Freddie Mercury's off stage t-shirts and vests including a 'Gold's Gym Covent Garden' vest, mid-1980s

Freddie Mercury’s off stage t-shirts and vests including a 'Gold's Gym Covent Garden' vest

A royal blue cotton t-shirt printed with yellow lettering ‘Gold’s Gym Covent Garden London’ and in white with a caricature of a weightlifter, labelled inside ‘Gold’s Merchandise’; and

- a plain orange ribbed cotton vest with white stitching trim; and

- a white cotton vest with ‘ECMC (MSC) Berlin’ lettering printed in black and red and an image of a motorbike, labelled inside ‘ESGE; and

- a white ribbed cotton vest with ‘Market Tavern’ lettering printed in black and an image of the rear view of a naked male torso, labelled inside ‘Hanes’; and

- a reversible padded bomber jacket, one side black satin, the other bright orange nylon, with black knitted collar, cuffs and hem, zip-fastening to front, black side with two press stud fastening pockets, and zip pocket to left arm, unlabelled

(qty 5)

A fluorescent yellow lined version of this bomber jacket is included in lot 2195, Freddie is seen wearing this yellow lined version in lot 60. A photo of Freddie wearing an identical orange vest whilst larking about in an upside down ballet hold features in Peter Freestone’s memoir ‘Freddie Mercury’.

Gold’s Gym opened by Jim Gold at Venice Beach, California in 1965 was the first specialist health club of its time. It became known as "The Mecca of Bodybuilding" attracting clients such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and the world’s top body builders. In 1977 it secured its iconic status as the world’s most famous gym and centre for the culture of bodybuilding and physique in general when it featured as the primary location for the film ‘Pumping Iron’. Since then it has counted many notable Hollywood stars and famous sporting celebrities amongst its clientele. One of the first of its kind to start a franchise in 1980, Gold’s Gym is still revered as a remarkable pioneer of the global health and fitness industry.

LITERATURE

‘Freddie Mercury’, Peter Freestone with David Evans, Omnibus Press, 2009, illus. between pp.192 and 193