Let's Talk Clothes by Dino Orlando
Interview with Frank Zappa, 1972
Page Three
DINO: Frank, you were doing outrageous things before Alice Cooper even started. What do you think of his gig?FRANK: If he wants to do outrageous things, let him do it.
Do you think it's pertinent to his music?
Yes, definitely.
Well, it isn't pretty from a fashion point of view, but it's striking. It's gotten a lot of artists wearing makeup.
I don't. Not that I wouldn't. But fuck it. It's a waste of time putting on makeup. I'll wait until men start wearing bras.
Did you shorten your hair?
Yes. I had to.
Is there a reason why you wear your hair at this length? Do you think it's becoming?
Well my hair was a lot longer before. I wouldn't bother to cut it; but when I would eat, it would hang down and get in my mouth. so I started tying it back. It looked shorter, so I figured I might as well cut it to somewhere in between.
But you're not going to cut it any shorter.
I may get it trimmed, it's getting in my mouth now.
Kids are cutting their hair short, do you like that?
That's their business; it's their hair.
But do you like it better? I'm still talking about the changes. Long hair started off as a rebellion against something. So I guess the new change has got to be short hair, if they want to rebel about something else.
So they'll have space hair or Saran-wrapped wigs.
Nylon.
Nylon stockings with talcum powder. The leper look.
You know something, I have a funny feeling you're going to come out with some very strange things in the near future.
Don't kid yourself. Here it is ladies and gentlemen.. . my look!
I have some more questions. Are your everyday pants flared or straight legged, when you're not wearing jeans, that is?
Well I had to have some wide pants in order to get the leg over this brace. I had to cut these Levis for the same reason.
Are clothes just functional to you?
Yes. Tell you what I look for in a pair of pants I don't want to squash my balls when I'm sitting down.
Like those English pants?
Yes, those can get painful.
I know. All those English guys are wearing their pants so tight that I look at them and wonder how they sit down.
They can't.
You mean it's difficult. It looks like the tightness just happens, but that's not true. There are a lot of secrets to cutting those pants to make them look right. The English are always up to some tricks as far as dressing is concerned.
What else is there to do over there?
I interviewed Marc Bolan last week. Of course he is the extreme opposite of you as far as fashion goes. He went through four changes during the interview. I sort of liked that. But that's why I wanted to talk to you, I figured you wouldn't do four changes.
No, Dino, I won't do four changes.
Incidentally, what is your favorite color? I read somewhere it's Naples yellow. Was that a put on?
No, no. Naples yellow is a very nice color, But I seldom have clothes in that color-they just don't make them.
Do you wear any special color?
Mostly purple. I probably have more purple clothes than anything else.
Frank, you're Sicilian, why would you like Naples yellow?
Well, Naples yellow is a kind of paint color that they have in a lot of kitchens.
Italian kitchens?
All kinds of kitchens. It starts white, then it gets greasy and becomes vellow.