The stereotype I'm talking about is this. It looks to me like the clothing points to the 1970s (possibly blaxploitation films?). Was there a particular historical person, character, movement, or something that contributed to this widespread image of the pimp?
I don't know much about this specifically, but as a librarian I can offer you a great resource. There are a series of books by Iceberg Slim, who offered the world the first look into the life of the a pimp. His first book Pimp: The Story of my Life was a game changing expose about the industry, culture and underbelly of that walk of life.
This is more of an added question rather than an answer, but is there a link to the Zoot Suit Riots and Zoot Suit Culture of the WWII era? A professor I had during an undergrad course in Latino/Chicano culture thought so but hadn't done the research. A search brings up many images that seem to draw in at least some of the markers of the pimp suit that you linked. I am interested to hear if this can be verified or debunked. Great question!
