Conclusion

BTTF is a great example of a movie that makes 1950’s clothing seem accessible and easy. There isn’t a big focus on tailoring, which probably makes it much more palatable. Instead, we see casual 50’s, rockabilly-esque style, which informs a lot of the heritage-Americana that is so easy for guys to wear. Sportshirts and cuffed jeans should get you through the most of it.

The real way to make it interesting is by checking out how Marty does it. Instead of plain shirts, he wore fun patterns that made his attire stand out among the others. It might be vintage and dated, but I certainly love the personality they bring to an outfit, especially since today you can refine it by wearing with loafers or a sportcoat instead of on its own.

Bonus points for those epic two-tone jackets (or leather jackets in general). I’m not sure if the world is ready for the return of hollywood jackets, but after the rise of chore coats and safaris, maybe there’s room for it.

Overall, I think a lot of guys who are searching for a more interesting way to dress can take some cues from this. BTTF did a great job and since it didn’t go too crazy (note the lack of flat caps, which if included would just be inaccurate), it comes off as classic and actually wearable.

I love this movie and I hope you enjoyed this dive into the costuming

Always a pleasure,

Ethan M. Wong

https://streetxsprezza.wordpress.com/2020/06/21/the-menswear-in-back-to-the-future-1985/

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Ghostbuster - Ecto 1

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/3/31/ghostbusters-ecto-1

Cars of Back to the Future

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/2/10/the-cars-of-back-to-the-future-55-

Back to the Future Fashion

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/2/19/back-to-the-future-fashion-te2yx

Ariel Leader

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/2/17/ariel-leader

Back to the Future - Hill Valley History

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/2/2/hill-valley-history-jxrr4

Back to the Future Gadgets and Trends we have in 2021

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/2/10/34-back-to-the-future-gadgets-and-trends

Doc Browns Biography and the History of his DeLorean Time Machine

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/1/26/doc-browns-biography-amp-history-of-the-time-machine

Marty McFly Biography also featuring Biff, George, Jennifer, Loranine

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/2/2/biography-marty-mcfly-michael-j-fox-biff-george-jennifer-loranine

Back to the Future - Hill Valley History

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/2/2/hill-valley-history

Back to the Future - Detailed storyline

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/1/24/back-to-the-future-detailed-storyline-

Back to the Future - How to generate 1.21 Giggawatts / Jiggawatts with Mr Fusion

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/1/25/great-scott-how-to-generate-121-giggawatts-jiggawatts-mr-fusion-

What is a Fat Bike ? And where did the idea of Fat Bikes come from ?

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/1/10/fat-bike-what-is-a-fat-bike-history

The Time Paradox explained - Back to the Future

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/1/16/time-paradox-explained-back-to-the-future

The Sinclair C5

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/1/9/sinclair-c5-

Mini Jeep Mini Review

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/minicoolsterjeepreview

Hoverboards - Back to the Future

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2020/12/13/hoverboards-

How does the Time Machine work - Back to the Future

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2020/11/22/how-does-the-time-machine-work

The DeLorean Motor Company - What did it fail ? Or did it ?

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2020/11/22/whydiddeloreanmotorcompanyfail

The DeLorean Motor Company - History

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2020/11/22/deloreanmotorcompany

The Flux Capacitor - Back to the Future

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/fluxcapacitor

Is Time Travel Possible ? And what would it take ? Back to the Future

https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/istimetravelpossible

External links

§ https://backtothepredictions.com/category/fashion/

§ https://backtothepredictions.com/category/fashion/clothing/

§ https://backtothepredictions.com/tag/clothing/

§ https://backtothepredictions.com/tag/fashion/

References

1. ↑ http://www.bttf.com/forums BTTF.com Message Board

2. ↑ http://www.bttf.com/forums BTTF.com Message Board

3. ↑ http://www.bttf.com/forums/topic.php?tp=38901-I+FOUND+IT%21+This+is+like+finding+the+holy+grail...+I+have+found+the+Marty+McFLy+Vest%21%21%21#

4. ↑ BTTF III novel, p. 38, 39

5. ↑ Velcro 50th Anniversary : Timeline, see "1985".

6. ↑ BTTF III novel, p. 73

7. ↑ BTTF III novel, p. 98, p. 205

8. ↑ Feature Commentary with Bob Gale and Neil Canton, Part I, at about 1:10.

9. ↑ Gaines, Caseen, We Don't Need Roads: The Making of the Back to the Future trilogy, p. unknown

10. ↑ http://www.icollector.com/Back-To-The-Future-2-Marty-s-Something-Inconspicuous-Fedora-Michael-J-Fox_i20788290

11. ↑ Klastorin, Michael, and Sally Hibbin, Back to the Future: The Official Book of the Complete Movie Trilogy, p. 71-72.

12. ↑ Klastorin, Michael, and Sally Hibbin, Back to the Future: The Official Book of the Complete Movie Trilogy, p. 60-61.

www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk

Mark Elliott 12/05/2024 Mark Elliott 12/05/2024

Back to the Future - Detailed Storyline

It all started when…

Marty: "Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Doc, uh... Are you telling me you built a time machine... out of a DeLorean?"

Doc: "The way I see it, if you're gonna build a time machine into a car, why not do it with some style? Besides, the stainless steel construction makes the flux dispersal- l…….ook out !!!"

Read the plot to Back to the Future in our Blog to the Future post today !

Doc Brown and Marty McFly - Credit to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

It all started when…

Marty: "Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Doc, uh... Are you telling me you built a time machine... out of a DeLorean?"

Doc: "The way I see it, if you're gonna build a time machine into a car, why not do it with some style? Besides, the stainless steel construction makes the flux dispersal- look out!!!"

— Doc and Marty during the first test

The DeLorean time machine was Dr. Emmett Brown's most successful invention, a plutonium-powered time machinecomprised of a DeLorean DMC-12 sports car that had to reach 88 miles per hour in order to time travel.

On November 5, 1955, Doc was standing on the edge of his toilet, while hanging a clock in his bathroom. But the porcelain was wet, making Doc slip, fall and hit his head on the sink. When Doc came to, he had a vision of the flux capacitor in his head, and drew a crude schematic diagram as well as scrawling some hurried calculations. The capacitor was constructed afterward and completed in 1985.

Doc Browns Flux Capacitor - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

History

Doc purchased the DeLorean DMC-12 from a seller named Robert, who had advertised it in the classifieds section of the August 11, 1984 issue of the Hill Valley Telegraph.

BACK

The first test

Main article: World's first temporal displacement

Doc and Marty stand in the fire trails left behind by the DeLorean on the first test.

Doc Brown revealed his creation to his friend Marty McFly at Twin Pines Mall, in the early morning of October 26, 1985, and for its first test, Doc sent his dog Einstein one minute into the future. The sequence of events that followed were as so; after Doc revved up the engine to 65 m.p.h. while braked, he released the brake sending the car towards Doc and Marty.

Einstein Time Travelling Dog - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

A faint glow developed at the front of the car and then engulfed the vehicle. The coils lit up, internal circuits glowed, and the flux capacitor fired rapidly. Suddenly the car seemed to explode just before it hit Doc and Marty. Fire trails then scorched the pavement where the vehicle would have passed through, completing the temporal displacement sequence.

Marty: "Jesus Christ, Doc. You disintegrated Einstein!"

Doc: "Calm down, Marty, I didn't disintegrate anything. The molecular structure of both Einstein and the car are completely intact!"

Marty: "Well, where the hell are they?!"

Doc: "The appropriate question is "When the hell are they?" You see, Einstein has just become the world's first time traveler. I sent him into the future! One minute into the future to be precise. And at exactly 1:21 A.M. and zero seconds we will catch up to him and the time machine."

— Doc and Marty after the time travel experiment.

For Einstein, the trip was instantaneous, but to Marty and Doc they had to wait exactly one minute to catch up to Einstein in the timeline. In the meantime, Marty asked why a DeLorean was used.

Doc explained that it needed some style and implied that the stainless steel construction of the car helped it in temporal displacement. But Doc didn't fully explain why because the watch he was wearing at the time beeped, warning him that the DeLorean's return was only seconds away.

The car suddenly appeared where Doc and Marty were standing and screeched to a halt as a frozen shell. Supercooled from traveling through time, the gullwing door was troublesome for Doc to open while using his hands. Inside the car, Einstein was unharmed, much to the surprise of Marty. Doc then showed Marty the interior and its controls.

"First, you turn the time circuits on. This read-out tells you where you're going. This one tells you where you are. This one tells you where you were."

—Doc Brown

While inputting dates on the keypad, Doc used July 4, 1776 (the date the American declaration of Independence was signed) and December 25, 0000 (the date of the birth of Christ) as examples, before inputting "a red-letter date in the history of science, November 5, 1955". From there he left the cockpit of the DeLorean and reminisced about the past, particularly about Old Man Peabody owning the land that is now Twin Pines Mall and his pine tree farm.

"My, things sure have changed. I can remember when this was all open land as far as the eye can see. Old Man Peabody owned all of this. He had this crazy idea... about breeding pine trees."

—Doc talking to Marty

Trapped in 1955

Soon after a new pellet of plutonium was inserted into the time machine, the Libyans who he stole the plutonium from intervened in a Volkswagen and shot Doc dead. Marty ran into the DeLorean to try to escape the Libyans. Marty accidentally turned the time circuits (still set to 1955) on while shifting, and as he avoided being destroyed by a rocket-propelled grenade, he sped up to 88 and entered temporal displacement. Suddenly, Marty went from a mall parking lot in 1985, to a field in 1955, and the DeLorean crashed into a scarecrow and then the Peabodys' barn.

Frozen Delorean - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

VW Camper Chasing DeLorean - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

Lyon Estate - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

A radiation suit-clad Marty trips as he leaves the DeLorean.

"It looks like an airplane... without wings."

—Otis Peabody

For a moment, Marty was stunned, and the Peabody family ran from their house to the barn to investigate. Believing that the vehicle was from another world, they screamed in horror as Marty lifted the gullwing door and stepped out, dressed in a radiation suit. Marty was almost shot from the buckshot of Otis Peabody's shotgun, and ran back to the safety of the time machine, floored the accelerator, and smashed through the doors of the barn. After escaping from Peabody's shotgun, the car ran over one of the two pines that Peabody had been growing. This was the first effect of Marty's trip into the past that would alter the future (the "Twin Pines Mall" would become the "Lone Pine Mall").

Marty pulled the DeLorean onto a highway that ran by the future site of Lyon Estates. He immediately stopped and viewed the undeveloped land stretch far out into the distance, questioning whether or not it was a dream. A meter in the DeLorean indicated that it was out of plutonium, and the car shut down. Marty failed to get it running again and decided to hide the DeLorean behind the Lyon Estates sign, covered by a few shrubs, and walked the two miles to town.

"It works! Ha ha, it works! I finally invented something that works."

—Young Doc Brown

After convincing the 1955 Doc that he was indeed from the future, Marty and Doc went back to the site to recover the time machine. Doc opened the door and turned on the flux capacitor which he had envisioned after his fall earlier that day. The DeLorean was driven back to Doc's garage where it was hidden under a tarpaulin until the night of the thunderstorm, November 12.

On the 12th, Doc brought the time machine to Courthouse Square in downtown Hill Valley, and started working on the cable assembly that would harness the impending lightning strike. Arriving late, Marty was briefed by Doc, just as the storm moved in and took down a tree. Marty drove the DeLorean to the starting line at the Bluebird Motel, and inserted a tall connecting hook into the flux capacitor. He then waited for the alarm to go off while Doc reconnected the cable, and decided to reset the controls to arrive 11 minutes earlier than scheduled. With that, the engine suddenly died, and left Marty trying to restart it. Marty finally (and unexpectedly) succeeded in restarting the engine after head-butting the horn in frustration, and took off. The DeLorean reached the cable just as the lightning struck, and Doc made the connection, sending the time machine back to 1985.

In 1985, Red the Bum was awoken by the sonic boom of the DeLorean, followed by the sound of a crash at the Town Theater. Marty jumped out of the icy time machine to check out downtown and to verify that he had gotten back to the future, and back to his normal year of 1985. Returning to the car to save Doc, Marty tried to drive off and the engine died once again. This was the last time in the trilogy that it had done so. The Libyans passed him on the street, and Marty ran back to the mall. There, he saw the first DeLorean make the jump to 1955, with the terrorists' van crashing into a photo booth. Originally believing he was too late, Marty was in grief, then surprise. Doc recovered, and revealed that he was wearing a bulletproof vest, having read the warning letter that Marty had written 30 years earlier.

Doc returned to downtown to start the DeLorean up, and drove Marty back to his home in Lyon Estates. Doc told Marty he would go roughly 30 years into the future, "a nice round number". Doc backed the DeLorean up with enough room to reach 88 mph on the street and vanished in three sonic booms.

While in the future, Doc decided to give the DeLorean a now standard hover conversion. To afford this, he traveled back to 1938, and bought several copies of Action Comics #1. He sold them for $2.5 million in 2015, and flew off in the newly converted DeLorean. At some point, he discovered that Marty's children were destined to accidentally go to prison, which would eventually destroy the McFly family.

BACK

biffTo the future

Marty: "Hey Doc, we better back up. We don't have enough road to get up to 88."

Where we’re going we don’t need …. roads …. Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

Skyway to Hill Valley - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

Doc: "Roads? Where we're going we don't need... roads."

— Discussion between Doc and Marty in the DeLorean before takeoff

The DeLorean lifts off, bound for 2015.

Doc returned to the McFly residence, the morning after he left. Marty had discovered that his life had changed for the better. His visiting girlfriend Jennifer Parker, and he, were interrupted by the sonic boom and wind blast. The newly upgraded DeLorean knocked over some trashcans, and a futuristically-garbed Doc emerged from the vehicle. Doc made use of his upgraded time machine by adding garbage to the Mr. Fusion as fuel. Plutonium was no longer needed after the trip to the future. Doc told Marty and Jennifer of their future family, and the trouble that occurred (or would occur) with their children.

The DeLorean lifted off the ground and its wheels folded providing thrust. The rear louver then propelled it forward down the street, and Doc turned the car around to get the speed needed to make temporal displacement. This entire sequence was witnessed by Biff Tannen in the McFly driveway.

The time machine entered October 21, 2015, then descended through the clouds into a busy skyway, nearly in the wrong lane of multilevel traffic. Doc pulled off onto an exit ramp to downtown Hill Valley. He landed the DeLorean in an alleyway, just outside Courthouse Square, then left while Marty completed his mission to save Marty, Jr. After Doc recovered Einstein from a suspended animation kennel, he pulled the DeLorean out into the open, where Old Biff saw it, and eventually put two and two together to realize that they were time travelers.

Biff steals the DeLorean.

"Flying DeLorean? Haven't seen one of those in... thirty years"

—Old Biff

Biff followed Doc and Marty in a taxi cab, and while the DeLorean was parked outside Hilldale, Biff stole it and went back to 1955 to hand the Grays Sports Almanac (that Doc had thrown away) to his younger self, thus altering history. In a matter of minutes, Biff returned the vehicle in the same position; however, he was feeling the effects of changing history.

In pain, he left the silver-colored bag and receipt for the almanac, as well as the top of his cane which broke off in the DeLorean when he doubled over. Getting out of view, Biff slumped to the ground and faded from existence behind a parked car. Doc and Marty, unaware that anything had happened, returned to the time machine with Jennifer and headed back for 1985.

An alternate history

"Imagine that this line represents time. At some point in the past, the timeline skewed into this tangent creating an alternate 1985. Alternate for you, me, Jennifer and Einstein...But reality for everyone else."

—Doc showing Marty 1985A on a blackboard.

Doc Brown - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

DeLorean getting struck by lighting - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

By this time it was too late to prevent the changing of the timeline. Flying at a high altitude, the DeLorean was nearly hit by an airliner in the sky. The time circuits began to malfunction as well, indicating 1885 temporarily. After discovering the truth behind the alternate 1985, Doc and Marty left Einstein in Doc's garage, and Jennifer at her house, where time would alter around them pending a change in the past. They traveled back to November 12, 1955, the date that Biff revealed to have been the day he had gotten the almanac.

Doc parked the time machine behind the same sign that Marty hid it the first time in 1955. Marty notified Doc of his status with Biff, and after some repairs, Doc jumped into the DeLorean to pick him up at Hill Valley High School.

As Doc left Lyon Estates, the car had hooked onto some of the pennants on the sign. Doc and Marty followed Biff in his car, and hovered over him, until Marty thought of using the hoverboard to get closer. Marty grabbed the almanac after some fighting, but was faced with being in the middle of a long tunnel from which to escape.

At the end of the tunnel, Doc dropped the string of pennants that he had hooked onto earlier, and Marty grabbed the rope in time to prevent himself from getting run over by Biff (who crashed, for the second time in a week, into a manure truck).

Returning to Lyon Estates to destroy the almanac, Doc lowered Marty onto the ground, but deemed it unsafe to land the DeLorean in the storm. Marty successfully burned the almanac in an old bucket, reverting all effects that had been created by 2015 Biff. The celebration was short-lived; lightning struck a tree close to Marty, who warned Doc about getting struck himself. In the next instant, however, lightning struck the DeLorean as feared, spinning it up to 88 mph (thus creating the fire trails in the shape of backward 9's), scrambling the circuits, and sent Doc and the DeLorean back to January 1, 1885 [1]

Less than a minute later, a man, representing Western Union, appeared on the rainy street and handed Marty a letter. The letter, from Doc, had been held in their possession for over 70 years, with instructions for delivery to that exact position, at that exact moment, to that exact person — Marty.

Marty ran back downtown, arriving just moments after his other self was going back to the future, and after the temporal displacement, he encountered 1955 Doc, who then fainted.

Marty: "OK, Doc, just calm down. It's me. It's me! It's Marty!"

Doc: "No, it can't be you! I just sent you back to the future!"

Marty: "Yeah, I know. But I'm back. I'm back from the future."

— Marty to Doc before Doc exclaims "Great Scott" and faints.

BACK

The letter, read the next morning by Doc, stated that the DeLorean was buried in the Delgado Mine, and provided repair instructions on fixing the time circuits with 1955 parts. At the Boot Hill Cemetery, outside the mine, Marty and Doc stumbled onto 1985 Doc's tombstone from 1885. It was now Marty's mission to save Doc in the past, and bring him back to the future as well.

Doc replaced the rotting tires with new whitewall tires and, working from the schematic diagram provided with the repair instructions, replaced all the broken instruments with 1955-era vacuum tubes and other components. He also put gasoline in the tank, since 1985 Doc had to drain all the fluids from the car, including the gas, before putting it into long-term storage.

1885 - Back to the Future - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

The Old West

The DeLorean encounters a tribe of local Indians.

"Marty, you're not thinking fourth-dimensionally. You'll instantly be transported to 1885 and those Indians won't even be there..."

1955 Doc and Marty set up at the Pohatchee Drive-In Theatre, far away from town, so that Marty's arrival would not be noticed by residents in 1885. Doc set the time circuits to the day after his 1885 counterpart sent the letter on September 1. Marty hesitated to drive at the screen because of a wall with Indians painted on it; but as Marty reached 88 mph, the 1955 wall was gone, but was replaced with real, 1885, Pohatchee Indians, who chased after the DeLorean, which Marty hid in a bear cave.

Marty avoided the Indians, and the U.S. Cavalry that was chasing them, but discovered that an Indian had shot an arrow into the engine of the DeLorean. Upon removing the arrow, Marty accidentally tears a hole in the fuel line of the car. He pays it no mind as he is chased out of the cave by the bear living there at the time, and fell down the hill and landed on the property of his Irish ancestors.

The DeLorean was recovered by Doc, but there was no gasoline available in 1885 to replace the fuel that had leaked out. [2]Marty wasn't concerned as he stated Mr. Fusion could refuel the DeLorean. Doc said that was impossible as the engine always ran on gasoline and Mr. Fusion only powered the flux compacitor and the flight circuits. Doc then plotted means of powering the car, including having his horses try to reach 88 mph out in the desert, they only made 30 mph.

DeLorean fuel tank damaged by a arrow - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

Doc received a strong alcohol concoction from the town bartender, Chester, that he hoped would have a similar effect to gasoline, but instead, blew the fuel injection manifold out. This left only one available option: pushing the DeLorean up to 88, which came in the form of a locomotive.

Doc and Marty's plan was to hijack, or borrow, the locomotive, and take it to an unused spur that ran to Shonash Ravine, where it would push the car before running off the end of the track. On the night of September 6, Doc placed the car onto the track. There, it awaited the locomotive.

DeLorean being pushed to 88mph - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

DeLorean Destroyed by Locomotive - Credits to Universal Picture Amblin Entertainment

Their plan was successfully enacted on September 7, and though Marty was sent back to 1985, Doc and Clara Clayton remained in the past. The DeLorean reached temporal displacement just before hitting the buffer at the edge of the ravine; however the train crashed through and landed into the ravine in a large explosion.

The DeLorean is destroyed by a locomotive.

Back in 1985, the DeLorean traveled along the railroad tracks for about a mile until it came to rest on the track outside Hilldale. Immediately, Marty was stunned to see a modern locomotive barreling towards him, and escaped from the DeLorean just before it was destroyed by the train. After it had passed by, Marty gazed at the time circuits and flux capacitor in shock just as they flickered on and then off for the last time.

"...Well Doc, it's destroyed... Just like you wanted..."

—Marty standing at the remains of the DeLorean

Marty and Jennifer, who had remained on her porch, both went through the wreckage. Then, peculiarly, the railroad crossing's bells sounded and its gates went down. No trains were to be seen. Just then, the Jules Verne Train appeared, and blew Marty and Jennifer back several feet. This was Doc's way to return without the aid of the DeLorean. After introducing Marty and Jennifer to the two new members of the family, Jules and Verne, Doc handed Marty a gift — the photograph of them standing in front of the clock — and gave some words of advice before leaving to times unknown.

"Your future hasn't been written yet! No one's has! Your future is whatever you make of it. So make it a GOOD one!"

Doc Brown - Your Future hasn’t been written yet

—Doc to Marty and Jennifer

Marty: "Where ya going Doc? Back to the future?"

Doc: "No, already been there!"

— Doc and Marty during the final scene of Back to the Future Part III

Just before its destruction, the DeLorean can be seen to have parts from every time period it has been in. Inside the time machine was also a walkie-talkie from 1985A.

Rebirth of the DeLorean

Note: The following section is considered non-canon or is disputed in canonicity.

Six months after the destruction of the DeLorean, another DeLorean time machine, nearly identical to the one used previously by Marty and Doc, appeared outside of Doc's garage. Upon following Einstein's clues to the source of the time machine, Marty drove it back to 1931, where he found Doc in jail for allegedly blowing up a speakeasy.

Doc told Marty that the DeLorean he had been driving was a temporal duplicate, created when the DeLorean was struck by lightning; the original going seventy years back to 1885, and the other version seventy years forward to 2025. Doc went forward in time with the Jules Verne Train, recovered the second DeLorean, fixed it up, and began traveling again. Doc also installed a program that would activate upon Doc not returning to the vehicle within a certain length of time. This automatic retrieval feature allowed the DeLorean to return to a set time and location of Doc's choosing.[3]

Around 1991, Doc Brown and his family returned to Hill Valley in the Train and settled down in the present. Marty had, by now, been attending Hill Valley College, and he visited the Brown family regularly. The DeLorean was rebuilt with added features, including a new audio receptive series of time circuits, submersible capabilities, a pincer, and having the ability to fold into a compact suitcase-sized box (which still weighed as much as the car at 2,796 pounds[4]). The greatest improvement to the DeLorean was the addition of spatial displacement, which allowed the car to travel not only through time, but through space.

Soon after, Doc built additional DeLoreans for use by the Institute of Future Technology.

In 1931B

The DeLorean time machine burned out after Edna burnt down Hill Valley.

One version of the DeLorean was stolen by Edna Strickland who took it back to 1876 to light Beauregard Tannen's half-finished saloon on fire, accidentally burning down Hill Valley and the DeLorean in the process. When Doc and Marty arrive at her residence in the newly created 1931B, the vehicle is a rusted hulk of metal on Edna's property.

Non-canon or disputable information ends here.

Behind the scenes

A rack of vacuum tubes and other components strapped to the hood replaces the time control microchip.

In the animated series, the DeLorean is supposedly rebuilt, regardless of what Doc said about the dangers of time traveling.
In the first script of Back to the Future the time machine was shaped like a refrigerator. The idea was scrapped, for fear of kids climbing into and becoming trapped in refrigerators. Because an abandoned refrigerator can become an inescapable trap for a small child, laws in most nations require that the door be removed when such an item is disposed of.
- Coincidentally, the final version of the time machine was composed of stainless steel, from which many refrigerators are made of.
At the end of Back to the Future, the alarm clock that the 1955 Doc had placed on the dashboard of the DeLorean could be seen. But in the beginning of Back to the Future Part II, it is no longer on the dashboard of the DeLorean.
At the start of the 1990 behind-the-scenes TV show The Secrets of the Back to the Future Trilogy, host Kirk Cameron arrived in an Old West town in the DeLorean.

Construction of the DeLorean for the films

The base of the DeLorean's nuclear reactor was constructed from a hubcap of a Dodge Polara. The engine sounds came from a Porsche but the engine was never replaced with a Porsche engine and kept stock.[5] Aircraft parts and blinking lights were added for additional effects.

Since all American models of the actual DMC-12 had speedometers that only read up to 85 miles per hour, a modified instrument cluster was installed, with a speedometer that reached 95. (A law from the administration of President Jimmy Carter prescribed that automobile speedometers could not read more than 85 m.p.h. with the intent that if people could not read speeds higher than that, that they wouldn't drive faster than that.)

In popular culture

The Wolfram|Alpha computational knowledge engine defines a "delorean" as a unit of power equal to 1.21 jigowatts, and uses 88 miles per hour as a benchmark for comparing speeds. See: "speed cheetah".

In the game Borderlands there is an achievement on the Xbox 360 version entitled "1.21 Gigawatts" which is a clear reference to the amount of electricity needed for the time travel.

In the game Sonic CD (4th generation iPhone/iPod Only) there is an achievement called "88 miles per hour". Sonic's way of time traveling is similar to Back to the Future.

Similarly to Sonic CD, there is a trophy for the PS3 exclusive game Ratchet and Clank (Future): a Crack in Timecalled 88 MPH, though the action for doing so is by preventing a time travel rather than travelling through time.

In Grand Theft Auto V, there are several power stations which have the label "Danger: 1.21 GW", also referring to the amount of electricity needed.

The DeLorean Time Machine appears in Ready Player One as the vehicle of the protagonist Parzival in the OASIS. Parzival uses the DeLorean to win the race that is the first challenge and then speeds through the battlefield in the car during the final battle. The DeLorean is destroyed by MechaGodzilla during the final battle.

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Ghostbuster - Ecto 1

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https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/2/10/the-cars-of-back-to-the-future-55-

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https://www.sandstoneproductions.co.uk/blogtothefuture/2021/2/19/back-to-the-future-fashion-te2yx

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Doc Browns Biography and the History of his DeLorean Time Machine

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Marty McFly Biography also featuring Biff, George, Jennifer, Loranine

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Back to the Future - How to generate 1.21 Giggawatts / Jiggawatts with Mr Fusion

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Appearances

Futurepedia has a collection of images and media related to DeLorean time machine.

Back to the Future trilogy
Back to the Future: The Story
Back to the Future: The Ride
Back to the Future (video game)
Back to the Future Part II & III
Super Back to the Future Part II
The Earth Day Special (Non-canonical appearance)
Back to the Future: The Animated Series (Note: It does not appear in the episode "A Friend In Deed", however, it is mentioned by Marty and Verne.)
Back to the Future comic series
Universal Studios: Theme Park Adventure
Back to the Future: The Card Game
The Simpsons Ride (Non-canonical appearance)
Star Trek/Legion of Super Heroes #5 (Non-canonical appearance)[2]
Back to the Future: The Game
A Million Ways to Die in the West (Non-canonical appearance)
Deer in the Headlights (Music video for artist Owl City) (Non-canonical appearance)
LEGO Dimensions (Non-canonical appearance)
Ready Player One (film) (Non-canonical appearance)
Back to the Future (IDW Publishing)
- Back to the Future: Untold Tales and Alternate Timelines
  - Issue 2: "Science Project"

Mark Elliott 02/05/2024 Mark Elliott 02/05/2024

Back to the Future Fashion

They generally had three options when they traveled from one time period to another:

They purchased and changed clothes after arriving in a new time period
They tried to find appropriate clothes for their destination before traveling
They neglected to change clothes and just endured the awkwardness of attracting attention.

Note: Outfits are described here under the time periods the clothing came from, which were not necessarily when they were worn.

Back to the Future Fashion

Outfit 1: Marty McFLY

This Marty McFly outfit is probably the most iconic of them all.

Everything from the vintage wash denim jacket and faded dad jeans, to the orange puffer vest, looks as good now as it did back in ’85.

Trainers

Denim Jacket:
Quilted Vest:
Tennis Sneakers: Nike Killshot 2 (They’re the overwhelmingly popular Nike Killshot 2 which was originally released in the ’80s and saw a surge in interest when it re-released in 2009, and subsequently in 2014 in collaboration with J.Crew)
Aviator Sunglasses: RayBan
Retro Calculator Watch: Casio

Marty

"Life preserver" First day of school in 1955

Marty wore a red and gray jacket (that he took off in the school cafeteria), white shirt with light blue rectangles, brown pants, brown loafers (slip- on shoes), and had hair tonic in his hair.

"Darth Vader"

The day of the skateboard chase – Marty wore the same red and gray jacket, this time with a black shirt with red chain link pattern, brown pants and Converse Chuck Taylor All-Star shoes.

"That zoot suit"

Marty wore a gray wool suit, a white shirt and narrow red tie, that afterwards he called a “zoot suit”. "Get yourself some 50’s clothes ... something inconspicuous!"

—Doc to Marty

Marty in his "inconspicuous" disguise.

"Something inconspicuous"– Marty chose an “inconspicuous” outfit to cover his basic outfit; he added a black felt fedora hat, black leather jacket and dark sunglasses. When Biff confronted Marty, he referred to the outfit as "that stupid disguise".
After getting to Biff's car, Marty took off his sunglasses. At the Enchantment Under the Sea dance, Biff's gang member Match wondered how he changed his clothes so fast. After being knocked down by a door as his other self ran through it, and when Biff stole back the almanac, Marty was forced to abandon the fedora, which had fallen off his head. When taking Doc back to his mansion, Marty put the jacket and Nikes by the fireplace, along with the letter, so they could dry off.

At the Delgado Mine – Marty wore the same clothes as the day of the skateboard chase, and added a tan overcoat.

Marty's 1955 western outfit

"Clint Eastwood never wore anything like this" – Doc prepared Marty to travel to 1885 with a pink and blue shirt with long, yellow fringe running along the chest, back and sleeves, under five embroidered atomic model designs on the front and back of his shoulders, a red bandana around his neck, red corduroy pants, an ornately tooled belt with golden sunburst buckle, white Nike sneakers, and carried along a white cowboy hat and boots that were too tight.

Outfit 2: Biff Tannen

Oh Biff — the mild mannered, charismatic antagonist of the Back To The Future trilogy.

Contrasting shirt tie combo, for the pants I tailored wool (herringbone) trousers. And for the shoes, black leather with white soles to complement the shade of the knit tie.

· Bomber Jacket: (alt) Grey

· Charcoal Wool Trousers

· Black Oxford Shirt

· Grey Knit Tie

· Black Minimalist Sneakers

Outfit 3: George McFly

The timid George McFly

· Harrington Jacket: ASOS

· Olive Corduroy Pants: Everlane

· Grey Oxford Shirt: Everlane

· Black Frame Eyeglasses: Warby Parker

· Navy Suede Chukka Boots: Thursday Boot Co.

Outfit 4: Emmett Lathrop ‘Doc’ Brown

Doc Brown, the effervescent inventor of the first time machine, built out of a DeLorean sports car.

Often in a state of shock and awe, Doc had some questionable outfits throughout the series.

· Khaki Trucker Jacket: Flint and Tinder (alt)

· Slim Fit Alpha Khaki: Dockers

· Stripe Polo Shirt: Amazon Essentials

· Suede Sneakers: Koio

“…your future hasn’t been written yet. No one’s has! Your future is whatever you make it. So make it a good one!”

https://www.gentlemanwithin.com/back-to-the-future-fashion/

Clothing in 1985

"C'mon, I had to change! You think I’m going back in that-- that zoot suit?"

—Marty

Basic outfit –

During most of his adventures, except when he changed clothes in 1955 and 1885, Marty wore Guess blue jeans with black 3/4" suspenders, a red t-shirt, lavender ("purple") Calvin Klein underpants, and white Nike Bruin shoes with red swoosh and backtab

(no word Nike on them until he visited 1885) with gray socks (changed to white socks when he visited 2015).

School outfit –

From Friday before school through his first day in 1955, Marty added a Guess Marciano two-tone blue denim jacket with an "Art in Revolution" button, a Fender P-Bass pin and a white checked Shah Safara shirt to his basic outfit.
He accessorized this with a Casio CA50W digital watch on his left wrist, a silver Aiwa model HS-P02 Walkman, and mirrored Zeiss aviator sunglasses with a sweatguard in the morning.
"Life preserver" – From the evening at Twin Pines Mall through his first day in 1955, Marty added a dark orange Class-5 bubble down vest to his school outfit.
Tales From Space – Doc gave Marty a yellow full-length radiation suit for protection when loading the plutonium. Due to the similarity of his outfit to that of a space alien on a comic book cover, his outfit scared the Peabody family and an elderly couple driving past Lyon Estates in 1955.
"Darth Vader" – Marty wore the yellow full-body radiation suit, a hair dryer from Doc Brown's suitcase tucked into a belt, and held his Aiwa portable stereo cassette player.

Doc Brown

"Devo outfit" – Doc wore a white full-length radiation suit, over a green print shirt, white undershirt, black pants and orange Nike Vandal high-top shoes. He also had a watch on his left arm, and digital stopwatch on a lanyard around his neck.
Train shirt – While in 2015, Doc changed back to 1985-style clothing, a yellow Hawaiian shirt with a cartoon train pattern and brown cargo pants, expecting to return Marty, Jennifer and Einstein back home right away.

Jennifer "Hey Mom, nice pants" -

Jennifer wears a blue vest over a white shirt and has pink flower pants.

Other distinctive clothing of 1985

§ Dave wore a uniform for his job as a Burger King restaurant server.

§ George owned a suede jacket.

§ Biff wore a green warm-up outfit on Saturday; a purple warm-up outfit on Sunday.

Clothing in 1955

Biff

"Biff" - On Saturday, Biff wore a red short-sleeve pullover shirt.

School - At school, Biff wore blue jeans and a shirt with a checked red and white pattern.

For the rest of the week, Biff wore a grey jacket, a white T- shirt and black pants. He added a black shirt and a white tie for the Enchantment Under the Sea dance.

Lorraine

"You’re so ... thin" –

On Saturday, November 5, Lorraine wore a pink and purple plaid dress which had a rounded collar, a matching belt around the waist, and a pink bow at the neck. She also wore white socks.

School –

At school, Lorraine wore a blue blouse with a silver brooch and a purple pencil skirt. She also wore her hair in a bun.

"I think you'd look better wearing nothing at all"

On Saturday, November 12 at Ruth's Frock Shop, Lorraine wore a pink knitted sweater, saddle shoes and a novelty black cotton giraffe-print circle skirt which Biff lifted up to expose her panties once outside the shop.

"Well, lookee what we have here"

At the Enchantment Under the Sea dance, Lorraine wore a pink strapless dress, bought with Babs at Ruth’s Frock Shop, which she covered with a white sweater. When she leaned over in the car, Biff was able to see down the front of her dress.

Doc

On Saturday evening, Doc wore a silver robe with black lapels, white shirt, and white knit tie, and dark pants. During the rest of the week, he wore a long white laboratory coat, and put on a pair of green safety goggles when demonstrating the clock tower model. The following Saturday, as he tried to connect the electrical cable, Doc was wearing shoes with Velcro closures that had not yet been invented,[5] although he might have found them in his future counterpart's suitcase.

Other distinctive clothing of 1955

§ Milton Baines wore a coonskin cap, popularized by Disney’s Davy Crockett films.

Clothing in 2015

"First, you have to get out and change clothes."

—Doc to Marty upon arrival in 2015

Doc in his 2015 yellow coat.

Doc Brown

* Marty in his future son's outfit.

"Marty, you’ve got to come back with me"

Doc appeared in Marty’s driveway wearing a long yellow coat, a red shirt with Japanese symbols (no undershirt), silver wraparound glasses with internal video display, and a plastic transparent necktie.