The Lacoste sports shirt, made of cotton pique and bearing a logo of an alligator, was named for its creator, tennis pro Rene "The Crocodile" Lacoste. The shirt was worn as a fashion statement in the early 1980s by those sporting the "Preppy" look, which sought to duplicate the style favored by those attending the Ivy-league schools of the East Coast. In the early 1990s, Lacoste shirts enjoyed a brief resurgence of popularity among those who wished to satirize the fashion.

Further Reading:

Flippin, Royce. Save an Alligator, Shoot a Preppy. New York, Visual Library, 1981.

Hartmann, Lisa. The Preppy Handbook. New York, Workman Publishing, 1980.