Johnny Cash was known as the Man in Black and choreographer James Kudelka has borrowed that handle for his dance tribute set to the late country singer's music that is being performed this weekend by Atlanta Ballet.
Cash's monotonality ran against the currents of the time in a Nashville swept up with flashy, rhinestone-studded suits designed by Nudie and his imitators. But then the singer cultivated an outlaw image before it was cool, recording two popular live albums in big houses -- "Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison" (1968) and "Johnny Cash at San Quentin" (1969) -- and black fit his rebellious spirit.
In 1971, he even released the song "Man in Black," an intense piece of Vietnam-era social protest, which explained his sartorial tastes thusly: "I wear it for the sick and lonely old/ For the reckless ones whose bad trip left them cold,/ I wear the black in mournin’ for the lives that could have been,/ Each week we lose a hundred fine young men."
Cash, of course, isn't the only man who's dressed in darkness. Here's a glance at a few others known for all-black fashion statements:
Zorro: The masked, sword-wielding antihero made it a point to dress darkly, often saving his most acrobatic exploits for the pitch black.
Jerry Glanville: The former Atlanta Falcons' coach (1990-93) cultivated a bad-boy, James Dean image in his "Rebel Without a Cause" mode.
Kinky Friedman: The singer-novelist who threw a black hat into the Texas governor's race against Rick Perry now endorses Man in Black Tequila.
Dracula: As a vampire who hung out around graveyards, Bram Stoker's creation wouldn't have looked right in, say, yellow.
Gary Player: Inspired by the black-clad gunslinger Paladin on the TV series "Have Gun, Will Travel," the brash South African golfer became "The Black Knight."
DANCE
“The Man in Black”
Performed by Atlanta Ballet, on a program with "1st Flash" and "Moments of Dis." 8 p.m. Friday, March 23; 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday. $20-$120. Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, 2800 Cobb Galleria Parkway. 404-817-8700, www.atlantaballet.com .
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