How to Spot Old School Jack Purcell - the differences

I've been running into some old school Jack Purcell's recently and I wanted to provide some information that I've been able to ascertain about the differences between the old and the new. There was a clear dividing line between the old and new era of Jack Purcell. While the basic framework of the shoe 'look' has been consistent for decades (thus some of its appeal), upon close inspection there are clear design changes to the base sneaker.

The two basic changes are the 'top-down' shape profile and significant minor changes to the toe area.

First off, the toe. If you look at the picture above, you'll notice that the old school toe (the shoe to the rear on the right) is much shallower. The toe piece above the signature smiley face wraps back to form the toe. The old school Jack's barely lip over the top, forming a more utilitarian toe wrap. The new era Jack's lip over much deeper, forming a larger more distinctive toe.

The new era Jack's also take that bigger toe piece and wraps it around the side of the shoe almost 1/3 of the way down the length of the sneaker. On the old school Jacks, the toe piece ends right at the front of the shoe. The difference is that the old school Jacks have a more pointy toe (below right).

The smiley face on the old school Jacks (below left) is much thicker in the 'corners of the mouth meaning the the smiley face is much deeper.


Secondly, the downward viewing profile is much different. Look at the picture below. The new era Jacks (lower right) have a simple 'pill shape' profile. Round toe, straight sides, rounded heel.

The old school Jacks have a more tapered look. Notice the pointy toe (lower left) and how the shoe narrows as it gets closer to the heel. This design gives the sneaker a somewhat jarring profile as the 'ball of the foot' sticks out noticeably compared to the rest of the shoe.

The old school Jack has a taller sole which gives it a higher profile than the new eras.
Next time someone drags out an old box and claims they are twenty year old mint Jack Purcell's, look at the toe! Look at the profile!