In the sneaker world, there are a few shoes that stand the test of time. The ones that rise above the noise and become true classics, from a quick trend to a staple. In order for a shoe to have paramount success, it not only needs to be adopted by sneaker enthusiasts but also the general public. A perfect example of such a sneaker is the iconic and infamous Nike Cortez. That's right, Rato, the most gangster shoe of all time.
The Nike Cortez reaches all the way back to the mid-1960s, way before the shoe became closely associated with LA gang culture, and way before Nike was even Nike. The company's name was still Blue Ribbon Sports, or simply BRS. BRS operated as a US distribution company for the Japanese brand Onitsuka Tiger, a brand we know today as ASICS. In 1966, legendary Oregon track and field coach Bill Bowerman, together with Onitsuka Tiger, designed the predecessor to the Cortez. The shoe was called the TG24.
In 1967, Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight decided to change the model name to the Tiger Mexico. You might be thinking to yourself, "Why the hell would they call a shoe made in Japan for American consumers 'Mexico'?" Well, the change in name was motivated by the upcoming 1968 Olympic Games, which were being hosted in Mexico. Bill and Phil thought the name to be more market-friendly. Thankfully, there were disagreements between BRS and Onitsuka Tiger regarding the new name. With the Olympic Games fast approaching, they decided to settle on the name "Aztec," inspired by Mexican history and the Aztec Empire. Hold on just a minute though, they changed the name again. Turns out, a German sports company by the name of Adidas had some beef with the name. It appears that using the Aztec moniker on a running shoe was too close to the Adidas Azteca Gold track shoe. Finally, Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight decided to call the shoe the Cortez, inspired by the Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes, who in the 1500s defeated the Aztecs in the march on the Noctitlan.
The shoe was received well by serious athletes, and more importantly, the shoe was a hit with casual runners, also known as the jogging movement, a movement that Bill Bowerman helped create. It was the number one best-selling shoe in the history of BRS and Onitsuka Tiger. But behind the scenes, Blue Ribbon Sports and Onitsuka's partnership was deteriorating. In 1971, Blue Ribbon Sports officially changed their name to Nike, and by 1972, Nike broke off all ties with Onitsuka Tiger. So, who got to keep the rights to the Cortez? Well, it was decided that both companies could use the shoe style, but only Nike got to use the name Cortez.
Thanks to the shoe's massive success, Nike was on the forefront of sporting goods for the first time. This gave the company an immense opportunity to establish themselves as a legitimate brand. The original model for the shoe was in white leather. It had a red swoosh and a blue line in the midsole. A few years later, Nike released a women's version of the shoe. It was called the Senorita Cortez. One day, a pair of the Senorita Cortez arrived for the Hollywood actress Farah Fawcett, and she wore them in an episode of Charlie's Angels.
