Folks, we have a problem on the show tonight.
Our writers spent all week making up reasons Abraham Lincoln would take up the electric guitar. Then research looked into the real Lincoln, and the real one was stranger. He held a patent. He wrestled. And when a reporter asked his wife about his hobbies, she needed exactly one word.
So tonight the cards have help. Anything research could prove gets this stamp True and everything else, we made up.
Cards, please.
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Rock stars are the only grown men allowed to keep a hat on indoors.
(Check the shirt. Hat's off anyway. Old habits.)
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He's on the five-dollar bill. That's what the bar pays the band.
TrueLincoln has been on the $5 Federal Reserve note since the first one, in 1914.
(Split four ways.)
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Somebody told him to find a quieter hobby than wrestling. He misheard.
TrueLincoln was a well-known frontier wrestler, with “only one recorded defeat in a dozen years.” The National Wrestling Hall of Fame honored him in 1992.
(Nobody ever asked him to turn it down. Not once.)
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There's always one guy who brings a guitar to the cookout. He wanted to be that guy.
(He's still tuning. Somebody save him a burger.)
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He already had a name for the first album.
TrueHe is the only U.S. president to hold a patent. It's No. 6,469, from 1849, titled “Buoying Vessels Over Shoals.” It was never built.
(Side two is just a boat getting stuck.)
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That hat was going to make a terrific tip jar.
TrueHe used his hat as a briefcase. In an 1850 letter he wrote that he put a letter in his old hat, bought a new hat the next day, and so the letter was “lost sight of for a time.”
(Count the tips before he buys a new hat.)
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He needed a hobby his wife could describe in more than one word.
TrueA reporter asked Mrs. Lincoln what her husband's hobbies were. She answered in one word. “Cats.”
(The guitar was his shot at word number two.)
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He had the qualifications.
TrueLincoln could neither sing nor read music. He “loved music with a passion” anyway.
(Can't sing, can't read music. In most bands, that's the lead guitar player.)
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He'd already done a seven-town tour.
TrueIn 1858 he did seven debates in seven Illinois towns. One man opened for an hour. The other answered for an hour and a half. Then the first came back for thirty more minutes.
(Opening act. Headliner. Encore. Three hours a night, and nobody sold a single T‑shirt.)
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And the number one reason
He takes requests.
TrueIn October 1860, an 11-year-old girl wrote to tell him he would look better with whiskers. He wrote her back and promised nothing. Then he grew the beard.
(Go ahead. Yell for one more.)
He had the beard, the vest and the stare. All he was missing was the guitar.
So we drew him one
- The beard A fan request. See reason 1.
- The vest His own.
- The guitar Our idea.
The Lincoln Guitar tee is a detailed woodcut-style illustration of Abraham Lincoln, seated in his vest and shirtsleeves, playing an electric guitar. Cream ink, no words. It's printed on an ultra-soft Gildan Softstyle tee after you order it.
Six colors: Black, Charcoal, Heather Navy, Military Green, Navy and Royal. The cream ink only works on dark shirts, so there's no white one.
18,000+ sold. One of our best sellers ever.
$29.99 $39.99
Tonight's mail
From 1833 to 1836 Lincoln was the postmaster of New Salem, Illinois. He sometimes walked several miles to hand-deliver an important letter.
Ours arrived the modern way. Real customers, their own photos, their exact words. Nobody on this part of the page was made up.
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“...wore it for this gig. Got a lot of attention and positive comments on the shirt... Too much fun!”
Kenneth S. -
“Happy with the shirt. Soft as advertised and it invokes many comments. Most people don’t know that Abe could shred.”
Douglas E. -
“Love this shirt. Wear it proudly here in the ‘land of Lincoln’ (Illinois).”
Martin V. -
“Quality is good... Shirt print is a terrific and detailed design.”
Karen S. -
“...nice Fabric and has comfortable neck fit. A new favorite.”
Stephen K. -
And the last word goes to the mail carrier.
“I love this shirt almost as much as I love Abraham Lincoln. If you're thinking about buying one then stop thinking and start doing….you won't regret it. I'm a mailman, you can trust me!”
Andrew S.
18,000+ sold 18,000+ reviews across our store 150,000+ Happy Rock Stars
Buying it for him?
“The old boy is rocking his new t shirt. Loves music and history. Not sure which one more.”
Jan P.If he loves music, history or both, this shirt covers it. And the next time somebody asks about his hobbies, he can point at his shirt.
The gift-safe size swap
- Order between Oct 5 and Dec 24, 2026.
- Wrong size? Swap it free until Jan 31, 2027.
- We send the right size. He keeps the first one.
Send him the Lincoln Guitar tee
“...I ordered this for my husband for our anniversary (we were both roadies for bands in the 80s and I knew he would love it)... got a small- no problem, they said when I wrote! They sent me a large and told me to just keep the small, which we gave to our nephew. Now they wear them together!”
Susie F.
The honest part
“Cool shirt. Would like it to be a little heavier duty.”
John W., four stars
Fair. It's a lightweight tee, soft and thin, good for warm days and for layering. If he wants a heavy winter shirt, this one won't be it.
Fit is unisex, S to 3XL. Reviews say it runs small about twice as often as it runs large, older buyers most, and plenty of people say true to size. Between sizes? Go up one.
The part with no jokes in it
| S to XL | $29.99 |
|---|---|
| 2XL | $31.99 |
| 3XL | $33.99 |
- Colors
- Black, Charcoal, Heather Navy, Military Green, Navy, Royal.
- Guarantee
- 30 days, any reason, your money back. You keep the shirt. Less than 1% of customers ever use it.
- Size swap
- Orders placed Oct 5 to Dec 24, 2026 can swap sizes free until Jan 31, 2027. Other orders get a free size swap within 30 days.
- Shipping
- $4.87. Free on US orders of $75 and up.
- Timing
- Printed after you order. Production usually takes 2 to 5 business days, then US shipping takes 2 to 5 business days.
(Nobody walks it over. Research asked.)
Questions from the audience
So did Lincoln really play the electric guitar?
No. It came along decades after him (see the word from research above). The facts stamped TRUE are real history. The reasons are jokes.
Is it too silly for a grown man to wear?
It's a detailed woodcut-style drawing, and our customers wear it to gigs, restaurants and concerts. One of them, David H., put it this way: “I wore it to a concert last week and it was appropriately admired many times.”