When I first moved to New York in late 2009 the Hartmarx Corporation gave me a couple of private views of their advertising archives. These are the last images I was able to grab. They date from the 1950s and document the trend in menswear to the natural-shouldered look. The final document has a nice breakdown …
The Mr. Rogers film trailer has “dropped,” as the kids say. “A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood,” starring Tom Hanks as Fred Rogers, is scheduled for a Thanksgiving release. Expect a fall fashion trend of collar pins, bow ties, penny loafers and blue canvas sneakers, and cardigans (alas zippered).
This past week has been the Hall of Fame Open, a professional men’s tennis tournament at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport. Being a 250-level stop on the ATP tour, the event boasts being the only professional tournament played on grass outside of Europe. Along with the tennis, there are other events and …
The above headline is our comment of the week courtesy of “Old School Tie.” This is the energy that should course through us every time we get dressed! Let me tell you a little story. Two summers ago the small remains of my family vacationed together in Newport. I’d been there before, to attend the …
In 2009 The New York Times ran a profile on Manhattan District Attorney elect Cyrus Vance, Jr. that makes a passing reference to Brooks Brothers and Chipp. In Ivy-Style’s interview with Chipp’s Paul Winston, Vance Senior, who served as Secretary of State in the Carter administration, was mentioned as a frequent customer. Though Winston recalls making …
Recent posts have centered around film, NASA and pipesmoking. Well last night I found a little tidbit that ties them all together. I don’t have cable TV or any streaming services, so if I find myself without a DVD from Netflix, I’ll sometimes walk to my local thrift shop and “rent” a movie, just like in …
Today is the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon launch. Whenever I look back over the rapid change and technological achievements over the 20th century, the thing that stands out as the most amazing in my mind is that humans (and by that I jingoistically mean Americans) figured out how to get an airplane …
My grandfather smoked a pipe all his life, and halfway through my college years I thought, “When I’m 40, I should smoke a pipe.” Impatient by nature, the next day I went out a bought a drug-store special, some kandy-koated tobacco, and promptly roasted my tongue. But I stuck with it, and after college I worked …
Sunday is the day for making a big breakfast, such as French toast. Which rhymes with post. Because, well… Happy Bastille Day from Eric Twardzik, who wrote this poem in honor of French Ivy. * * * The French Ivy look doesn’t, exist some say It’s imagined, conjured, invented yesterday Such opinions are offered online …
I first became aware of French actor Alain Delon’s work through the Proust adaptation “Swann In Love,” opposite Jeremy Irons. Recently I watched him in “The Leopard;” it was probably my third viewing and each time the movie climbs the ranks of my all-time favorites. If you feel like an “old relic,” as our contributor …
Paris-based contributor Matthew Benz, who recently wrote about Tommy Hilfiger’s “True Prep” pop-up prep experience, sent along this scan from the Mai/Juin issue of French men’s magazine Monsieur. The copy discusses the “uniforme de WASP en vacances;” the phrase “go-to-hell” as coined by Tom Wolfe (“toujours vetu de blanc“); and “les pantalons flashys des Bostoniens… …
Hot on the well worn, suede laceup heels of our interview with Jay Walter comes an interview not with the old guard, but the new. UK-based website Permanent Style has a Q&A with two buyers from the popular Japanese brand Beams. Who knew that “French Ivy” was popular in Japan? From the interview: Is American …
Over the long weekend America celebrated its 243rd birthday. Jay Walter, who runs the made-to-measure program at J. Press’ New York store, isn’t quite that old, though he did reach the milestone age of 90 not too long ago. And he still works, Monday to Thursday, dressed impeccably and always in good spirits. Ivy Style …
Behold former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in his 1954 yearbook photo at Princeton, the year the Ivy League Look and “Princeton haircut” were to become household names across America. Rumsfeld had been third-string quarterback his freshman year. He certainly looks more like a football player in the photo above than how we thought of him during …
Tennis is not tennis. Despite having played the sport competitively for nearly ten years, I only learned this fact a little over a year ago. Tennis is actually lawn tennis, the modern predecessor of a much older game. Court tennis, as we call it here in the US, real tennis in the UK, royal tennis …
For some guys, it’s easier to find a beautiful woman than the right clothes.
Over the past year I’ve found myself increasingly frustrated with contemporary filmmaking. It’s taken a while to put my finger on exactly what the problem is. Obviously the shaky camera used in things like the Jason Bourne movies is an an annoying means of creating tension. Hitchcock never needed that. Quick edits are also part …
Students in science and technology today aren’t exactly known for their style (then again, what students are?) But in 1956, MIT’s graduating class of 900 was better dressed than just about any random group of 900 people you could find anywhere today. There are also some real characters in there. Perhaps you need the poster …
A reader sent in this 1982 Playboy interview with William F. Buckley, in which WFB confesses to being an unimaginative dresser stuck in Ivy League mode. He also notes that his political foes tend to be tweedier and drive Volvos.