When trends turn tragic.
Hulu’s upcoming true-crime series,The Curse of Von Dutch:A Brand to Die For, explores the rise and fall of the iconic Y2K fashion brand known for its trucker hats and A-listers who deemed them cool.
AlthoughVoguethinks of trucker hats as “one of the biggest tacky-chic accessories of the era,” the outlet also considers Von Dutch “theIt label of the time period.”
Hulu’s character-driven saga chronicles the true story behind the Von Dutch brand while exploring the complexity of company control and controversy in a three-part docuseries premiering on Nov. 18. Venice Beach surfers, European fashionistas, gangsters, and Hollywood movers and shakers vied to gain ownership, while the brand’s trucker-hat product transformed from an obscure fashion accessory to a popular fashion necessity among consumers and celebrities in the 2000s.
Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images; James Devaney/WireImage; Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images
“They didn’t know how to run a business,” an insider notes in the trailer. “It was really a facade.”
“Stores were opened, including one on Melrose Avenue, and there was plenty of infighting between the owners before the brand would fall into oblivion and eventually be sold to a European shoe distributor,” wroteDeadline.
Courtesy of Hulu
Keep scrolling for everything we know about the Hulu series that’s going beyond the glam to reveal the true-crime aspects of the brand that rose quickly, and fell just as fast.
What case doesThe Curse of Von Dutchintend on uncovering?
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The biggest problem the company faced? One of its co-founders was charged with first-degree murder. In addition to murder, money, madness, and mysteries, the series dives deep into the origins of the Von Dutch clothing line, in which three different individuals claim to have created it: Ed Boswell, Vaughn, and Cassel. Although Howard’s daughter sold the name to Vaughn and Cassel following his death in 1992, Boswell, an L.A. art dealer, confidently believes that he officially created the legendary brand. “Don’t tell people that you created the Von Dutch clothing line,” he states in the trailer. “Tell them what really happened.”
The trailer explains how the company was “always hard to control,” between fist fights and the three butting heads. “For the right money, people will do anything,” one person notes in the preview.
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Who will be inThe Curse of Von Dutch?
The three men who each claim to have created Von Dutch – Boswell, Vaughn, and Cassel – will all tell their side of the story in the series. Danish entrepreneur and creative Tony Sorensen, who was best known for his successful commercialization of the brand, will speak out as well.
Courtesy of Hulu (4)
Celebrities who favored the brand such as Paris Hilton andDennis Rodmanalso appear as talking heads. “Von Dutch was iconic for Y2K fashion,” says Hilton in the preview. “Trucker caps, jeans, jacket… that was like our uniform basically.”
J. Vespa/WireImage
What will eachThe Curse of Von Dutchepisode be about?
The first episode is titled, “Who Created Von Dutch?” Deep diving into the origin of the Von Dutch brand, the episode will explore the relationship between a cocaine kingpin and a fledgling gangster as they set out to launch the classic brand.
The second episode, titled “The Art Of War,” explains the onset of Von Dutch’s downward spiral when a new investor is introduced to the company – with that brings about creative tension, a series of terminations, and murderous actions.
The third episode, titled “Von Douche,” illustrates the Von Dutch brand spiraling out of control as former partners work to sabotage the company and destroy their reputation in the fashion industry.
While in New York, he was arrested for possession of an unregistered handgun. He “pleaded guilty to a felony gun charge and was sentenced to five years probation,” according to theNew York Times. In an effort to turn his life around, Vaughn discovered the waves at Rockaway and felt “reborn” through surfing.
source: people.com
