
Alexander Julian
3/28/2023 | 1m 39sVideo has Closed Captions
Alexander Julian designed the argyle uniforms worn by the UNC Tar Heel basketball teams.
Alexander Julian from Chapel Hill is a fashion designer who brought argyle to the University of North Carolina Tar Heel basketball uniform.
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The Uncommon Story: Notable North Carolinians is a local public television program presented by PBS NC
This series was produced with support from the NC Department of Natural & Cultural Resources.

Alexander Julian
3/28/2023 | 1m 39sVideo has Closed Captions
Alexander Julian from Chapel Hill is a fashion designer who brought argyle to the University of North Carolina Tar Heel basketball uniform.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship- [Narrator] Chapel Hill Native Alexander Julian once said about designing the Charlotte Knights baseball stadium, if you look at it from center field, it's the world's biggest shirt.
This from a man who knows a bit about designing shirts.
Born in 1948, Alexander Julian was an average kid, but with custom made suits by age five.
By the time he was in college at UNC, he had his own clothing store and by 30, he had designed his own fabric, a first in the American fashion industry.
That cloth is now at the Smithsonian.
But color is what he's most known for.
Alexander is credited with bringing color to modern American men's wear and much of his inspiration comes from nature.
He even created a nature-based line of paint for Lowe's.
Always the innovator in 1994, Alexander launched a furniture line inspired by his clothing sets.
His creations can be seen in many facets of modern culture.
He designed the original teal and purple Charlotte Hornets uniforms asking for payment in Carolina caviar.
When Hollywood came calling, he designed movie costumes and men's wear for iconic TV characters.
He even took Couture to the track for Paul Newman's race team, but getting a call from Dean Smith for the UNC Tar Heels uniform in which he used his famous Argyle pattern was the pinnacle.
Alexander stated it was like having God on the phone asking me to design new halos for the archangels.
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The Uncommon Story: Notable North Carolinians is a local public television program presented by PBS NC
This series was produced with support from the NC Department of Natural & Cultural Resources.













