Created by
Alba, American
Worn by
Waithe, Lena, American, born 1984
Subject of
National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, American, founded 1955
Date
2017
Medium
cotton (textile) and polyester with plastic buttons (fasteners) , cloth and trimming (material)
Dimensions
L x W (Jacket): 29 15/16 × 21 1/16 in. (76.1 × 53.5 cm)
Chest: 21 1/16 in. (53.5 cm)
L x W (Sleeve): 23 1/4 × 9 1/16 in. (59 × 23 cm)
Waist: 17 15/16 in. (45.5 cm)
Caption
Lena Waithe is an American actress, producer, and screenwriter known for her supporting role and writing credits in the Netflix series Master of None (2015) and her original Showtime show The Chi. Waithe, a gay African American woman, used her own coming out story as the inspiration for the acclaimed Master of None "Thanksgiving" episode she wrote and starred in. Waithe wore this custom designed suit to the Primetime Emmy Awards in 2017, where she and Master of None creator Aziz Ansari won for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series. Waithe became the first African American woman to win the award. During her acceptance speech, she sent a special message to the LGTBQ community by stating, "Things that make us different - those are our superpowers."
Description
A white tuxedo shirt, part of a three-piece suit made by Jhoanna Alba for Lena Waithe and worn by Waithe to the 2017 Emmy Awards ceremony. The long sleeve shirt is constructed of a micro-waffle white cotton, with black cotton trim from collar to hem, and plastic gold and black buttons. Both sleeves feature plastic black and gold buttons at the wrists and forearms. The interior, at the bottom of the neck, has a sewn-in black and grey fabric tag, [ALBA]. The hem is constructed and sewn on a curve.
Place used
Los Angeles, California, United States, North and Central America
Classification
Clothing - Costume
Type
tuxedoes
dress shirts
Topic
Actors
Clothing and dress
Comedy
Design
Fashion design
LGBTQ
Television
Women
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Lena Waithe
Object number
2019.1.3
Restrictions & Rights
© Alba
Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd5b8bd92be-0647-40dc-8bbc-b35638b844d3

Cataloging is an ongoing process and we may update this record as we conduct additional research and review. If you have more information about this object, please contact us at NMAAHCDigiTeam@si.edu

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