David Starsky of the popular series Starsky & Hutch was not only a hardened detective, but also a pioneer in fashion. In the 70s, Starsky turned the adidas Originals SL 72 into the sneaker of desire. The sneaker in the blue Colorway and three stripes became a trademark of the Starsky figure. About 50 years later, Adidas brought back the iconic silhouette. As if that wasn’t enough, the retro comes in the same Colorway as the series. Reason enough for us to celebrate the sneaker’s comeback with a little clip in honour of the detectives.
As in the series, we procured the ’75 Ford Gran Torino and had the AFEW detectives search for smugglers at Düsseldorf harbour.
From the podium to the street
The vintage sneaker is light, sporty and elegant. As the number in the model name indicates, the sneaker was released in 1972 on the occasion of the Olympic Games in Munich. Although the SL 72 looks like a runner, the sneaker was primarily designed for leisure use. So the German athletes wore the sneaker at the Olympics in their leisure time and especially to the award ceremonies. As the TV recordings often showed the athletes in the long shot, the adidas Originals SL 72 quickly caught the eye of the spectators. That’s why the SL 72 also became known as the podium sneaker.
But the big hype was triggered, as already mentioned, by the US series Starsky & Hutch. Over four seasons, the protagonist Starsky was seen again and again in the SL 72 and sometimes also in the SL 76. The adidas Originals SL 72 hype generally strengthened the Adidas brand in the 70s. But the peak of the Adidas hype was to come in the 80s with the Adidas Superstar.
