Converse Chuck 70 Low 'Retro Letterman'
Colorway: White/Converse Blue · Style code: 161734C · Release date: June 10, 2019 · Price: $2682 · Availability: Available now
More colorways: Converse Chuck 70 Low 'Beige' (A02554C) · Converse Chuck 70 Low 'Papyrus' (172680C) · Converse Chuck 70 Low 'Stars' (A11612C) · Converse Chuck 70 Low 'Sunday' (A03752C) · Converse Chuck 70 Low 'Flames' (165029C)
Letterman styling is borrowed clothing for a Chuck, but the borrowing runs both ways. The All Star started as a basketball shoe in 1917, sold under the name Non-Skids, and was redesigned in 1922. Chuck Taylor, a semi-professional player, joined Converse as a salesman in 1921, influenced the design within a year, and by 1932 had his signature on the ankle patch. School and college sport is where the shoe actually lived.
This low-top plays that back as colour rather than nostalgia. The upper is white canvas with Converse blue at the trim, a two-tone scheme lifted from varsity kit, and the blue carries onto the collar and the patch. Underneath it is the 1970s specification the 70 line was built to revive: heavier canvas than a standard All Star, a glossy midsole with the foxing tape climbing higher, a one-piece rubber outsole rather than a three-piece one, and an OrthoLite footbed. It sold for 90 dollars on 10 June 2019.