The North Hollywood shootout of 1997 captured America's attention for all the wrong reasons. When two heavily armed men attempted to rob a Bank of America, the resulting firefight became one of the most televised shootouts in American history. LAPD was so under-prepared that officers had to visit local gun stores during the firefight to acquire adequate weapons.
The Pemulis Loss Prevention shirt draws on this moment of spectacular failure and recovery. A retail operation dedicated to preventing loss during a moment when an entire police force failed to prevent loss. The irony is intentional.
Michael Mann's Heat (1995) had already aestheticized bank robbery. DeNiro's character understood heist culture as a philosophical problem. When real heists happened, they seemed to follow Mann's script. The Pemulis shirt commodifies this aesthetic moment: when American retail understood itself through the lens of crime cinema.
Bootleg variants of this design circulated through underground streetwear communities in the early 2000s, reinterpreting the original's dark humor through punk and hip-hop aesthetics. This version represents that parallel interpretation.
Related Reading
- Vacation Inc at Pemulis: The Seven-Item Sun Kit We Actually Stock
- Miyazaki Didn't Attend the Oscars Because of the Iraq War. Then His Film Won.
- Ozzy Osbourne Has Been a T-Shirt Longer Than He Was a Rock Star
Browse the full vintage tee collection at Pemulis Water & Power.