MARCIA STRASSMAN

When I was a kid, I watched "Welcome Back, Kotter" religiously. Both of my parents were teachers, and I daydreamed that their classrooms were populated with sass-talking characters like Horseshack, Epstein and Vinnie Barbarino. But for me, the real star of the show was Kotter's wife, Julie. She was supposed to be a bookish, pragmatic tomboy - even a bit of a buzzkill, but I always thought she was darling. Even her giant glasses couldn't hide her adorablenesss.

Exhibit A:

This is the look that many of my customers are going for: oversized men's shirts and cardigans, vintage eyewear and gold necklaces. Julie Kotter could walk down the streets of Portland today and no one would bat an eye.

Exhibit B:

Before she was an actress, Strassman was a recording artist. She released a single called "Flower Children" in 1967. This is the B-side for that 45, called "Out of the Picture." Her music wasn't ground-breaking, but she was certainly cute as a button. I always envy girls who can pull off this pixie cut.

 
Exhibit C:

No one rocked jewelry over the turtleneck like Marcia.
The bellbottoms are pretty sweet, too.

Exhibit D:

Another great example of men's clothing worn in an ultimately feminine fashion. (How amazing would it be to have your own trading card, by the way?)

And lastly, Exhibit E:

I miss the wash-and-go days of old, when we could still run our fingers through our product-free hair. While Aqua Net was all the rage in those days, my guess is that she's not wearing a lick of hairspray on those curls...