Eddie Ramirez

The zoot suiters, let's say were like, we could use the word loosely gang here, right? And gang doesn't mean they were out fighting with anybody. It means that they all lived in the same community and they grew up together and they socialized with one another. They'd go to dances together, at times they'd fight one another, over some girl, you know. So they were just like any other young men.

So they were dressed like you and I dress, but then they decided to go for the zoot suits, and that's what changed everything. A lot of them were tailor made at Murray's Clothing Store - that was the name of it, Murray's, it was on Sixth and Main I think.

They took a lot of pride in dancing. I used to go to their dances, but I never dated a girl, never. At Roosevelt High School didn't go to any proms, at U.S.C. I didn't go to any proms. I never had a girlfriend because I loved my studies. But I loved to listen to music, so I'd go to the Sons of Herman - that was the name of where they'd have their dances, the so-called zoot suiters, and I would go and stand on the sideline and just watch them dance and listen to the beautiful music.

Oh let me tell you, I went with my friends to the Hollywood Palladium, but we couldn't afford to take a girl. They used to charge like twenty-five cents or fifty cents. We'd go by ourselves and go to the floor stand, way in front, and just listen to the music. Frank Sinatra, Ray Ebberly, Glenn Miller.